Self-study activity:
Watch the clip and number the topics below in the order Sharpie mentions them:
Sharpie's plans for his break
Sharpie's friends dismissed his drawings
the process of drawing on a cup
when Sharpie first started to draw on canvas
taking a break
background and education
If you want to fully understand what Sharpie says you can read the transcript below.
Communication strategy:
In the transcript I have highlighted the use Sharpie makes of some connectors to link his sentences. Sharpie keeps repeating phrases like you know, kind of, to put sentences together. These connecting phrases are really useful when we wish to connect our speech.
Sometimes we run the risk of our English sounding broken and fragmented, with one sentence having nothing to do with the previous one. Phrases like you know, kind of, may help us to gain time to think and connect ideas.
Another post on the blog where these linking devices are touched on is The Two Ronnies -The Optician.
I grew up in Malaysia on a bird farm. I was just not even a good student, you know. I was terrible in math, I was terrible in English, I’m still terrible in English. If you are terrible in math in Malaysia you automatically go into art, you know. So that kind of worked out for me because that was what I had always wanted to do.
So I came to study animation in the States. I got lucky, I guess, and I landed my job at a game company. I was at a coffee shop and I needed something to write ideas down on. I didn’t have paper so the next best thing was a cup because, you know, it’s also white, so it’s kind of a canvas, so I wrote some ideas on it, I also drew some things on it on the side. I started drawing on a few cups later on.
When my friends saw the cups they asked me what I was going to do with it, and I said some of it were kind of nice, maybe I can sell it. One of them just said, ‘No one’s going to buy that crap’. I wanna just prove them wrong, you know, and I think I could have done just so by just selling the cup for like 20 cents. I’m sure someone will buy the cup for 20 cents, you know. But I don’t want to stop it there, I wanted to make it much bigger.
The process takes anywhere from a couple of hours to a couple of months. I don’t sketch on the cups, you know, I would draw directly with a sharpie. I will look at the cup for a long time and I wonder if the stroke is going to make or break the cup, you know. There are times when I got up to ninety-five per cent, ninety-eight per cent done and I would draw something that would ruin the entire piece, you know. I think the challenge was addicting, and ever since I drew on the first cup that was all I wanted to draw on.
When I was a kid I read this book, it was Around the World of in 80 Days. It’s always fascinated me. I’ve worked as an animator for about twelve years now, and I have decided to take a break from it and see the world. People and stuff like that they always say they want to see the world one day but none of them really ever do it, and I decided if any times are good to do it, this is the right time.
I am going to take Route 66 to Chicago and then I don’t know where the hell I’m going after that. For the first time in my life I do not have a back-up plan. I don’t know what is in store, I don’t know… there’ll be nothing familiar to me except my cups and the car, just go along with whatever comes my way.
The difference between a dream and reality is doing it. So if you want to get something done, or if you have a dream, you know, don’t wait, just go for it.
My name’s is Boey. I’m an artist. Now what are you gonna start?
Key:
1 background and education
2 when Sharpie first started to draw on canvass
3 Sharpie's friends dismissed his drawings
4 the process of drawing on a cup
5 taking a break
6 Sharpie's plans for his break
