Fine Brothers trademark fiasco, "X-Men: Danger Room Protocols" yanked from YouTube & Robert Valley made a movie.

Learn when and how to hire other Freelance Animators for your projects and become a Virtual Studio

This week for art 3 of the RubberOnion Freelance School we're talking about the likely goal in your third year: making more money. There are a lot of things that you can do to shake up the status quo and get some more green in the bank but the number one item is to charge more. That, however, is much harder to do than to say so let us break it all down for you and give you tips, stories, analogies and metaphors to help you set your monetary goals and meet them![audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-117-freelancing_year_3.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #117: "How to Make More Money Once Your Reach a Plateau"]

After last week's surprise interview with Don Bluth, we're back with part 2 of the Freelance School and this time we're talking about what would be the goal in your second year: creating your brand. We talk about using your own personality and voice to shape the tone of your brand, how to market yourself, the importance and limitations of a niche market and a bunch more.[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-116-freelancing_year_2.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #116: "How to Create Your Freelance Brand"]

Dragon's Lair, his time at Disney, leaving to make Secret of NIMH and a discussion about death!

To kick-off the new year, I'm having a month long "Freelancing School" where each week you get a blog post and a podcast episode based on one of your first four years in building a freelance animation business. This week it's all about what to expect when you finally decide to make that jump. We talk about how to pitch for jobs and where to find them, whether or not to take low paying gigs, how to quote for animation and some of the big changes that happen (like taxes and insurance). If you've been thinking about making a go at being a freelancer, January's selection of shows and posts is a good place to start!Listen for Jessie Katzenflippenburgers, the captain's thermos bag, scatman, and the $1 one-hour movie[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-114-freelancing_year_1.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #114: "What to Expect in Your 1st Year as a Freelancer"]

HAPPY NEW YEARS! Every year I count down the top 10 podcast moments but there were so many this year that I opted to let the download stats to the talking. So here are the top 10 most popular episodes of the RubberOnion Animation Podcast of 2015 and I pulled a clip out of each one... enjoy and see you next year![audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-113-top_10_of_2015.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #113: "Top 10 of 2015"]

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE EVE! For the last two years we've done a special episode for Christmas and this year is no different. Because this happens to be episode 112, we couldn't just let the "12 Days of Christmas" reference sit, right?! So we run through 12 gifts that we think are good for the animator (whether established, starting, or wannabe) in your life. They're all linked below with timestamps of when we talk about them in the show.[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-112-christmas_episode_3.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #112: "12 Gifts for Animators - Christmas Episode 3"]

HOT COCOA SHOW! This show's topic is "What to do when Technology lets you down" and we talk all about our (mis)adventures in using technology, how to troubleshoot problems when they arise, and how to even avoid problems before they happen! If you are technologically-challenged, this is the episode for you and don't miss the giveaway announcement in the podcast... it's first-come-first-served!Listen for Rob2001, #TechShaming, caramel-snort, calling Stephen Brooks, cats = computer bugs, and "Samsonite... I was way off!"[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-111-what_to_do_when_technology_fails.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #111: "What to Do When Technology You Down as an Artist"]

This week we interview Doug Bresler, creator of Doogtoons and his new podcast "Animation Ninja!" This is a new one for us because the day we recorded this episode, Doug ALSO interviewed us for his podcast and part 1 of that interview is going up on the same day as this one (the link is in this post). We talk with Doug about his fascinating path through the early internet animation landscape and if that's transferable to today, his relationship with Weird Al Yankovic and how THAT came about, he drops one of my favorite metaphors ever and he gives advice on things like when to take a job, when you might want an entertainment lawyer, and a bunch more!Listen for sharks and dolphins, "clean set," the Trapped in the Drive-Thru story, and the fact that nobody is Gargamel.[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-110-doug_bresler_interview.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #110: "Doug Bresler Interview"]

SEGMENT EPISODE! Adobe Flash is rebranding as Adobe Animate, Stephen went to the Manchester Animation Festival & CTNx 2015, Gravity Falls is ending and Disney released an awesome clip from the upcoming movie Zootopia, we do our first ever 'Creator Spotlight' on animator Jamil Lahham for his animated short "Dirty Laundry Day," we take an audience question, and finally we cover the rest of the stories which broke in November with Rapid Fire!Listen for The Krunkus, "oh my god... they Kilkenny," slow loris THX and "they'll probly pulla peanuz."[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-109-animals_with_clothes.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #109: "Animals with Clothes"]

