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When Theresa Burroughs came of voting age, she was ready to cast her ballot. But in the Jim Crow era, she had a long fight ahead of her.

Today, in honor of the 27th anniversary of the space shuttle Challenger disaster, we are treated to another flawless pull-at-my-heartstrings Storycorps story courtesy of the Rauch Brothers:

On January 28, 1986, NASA Challenger mission STS-51-L ended in tragedy when the shuttle exploded 73 seconds after takeoff. On board was physicist Ronald E. McNair, who was the second African American to enter space. But first, he was a kid with big dreams in Lake City, South Carolina.

CREDITS
Directed by the Rauch Brothers
Storyboard: Stephen DeStefano
Animation: Tim Rauch
Assistant Animation: Erica Perez
Backgrounds: Bill Wray
FX and Compositing: Gary Leib

Though the stories about Hurricane Sandy have dropped off the front page, there are tens of thousands victims who have been made homeless or are still lacking basic services like electricity, heat and clean water. One person from the animation community who has been deeply involved with the recovery effort is Mike Rauch, who is one of the brothers behind the animation house Rauch Brothers.

Tomorrow, November 14, the Rauch Brothers will be hosting a screening and Q&A about their much-admired series of StoryCorps shorts. Though the event had been planned for some time, in light of the recent disaster, the brothers have turned it into a relief benefit for Hurricane Sandy victims. Tickets are $10 and all proceeds will go directly toward hurricane relief efforts.

The event, which begins at 7pm, will take place at the Brooklyn Music School (126 St. Felix St, Brooklyn, NY 11217). Attendees are also encouraged (though not required) to bring items for those impacted:

No more clothing is needed so please bring items from this list instead: flashlights, aaa batteries, gallon ziplock bags, brooms, flat shovels, mops, masks and gloves, any sort of baby/toddler food and formula, duct and scotch tape, deodorant, tampons, soap, can openers.

Tickets can be purchased in advance through this link.

Just in time for Father’s Day: A Family Man is the latest animated documentary short from the Rauch Brothers, and the nonprofit oral history project StoryCorps. The Rauch Brothers’ work combines intelligence, heart and humor in the space of a few minutes—a rare feat in animation. Character design is by Tim Rauch, storyboard by Stephen DeStefano and BG layout and painting by Bill Wray.

Cartoon Brew | Permalink | No comment | Post tags: Bill Wray, Mike Rauch, Rauch Bros., Rauch Brothers, Storycorps, Tim Rauch

Make sure you have tissues handy before you watch these three 9/11 shorts directed by the Brooklyn-based Rauch Brothers Animation. Each story is narrated by someone who lost a relative in the destruction of the towers; the recordings are part of the Storycorps oral history project and the animated shorts were commissioned by the PBS documentary series POV. All three shorts feature painterly backgrounds by Bill Wray that find the sweet spot between cartoon and realism. (Earlier this year, I interviewed the Rauch Brothers at length about their production process. Read our interview here.)

Cartoon Brew: Leading the Animation Conversation | Permalink | No comment | Post tags: Bill Wray, Mike Rauch, Rauch Bros., Rauch Brothers, Storycorps, Tim Rauch