CTN Expo was a blast!

Just got back from the annual animation gathering (and highlight of my year) CTN Expo in Burbank!  Not being one to make a lot of posts to my blog while on the go (what does this blog look like, twitter?!) I finally have a chance to post my thoughts on the overwhelming-but-fun convention that comes but once a year.

CTN has become almost a "family reunion" of sorts, a chance to see friends and colleagues that I may keep touch with via Facebook but rarely get to spend time with face to face.  I think it's that and a lot more for many of us animation artists, both professional and aspiring.  Comic-Con long ago became an overwhelming orgy of all manner of pop culture, comics and animation seem almost secondary to all the big tentpole movie hype, cosplay, and toy & game exclusives.  None of that goes on at CTN (despite some feeble attempts by marketers to do so on occasion.)  This is a place, an ever-more-crowded place, for people who care about the art of animation and storytelling to learn, network, and party with their own kind.

It may only be three days a year, but in a way it is the longest weekend of the year.  I only wish it could take place in a venue that can accommodate all of us, the tents and small rooms just don't cut it anymore!  But for whatever frustrations and failings there may be, CTN still remains the best place to meet and learn from other animation artists.  I hope it continues to be the gathering it has been for a long time.

The Secrets of the Transbay Terminal!

As many of you may know, I'm something of a history buff, especially when it comes to 20th Century commercial or public architecture. So you can imagine how excited I was when i stumbled upon a news story detailing the "hidden history" of San Francisco's Transbay Terminal.

Originally built in the Depression, as a kind of Grand Central Station for buses and trains crossing the new Bay Bridge, in recent decades it has become a run-down blight, serving just as much as a homeless shelter as a bus terminal. It's slated to close down in a few days, and as part of the preparations for its demolition, CalTrans crews have uncovered some of the long-lost amenities of what was supposed to be a vibrant crossroads for commuters and travelers.

CalTrans workers gave a one-day-only tour of these "secret" spots, and I made sure to make it over there despite short notice! The tour started off in the old bar, a throwback to the 50s if ever I've seen one. Most of the furnishings had been removed, but you could feel the "spirit" of a bygone age coursing through it. The low lighting helped add to the spooky mood, leavened only by the crowds of living people now poking their heads in for the first time in three decades.

Next we saw the old jail, originally intended to hold train robbers (!) and other troublemakers until SFPD could come collect them. Seemed more like something out of the Old West than the 1930s...

After that, we saw a number of photos of the terminal in it's "glory days," complete with newsstand, shoe-shine station (which was there but I sadly missed) and train after train pouring into and out of the upper level. Yes, what many folks know only as an epically creepy and loud bus depot was once intended for both commuter trolleys like the Key System and Southern Pacific's electric trolley systems. WWII, and then, scheming by the automakers, tire & oil companies managed to do away with that. (Within 5 years of the end of the Key System, people began clamoring for a replacement, thus, we got BART. Might have been easier to leave the original rails alone, eh?)

The tour ended at the old diner, a wonderful, authentic time capsule of an old-fashioned greasy spoon. The tour organizers had set up a projector, playing on loop an old movie from the 40s talking about the history of California, and how it has now led to this "wonderful new terminal!" The end featured a bit of animation (from I believe Warner Bros. "Termite Terrace.") with the apparent mascot of the Key System talking about the glorious present and future of the system. Had some great retro-future concept art for luxurious trolleys to come, ideas I'm sure that had more to do with the imaginations of the animators than anything concrete that the Key System ever planned to do! More pics are below...

Overall it was a fascinating glimpse of what the Transbay Terminal was *supposed to be* and was all the more sad seeing from this day and age how much it failed to serve it's intended function, though not entirely by fault of its own. I hope the new Transbay Terminal serves as a better "Grand Central" to San Francisco and the region.