Academy of Art Animation Notes

Setting the Scene : The Art and Evolution of Animation Layout

2011-12-02T07:51:00.000-08:00

This is a must-have book for anyone interested in hand-drawn animation.

Let me rephrase that : this is a must-have book for anyone interested in any kind of animation or film making , period.

Beautifully illustrated, meticulously researched, "Setting the Scene : The Art and Evolution of Animation Layout" by Fraser MacLean goes beyond a simple "coffee-table art book" (although it is certainly handsome enough to rate as a coffee table art book) , rather the author goes into the real nuts and bolts of layout using examples from well-known films and from some less well-known films from various animation studios. This book fills a void in providing highly detailed information on the art and craft of Layout . HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

-David Nethery

"The art of animation layout takes center stage for the first time in this gorgeous, full-color volume. Animation fans and students can finally take a behind-the-scenes peek at the history of layout, the process by which artists plot scenes and stitch together the many elements of animated works. With in-depth text by veteran animator Fraser MacLean, this extraordinary book features previously unpublished art from major studios’ archives—including Warner Bros., Pixar, Walt Disney, and more—as well as interviews with some of the biggest names in animation and a foreword by Academy Award–winning director Pete Docter. From the genre’s earliest pioneers to the digital world of contemporary cinema, Setting the Scene provides an enchanting journey into the history of animation."

Fraser MacLean has worked for Passion Pictures, Cambridge Animation Systems, Telemagination, and Walt Disney Animation Studios, on such films as Space Jam and Tarzan. He currently runs Penciltown Animation and resides in Edinburgh, Scotland. Pete Docter is a longtime Pixar filmmaker and the Academy Award–winning director of Up and Monsters, Inc.

An example of one of the many illustration in the books showing the craft of the Layout Artist at work .

This L-shaped pan layout with camera move indicated is by veteran Disney/Pixar layout artist Scott Caple , who , I should mention by the way, teaches two online Layout classes for the Academy of Art University , ANM 377 and ANM 605 Layout Design.

-------

Another book on Layout ? An embarrassment of riches indeed ! --

A good companion book to Fraser MacLean's excellent book on Layout is the latest volume from the Disney Studios Archive series of books called simply: "Layout & Background" . The Disney Archive book is more of a typical "coffee table art book" , with gorgeous layout and background art from various Disney films on display, but it lacks the technical depth and breadth of Fraser MacClean's book. However the Disney book is a worthy addition to your library as well. (if you can only afford one then get "Setting the Scene" by Fraser MacLean ) .

(click image to see it larger)

A new Animation Pencil Test capture station: SIMPLICITY CAM 5e HD DOCUMENT SCANNER

2011-12-01T09:43:00.000-08:00

As seen on the TVPaint Community User Forum :

This relatively new image capture station , the Simplicity Cam 5e HD Document Scanner by Recordex-USA may be of interest to online students who are looking to purchase an image capture station or scanner for digitizing their animation drawings --

This unit is compatible with both Windows and Mac OS .

Capture resolution up to 2560 x 1944 (which is actually higher than Academy Full Aperture 2K Film res. of 2048 x 1556).

Manual control of White Balance and Exposure.

Max. capture area of 12.75" x 17.25" (so this will capture the usable drawing area on 12 Field [12"w x 9"h ] and 16 Field [16" w x 12.75" h] animation paper.)

Image capture is much faster than scanning on a Flatbed scanner , but the capture resolution of the Simplicity Cam 5e is equivalent to using a scanner and the resolution is much higher than most webcams or mini-dv cameras that are typically used for pencil testing on a down-shooter.

Confirmed to work with TVPaint Animation running under Windows and Mac OS. (potentially works with any other pencil test software such as Digicel Flipbook, or Toki Line Test, or ToonBoom Pencil Check. But check with the Tech Support Dept. of the software you are using to be sure it meets the specifications for capturing images into your software)

NOTE: You'll need to add a peg bar and the base of the unit will need to be bolted down to a table top or a board so it can't be knocked over or jarred out of position (the base is weighted, but it needs to be completely locked down for animation) .

This reseller has it listed for $178.00 (price visible if you add it to the cart) - http://www.provantage.com/recordex-sc5e~7RCDX005.htm

Lists for $199.00 from this reseller: http://www.fullcompass.com/product/403224.html

More information about this image capture station can be found HERE:

http://animation-studio-stuff.blogspot.com/2011/12/new-animation-pencil-test-capture.html

-

The Lion King roars again

2011-09-19T08:44:00.000-07:00

To mark the special occasion of the re-release of "The Lion King" to theaters (in "3D" ) master animator Andreas Deja has posted some pencil tests of his wonderful animation of Scar from "The Lion King" :

I have to say as someone who worked on this film back in 1993- '94 I'm feeling a bit of pride (pun intended) in the fact that The Lion King was the #1 Film at the Box-office in the U.S.A over this past weekend . It took in close to $30 million dollars (which is nearly twice what industry analysts had projected) .

If you haven't seen it yet go see it now while you have the opportunity to see it on the Big Screen (as it was intended to be seen !). It's actually playing in some theaters in conventional "flat/2D" projection, so if 3D projection is not your thing you can see it in it's original form.

So now the debate starts: Is it successful because it is "3D-ized 2D" film and the only way for hand-drawn animation to succeed in a big way at the box-office it to jump on the 3D bandwagon, or does common sense tell us that it is successful because a compelling, well told story with appealing characters and top knotch animation will always be a success whether it's done in hand-drawn , computer, or stop-motion ? (I say the latter is the rule , despite some notable exceptions that should have been hits, but were not , like The Iron Giant).

While I think the 3D conversion was done well for the most part and it didn't hurt the original animation overall , I think Jerry Beck of Cartoon Brew summed up the 3D conversion of The Lion King best:

“Is this trip really necessary”? No. 3-D adds nothing new to the greatness of Disney’s Lion King.

But anything that returns hand drawn animation to the big screen, and to the attention of the public, is a good thing. [bold emphasis added by me -DN]

At various times during both screenings I kept thinking how fantastic a new drawn film, designed and shot for 3-D, would be. I hope the public, and the animation community, will one day have a chance to find out."

------------

*UPDATE: Andreas Deja has posted even more of his Scar animation and some drawings on his blog: http://andreasdeja.blogspot.com/2011/09/more-scar.html

"The Little Boat" by Nelson Boles

2011-09-06T08:08:00.000-07:00

Found via CartoonBrew (thanks Amid).

Beautiful film by Nelson Boles.

It’s become a cliche reaction now, but I still feel compelled to say that when I see work like this (and Nelson’s other student film: “This one time…” http://vimeo.com/4566083) I can’t understand why the major studios are not grabbing these artists and putting them to work on fresh, new hand-drawn films. This sensibility could truly reignite interest in hand-drawn animation. Films like this, or Ian Worrel’s shorts (http://vimeo.com/user407933/videos), and the various Gobelins shorts, among many other examples which could be named, show that stylistically and thematically there is still so much new ground to be covered with both hand-drawn short films and features which are not merely re-treads of earlier Disney or Warner Bros. styles.

Where are all the Traditional Hand Drawn Animated films ? (and why study traditional animation?)

2011-08-24T16:18:00.000-07:00

When people make the claim: "There are no traditional animation jobs" or "2D is dead" you should realize that what they mostly mean is that the model of big-budget feature length 2D Animation that flourished for a time in the U.S. film industry from roughly 1985 - 1999 and then finally crashed and burned in the years between 2000 - 2003 (for a variety of reasons, both economic and artistic, too complicated to go into here) is no longer viable.

Yes, perhaps that particular model of traditional animation production is "dead" (or maybe "just resting, pining for the fjords") and is not likely to come back the way it was in the 1990's. There will continue to be hand-drawn animated features , but those will probably be for a niche market , smaller indie films, not necessarily major feature animated films like 'Beauty & the Beast' , 'Aladdin', 'The Lion King' , or even slightly smaller scale films like 'Lilo & Stitch'. It's possible that there could be a break-out hand drawn animated hit again on that scale , but it doesn't seem likely, at least not in the short run. (but never say never ... things couldn't have been much more "dead" than in 1985 - '86 when a couple of films came out that I think changed everything: The Great Mouse Detective and An American Tail . Momentum picked up after those , leading to Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Little Mermaid and beyond ...)

