Animation veteran Otto Tang has been working as an in-demand art director at L.A.-based Titmouse Studio. He is the creator of Nick Jr./Noggin’s well-received preschool show Kinderwood (2020-2021) . As a background painter, he has worked on shows such as Metalocalypse and Black Dynamite, and he has been an art director for series like Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja and Big Mouth. His latest project is a poignant and well-received short titled Time to Go which is inspired by his childhood memories. Tang’s short is part of Titmouse’s popular annual celebration of animation titled 5 Second Night, which has screenings in L.A., New York and Vancouver.
A tradition spanning over 15 years, 5 Second Night gives Titmouse animators and team members the ultimate playground for creativity and the chance to unleash all the quirky and laugh-out-loud ideas that have been brewing in their minds, transforming them into bite-sized animated masterpieces. Each year, Titmouse designates a day for the studio to “shut down” in order to give anyone who wants to participate an entire paid day off to focus on producing animated shorts, which are then screened together during the annual 5 Second Night and attended by industry executives, fellow animation enthusiasts, and members of the public. All work produced for 5 Second Night remains under the ownership of the individual artists and creators, not the company itself.
Otto was kind enough to talk to us about his new short and career in a recent interview:
Animag: Congrats on your wonderful new short, Otto! Can you tell us a bit about the inspiration for Time to Go and how you decided to create the short?
Otto Tang: Time to Go belongs to a series of animated shorts titled His Little Hong Kong. The series is a collection of vignettes from my childhood. Like many, department stores played a very colorful role in my early years, and for many years, I had an idea to explore consumer culture in the 80s and 90s. There were multiple attempts at telling a version of the story, but I just never seemed to figure out a satisfying ending. I had even abandoned the series and moved on to something shinier. When its ending revealed itself through life, it took me three years to digest and distill. The piece would have been different if I had made it last year or next year. In 2024, it finally feels right to realize the idea and flush it out of my system. Probably overthinking something that’s around 2 minutes long.
When did you begin work on your short? How long did it take to finish?
Titmouse’s 5 Second Night event is designed to give us one day to bring a short to life. And I am happy to report that 96.3% of the participants have never been bound by the rule (insert evil laugh). I utilized the dedicated day for the production of Time to Go, but most of the animation and design work was spread out over a three-month period. The music came together in about a week.
How many people worked on it and which animation tools were used?
One-man band. The design and animation were done in Photoshop, composited with After Effects, edited in Premiere, and the sound/music produced with GarageBand. Nope, not the most unique and exciting
Can you tell us a bit about your participation in Titmouse’s 5 Second Night?
I might be one of the very few of us who have made an entry every year since Year One! Time to Go is the seventh short of His Little Hong Kong And I have lost count of how many I have made altogether… 13,14?
What do you love about the event?
It’s exciting to see an eclectic collection of shorts by friends and comrades. It’s inspiring to witness the sides of the artists/filmmakers that they don’t often get to express in their day jobs. Personally, it has become a journal entry for me. Each of my animated shorts reminds me of my skill sets, my process, interests, and tastes at different points in time. Collectively, they form a very personal narrative of who I am and where I come from.
What were your biggest challenges as you set out to make your short?
I usually set myself a challenge for personal projects, but those self-imposed hurdles are often visual. I knew that writing Time to Go was going to be difficult because even thinking about the subject matter was challenging. However, I didn’t anticipate how hard it would be to record the voiceover this time around. While I can direct child voice talents playing cartoon cats and dogs, self-directing proved to be harder than I thought. I will always worry that my voiceover has not fully realized the potential of the piece
Tell us a bit about your career and experience at Titmouse?
I started at Titmouse as a background painter, and have since art directed a handful of shows including Randy Cunningham 9th Grade Ninja (Disney) Big Mouth (Netflix), Duck and Goose (Apple+). And my proudest achievement is creating and running Kinderwood for Nick Jr.
What are you working on next?
I’m afraid of discussing future work. It feels like if I spilled the beans, the magic would be gone. If you’re interested, you can follow me on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/tobecatpeople I let loose on that platform.
Do you have any career advice for animation newbies?
Help others tell their stories, but please do not give up on telling yours.
What do you hope audiences will take away from your short?
Open up to those who you love and tell them you love them.
You can watch Time to Go below:
You can also enjoy one of Tang’s previous “His Little Hong Kong” shorts below:
