Remember when trolls were lucky? They were cute little fuzzy haired collectables that you kept on your desk at school, to fulfill superstitions that you might pass a test you didn’t study for. Pink hair, blue hair- I think they even had their own TV show. My friend Kathleen even bought me these troll earrings, either because she knows I used to love these trolls, or because she thinks I’m super tacky.
As I’ve already mentioned, I have a deep fear of YouTube. A real problem seeing as how I’m a comedian, and the whole world goes there to check me out. I CAN’T handle the comments. They are painful. And even though I know it’s one of the Four Agreements, “Don’t take it personal,” it totally hurts.
I don’t like drama. I’ve never been a good arguer. I consider myself very diplomatic. I can always see both sides. Maybe that’s why I stick to self-deprecating jokes. If you’re a hater, it’s my way of beating you to the punch. In general, I don’t like debating. I don’t have full faith I’m right about anything. I remember in high school, I was selected to be part of the Grade 10 Debate. It was a debate where four students would argue against another four students on a selected topic, to be performed in front of the whole school. I wanted to keep the event light and fluffy. I opted for: “Chunky Soup: Fork or Spoon?” (It seemed like a loaded question, as per all the commercials we couldn’t fast forward through back then.) Unfortunately, I was out voted. The debate went to euthanasia.
So up until this point, I’ve been a coward with internet hate. I block people on Twitter, and in general I completely avoid YouTube. My mentality has always been, “Why should I learn to deal with hate? Why can’t others just learn notto hate?” (I’m SUCH an idealist, eh?) My friend Steph Guthrie has an AMAZING Ted Talks called “The Problem With “Don’t Feed The Trolls.” She makes a far more powerful argument than I do, and I suggest you watch it. (Hopefully I know how to post links right, cuz this is it.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KHEkR5yb9A
So this week, I’ve decided to face the trolls. I asked people on Facebook to send me mean comments they’ve received, and I will attempt to put a positive spin on them, and/or defend your honour. Here we go:
YouTube commenter:
“I bet she has some meaty beef curtains.”
Christina’s Positive Spin:
He probably doesn’t have a lot he can bet. Maybe a stamp collection from 1987, a comic book or two, his mom’s underwear… And to be fair, beef is delicious and everyone needs curtains. Especially at sunrise when you’re hungover.
YouTube Commenter:
Is that a laugh machine? Sounds like a sit come in the 60s.
Christina’s Positive Spin:
Hey, don’t bring Canadian TV into this. Don’t hate the player, hate the game. Also, what’s a “sit come?” Interesting how these “critics” manage to show their level of intelligence.
YouTube commenter:
Oh yah baby… you can squirt cum over me anytime. Puddles everywhere. Yum Yum.
Christina’s Positive Spin:
Who needs a positive spin on this one? YOU ARE IN, BUDDY. (Something tells me it’s C.O.D. though.)
So after an interesting session sorting through my friends’ trolls, I decided it was time to face my own.
I got a mean message via tumblr during my Tinder blog. He/she (Internet haters REALLY don’t want you to know who they are, eh? I can’t even decipher gender) wrote,
You’re fucking annoying.
Well, that’s not very nice. Usually I just ignore/block Internet meanies, but this one, I decided to respond:
Then why are you reading this? Go find something you like, ya facking idiot!
(Even when responding to trolls, I feel the need to utilize italics.)
When my blogs got featured on the Huffington Post, I was terrified of the comments. One of the first “burns” I got was:
“What is this? Miley Cyrus’s diary?”
Well… Have I got news for you. One woman’s insult, is another woman’s compliment. I’ll take it!
But now it’s time for me to face my real fear… my YouTube comments. Of course all my clips are super old, because I’m too scared of the site. The worst part of these trolls is that they have the power to shut a creative person down. At least it does for me. I don’t want to share half the stuff I think of. I have scripts that just sit in my computer. I have sets I’ve never put on YouTube. What’s the point? People are just gonna hate it all. I’m a total weeny.
I quickly drop a shot of Strawberry vodka in my glass of sparkling water, swallow that and my pride, and go seek out my haters. Are you ready?
YouTube Commenter:
“This bitch sucks. I’m pissed. I was watching the brilliant Russell Peters and then clicked on this lame-wade. You wasted my time. Go back to comedy 101, although I doubt it will help. You monotonous bitch.”