BUT that is not the only viable model of traditional hand-drawn animation production , and it never was the norm. Hand-drawn animation doesn't need to be "saved" or make a "comeback" , because it never really went away. I think there will continue to be smaller scale feature films like "The Secret of Kells" or "The Illusionist" , as well as more truly independent micro productions (one-person , creator driven features or features made by a very small crew) such as "My Dog Tulip" , "Sita Sings the Blues" , "Idiots & Angels" and Nick Cross's forthcoming "Black Sunrise"

There is so much hand-drawn animation still being done for advertisements , short films, games, and web applications (including iPhone/iPad and other tablet apps). And whether it's drawn with pencil on paper or using a Cintiq tablet in an app like TVP Animation , the traditional drawing-based skill sets are still essential to telling a story through images.

Here are a few projects I've seen recently which remind me of how hand-drawn animation is being used in the real world outside of mainstream "Hollywood" features:

Story Corps latest oral history animated piece , "Miss Devine" :

Clever animated advertisements animated by Jason Doll :

Music video animated by Anthony F. Schepperd for Blockhead's 'The Music Scene'.

"The Music Scene" from Anthony Francisco Schepperd on Vimeo.

TIJI Television Network "Colours" :

These are just a few randomly chosen examples from among many. IF you can think beyond "When I graduate I've got to go to work at a giant studio like Disney/Pixar/Dreamworks/BlueSky/CartoonNetwork/Nickelodeon " [not that there's anything wrong with that] you can find a world of opportunity out there for animation. (in particular the hand-drawn variety) .

CTN Expo - Behind the Scenes with Independent Filmmaker Mike Nguyen

2011-08-09T13:35:00.000-07:00

Here is another inspiring video from a presentation given at the CTN Animation Expo .

If you haven't attended CTN Expo before it is highly recommended . CTN is only 3 years old , but has THE place to be for people interested in character animation. This year's CTN Expo will be Nov. 18 - 20, in Burbank, CA.

Animator/director Mike Nguyen has been working on the independent animated feature film "My Little World" for many years now (working on it part-time between other jobs).

Mike Nguyen primary interest is the hand-drawn animation film making medium and aims to reflect beautiful thoughts toward this life on Earth.

Mike received his BFA in Character Animation at the California Institute of the Arts in 1988. Since then, he has worked primarily in the feature animation industry as a Character Animator in various studios, including Walt Disney, Warner Bros., and DreamWorks Animation.

For more about Mike please visit : http://www.ctnanimationexpo.com/mike-nguyen/

Mike's blog "Rainplace" is one of the best animation blogs on the web. Mike discusses the "how to" of animation in great depth, but also the "why" of animation , with a very creative/spiritual emphasis, using examples from his own work.

As in this post on "Rough Pass as Thumbnailing" where he discusses taking animation from a first rough pass to a "tied down" version of the roughs :

All Images Copyright Mike Nguyen/July Films. Go to his blog , "Rainplace" to see many more examples like this.

New AAU Animation Dept. blog - "Animation School Daily"

2011-07-29T16:48:00.000-07:00

Brand spanking new blog from the classical Animation Dept. at the Academy of Art University :

Animation School Daily Blog

It's just started, so bookmark and keep checking back for more posts soon.

First two posts have some beautiful drawings by AAU instructors:

This beautiful figure study in charcoal by Associate Director of 2D Animation (Onsite) , Diana Coco-Russell -

(click on the image to view it larger)

and this terrific illustration -- "Young Walt" -- by Full Time Faculty (2D Animation - Onsite) Nicolas Villarreal -

(click on the image to view it larger)

Great stuff , eh ? More to come soon . Drawings, departmental news, inspirational art for classical animation.

More Animation from FRANCE - Gobelins 2011

2011-07-11T10:12:00.000-07:00

Another crop of amazingly proficient grad student films from Gobelins.

Google for the blogs of the individual students who worked on these films; some beautiful and inspiring work on their blogs.

(do yourself a favor and switch these to HD mode and watch full screen)

À Travers la Brume
(Through the Fog)
Two brothers are hunting a legendary creature. As they hunt, the fog separates them...

A film by Théo BOUBOUNELLE, Violaine BRIAT, Marie-Clémence GAUTHIER, Clément GIRARD, Aude GUIBOURT, Clara VOISIN, Maïté XIA

--------

Les Chiens Isolés
(Lonely Dogs)

On an oil platform, a story of friendship between two workers is compromised by the insanity paranoiac of one of them.

A film by Rémi BASTIE, Nicolas DEGHANI, Jonathan DJOB-NKONDO, Paul LACOLLEY, Nicolas PEGON, Jérémy PIRES, Kevin MANACH

-------

Who's Afraid of Mr.Greedy ?

A blind man comes to get back his identity, stolen by an ogre while he was a child.

A film by Simon BOUCACHARD, Jean-Baptiste CUMONT, Sylvain FABRE, Guillaume FESQUET, Adeline GRANGE, Maxime MARY, Julien ROSSIRE

http://whosafraidofmrgreedy.blogspot.com/

---------

FUR

Banned from his town because of his animality, a wolf man decides to make this segregation come to an end.

A film by François BARREAU, Marion DELANNOY, Claire FAUVEL, Rachid GUENDOUZE, Vincent NGHIEM, Benoit TRANCHET

--------

Eleanor

For Eleanor, the joy of living among other people is out of reach because of her extreme introversion, she shuts herself away in a depressive routine, with her cat as her only support, until the latter, hopeless for her, decides to leave home...

A film by Chloé BURY .

--------

Vésuves

Two men look at a woman. One wants her, the other one gets her.

A film by Kevin MANACH. (made in 2011 as part of an exchange trip to CalArts (California) by Kevin Manach, third-year student at GOBELINS, School of Image.)

THE RABBI'S CAT - LE CHAT DU RABBIN - animated feature film

2011-07-11T07:33:00.000-07:00

Another hand-drawn feature length animated film from France ! LE CHAT DU RABBIN . I'll say it again: thank goodness the French did not get the silly memo (or they ripped it up) from Hollywood that decreed "2D is dead".

Trailer for THE RABBI'S CAT -

THE RABBI'S CAT - LE CHAT DU RABBIN - TRAILER from Banjo Studio on Vimeo.

There are several "Making of..." videos on Vimeo:

Making of Le Chat du Rabbin - Banjo - from Banjo Studio on Vimeo.

The film (directed by Joann Sfar and Antoine Delesvaux) is adapted from the graphic novel by Joann Sfar .

The studio Autochenille Production was launched in 2007 by Joann Sfar, Antoine Delesvaux and Clément Oubrerie with the aim to make "author-driven, challenging films to appeal to children and adults.".

The Rabbi's Cat was the company's first project. The production was made in collaboration with TF1 and France 3. It was pre-bought by Canal+ and CineCinéma and had a budget of 12.5 million euro. (17.5 million U.S. dollars)

One of the directors' sources of inspiration was American animation from the 1930s, and in particular from the Fleischer Studios, which Sfar described as characterized by multi-ethnical production crews and for portraying darker aspects of society, in cartoons such as Betty Boop and Popeye. In order to generate more personality for the drawn characters in The Rabbi's Cat, some of the scenes were staged in a Parisian suburb loft in the summer of 2008, with props and the cast fully costumed. As the actors performed and invented their characters' personal motion habits, the design team observed closely and drew what they picked up.

More making-of videos here:

http://vimeo.com/user6584121/videos

John Celestri animation blog

2011-07-11T06:16:00.000-07:00

There's a new animation blog I want to recommend to you by a great animator, John Celestri.

John the Animator Guy

John started his animation career in his native New York City (working on the Richard Williams' feature film "Raggedy Ann & Andy", among other things) then spent several years at the Nelvana studio in Toronto as a supervising animator on Nelvana's ambitious first feature film , "Rock & Rule", as well the Nelvana television specials such as "The Devil and Daniel Mouse", "Intergalactic Thanksgiving" , "Easter Fever" (which he was also a Sequence Director on) , among others. I don't think these Nelvana specials run on TV anymore , but I'll tell you as someone who was a teenager interested in getting into animation at that time: in the vast wasteland that was television animation in the 1970's these fully-animated specials by Nelvana were a bright standout , which inspired people like me with the thought that "hey, it is possible to still do full animation today, it's not just all in the past".

