In case you didn’t know, this is Dusty. Half man, half machine, he pumps out animations on chalkboards. His process is an interesting one. Dusty will set the camera on a timer to take a picture every minute then draws all over his chunk of slate with pastels and chalks. The camera will make a ding sound indicating it’s about to take a picture and he gets out of the way, then click, then back to drawing. He binge draws for hours to get a few minutes of stop motion footage. It creates an incredibly raw and intimate animation when they are all pieced together.

Dusty has worked with some big names, most recently he did some commercials for J. Crew, but he will literally work with anyone. His “Animation Hotline” series is an interactive art project where normal folk can call in and leave a message on his machine. Dusty will then choose one and turn it to an animation. Go ahead and leave a message, I dare you, be a part of living contemporary art.

Animation Hotline +1 212-683-2490
For all your storytelling needs.

His animated shorts have shown in film festivals all over the world and they rule. His animation “Prayers for Peace” is about his brother’s death in the Iraq war and how he dealt with the news. When the credits roll everyone is silent, most people are crying, it’s as if everyone just experienced something real together. He is also probably the coolest person I know.

http://dustystudio.com/