Wow. It’s everything I thought it would be and more. There’s lots of nice comments too, but guess which one I focus on? Positive spin…? There’s a link to me on Russell Peters’ page? Ouch. Who takes all this time to write and spread such hatred? Oh yeah. Somebody with no real name, nor real face. Since I’m currently trying to dive into the world of standing up to bullies, I decide to write a reply.
“Cool. You sound like a real winner! Do you have a real name? A real face? Why are you hiding from your own words?”
Then I went to bed. I’m not going to lose sleep over internet hate. (Though I probably will have nightmares over it.) When I woke up in the morning, I saw the craziest thing on my computer. Someone ELSE stood up for me! Somebody I don’t even know. He wrote a reply to her slander.
Check THAT out! It’s an INTERNET MIRACLE! This guy is a true hero. I actually want to BE this guy. I immediately start looking up my comedian friends on YouTube. I’m going to do for other comics, what this guy did for me. I’ve spent all morning throwing positive feedback on clips. I want to be your troll, but a cute, fuzzy lucky one, like the toy. (Emphasis on the fuzzy these days.) My next move will be updating my Yelp page. I’ve told so many businesses I’d write nice things about them, but currently the only review I have up is on this mean yoga studio who kicked me out for drinking coffee before class. (A COFFEE! It’s not like I walked in with a flask.) Isn’t it weird how we’re more prone to resort to the Internet when we’re angry, rather than when we’re pleased?
I’d like to start a revolution. I doubt that’s in my power, but maybe, just maybe, we can take a little time to write something positive about a person or place today. Don’t let the trolls win. I’ve already overplayed “Shake It Off” obvi, so my new anthem to kick the haters is Kiesza’s “No Enemiesz.” You should blast it right now.
FACK! I can’t be a cheesy person, eh? But like a 60s sit come, there aren’t not many of us left.
My troll is at it again…. trying to take down this tumblr. What a pain, hopefully it will get resolved soon. Don’t understand why they don’t spend their time doing something useful as its a lot of wasted time on life.
So as usual… Troll on twitter and trolls on tumblr.
Maybe they are trying to wipe me away from complete social networking…. they must dislike my writing that much xx my presence must disturb them that much. Weird.
The Daily Caller is a trash publication that conservatives should be ashamed of. I wish that I had something more positive to say about young conservatives, but judging from the young conservatives that work in the media, the young conservative activists I read about, and the young conservatives on Tumblr, I’m feeling pretty cynical about the future of conservatism.
My Trolls demo reel is up! So proud that something so unconventional ended up on the big screen.
Concept art Fabrication Photography Editing Compositing: Priscilla Wong
Aftereffects animation 3d transitions 3d effects post production: Erik Tillmans
Also, my interview from the Trolls Art of Book.
Tell me how the concept of the scrapbook evolved. When were you brought into the process?
I was brought in fairly early on the scrapbook concept. It represents Poppy’s hand in narration, so we knew finding the right look would be crucial. It was challenging to tell the simplified version of our story in the scrapbook medium that is inherently busy. It ultimately came down to balancing specific textures within graphic shapes. I edited until it was right.
The first phase of excitement led to inventions that were purely unedited. I only had scraps of materials I brought from home and items I scavenged from around the studio. For example, tin foil was borrowed from the PDI kitchen and used for metallics. When I needed a textural framing element, I found peppermint and crushed it to form a heart shape. I cut up sponges to create a Bergen’s eyebrows. Kendal had requested a rainbow to be made out of hair. I wandered around feeling perplexed until I stumbled upon a rainbow afro wig, a souvenir from Madagascar 3. I flattened and seperated the strands with a hair iron, then built an arc. It felt a bit like the “Unconventional Materials Challenge” in Project Runway. We were thrilled! But when we presented to the Mike and Walt, everything was so articulated that it departed from the film. The tone felt too mature. It needed to look like a scrapbook, not a stop motion film. Fortunately, the sponge brows and rainbow hair stuck around.
The second phase was focused more on looking more like a scrapbook. I used a lot of store bought materials as a way to show this is an accessible medium. Stickers and border accessories were heavily relied on as scrapbook symbols. Since the color palette was so primary, it felt too young. Mike and Walt wanted it to be specific to the Trolls world, which has a foundation of Scandinavian design. I ended up removing all elements that distracted from the story. After manipulating the colors digitally and adding elements that indicate a Scandinavian hand made nature, we finally found a look that everyone was happy with.
Have you always worked with felt, fabrics? Were there any specific challenges or direction you received from Mike and Walt?
