Juan Pablo (JP) Sans works as an animator at Blue Sky Studios, he studied at the Miami International University of Art and Design and previously worked as one of the animators for DreamWorks Animation feature film, Rise of the Guardians.
Team Pitch[]
In the production of Rise of the Guardians, the art department had a character lead system, where each character would have a supervisor and a team of artists who would focus on just that one character whenever possible. JP was on Team Pitch, with Steven "Shaggy" Hornby as team supervisor. PJ and the rest of the animation team would meet up twice a week to talk and discuss everything about the character, from technical conversations to character development. JP, who had previously worked on "soft" and "cute" characters, had a lot of fun animating a villain for a change. "Pitch is dark, internal, composed, and just downright creepy. I was suprised by just how much I liked animating him."
The character of Pitch had a lot of inspirations form other characters in media, "We reference the Joker for his unusual movements and personality. We were captivated and inspired by Hannibal's stare. I always watched Anthony Hopkin's scenes and even podcast and interviews to help me bring that into the character. And lastly, my favorite, Gary Oldman's Stansfield in Leon: The Professional. I loved watching that character, and trying to bring that randomness and aura to Pitch."
For JP, the most challenging shot to animate was in fact his very first shot of Pitch. Where just after being tossed around by the Sandman, Pitch crawls back in fear only to reveals it was all just an act. "you can have them back."
Filmography[]
FIlms[]
- Rise of the Guardians (2012) - Animator
- Rio (2012) - Animator
- Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009) - Animator
Shorts[]
- Scrat's Continental Crack-Up (2010) - Animator
Documentary[]
- Fatboy: The Movie (2005) - Digital artist