*ADD ON: Thank you to the Anonymous commenter who posted this in the comments :

"On the old Animation Nation discussion board (which used to have many pros posting as members of the board) Dave Brewster (who is also a very fine animator) posted something about Celestri:

"He went off to pursue other things but he is one of the few animators I consider up there with James Baxter and Glen Keane. During Rock & Rule he did some of the best animation ever. Feature animation suffered a huge loss when he stepped out of the spotlight. More than just dwell on the past I pine for what could have been."

After a long stretch in the Hollywood animation industry John moved back east to work as a freelancer from his home studio. He and his wife Cathie have also teamed up to write a series of mystery novels. Currently John is the Directing Animator and VP of Grace Animation Studios in Danville, Kentucky .

On the blog John is sharing his thoughts on animation technique, scriptwriting, the relationship between art and commerce , among other topics.

Check it out !

New animated feature film: "Moon Man"

2011-06-30T08:05:00.000-07:00

Cartoon Saloon studio in Ireland -- makers of The Secret of Kells -- is starting a new hand-drawn animated feature based on the book "Moon Man" by Tomi Ungerer . ( http://www.tomiungerer.com/work/books/moon-man/) . The film is a co-production with Le Pacte Film .

http://www.iftn.ie/news/?act1=record&only=1&aid=73&rid=4283672&tpl=archnews&force=1

In March 2011 Cartoon Saloon started co-production on a new animated feature film version of ‘Moon Man’. Based on the best selling book by Tomi Ungerer, the feature will be directed by Stephan Schesch. The group is also currently working on a pilot for Disney
‘Moon Man’ will be produced by Stefan Schesch , Le Pacte Film’s Jean Labadie (Himalaya) and Cartoon Saloon’s Ross Murray (Old Fangs) and Paul Young (The Secret of Kells). Irish animators who will work on the project are Cartoon Saloon’s Fabian Erlinghauser (The Secret of Kells), Sean McCarron (Song of the Sea) and Marie Thorhauge (Old Fangs).

Cartoon Saloon is also working on another new hand-drawn feature film "Song of the Sea" , directed by Tomm Moore (who directed "The Secret of Kells").

New opportunities for Animators

2011-06-30T07:46:00.000-07:00

Who's developing animation for the iPhone/iPad/Android market ? Fascinating to think about these marvelous new outlets animation.

Article in the NY Times here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/30/technology/personaltech/30smart.html?_r=

On the iPad version of the book "The Fantastic Flying Books of Morris Lessmore", pages are brief movie scenes that pause to reveal interactive elements.

The iPad version of "The Fantastic Flying Books of Morris Lessmore" has the content largely pulled from the animated short film of the same name by MoonBot Studios, which tells the story of a young man’s experience with a magical library. The app’s pages are brief movie scenes that pause to reveal interactive elements: books suddenly fly at the reader’s touch, for instance, and readers can play a piano or scribble in a blank book of their own.

The Fantastic Flying Books Of Morris Lessmore iPad App Teaser from Moonbot Studios on Vimeo.

About Moonbot Studios:

More about Moonbot studios (with more making-of videos) -

http://www.onanimation.com/2011/06/30/moonbot-studios/

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr Morris Lessmore Trailer from Moonbot Studios on Vimeo.

New blog: the DEJA VIEW by Andreas Deja

2011-06-07T13:27:00.000-07:00

Here is some very good news for students and fans of classical hand-drawn animation. Esteemed Disney animator Andreas Deja has started a blog :

The Deja View blog

Andreas says he will be covering topics such as:

"Scans of rough animation drawings, thumbnail sketches and character designs, mostly the work of Disney's Nine Old Men. The majority of this art has never been published.

I will write short comments and explain, what makes a particular piece unique.

Since I was lucky enough to hang out with Frank and Ollie, Mark, Milt, Eric and Kimball for many years, I will also tell you anecdotes andstories that they told me. Some of them are pretty hilarious ! These guys were all geniuses, but it's so interesting to discover their human side. Trials and errors, triumphs and failures, professional jealousy and even insecurities were all part of their lives.

Occasionally I will post the works of other artists who inspire me, such as Heinrich Kley, TS Sullivant, Wilhelm M Busch , and others.

You will also find some of my own stuff as well."

One of the treasures Andreas has shared from his collection:

And on the blog he's offering commentary which illuminates why scenes like these are so masterfully animated. If you're a serious student of animation then go there now , bookmark it , and visit often.

Here's a photo of Andreas when he started at Disney in 1980 , training under the great Eric Larson:

Go to Andreas's blog now to read some of his thoughts on Eric's animation , complete with rare animation drawings from his collection.

"Rain Town" by Hiroyasu Inshida

2011-05-05T06:11:00.001-07:00

"Rain Town" by Hiroyasu Inshida

(if you click through to the YouTube page I suggest switching it to 720p HD mode for better image quality)

The opening titles say:

"In this town, since who knows when, rain has never stopped.
Residents moved out to suburbs and high ground around
"rain town."
People's memories are now deeply submerged.
But into this forgotten rainy town
sometimes, someone wanders."

Graduation film by Hiroyasu Inshida made at Kyoto Seika University.

Animated and colored using TVP Animation:

"Alf Prøysen's Barnesanger" hand-drawn television series by Sandes Media

2011-04-28T12:01:00.001-07:00

Saw this on CartoonBrew today:

http://www.cartoonbrew.com/music-vid...wegian-tv.html

And also on the TVP Animation Community Forum , where they report that the animation and coloring was done with TVP Animation:

http://www.tvpaint.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=4750

So the animation is actually hand-drawn, but paperless , drawn in TVP Animation using Wacom tablets. BG's were painted in Photoshop. (although they could have used TVP Animation to paint the fully-rendered BG's as well)

The director , Hans Jørgen Sandnes , writes:

Quote:

"...based on the songs of famed Norwegian singer/songwriter Alf Prøysen (1914 – 1970). The series is hand-drawn, made in-house by me and my five collegues. The episodes are short “music-videos” following Prøysens original recordings. We’re very passionate about our work, trying to master the medium of traditional 2D animation.”

Trailer for the television series:

Line test of a scene animated paperlessly in TVP Animation:

Making-of progression video showing line test to final color:

It's interesting that for publicity purposes in the making-of video (above) they have taken steps to disguise the digital origins of the drawings by adding some fake "flipping paper" effects to the animation.

I think I understand why this is done for the general public consumption: the minute you tell non-animation people "we used a digital program to do the animation" many people have this crazy idea stuck in their head : "ah-ha, the computer does it all" , as if the someone simply types in a command and pushes a button , then the computer program animates the scene. Whereas people still understand that if something is hand-drawn an artist is responsible for creating it.

It is difficult for many people to grasp the idea that there can be hand-drawn animation made on a computer , which is virtually the same process as hand-drawn animation on paper, except the lines are drawn directly into a program like TVP Animation using a wacom tablet, instead of drawn on paper and scanned/photographed.

Hand-drawn , in TVP Animation.

-------------

Some additional comments from the director/lead animator, Hans Jorgen Sandes, were posted on the TVP Animation Community User Forum:

http://www.tvpaint.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=4750

Quote:

I'm so glad you're using this on the TVPaint page. Because, it's ALL sketched, animated and coloured in TVPaint. The backgrounds are PhotoShop, and the composite is in AppleMotion. We're working on the subject of painting the backgrounds in TVP as well. The composite is very minimal, and AppleMotion works great with FinalCut.

http://barnas-ark.blogspot.com/2010/08/hos-oss.html

Since others are so interested in our process, I will make a post on how we're working. I'll also include how the animation is actually done in the TVP software. I'll post it on your forum and my blog.

Anyway, feel free to share this information : ) Looking forward to hear from you again!

All the best,

Hans

As promised the lead animator/ director of this piece, Hans J. Sandnes has provided a behind-the-scenes glimpse at their work process using TVP Animation at his studio Sandnes Media.

He writes:

"We're a small team: an animator, an inbetweener, a background-artist, a compositor , and a producer. Using TVPaint means we're still making hundreds of unique drawings. We're sketching, erasing and re-doing drawings. But we don't have to spend time on scanning the drawings, numbering them, line-testing them and archiving them. In a way, TVPaint helps us doing what we like. And takes away the unnecessary steps.