Since my teens I developed a deep love for fashion and design. I would make all my clothes and learn by reverse engineering runway pieces. I also embroidered shoes and made jewelry. I was fascinated by how silhouettes and lush materials could transform a person into any character in another world. I stopped when I got serious about being an artist in animation. I never expected to be able to marry the two art forms. It was coincidental that as I began to work on Trolls, knit wear and 70s fashion was making a huge comeback. Suddenly inspiration was everywhere. I felt as though the whole film resonated with a chic aesthetic that is relevant.
Mike and Walt were very specific about tone, humor and sound effects. One of the greater challenges was to reflect the irreverent humor of the film in the scrapbook style. Since my nature is to execute things impeccably, the main criticism of the early scrapbook pages is that they looked too perfect. A way to incorporate humor into such a simple style was to make things look imperfect. Mike wanted to see the hand of the artist. It needed to look handmade and effortless. This meant working cruder, with more feeling and less precision. After establishing the look of the scrapbook, their direction forced me to think more like a film maker than an illustrator. I now take consideration for camera moves, staging, transitions, animation and effects. The work demanded me to setup a mini pipeline for myself. Currently, I deliver animated gifs as proof of concept. Then, I craft the physical pages and do photo shoots. I am pretty elated to be able to do this for a living.
How many pages did you create? Any favorite?
15 pages. My favorite page is the Foot Print wide shot at the beginning of Poppy’s journey. Its the perfect mix of colors and textures that represent the Trolls world intruded by Bergens.
How many difference colors of felts do you think you used?
This is an estimate:
98 colors of felt. 220 colors of paper.
I’m sure it might be hard to guess, but any idea how many total pieces of felt you cut /created?
I counted. 1,751 pieces.
How long did each page take to create?
2-3 weeks depending on complexity.
Finally - what is your title / credit on the film?
For generation after generation, life bloomed across the ordered world of Azeroth. Nowhere was this more evident than in the dense woodlands around the Well of Eternity. The fount of Azeroth’s arcane lifeblood accelerated the cycles of growth and rebirth. Before long, sentient beings evolved from the land’s primitive life-forms.
Among the first and most prolific were the trolls, a race of savage hunter-gatherers who flourished in Azeroth’s jungles and forests. Though the trolls were of only average intelligence, they possessed incredible agility and strength. Their unique physiology also allowed them to recover from physical injuries at an astonishing rate, and they could even regenerate lost limbs over time.
The early trolls developed a wide array of superstitious customs. Some practiced cannibalism and devoted themselves to warfare. A rare few sought knowledge through mystic practices and meditation. Still others honed their ties to a dark and powerful form of magic known as voodoo. Yet no matter their individual customs, what all trolls shared was a common religion that revolved around Kalimdor’s elusive Wild Gods. The trolls called these powerful beings “loa,” and they worshipped them as deities.
Due to their reverence for the Wild Gods, the trolls gathered near a series of peaks and plateaus in southern Kalimdor. This was home to many of their honored loa. The trolls gave the holy mountain range the name Zandalar, and soon they built small encampments upon its slopes.
The most powerful group of trolls was called the Zandalar tribe. Its members claimed nearly all of Zandalar’s tallest plateaus, believing them to be sacred ground. Atop the highest peaks they constructed a small cluster of crude shrines. In time, these grew into a bustling temple city known as Zuldazar.
Expanded troll lore from an excerpt of the first volume of the WoW Chronicles book. Check out the beautiful illustration of Zandalar’s capital Zuldazar, and the map of troll controlled territories on the once whole continent before it was shattered by the Sundering.
The sample also includes lore about the Troll-Mogu war on the lands that would become Pandaria.
Quiet Places is a series of maps that mark suitable roleplay locations with little to no NPCs. They’ll be some-what consistently categorized as follows; Walk Up - Empty locations near heavy player traffic. Dwelling - Buildings ideal for home based roleplay. Day to Day - Areas heavily themed for every day necessities or duties. Ancient Rites - Can be anything from ruins to totems. Darkspear trolls can make use of a variety of ritual sites and such areas are key to their culture and theme.
As a relatively new capital, added in Cataclysm, the Echo Isles can feel a bit small. There are no portals to this location and besides being the starting zone for new trolls, there aren’t that many utility npc’s. Yet, this makes the isles absolutely perfect for roleplay. Plentiful little landmasses litter the main isles and a variety of them provide heavily troll-themed buildings, ruins or activities. The addition of a true home for the Darkspear tribe truly was a long time coming.
