Sugar Rush (2006)
Guillermo Careaga (3 min)
www.rsad.edu/~gcareaga

"Sugar Rush" is the tale of a guy's struggle with willpower. All the blue protagonist wants is to be left in peace to work out that middle age spread, but alas, the Evil Vending Machine just won't let him be.

Guillermo Careaga has done a great job with this film. The lively animation and the bright colours create a fun, zany texture. When the film takes a turn into the mindscape of the protagonist's imagination, it inhabits that territory well, evoking the best of the old Disney cartoons which Careaga admits influenced him here.

Thankfully, Careaga knew when to end his film. It doesn't run one minute longer than it should, and it goes out on a good joke.

"This animated short is the final project I finished on my 4th year at Ringling School of Art and Design, where I got my BFA in Computer Animation. The Preproduction work (story treatments, storyboards, animatic, character designs, etc) was done in my Junior Year, although some elements changed significantly during production.

"Coming up with a unique look for the short was challenging."      - Guillermo Careaga

For example, the original ending was going to show Plute hitting the red button and ending the chase sequence. Then he was going to give in and eat the candy right. His character design was altered quite a bit during the modeling process, as well.

Coming up with a unique look for the short was challenging. I referenced Cartoon Network's the Fairly Odd Parents' simplified backgrounds and distorted perspective. I also got inspiration from Disney movies such as The Three Caballeros and shorts such as 'Toot Whistle, Plunk and Boom.'"