Friday, April 11, 2008

Passing

It's out there now. Andy Knight died in Paris. It's still hard to believe and I'm still trying to grasp it . Though I worked on a lot of his stuff I cannot say I knew him well. He was this super talented mystery really and I regret that . I had an apology to make I think and , I never really got to say it. Most of our working together was on long distance projects, Asterix or commercials and that is hard because you are under such terrific pressure . Even so I think he was one of the best , if not the best board artist I have ever known and I know he was just a terrific person . He did many things , directed , designed , storyboards , layout , produced and owned his amazing company Red Rover with his beautiful wife and partner Linzi . His talent was not lost with his incredible diversity , he was good at it all . Our sympathies, Wendy's and mine , to his family and his real friends .

A wonderful tribute to Andy is here at Amid And Jerry's terrific Cartoon Brew

  • Cartoon Brews Andy Knight Article


  • Fund memories follow by so many people I know like Claude Chiasson ,Robin Budd , Pascal Blais , Ian Hastings , Jamie Oliff , Greg Tiernan ,Paul Bolger , Dino Athanassiou and Kaj Pindal. And of course super animator Ken Duncan's blog on Andy , his co-worker (Asterix in Britain) .

  • Ken Duncans Blog about Andy
  • 13 comments:

    Rich Dannys said...

    Like you, I never really felt that I could call him a friend.. And I was seated directly next to him, while working on 'The RIPPING FRIENDS' series, at Andy's studio: 'Red Rover'..
    He struck me as a bit shy & quiet. A private person, that was a great conversationalist, once you got him started. But, he wouldn't necessarily initiate it.

    His talent was unbelievable.. He could draw circles around everyone. But what impressed me the most, was his loyalty to the artists he hired.. And that he sat "in the trenches" with the rest of us. Rather than sequestering himself away, in his own office.
    Seemed like he modelled his studio space after the early New York studios.. Simple desktop Animation Tables set in rows, facing each other..
    A more comfortable working environment, I don't think I've had!

    On the walls at 'Red Rover' were tons of Cel Setups from past successes.. I remember the 2-D 'Tank Girl' sequences, particularly..
    When Spumco was late in providing us detailled Model Sheets,-- I recall a sheet that Andy drew up.. Essentially just "feeling out" what the characters might look like, in different emotional states, etc. I'm gonna try and find it & post it on my Blog. It was NOT at all Spumco.. Much more classical-looking, but really really good!

    His Commercial demo reel, was always awe-inspiring.. He seemed like a guy that was always focussed on doing Quality over Quantity. And I know he turned down a number of Jobs, due to poor budgets & scheduling..

    I'm staggered he's dead at 46. I'll be 46 in December. So, it gives you a sense of your own mortality.. Though to be fair, Andy smoked like a chimney. And was often the first person I'd see (outside) downstairs, when I went into work each day..
    He'll be missed, most definitely.

    TotalD said...

    Thank you so much Rich, that was beautifully written. Yeah , he could draw circles around anyone, and I mean anyone . I look foward to the tank girl sheets.

    Mella said...

    He was a great!
    Marco M.

    the doodlers said...

    Hi D,

    I'm taking some time to digest this awful news after reading your blog post yesterday. Shocking and sad.

    Andy was a standout from the start, straight from Sheridan College in the 80's. He drew so well; did some achingly beautiful storyboard work on the Inspector Gadget series (often teamed with Dave Smith). I guess I had the honour of being his first boss at Nelvana, though he was already at a level where he didn't need direction.

    We haven't kept close contact but saw each other socially. I remember him bouncing up to me at a party and telling me he'd just sold a show...he was jubilant.

    Andy often had a sly smile on his face. Things were always going on in there. He was light on the surface with incredible depth. And he made us all jealous with the speed at which he worked. But then you'd feel ashamed to be jealous since his stuff was so exceptionally good that he deserved all the credit.

    Since his return to Toronto, Andy's been a force in the animation community in Toronto creating RedRover Studio. It's a terrible shame that he's gone.

    Lucas Gonzaga said...

    a big lost. his works inspires us a lot!