Here's an in-depth look at how we do it. " :

http://barnas-ark.blogspot.com/p/paperless-animation.html

"How to Break Into Animation" - advice from Steve Hickner Dreamworks Director

2011-04-22T13:55:00.000-07:00

Students, you must watch this inspirational talk by Dreamworks director/producer/storyboard artist Steve Hickner, on how to break into animation and how to stay there once you break in (career longevity) . This is a great talk, full of very practical advice on having a career in animation :

Director/Producer Steve Hickner gives practical advice and hints on how to get into the animation industry and pitfalls to avoid once in it.

For more Info please visit: http://www.ctnanimationexpo.com/steve-hickner/

Inspiration: Master Animators at Work - Disney Studio

2011-04-12T10:19:00.000-07:00

Always interesting to see the process. These behind-the-scenes movies from the Disney Studio in the late 1930's /early 1940's show the traditional animation process. Some of the process has been simplified or glossed over because these "documentaries" were produced for a mass audience , but there is still good information to be gained from these films and it's fascinating to see some famous animators like Fred Moore and Norm Ferguson at their animation desks.

Here's another one: "How Walt Disney Cartoons are Made (Burbank version)" made around the time of Snow White's release for the theater distributors who worked for RKO Pictures (the company that distributed Disney's films in the late 1930's /early 40's) . This footage shows both the late 30's Hyperion Blvd. studio as well as the "new" Disney studio in Burbank from the early 1940's -

A better quality version of this footage (without sound) is available here:

http://www.criticalpast.com/video/65675074181_Walt-Disney-Animation-Studio_artists-add-colors_artist-draws-sketch_flip-book

In particular the footage of Fred Moore working at his animation desk starts around the 1:55 mark in the above link (not embeddable, so you'll have to click through the link to see the footage) .

Some of this footage has been re-used in different "behind-the-scenes" documentaries about Disney.

A version of this was released to theaters for general audiences , titled "How Walt Disney Cartoons are Made" . Some , but not all of the footage is identical:

And here's a similar sort of newsreel report going behind-the-scenes at the Fleischer Studio in Miami, Florida, about 1939 -

Dailymation- Yoni Goodman

2011-04-02T09:15:00.000-07:00

Students check this out:

Dailymation

Animator Yoni Goodman writes:

"I decided to do a daily rough exercise in traditional animation, just to loosen the hand a bit and study the weights and motion.

Most of my career as an animator revolved around fast, efficient animations, mainly Flash cutouts.

Some time ago I got sick of the technicality of cutouts & decided to return to the basics of frame by frame drawn animation. To get my hand back in shape I started doing Dailymations - short, sketchy, rough & FUN animations, more about mass and movement and less about fine, clean animation.

Each exercises is done in about one - to - two hours of work (more or less).

Every now and then I'll post some of my other stuff, but this is mostly about Dailymations. "

Here is just one example . Check out the Dailymation blog and comb through the archives to watch what someone can do in an hour or two a day of animating just for the pure joy of it.

Walking Woman - animated by Yoni Goodman
"Done in about an hour-and-a-half." writes Yoni.

A simple rule about animation (as with many other things): the only way to get good at it is to DO IT. (A LOT!) Practice, practice, practice .

A couple of more:

Old Age - animated by Yoni Goodman

"Old woman getting to a chair
Thought i'd try something with a little more weight.

Took about an hour and a half."

Swordfight - animate by Yoni Goodman
"Didn't really plan how this fight would go, I let the characters lead the way. at some points I thought I'd let one guy win, then I countered the attack and let the other take the offensive, so in a way it was a bit like an actual swordfight (only m-u-c-h slower)
eventually no one won, I guess.

Done in about two hours"

Of course, these drawings could be refined more in a subsequent tie-down pass , but by working rough like this he gets his initial pass rough animated without investing a whole lot of time . Once you get something like this roughed-out you have something to work with , you can see it moving , and you can see where you need to tweak it. Then you're not just guessing about the timing. The sooner you can get your timing worked out rough in a "scribble pass" like this , then you can spend additional time refining the drawings and tweaking the timing as needed.

"IMPERFECTION" IN ANIMATION is a good thing

2011-03-29T07:17:00.000-07:00

Good article:

IMPERFECTION IN ANIMATION by Tom Gasek -
http://www.stopmotionworks.com/articles/imperftanim.htm

Written with reference mainly to traditional stop-motion animation vs. CG , but the points are equally valid for hand-drawn vs. CG.

In the constant push to learn new software there develops this illusion in many beginning student's minds that the software is what will really do it for them, that's what is really important. They lose sight of animation as an expressive art , that shows the hand of the artist.

(click the image to see image larger)

(*some might say that the high-standard set by animators like Milt Kahl, is "perfection" in animation , but it's a skillful illusion-of-perfection, the "illusion of life" , not a slavish reproduction of realism , because there is enough artistic license and graphic "cheats" in these drawings to keep them from looking too perfect, too realistic. The human hand of the artist is evident. There is a warmth and appeal to the drawings that we respond to as humans.)

This is in no way to denigrate the skill level it takes to do appealing, warm CG animation. If anything the CG animator has the greater task to avoid having the animation look "too perfect".

Friday Inspiration: Frédéric Back and others

2011-03-17T07:26:00.000-07:00

Here are some videos to inspire you as we go into the weekend and next week's Spring Break . I came across these inspirational videos and links on Dan Caylor's "ON ANIMATION" site recently. These are all too good not to share, so I'm reposting them here.

Frédéric Back is one of our greatest living animators and film makers. He is perhaps best known for his 30-minute tour de force "The Man Who Planted Trees" . If you do not know this film I highly recommend you get the DVD set "The Man Who Planted Trees DVD Box Set - Nine Animated Classics by Frederic Back"

In this recent interview, Daisuke Tsutsumi interviews Frédéric Back about his life, passion, and contribution to SketchTravel. (see sketchtravel.com for more information)

SketchTravel - Frederic Back from Curio on Vimeo.

Part 1 of "The Man Who Planted Trees" -

------------

Next , illustrator and character designer Wouter Tulp demonstrates his drawing process:

Character sketch from Wouter Tulp on Vimeo.

http://theartcenter.blogspot.com/2011/02/wouter-tulp-sketching-character.htm

-------------

Finally, here is a wonderful blog of life drawings from current and former employees of Aardman Animation, Bristol, UK -

http://aardlife.blogspot.com/

drawing by Aardman Animation artist Ashley Boddy

(click on image to see it larger)

Inspiration: Pencil Tests - deleted scenes from Snow White

2011-03-05T09:40:00.000-08:00

During the making-of Walt Disney's "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" several sequences were started and then abandoned due to story changes or pacing issues.

Walt made the difficult decision to cut sequences that had already been completely animated , for the good of the overall pacing of the film. Fortunately for us the Disney Studio preserved the original drawings and the pencil test footage so we can view these "lost" scenes :

The Soup Sequence - (Dwarfs animated mainly by Ward Kimball, with some scenes by Fred Spencer, Bill Tytla, Marvin Woodward, Dick Lundy and Bill Roberts. Snow White animated by Grim Natwick)

Here's the link to see the Bedroom Fight Scene between Grumpy and Doc (Dwarfs animated by Fred Moore , Snow White animated by Grim Natwick , with a couple of scenes of Snow White animated by Jack Campbell) . Embedding is disabled , so you'll have to click through to YouTube to watch it:

Bedroom Fight sequence Pencil Test -- CLICK HERE to view --

Inspiration: Master Animators At Work - SYLVAIN CHOMET

2011-02-28T08:26:00.000-08:00

In this excerpt from the BBC series "The Secret of Drawing" (2006) director Sylvain Chomet (The Triplets of Belleville and L'Illusionniste ) demonstrates his approach to drawing for animation. The work shown is an early test scene from "The Illusionist" (released 2010) .

The entire episode is available here: http://vimeo.com/12397782

Drawings from "The Illusionist"

Pencil Tests from "The Illusionist"

Inspiration: Uli Meyer

2011-02-18T08:37:00.000-08:00

Students: if you're not familiar with the work of Uli Meyer and his London animation studio "Uli Meyer Animation" you should definitely get to know his work.