The roleplay scene can be sparse at the isles but I’ve seen more than a few troll based guilds hold events here - Darkspear or otherwsie. Additionally, being near so many new players can actually be good and productive publicity. Walk-Ups might happen more than one might think.
Troll lore is deep and oh so enjoyable with our community’s impressive amount of work on their own, inspiring head-canons. Trolls are my favorite race horde side and I urge you to wander around the Isles, even with a newly made Darkspear.
I think it’s pretty weird that people constantly think that bringing up racism or “problematic” things in a given media means that your orchestrating a full out boycott of it. People did it with SU and Agent Carter and now when people were talking about Frozono’s wife and how she’s staying a disembodied force of sassy one liners in the year 2018 and pointing out the dehumanization of that automatically means now tumblr is “at it again” trying to boycott Incredibles 2. Like why does people talking about racism make you so uncomfortable that you come to those conclusions.
Let me just say, I have ideas and interesting thoughts, especially between the Sylph of Rage Taz Pomme and the Bard of Breath Arcjec Voorat, I mean I have thoughts on the whole bloody thing and the dynamic of each troll and how it fits so nicely together piece by piece by how their aspects both clash and compliment each other but let’s take it slow and heck maybe you’ll see more from me on the topic of the best spiritual successor to Homestuck I have ever laid my eyes upon.
Anyways, so from my understanding Slyphs are kind of a healer/support type of class for lack of better terms they help or try to help through their aspect, so seeing a Sylph of Rage in here is very interesting because oftentimes you don’t see Rage as being well… helpful honestly. Yet from my reading and understanding Rage players tend to be people who get things done, people of passion, people of emotion, people of anger, people of rage, and most importantly people of Focus. And yet here we are with Taz who apparently is in probably one of the most unhealthy states a Sylph of Rage could be in as stated by her Denizen whose interaction suggests she needs to be broken down before she can actually help through her aspect keep this in mind for later.
Next up we have the Bard of Breath, you know the Class that passively destroys things specifically their aspect, now in the case of Arcjec I feel like he’s already destroyed that “freedom” and his bard abilities are well on passive display of which he is coming to terms with because it can be used for good when not let to go off on its own… like he was… for several years. From what I’ve read this is a Class aspect that needs to either be contained, put on a kind of metaphorical leash, or… OR and get this be given focus.
I don’t know what’s happened in their past, nor do we all, the story is still ongoing and the pieces are still being put together but, we know something bad happened between Taz and Arcjec. Part of it could of him passively destroying the freedom they once had, part of it could be the things Taz did that caused the whole fallout amongst most of them, we don’t know, but we can clearly see the negative traits of the Bard already at play here, unlike in Gamzee’s case where he started off chill and then WENT TOTALLY OFF THE FING CHAINS. This causes me to think that due to being a Bard of Breath and hey there could be more pieces to the puzzle and more negative things to play here, and heck he could even potentially when utilizing his power properly destroy the freedom that the antagonists currently have thus screwing them over, but we don’t know how that’ll play out yet.
So here we have Taz and Arcjec, who surprisingly compliment each other as dysfunctional as they may currently be it seems to be, amends are being made to some degree as the story progresses, and He like the Previous breath player in Homestuck John both seem to be the first ones who actually enter the game, so that’s interesting but besides the point. Anyways, the person giving him focus, the person forcing a change onto him, a person forcing things to happen is none other than Taz, who btw is the only one who I believe could get him off of his butt and get him moving whether he liked it or not. She in a very Rage-like manner did, in fact, end up helping him through well… Rage. Unlike the others who can and will move on their own Arcjec needs motivation, he needs direction he needs a push, he needs an eye to be kept on him, otherwise, he destroys the freedom around him as well as to some degree identity but that’s more of a heart players thing.
Their dynamic is fascinating and it seems wounds to some degree are starting to mend, and I want to see more of this dynamic because when you look further it is almost like the perfect pairing in this regard and it has me kind of floored. I could talk about the other perfect pairings and how they fit and then start writing up a shipping wall of canon and non-canon relationships like the heir of heart I apparently am but what am I? Nepeta? Meulin? Heaven forbid… although… I wouldn’t be against it. Needless to say, I am fascinated and desire to see how all these dynamics play out and heck I may even end up talking about personal character issues like what is currently going on with the Heir of Light but that is not for this time, it’s just so fascinating and I want more.
