Studio Blirp

Q: Introduce us to yourself and your company.
Hi, my name is Andrés De Mula. I’m the creative director of the Studio “BLIRP”. I’m a graphic designer and animator. I have always had a passion for animation and design and I think the best way to combine both is by the motion graphics.

BLIRP was founded by my friend Rodrigo Díaz and I. We specialize in character and concept design as well as in motion graphics.

Q: Interactive Producers come from all walks of life, they are a hybrid of talents, tell us about your background and how you got interested in digital production?
The first film which surprised me when I was a kid was Tron jajaj. I found it so odd, it’s so typical of the 80’s that I think it would be in fashion nowadays. I went on watching cartoons until I met Totoro by Miyasaki, and then I discovered the world of the anime and I ended up in Tokio some years later. There I visited de Gibli Museum and also Toei. Then I decided that was what I wanted to do. At the same time my taste for the Bauhaus and typography grew more and more. Nothing better than motion graphics as an answer to the mix I have inside me.

We love Studio 4C and Lobo, it’s so good what they do!

Q: How do you stay on top of emerging technologies and keep your team informed and motivated?
Watching a lot of material all the time. At the studio on Fridays we do something we call “blirping”: we invite friends who are designers or just people interested in the subject and we watch motion pictures and motion cartoons and a lot of Stash. By the way I tell you that number 55 will show the studio and our work.

We also watch, read and know about the latest news thanks to the Internet. We don’t need much motivation since we all love what we do, but we think that we still have a long way to reach where we want, but we are just starting and we hope we’ll have more opportunities to achieve better things.

Q: What does your ideal client/project look like?
The ideal client for us would be MTV and Cartoon Network because it seems they give you freedom of expression. They are our favourite channels.

The project we would like most is to make an animation movie in which the character design, backgrounds and story are created by us.

Q: How do you educate your clients and set realistic expectations for a project?
We live in Mendoza, Argentina. Our client is absolutely unaware of all the axial work involved. Every time we do a job we have to explain why it takes so much time and how we do it. We generally explain everything in meetings before beginning to work.

Q: What was the best project you have ever worked on?
At present we are working in two top-secret projects which we love, with two studios in Buenos Aires: with Pepper Melon and DGPH. They make fascinating vinyl toys and they have asked us to make an animated piece for Cartoon Network or Nick, (not decided yet) but it’s top, top-secret: so shhhhhh...!

Q: How many projects are you comfortable producing at one given time?
It depends on the complexity of the project. Some times one, two or three, but not more. I like to supervise every piece of work, the others do, too. We are obsessive with that.

Q: What does your dream production team look like?
We all get on very well and it’s so pleasing to work in BLIRP that I think I already have my dream team, but it would be better if we were more. But it’s difficult to find qualified people to work in the studio because Mendoza is a small city and there are not places (schools, colleges) that prepare for it.

Q: How do you ensure that your client's best interests are met?
We give the best of us in all occasions encouraged by the passion for what we are doing.

Q: What is your vision of what the next phase of our industry is going to look like?
Since technology is becoming cheaper and easier to work with, I think that talent and the studio style will be the most importat. In this world which is so globalized everything looks alike and that’s a bit scary. In my opinion, originality in the production methods and aesthetics will be looked for.
On the other hand, virtual reality is also something worth exploring: I imagine myself designing worlds in a not far away future.

Q: Please share a snippet of wisdom that you would like to impart on our readers.
Cheer up! It seems impossible to think that animation studios can appear in remote places of the world (if you knew where I live, you would know what I mean). My advice is that you have to be enthusiastic and persistent, read a lot and watch all kinds of movies, learn and experiment without fear. We have only one life and we must be happy.