In addition to his studio website , Uli has a couple of blogs where he posts his incredible pen & ink drawings :

http://ulimeyeranimation.blogspot.com/
http://umbackagain.blogspot.com/

A few samples of Uli's work below. Click on through to those links above to see more of his drawings.

An early show reel of Uli's work from approx. 1987 - 1993 . Commercials and feature films ("Who Framed Roger Rabbit" , "An American Tail 2: Fievel Goes West", "Fern Gully: The Last Rainforest") -

Amazing animation test done in the style of Ronald Searle, based on Searle's St. Trinian's girls :

Totally captured the Searle look in animation. Uli describes the process:

"On September 22nd I presented a 25sec animation test featuring a St. Trinian's schoolgirl to the creator of those classic British characters, Ronald Searle himself. Searle has had a few bad experiences when it comes to animation -his drawing style is extremely difficult to adapt and apart from a few short pieces of animation done by Ivor Woods in the 70s, he hasn't been impressed by any attempts. Nevertheless, I thought I'd give this a go and am delirious to report that he loved it! He even commented that it was the best he'd seen since Ivor: a truly wonderful compliment.

The original St. Trinian's cartoons are spot gags featuring the terrible killer schoolgirls and their teachers at the notorious, albeit fictional, boarding school. They commit murder, blackmail and extraordinary naughtiness against the backdrop of a supposedly more innocent era - 1945 to 1952.

There isn't a story. Searle's anarchic humor works as a single image -- not obviously lending itself to animation. Therefore, I picked one of the cartoons and added a little lead-up story.

Matt Jones and I boarded a sequence which was originally longer than 25 seconds and involved a massive crowd scene in the St. Trinian's dormitory. But I decided to keep it simple - it was meant to be a test after all. Based on the boards, I drew the layouts and posed the shots on 8s and 12s. The wonderful animation is by Sandro Cleuzo, who animated the first shot and Boris Hiestand, who animated the rest.

My job was to keep the whole project in the Searle universe. I drew the BGs onto frosted cel, each one five times to give the environments a slight boil. I then drew the character animation onto frosted cel with a mapping nib and black ink, trying to keep it as loose as possible whilst putting the characters on 'Searle' model. The animation is mostly on ones and I managed to get through 40-50 drawings per day. Helene Leroux, a very talented young French artist, traced the last shot. Loose lines further produced the 'boil' effect, which goes well with the Searle style.

The drawings were then scanned and composited by Michael Schlingmann in After Effects. Michael figured out a complex system of mixes to keep the multiple background drawings alive and in style with the lively lines of the animation drawings. We added a mix of existing music to the edit, hoping the composers won't mind since this is not a commercial project. The little film was great fun to put together - a welcome opportunity to remember those dusty 2D animation skills."

(click image to view it larger)

"One More Time" by Alexander Petrov

2011-02-18T07:07:00.000-08:00

A recent film supervised by Alexander Petrov , "One More Time" . (all of these images are hand-painted with oil paint on glass, one frame at a time.)

Roughly translated (by Google) from a Russian language page I found with information about the film:

"The film "One more time!" - is a moving memory of the finest part of every person - a carefree childhood. The action takes place in Yaroslavl, 1930. The authors managed with great precision to convey the atmosphere of that time.

The film "One more time!" is the graduate work of young animators. Its authors - Alina Yahyaev, Ekaterina Ovchinnikova, Tatiana Okruzhnova - in one -and-a-half years have created a film under the guidance and in co-creation with the teacher, Alexander Petrov.

Alexander K. Petrov - a famous animator, film director and artist. Member of the Union of Cinematographers of Russia, member of the International Association of animators ASIFA, a member of the American Academy, an honorary member of the Russian Academy of Arts. Winner of two national awards (1990, 1995). He was awarded an Academy Award in 2000 for his film "The Old Man and the Sea." Alexander Petrov, creates its own unique films in the technique of oil painting on glass."

Here are some photos showing pre-production sketches and storyboards:

http://tiny.cc/qhmgj

More works by Alexander Petrov:

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Alexander+Petrov+animation

-

Academy of Art - Current Online Traditional Animation Faculty

2011-02-18T04:50:00.000-08:00

For my Academy of Art animation students I've been remiss in not officially noting that my friend and colleague Diana Coco-Russell has joined the Academy of Art University as the on-campus Associate Director of 2D Animation. In addition to her work on-campus at AAU , Diana also teaches for 2D Animation Online (ANM 610.OL Figurative Concepts and ANM 611.OL Visual Elements of Story ) .

Diana Coco-Russell
Associate Director 2D ANM (onsite) , Online Faculty
2D Animation, Drawing for Animation, Character Design

Diana Coco-Russell IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1852703/

Currently teaches online: ANM 610.OL Figurative Concepts, ANM 611.OL Visual Elements of Story (also teaches ANM 364 Character Design & Drawing for Animation, and Drawing for Animation Workshop on campus )

Biography

Diana Coco-Russell has spent most of her artistic career in animation, with her longest run at Walt Disney Feature Animation as a clean-up animator. Beginning with Beauty and the Beast in 1992 and ending with Home on the Range in 2003 her credits appear on most films from that decade.

Known as Diana Coco in the industry, she began her career doing layout/story boards for Filmation on the Lone Ranger/Tarzan TV series, later moving into clean-up animation working on He-Man and Bravestarr. Having graduated from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena as an Illustration major, she found she preferred the camaraderie of the studio atmosphere to the life of a freelance illustrator. After Filmation folded she went back to UCLA and received a Master’s in Education. Teaching Biology and running the Yearbook class could not match the call of creativity found in feature animation and she returned to the entertainment industry by starting up with Disney Feature Animation in Burbank.

While at Disney she met Walt Stanchfield, who was conducting bi-monthly Gesture Drawing classes for the entire studio. Walt made a huge impact on Diana with his challenge to create and craft powerful drawings with life and simplicity. The call to draw the figure in poses so clear that they ‘spoke to the balcony’ was irresistible. She took Walt’s drawing philosophy ‘on the road’ teaching figure and gesture drawing classes at a variety of institutions including the local Hollywood animation union, Santa Monica City College and Laguna College of Art & Design. Diana continues to ‘coach’ drawing and animation in a variety of venues while pursuing her other interests - plein air painting, animal drawing and riding horses with her husband and friends.

You may view our other current online "2D"/Traditional Animation faculty at this link:

AAU current Online Traditional Animation Faculty

-David Nethery
Associate Director of 2D Animation Online
Academy of Art University

-

Fuddles by Frans Vischer

2011-02-15T21:44:00.000-08:00

Animator Frans Vischer has written and illustrated a new book, "Fuddles" . He animated this charming trailer to promote the book.

And check out Frans' other book "Jimmy Dabble" -

http://www.jimmydabble.net/animation.html

Tahsin Özgür - Pencil Tests

2011-02-15T08:26:00.001-08:00

I'm grateful to C. Siemens on the Don Bluth Animation Forum for directing my attention to this remarkable collection of pencil tests by animator Tahsin Özgür.

Here's a sampling:

"For a while my wife, Lale, had a company through which I did some of the best of my animation work. This "animated logo" was meant for that company, but by the time I was finished with the cleanup, she had already closed it down! The model is Lale, of course!"

Here is a short film prepared as part of an exhibition of animation at the Apel Gallery in Istanbul. The format is a "silent movie". Starting around the 00:35 mark it has an amusing "day in the life of an animator" sequence , in which you get a glimpse into Tahsin Özgür's animation work process (continuing my recent theme of posting videos of Master Animator's At Work) , with bits of his animation interspersed with scenes of him drawing at his animation table -

This was prepared for an exhibition at the Apel gallery in Istanbul in 2001.

More pencil tests by Tahsin Özgür here:

http://vimeo.com/user3233558/videos

Tahsin Özgür's blog

-

"L'Illusionniste" an animated film by Sylvain Chomet

2011-02-15T00:44:00.000-08:00

Last year I made several posts about Sylvain Chomet's new animated feature , The Illlusionist ("L'Illusionniste") .
Time to mention it again.

