November 13, 2014 VOLU M E 9 1 | I SS UE 1 3
LakewoodSentinel.com J E F F E R S O N C O U N T Y, C O L O R A D O
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High spending, close races Incumbents led in spending, often by large amounts By Clarke Reader
creader@colorado communitymedia.com
An image from the major motion picture The Book of Life. Courtesy photos
An animated life A-West grad part of Book of Life By Crystal Anderson
canderson@colorado communitymedia.com Moving living paintings from canvas to screen is Paul Sullivan’s specialty. Sullivan, an art director and visual development artist, took a moment to sit down with Colorado Community Media at a café near his Wash Park home, to talk about his artistic journey and his latest project, the major motion picture, “The Book of Life.” “I like what’s out there in mainstream media,” he said, “but I really try to do something a little bit different, and that’s what we tried to do with ‘The Book of Life.’ ” Originally born in Montana, Sullivan knew he was an artist at an early age. After moving to Arvada in elementary school, he realized he had a love of art and animation, noting Disney’s original team of animators, the Nine Old Men, and a love of their films, such as the Sword and the Stone. An Arvada West High School alum, Sullivan spent years learning from both family and his teachers, developing doodle and sketch skills, falling deeper in love with animation. Following graduation, Sullivan attended the Rocky Mountain School of Art and Design (RMCAD), where, rather than animation, he found a new passion — illustration. “I love the process of creation, the process from sketch to a finished painting,” he said. “Now I feel like every project I
Sullivan work on is like getting a master’s degree in illustration or animation.” This passion placed him on a path destined for the silver screen. In 2003, with a degree in illustration under his belt, Sullivan applied his craft to works for Alexandre O. Philippe’s films, Activision video games and other animated films. A few years later, through a series of connections, he met Jorge R. Gutierrez, the director of “The Book of Life.” With a mutual love for visual-concept books, Gutierrez pitched the film to Sullivan, describing a story of multiple worlds with multiple styles and a myriad of colors and design elements. “Art in film never looks like the art we create,” Sullivan said, referencing books about the artwork behind movies. “When
he (Gutierrez) told me he wanted to enlist me to create that for the first time in our careers — I was on board.” From that point in 2009, Sullivan doodled, sketched and painted his way, one piece at a time, into the world of The Book of Life. He drew inspiration from Mexican and Spanish folk art and history, nouveau art, and the tradition of Día de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead holiday. Sullivan and his team created the film’s three wondrous worlds — the present, The Land of the Remembered and The Land of the Forgotten. “Because we’re creating a fictional world, we can write our own story,” he said referencing how the visual elements were key in the animation process. “There’s never been a film with such strong influence of the Día de los Muertos holiday.” The film released Oct. 17. Since that time, Sullivan has traveled around the nation promoting the film as well as vacationing. Settling into normal life, he is engaging in opportunities with art and design students across Colorado, showing presentations of his work and successes to date. During his RMCAD presentation, more than 120 students and faculty gazed upon Sullivan’s work, talking about how he was their idol and his career is the dream. He spoke for nearly an hour and a half, delving into his process, ever-changing styles, and work to date. “It’s really exciting,” he said. “It feels good to know you got a film off the ground, at its roots, then to see it grow to more than 300 people — I really like that journey.” For more information on Sullivan or to follow his work, visit www.pencilprimate. blogspot.com/
The mid-term election looks to be one of the most expensive in recent memory, with fundraising and spending reaching into the hundred thousands. For all that spending, all the incumbents in the Lakewood area — Sen. Cheri Jahn, Sen. Andy Kerr, Rep. Max Tyler and Rep. Brittany Pettersen — all held on to their seats, though in both senate races the victories were by narrow margins. Looking at the campaign finances reports from Sept. 25 through Oct. 22 gives a window into the large gaps in spending and raising between candidates. Jahn held onto her seat with 32,465 votes to Republican challenger Larry Queen’s 32,269 votes (as of press time). Going into October, Jahn had $46,334.71 to Queen’s $14,323.83. Over the course of the month Jahn spent $47,619.25 on her campaign and raised $33,925. Queen, on the other hand, spent $17,367.72 and raised $5,492.30. With Jahn both raising and spending considerably more than Queen, the incumbent — who has been serving in the state congress since 2000 — only won by 196 votes. Lakewood’s other senator, Kerr, won with 29,447 votes to Republican challenger Sanchez 28,400, another close finish. At the start of the month Kerr had $65,857.44 and Sanchez had $18,972.94. In the following month Kerr spent $71,767.49 and raised $34,494. Sanchez spent $26,210.24 and raised $17,489.39. Again, there is a very large discrepancy
Races continues on Page 2
JEFFCO ELECTION STATES Jefferson County Turnout Results for the 2014 General Election Grand Total: 205,415 Turnout by party American Constitution Party: 320 Democrats: 64,999 Green: 419 Libertarian: 1,321 Republican: 78,100 Unaffiliated: 60,251 Unity: 5 The Jeffco Clerk and Recorder’s Office reported record-breaking voter turnouts with more than 61 percent voter turnout for the General Election. Jeffco voters continue to prefer mail ballots, voting 95 percent by mail and 5 percent in person.
Quiet opposition, easy victory Retail marijuana stopped by ‘broad approach’ By Clarke Reader
creader@colorado communitymedia.com When the Lakewood City Council decided to let the question of allowing recreational marijuana shops in the city to go to voters, many who were against the idea were concerned this was a dangerous step
for the city to take. Now those same people are celebrating after last week’s victory of the prohibition of retail shops, ending the discussion about marijuana in the city for the foreseeable future. “I’m delighted with the results of the vote — it’s the best thing for the community and children in Lakewood,” said Ward 1 councilwoman Ramey Johnson. “I felt the campaign for the issue was handled in a very above-board manner.” The question passed with 32,033 votes
(or 54.20 percent) to 27,064 against (or 45.80 percent). Jim Otton, one of the leaders of the Yes on 2A campaign, said he and a core group of volunteers used lawn signs and fliers to help spread the word about the issue. “We went to back to school nights and got a tremendous amount support, especially in high schools,” he said. “We also got a lot of support from Colorado Christian University, which just went gang-busters on this — they did radio and TV spots and a lot of Facebook posts.”
The Yes on 2A campaign also received a lot of support from health organizations like the Jefferson County Public Health, Smart Colorado and the Colorado Tobacco Education and Prevention Alliance. Perhaps the most surprising thing about the campaign is not that the issue was approved, but that there was virtually no campaign against the issue. One or two mailers were sent out and a Facebook page
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