    I´m here also because I enjoy your work. Really beautifull, I love it.

    May I link your blog into mine? take a look later (www.lucasgonzaga.blogspot.com / www.duostudio.com.br)

    Cheers.

    Lucas

    TotalD said...

    Of course you can Lucas. I like your blog too.

    Willy Ashworth said...

    Stunning news.

    I was told last Friday and was overwhelmed with grief, but not because I really new Andy.

    I'm thinking of his family and friends right now. The heart aches for them at his time.

    We were ships passing in the night over the years, but he always had time to talk to me, and was always very encouraging to me.

    We first met 'boarding on Gadget, I do believe, and we kept bumping into each other. I remember sitting next to him at a Bluth interview, many years ago and what I gleaned from him that day will forever remain private and very special. We talked for a good hour about animation and life, and
    I've always remembered with fondness his advice and the all the great stories.

    I've never met anyone in this biz as slyly confident as Andy. It's been perceived as arrogance by some, but they've all misunderstood I believe.

    Like Rich, I to was impressed with his studio, the set-up, and his relationship with his staff, and although I never worked with Andy at Red Rover, I visited often to see friends there, and he always came over to say hello, and shake my hand.

    He gave a friend of mine who I was mentoring at the time his first start in the biz. My friend stayed at Red Rover for 5 years, and Andy was huge in my friends' life in many ways.

    A classy guy I always thought.

    Rest in peace Andy, and may his family and friends find the strength to see them through these troubled days.

    David said...

    Oh, what a week ... :-(

    We lost Andy Knight and Ollie Johnston. (and a few weeks previous a young , full-of-promise story artist at Pixar named Justin Wright) .

    Ollie was full of years and his passing is sad , but also a victory celebration of a full life . I never knew Andy , but all I've heard about him makes my heart heavy with grief that he would pass so soon (and oh, Good Lord ! I'm 46 , like Andy ... we just never know when our time is up . 46 like Andy or 95 like Ollie or 27 like Justin Wright.... Every day is precious, every day we have is a miracle . )

    My condolences to Andy's family and friends .

    TotalD said...

    We also lost the incredible Dave Stevens to Leukemia on March 10th. I found this out from Rich Dannys blog :

    http://wangdangdoodles.blogspot.com/2008/03/weht-dave-stevens.html

    It has been a crushing year in that sense . I know you would have liked Andy Dave , he was pretty impossible not to like . To those who haven't been to Amid and Jerrys terrific cartoon site you will find a tribute to Ollie on page one and Andy here on page 2 :

    http://www.cartoonbrew.com/page/2/

    http://www.cartoonbrew.com/

    Clive said...

    Hi Darlie; been visiting your blog for ages now and enjoying it, and appreciated this post on Andy. Like the thousands of other people who had the good fortune and pleasure to work for him over the years it was wonderful to witness his talent, be on the recieving end of his insight and direction, and be given a chance to participate in his vision of a production. He was always so relaxed and pleasant he wasn't intimidating. Very nice that the television spot that featured him and his animation has been posted on the facebook site; good to see him and hear his voice, it's been years since I've seen or worked for him. Dreadful that he's gone; especially for family, friends and his studio. Take care.

    TotalD said...

    Thanks Clive , I think your drawing and your painting is incredible so it's mutual admiration. It's harder now to look at those pics of Andy but my favorite one I think is Andy doing the lizard in the sunset. The ones with Reg, Mike , Bill Speers , Roger and Claude make me laugh . I loved the commercial, I never saw that before . He was something, it's like he couldn't do anything poorly.

    Duncan Studio said...

    Hey Darlie,
    Nice postings about Andy....

    Haven't seen you in quite some time.
    Can you send me your email/contact info?

    Cheers

    SCOTT CAPLE said...

    D,
    Good for you bringing some of us out of the woodwork.
    Awful, awful to see such potential, (potential being reached!) cut short.
    I hadn't talked to him for a year and a half and it's not even long distance here!
    I was in LA last week and didn't call YOU.
    Well, the lesson is... have your ducks in a row.
    And...we must all talk to each other more!