Now that the film has received an Academy Award nomination as "Best Animated Feature Film" and is in a somewhat wider release pattern I wanted to post the release schedule from Sony Classics. Here is where the film is currently playing or will be opening soon:

http://www.sonyclassics.com/theillusionist/dates.html

If the film is playing in your city or close-by I highly recommend you see this sumptuously animated film. Especially if classical hand-drawn animation is something you are passionate about then you owe it to yourself to see and support this beautiful, poignant film on the big screen.

Here is the North American Trailer -

(I suggest that you switch the video settings to HD , watch full-screen).

Here is some artwork from the film:

Production Drawings & Backgrounds from The Illusionist

Pencil Tests from The Illusionist

Excellent review of the film by Mark Mayerson:

"The Illusionist" a review by Mark Mayerson

Roger Ebert's review:

"The Illusionist" reviewed by Roger Ebert

--------

The North American (Sony Classics) website for the film:
http://www.sonyclassics.com/theillusionist/

The French (Pathé) website for the film :

http://www.lillusionniste-lefilm.com/#/home

Sylvain Chomet at the animation table -

Inspiration: Master Animators at Work - GLEN KEANE

2011-02-14T10:38:00.000-08:00

These have been shared on a lot of blogs , but for completeness sake in this series I'm re-posting them here.

A great lecture (in three parts) by Glen Keane on his approach to animating a scene. You can learn so much by just "looking over the shoulder" of these great animators as they animate.

Inspiration: Master Animators at Work - ERIC GOLDBERG

2011-02-12T11:23:00.000-08:00

Master animator Eric Goldberg demonstrates how to animate.

A couple of Eric Goldberg animated commercials :

Here's a link to a presentation that Eric gave at the Academy of Art University's annual Fall Animation Festival in 2008 -

Industry On-Campus Videos - ERIC GOLDBERG

*NOTE: Sorry, I can't embed the video here. You'll have to go to the AAU Videos web page and scroll down through the list of videos to find "Eric Goldberg". Click on Eric's name to launch the video.

Inspiration: Master Animators at Work - JOANNA QUINN

2011-02-12T10:43:00.000-08:00

Master Animators at work. It's always interesting and educational to see how an animator approaches animating their scenes.

First up, the amazing Joanna Quinn .

More Joanna Quinn on YouTube :
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Joanna%20Quinn&search=tag

Facial Expressions Tutorial by Tracy J. Butler

2011-02-01T18:12:00.000-08:00

Comics artist Tracy J. Butler ("Lackadaisy") has posted a great tutorial on Facial Expressions:

NOTES ON EXPRESSIONS - Click Here -

Here are a couple of samples from the tutorial, including some things NOT to do :

(oh, yes, let us all banish the chronic "C-Mouth" , "Smarm Brow" (aka "'tude" ) and "Flounderface Disorder" , all bad habits.)

(while there also check out her tutorials on "How to Paint in Photoshop" , "How to Draw" .)

(click images to see larger)

Animation Guild oral history interviews with Animators

2011-01-31T02:19:00.000-08:00

Dan Haskett

Steve Hulett, who is the Business Agent of The Animation Guild (IATSE Local 839), is conducting a series of interviews which makes for some fascinating listening. Download these interviews to your iPod and enjoy listening to this vibrant oral history project with some of the best animators in the biz:

TAG Interviews -- CLICK HERE --

Or here: http://animationguild.org/interviews/

So far they have about a dozen interviews posted online, with more promised . Interviewees include Mark Kausler , Dan Haskett , Tom Sito, Kathy Zielinski, Bruce Smith, Mark Kirkland, Brian McEntee , Tim Walker , Robert Alvarez , Ed Gombert , and Rubin Aquino. If you're from my generation in animation you recognize all of these names immediately (I've worked with over half of these folks) . Some of you younger people may not immediately recognize all of these names , but just go search for them on IMDB.com and you'll read a very impressive credit list.

I'm looking forward to hearing more in this series of interviews.

Kyler Spears animation reel

2011-01-31T01:59:00.000-08:00

This animation is by a high-school student, Kyler Spears. He's applied to Cal-Arts and I would expect he'll get accepted there. Very nice to see someone so young turning out such polished work.

"Une Vie de Chat" a new animated feature film

2010-12-23T06:57:00.000-08:00

This looks interesting. From France comes this new animated feature film "Une Vie de Chat" (currently in release in French cinemas) , directed by Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol.

The film's website is here: http://www.uneviedechat-lefilm.fr/ and the Facebook Page here: "Une Vie de Chat" on Facebook.

The trailer:

Synopsis of the film:

Un chat mène une double vie secrète : il passe ses journées avec Zoé, la fille d'un commissaire, mais la nuit il accompagne un voleur sur les toits de Paris. Alors que la mère de Zoé enquête sur les cambriolages nocturnes, un autre truand kidnappe la fillette...

A cat leads a secret double life: he spends his days with Zoe, the daughter of a police commissioner, but at night he accompanies a thief on the rooftops of Paris. While Zoe's mother investigates the burglaries at night, another criminal kidnaps the girl ...

And just in time for Christmas comes this handsome image posted on the film's Facebook page:

Animation of Christmases Past

2010-12-20T19:17:00.000-08:00

This Christmas greeting for CBS Television (from 1966) was designed by R.O. Blechman , animated by Willis Pyle.

(I have always loved the elegant minimalism and great sensitivity of this piece ... I had it on Super-8mm from Blackhawk Films in the late 70's . I've been glad to notice that since I posted it to YouTube on Dec. 24, 2006 that it has received over 281,350 views to date. So a few other people appreciate it too I guess.)

More Blechman:

This is from Blechman's Christmas special for PBS, "Simple Gifts" ... opening sequence designed by Maurice Sendak , animated by Ed Smith.

I wish this beautiful Christmas special were available on DVD . I don't know why PBS doesn't air it annually . '

The bits of it available on YouTube are not the best presentations , but unfortunately all that is available at the moment .

Christmas 1914 -

No Room at the Inn -

Here's Richard Williams wonderful (though much too short ) animated version of Charles Dicken's "A Christmas Carol" ---

This is another film that should be available in a restored version on DVD , but is only available on the internet.

A cel from "A Christmas Carol" that I own. This was animated by Abe Levitow. Director Richard Williams graciously autographed it for me last time I saw him at the Disney Studio when he was there giving a lecture about animation.

Headless Productions

2010-12-18T01:11:00.000-08:00

Headless Productions is a small independent animation studio founded by Adrian Garcia, Alfredo Torres and Victor Maldonado, based in Barcelona.

Show reel:

A teaser for their latest project "I'm A Monster"

This is a piece developed to give an idea of the mood and look of the film and the characters.

Mark Kausler's "It's The Cat" and "There Must Be Some Other Cat"

2010-12-02T15:56:00.000-08:00

Recently when I attended the CTN Expo in Burbank I was really happy to run into my friend Mark Kausler who was selling original hand-inked cels from his brilliant film "It's the Cat" .

I had sworn off collecting any more animation artwork , but seeing Mark run his wonderful film "It's the Cat" there at his table (on a portable DVD player) and with those gorgeous hand-inked cels right there on the table I was overwhelmed and just had to have one.

This frame (from the title sequence) is the cel I purchased:

(this photo doesn't do it justice ... )

The film "It's the Cat" is not currently available for purchase online, but if you purchase an original cel they will include a bonus DVD of the film.

One of these handsome cels would make a great Christmas gift for any cartoon fan. And these are likely the last of their kind since hardly anyone does hand-inked cels anymore . AND purchasing one of these unique , one-of-a-kind pieces of animation art will help fund the completion of Mark's second cat film , "There Must be Another Cat" , which is finished through rough animation, but still needs to have the inking, painting , and photography finished. Mark's producer, Greg Ford, is chipping away at the task little by little , but by purchasing a cel you'll have a hand in making sure that "There Must Be Another Cat" is completed sooner .

http://itsthecat.com/Gallery-FilmArt.htm

(and then we'll have more cels to collect in addition to another great cartoon to watch ! Yay ! See how this works ? )

I was really happy that Mark gave me a sneak preview of "There Must Be Another Cat" at the CTN Expo . He had the pencil test on a DVD and was very kind to let me see the pencil test. It's another great example of pure cartoon joy brought to life by a great animator.

What you may not know is that the pencil test from the original "It's the Cat" film is posted on Mark's website.

