Every Frame x Lackadaisy - Interview with Tracy J. Butler & Fable Siegel

A few weeks ago, we were invited onto a livestream to interview Tracy J. Butler & Fable Siegel of Lackadaisy. (https://www.youtube.com/@LackadaisyComic)

For those who don’t know, Lackadaisy is an indie comic that became an indie animated series. It’s about a group of cats who run a speakeasy in St. Louis during Prohibition.

We thoroughly enjoyed the experience and want to share the results.

This conversation was put together with the support of Eat Your Peas (https://www.youtube.com/@EatYourPeas_Acc) an animation coaching collective run by Lindsay Knowler.

Our conversation with the Lackadaisy team focused on three major topics.

The first - a guide through the opening sequence of the pilot, available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vffu6FG4YP4

The second - what it was like for them to run an indie animation studio remotely.

And the third - the current state of the animation industry itself.

So come join us by the fire and enjoy!

​​00:00 Intro
01:13 Part One, opening sequence of pilot
04:10 From comic to animation, working on your opening later
08:31 The sample platter vs. traditional pilot, additive nature of animation
12:46 Small details, the moon, screen direction, car driving by
16:19 80s & 90s influences, Great Mouse Detective, Secret of Nimh, The Rescuers
19:17 Part Two, The Average Day on an Indie Production
21:51 Value of a Production Manager
25:27 Overestimating abilities, being a leader, hustle culture
27:38 Downtime, needing to live, finding inspiration for art in life
32:32 A lot of animation production is cloistered off
34:39 Part Three, The Industry
36:53 Why is indie animation happening right now?
40:44 Art is communication, not worried about GenAI, perfection
46:09 Fable’s intentions
49:54 Tracy’s intentions
52:58 Last bit

Lackadaisy
Website: https://lackadaisy.com/
YT: https://www.youtube.com/@LackadaisyComic
Store: https://lackadaisy.store/
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Lackadaisy

Eat Your Peas
Insta: https://www.ins