HOLIDAY EPISODE! Tomorrow is Thanksgiving in the United States so we talk a lot about that - how we celebrate, what holiday specials we like to watch, etc. But this week we also finally get to hear what Pat thought about "The Peanuts Movie!!" We top it all off by saying what Rob and I are thankful for in the animation world. If you're celebrating this Thursday, have fun and stay safe! If you're not celebrating... same. Enjoy the show!Listen for "All in the Hamily," alternative modem, sparkling apple juice, and Dunkaroos.[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-108-thanksgiving_special.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #108: "Thanksgiving Special"]

HOT COCOA SHOW! This show's topic is "How to Be Productive When You're Lazy" and we talk about our own experiences, procrastination, bumps-in-the-road, and methods for making your lazy side work for you. This is a clean episode and completely SFW so feel free to listen whenever and wherever you are! There are also THREE (we say 2 in the show but there's actually 3) major announcements in this episode so keep an ear out for those.Listen for "work-shy," Matilda, the Millennials rant, "I'm your Yoko" and what Quint from Jaws can teach us about facing your fears.[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-107-how_to_be_productive_when_youre_lazy.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #107: "How to Be Productive When You're Lazy"]

The guys behind Mukpuddy Animation in New Zealand talk owning a studio, growing, and the virtue of being naive.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! The "Freelance Horror Stories" are back with a part 2 with stories from YOU listeners and even past interviewees, Elliot Cowan and Exit 73 Studios! The point of this episode is to expose you to the bad experiences that animators have in the industry and then Rob and I (Stephen) give a postmortem on the event to learn what went wrong and why... so if in the future you run into a similar situation you'll know what to do! Thank you so much for all your participation, we got some fantastic stories this year and it was great talking with you all! Enjoy the show and have an amazing Halloween weekend! And don't be afraid to share some of your costumes in the comment section belowListen for "who doin' it," joker mask, "you can't make 100 outta 50," and spirit man.[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-104-feelance_horror_story2.mp3|titles=The Rubber Onion - #104: "Freelance Horror Stories 2"]

HOT COCOA SHOW! This week we talk all about Copyright, Fair Use, Parody, Fan Art and more in a discussion that's centered around a blog post I made on the topic a couple days ago! Today is also our exact 2-year anniversary!! So it's a special day. But listen, because the copyright has been extended to such a degree that more of the art which is actually still relevant in our time is copyrighted (proportionate to in the past when the copyright term was much shorter), the risk of stepping into legal quicksand is actually even more probable now. More creators, being seen earlier in their careers than ever before, in a time of extended copyright on the pop culture that itself is uniquely used as a cultural reference point of expression... that's complicated!! I aim to make things clearer for you by making it clearer for my co-host Rob in this episode of the podcast.Listen for The Blob Blog, what started the hipsters hypothesis, "that's pathetic, bro" and Happy Birthday![audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-103-copyright_what_animators_need_to_know.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #103: "Copyright, and What Animators Need to Know About It"]

HOT COCOA SHOW! This week we talk all about Copyright, Fair Use, Parody, Fan Art and more in a discussion that's centered around a blog post I made on the topic a couple days ago! Today is also our exact 2-year anniversary!! So it's a special day. But listen, because the copyright has been extended to such a degree that more of the art which is actually still relevant in our time is copyrighted (proportionate to in the past when the copyright term was much shorter), the risk of stepping into legal quicksand is actually even more probable now. More creators, being seen earlier in their careers than ever before, in a time of extended copyright on the pop culture that itself is uniquely used as a cultural reference point of expression... that's complicated!! I aim to make things clearer for you by making it clearer for my co-host Rob in this episode of the podcast.Listen for The Blob Blog, what started the hipsters hypothesis, "that's pathetic, bro" and Happy Birthday![audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-103-copyright_what_animators_need_to_know.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #103: "Copyright, and What Animators Need to Know About It"]

Creator of Boxhead & Roundhead talks about indie filmmaking, teaching & more!

SEGMENT EPISODE! This week I review "Danger Mouse" 2015, we list our Top 5 "Cartoons Based on R-Rated Movies," talk about the animation news of the week in depth and the rest get put in the audience favorite Rapid Fire! segment (this time with a time limit). We also talk about our recent animated short, some of the easter eggs in there and I give you some tips on best practices in Adobe Flash as well as character turnarounds. Listen for Stephen's comparison of Michael Bay's "Transformers" franchise to Donald Trumps 2016 presidential campaign, a GI Joe / Muppet Babies theme mashup, and "leeches, bro."[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/rubberonion/rubberonionpodcast-101-there_can_be_only_101.mp3|titles=RubberOnion Animation Podcast - #101: "There Can Be Only 101"]