Check it out:

It's The Cat - Pencil Test

Announcing: "Walk Cycle Depot" blog

2010-11-26T11:47:00.000-08:00

With a deep bow of acknowledgment to Jamaal Bradley's wonderful Pencil Test Depot , I have started a sub-section of Academy of Art Animation Notes devoted to collecting various Walk Cycles, called "Walk Cycle Depot".

I'll be posting walk cycles animated by pros and by students.

Here's an example of what you'll find there:

Max walk cycle from Cat's Don't Dance:

(I'm trying to post all Walk Cycles as Quicktime movies so it's possible to step through them frame-by-frame. The embedded Quicktimes tend to load and play better in the CHROME browser or FIREFOX browser. If the playback is too choppy download them to your computer to view directly in Quicktime Player for better playback quality)

I'll try to update it frequently. Check out the Walk Cycle Depot.

"Jumping Through Hoops: The Animation Job Coach" by Tony White

2010-11-23T08:19:00.000-08:00

At the recent CTN Expo in Burbank (great event , by the way) I was pleased to finally meet animator/author/teacher Tony White face to face.

Among other interesting projects that Tony has in the works he has recently completed and released yet another book titled "Jumping Through Hoops: The Animation Job Coach".

The book is a much needed guide for all those who want to get a first job in the animation industry. It is also a valuable asset for all those who want to stay there once they have that all-important first job. I read it cover-to- cover on my return flight home , and I highly recommend it to all students. This is a very practical guide to preparing yourself for the modern animation industry and seeking a job once your animation training is completed.

(*Note: I will say that if I had a small quibble with the book it is to point out that the book needed more careful proofreading before publishing as there are a number of typographical errors, but these in no way detract from the overall value of the wisdom contained in the covers of this book . Just something that should be fixed in the second printing of the book. Get the book. )

Inspiration: Toby Shelton's blog

2010-10-22T04:09:00.001-07:00

I haven't really been keeping up with posting a lot of links this semester. Lots of good stuff out there on the web, but I've been preoccupied with other things. Sorry for the lull in posting.

Just in case you haven't discovered it for yourself yet I want to point everyone towards Toby Shelton's relatively new blog "Stuff I Did (when I wasn't doing other Stuff)"

Check out the great examples of storyboards and model sheets on Shelton's blog:

(amazing selection of How To Train Your Dragon storyboards)

Drawing tips on things like hands (can never have enough of these reference sheets) -

Model sheets:

(click any image to enlarge)

The above images are just a small sampling to whet your appetite. Go check out Toby Shelton's blog . Add to your bookmarks. Check back often.

The Thief & the Cobler - Layout tests and Pencil tests

2010-10-14T09:23:00.000-07:00

Rare behind-the-scenes look at raw pencil tests and camera layout tests.

Pencil tests of Zig-Zag (and early version of Zig-Zag pencil test at the end by Art Babbitt) --

Same set of scenes in finished form:

NOCTURNA [English] Part 1 of 8

2010-10-14T09:02:00.000-07:00

Part 1 of 8 . See it while you can.

Sister blog - CHARACTER DESIGN NOTES

2010-09-16T15:10:00.000-07:00

Another of our AAU Online instructors, the fabulous Jennifer Gwynne Oliver, has started up a blog for her Character Design & Drawing for Animation classes (ANM 364 and ANM 633).

Jennifer has already posted some great examples and will be updating it every few days, so bookmark it and check back often:

Academy of Art CHARACTER DESIGN NOTES blog

"The Monkey and the Elephant" by Boris Maras

2010-09-05T12:10:00.000-07:00

The Monkey and the Elephant by Boris Maras, Sheridan College 2010.

He animated this in 2 months.

From Boris Maras's blog:

"Keeping my film rough was a big decision. Amanda and I were both considering cleaning up and colouring our films, but we would have had to rush the animation so much and we really wanted to learn as much as we could about animation. Keeping them this way, I think we learned a lot about our limits and we have a way better idea for how approach a short film now.
The idea for my film was pretty different up until February, the characters were pretty much the same but the situation they were in was different. It was risky because I had to throw away the animation I had already done and around 25-30 layouts, but I think I made the right decision for what I want to pursue.

I started animating around the middle of February and animated up until our deadline of April 19th. It was the craziest 2 months of my life but I'm really happy with the amount that I learned during the process of making my film and hope I can make another one soon."

"Slim Pickings, Fat Chances" by David de Rooij and Jelle Brunt

2010-09-02T09:47:00.000-07:00

(cross-posting this from my other blog "Animation Grad Films" which showcases animated shorts made by students at various art schools around the world)

Slim Pickings Fat Chances is a student film by David de Rooij and Jelle Brunt from the Willem de Kooning Academy in the Netherlands.

Official film website: SlimPickings.nl
Filmmaker website: Jelle Brunt
Filmmaker website: David de Rooij

2010 Annecy shorts from the Gobelins School

2010-08-15T08:45:00.000-07:00

http://www.gobelins.fr/galerie/animation/

Another great crop of student films from the Gobelins School in Paris , made for the 2010 Annecy Animation Festival . All are 1:00 minute or less . Shows that you can do a lot in one minute !

I love the fact that besides the solid animation and design work that these films put a great deal of emphasis on the cinematography . These films are built on a solid foundation of classical animation, but with a modern sensibility in terms of the camera work.

British Animated Ads of the 80's

2010-07-28T12:49:00.000-07:00

YouTube has a number of animated commercials by Richard Williams, Oscar Grillo, Richard Purdum, Eric Goldberg, and other luminaries of the British animation scene.

Also check out Garret Gilchrist's The Thief Archive channel on YouTube for more British commercials from the 70's and 80's.

Klacto Animation (Oscar Grillo and Ted Rockley) "Sinatra 20 Golden Greats" advert -

Klacto Animation (Oscar Grillo and Ted Rockley) "Heinz Baked Beans Lighthouse" ad.
Designed and directed by Oscar Grillo, Animated by Eric Goldberg, Backgrounds by Neil Cambell Ross.

Pizazz Pictures (Eric Goldberg) "Rolos" animated by Eric Goldberg -

Richard Willliams Animation . "Jovan Sex Appeal" ad , animated by Richard Williams, BGs by Rebecca Mills.

Richard Williams Animation. "Listerine" ad , animated (I think) by Russell Hall -

Richard Williams Animation . "Limara Perfume" ad. Not sure who animated. Maybe Eric Goldberg? -

Passion Pictures . "Cadbury Creme Eggs" advert. Animated by Chuck Gammage. -

Richard Purdum Animation . "Tate Gallery Liverpool - Modern Art" . Animated by Richard Purdum -

Kaj Pindal : Laugh Lines

2010-06-26T11:39:00.000-07:00

Laugh Lines is a film portrait of animator Kaj Pindal. He is seen at work creating zany cartoon characters, teaching students of animation, and at home enjoying another of his creations--a full-size streetcar that tours his backyard. The laughter in Pindal's life is evident in this delightful film biography.

Palm Springs International ShortFest signal film by MAKE

2010-06-19T08:03:00.000-07:00

Via CartoonBrew.

Minneapolis-based studio MAKE created this animated signal film for the forthcoming Palm Springs International ShortFest. Beautiful design and animation , with a well-crafted story told with very economical cutting in under a minute. (students take note) ---

Credits:

MAKE Producer:
Danny Robashkin

Director/Lead Animator:
Andrew Chesworth

Animation Production Team:
Justin Weber
Aaron Quist
Alec Mueller
Jordan Hill
Ben Bury
Niklas Norman
Joe Kim

Voices:
John Olive
Elise Langer
Nicholas Mrozinski

Music:
Steve Horner - Horner Music

-------

Here's another piece by MAKE. A very timely PSA . And again , great animation and design all the way around , aside from the very timely message:

Sylvain Chomet interview

2010-06-12T10:08:00.000-07:00

Sylvain Chomet, director of Belleville Rendez-Vous and now The Illusionist. Photograph: Paul Cooper

Sylvain Chomet talks about his new film "The Illusionist" -

http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/jun/10/sylvain-chomet-belleville-rendezvous-illusionist

The biggest problem [in making the film] was finding the animators. Like the music-hall acts in the film, animators had become convinced by Hollywood that their time had passed.

"A lot of animators, basically people who can draw, got scared by these wankers from Disney saying that 2D animation is dead, that it was only going to be 3D and Pixar from now on. It is just typical shit by people in ties who don't know what they are talking about. Are they saying that Aardman is dead, too, then? I mean how stupid are these people? Saying 2D is dead is like saying that a car race is the future of the Tour de France."

"We had trouble because the fantastic animators we found had got really stressed because they thought after our film there was not going to be any 2D any more. Some were driving buses or retraining. People really had been made to believe that the end had come. The truth is that animation is always mixing things up: pen and paper, stop motion, puppets, 3D. Suddenly this bizarre competition has been created. What it is, one more time, is this American reflex to kill off the competition, to say that you can only do it one way and destroy everything else that went before. The whole society is like that. They destroy what they have to build something new. They end up with no roots to draw on, nothing to compare their work with to see if it is good or not. American culture is in real danger of starving itself to death. You just have to see what Hollywood is producing to see how narrow it is getting."

Sandro Cleuzo's blog

2010-05-28T11:19:00.000-07:00

The brilliant animator Sandro Cleuzo has a great animation blog which you should definitely bookmark and check frequently.

Sandro is generously sharing his collection of Milt Kahl drawings , with a weekly "Milt Kahl Day" on his blog.

Some samples (click images to view larger) -

*as Sandro says about the above drawing:

"This particular drawing is just full of great things to study. Composition, staging, silhouette, design, appeal, you name it, it's there."

(And we could say that about almost any Milt Kahl drawing)

Wow, be sure to click on this Wart pose sheet from 'The Sword in the Stone' to view it larger. This is the stuff to print out and study . Put it on the walls around your drawing board to inspire you.

There is so much great stuff over on Sandro's blog. Check it out.

Storyboarding by Sherm Cohen

2010-05-28T10:54:00.001-07:00

The ever-resourceful Sherm Cohen is posting a series on Storyboarding:

Check out Sherm's other videos:

Storyboarding Commentary Series

While you're at it buy Sherm's full DVD on "Learn How to Storyboard." (click link)

new trailer for "The Illusionist"

2010-03-16T11:19:00.000-07:00

NEW:

Official website is up:

http://www.lillusionniste-lefilm.com

Official trailer and several additional clips, image captures from the movie, etc. Check it out.

The movie will be distributed in North America by Sony Classics.

------------

A new trailer (Russian) for the upcoming Sylvain Chomet ("Triplets of Belleville") animated feature "The Illusionist" .

This looks absolutely beautiful.

The Illusionist trailer:

Translation (by "Niffiwan" ) of the inter-titles on the trailer:

---

In life, there are just a few things that are worth doing.

---
But sometimes the world is not ready to receive
---
that, which we are able to offer it.

--
This story tells of the journey of one man
---
which enabled him to keep his magical gift
---
and to rediscover for himself
---
what is worth doing for him in life.

---
From the director of that masterpiece of European animation
---
"The Triplets of Belleville", Sylvain Chomet.

---
Based on the screenplay of the legendary Jacques Tati.

---

"The Illusionist"

Tribute to Disney/Pixar story artist JOE RANFT

2010-03-13T10:51:00.001-08:00

Today (March 13, 2010) would have been Joe Ranft's 50th birthday. This tribute film was made by Joe's friend John Musker for the memorial service for Joe held at Pixar . John has graciously shared this touching tribute on YouTube to mark the occasion of Joe's birthday.

(expand to watch full screen)

By the way, on August 10, 2010 there is a new book coming out by John Canemaker called "Two Guys Named Joe" which will feature the art and life of Disney/Pixar story artists Joe Ranft and Joe Grant.

=======

And since this is a blog of NOTES and INSPIRATION for my AAU students the pedagogue in me wants to point out to students that the tribute film above by the amazing Mr. Musker is a stellar example of what a Story Reel/Animatic should look like. So much is said with no dialogue and the simplest, most direct sketches.

=======

Pete Docter on success in Animation: "Draw, draw, draw"

2010-03-12T12:15:00.000-08:00

Pete Docter gives advice on succeeding in Animation:

Rad Sechrist's "How To" blog

2010-02-23T10:16:00.000-08:00

This is a great blog which ought to be on every animation student's blog roll -

Rad's How To

Rad Sechrist is a storyboard artist , currently working at Dreamworks Animation. His blog has some terrific tips on drawing for animation.

Rad also has combined his talents with several other animation artists on another how-to blog :

The Art Center - Sharing Ideas & Tips from Artist to Artist

He gives Tips on basic Storyboarding:

(click images to see larger)

How to Get Good FLOW into your rough drawings:

And many other fine tips for animation artists.

Check it out.

-----

Waking Sleeping Beauty trailer

2010-02-20T11:45:00.000-08:00

(watch it full screen)

Even better , go watch the high-quality Quicktime version of the trailer here:

http://www.apple.com/trailers/disney/wakingsleepingbeauty/

"Waking Sleeping Beauty is no fairytale. It is a story of clashing egos, out of control budgets, escalating tensions… and one of the most extraordinary creative periods in animation history. Director Don Hahn and producer Peter Schneider, key players at Walt Disney Studios Feature Animation department during the mid1980s, offer a behind-the-magic glimpse of the turbulent times the Animation Studio was going through and the staggering output of hits that followed over the next ten years. Artists polarized between the hungry young innovators and the old guard who refused to relinquish control, mounting tensions due to a string of box office flops, and warring studio heads create the backdrop for this fascinating story told with a unique and candid perspective from those that were there. Through interviews, internal memos, home movies, and a cast of characters featuring Michael Eisner, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and Roy Disney, alongside an amazing array of talented artists that includes Don Bluth, John Lasseter, and Tim Burton, Waking Sleeping Beauty shines a light on Disney Animation’s darkest hours, greatest joys and its improbable renaissance."

First reviews of Chomet's "The Illusionist"

2010-02-17T15:01:00.000-08:00

Sylvain Chomet's new hand-drawn animated feature film premiered recently at the Berlinale Film Festival .

Here are a few of the early reviews :

Variety review of "The Illusionist"

Another review of "The Illusionist"

Screen Daily review of "The Illusionist".

"It took six days and an awful lot of films, but the Berlinale has finally turned up a masterpiece. Moreover, it’s a rare case of one of the fest’s most eagerly awaited titles managing to meet, and even subvert, expectations.

“The Illusionist,” French animator Sylvain Chomet long-gestating follow-up the 2003 Oscar nominee “The Triplets of Belleville,” confirms a truly singular auteur sensibility, while revealing a more disciplined artist and storyteller within. A streamlined character study, less deliriously eccentric in tone and structure than his debut feature, “The Illusionist” nonetheless boasts an emotional heft that handsomely repays its creator’s restraint."

Some clips from the film are seen in this interview with Sylvain Chomet. (watch it in Full Screen Mode) -

The Secret of Kells - official U.S. trailer

2010-02-17T14:52:00.000-08:00

The Secret of Kells official U.S. release trailer.

This film has been released in Ireland and in Europe, and has played a limited Oscar-qualifying run in a few theaters in the U.S., but has not yet been widely released . But it looks like it is on track now to get a proper theatrical release in the United States.

(the Oscar nomination for "Best Animated Feature Film" helped, I think !)

I'm hoping to see this and Sylvain Chomet's (Triplets of Belleville) new feature film "The Illusionist" soon.

Inspiration: Rune Bennicke Rough Animation pencil tests

2010-02-13T07:36:00.000-08:00

Animation by Rune Bennicke.

Click through the link to Rune's Vimeo page to see more of his pencil tests -

Brother Bear Koda's Mom Reel from Rune Bennicke on Vimeo.

Making-Of "The Princess & the Frog" - A Frogumentary

2010-02-09T10:35:00.000-08:00

Behind the scenes interviews with some of the artists who made "The Princess & the Frog" .

Here are two parts of the "frog-umentary" featuring Lead Animator Eric Goldberg , and Lead Key Clean-Up artist Marshall Toomey.

-----

Click through to YouTube to watch the other parts of the documentary.

Mike Nguyen's Animation Blog - RAINPLACE

2010-02-07T09:02:00.000-08:00

Animation Students:

If you don't know about Mike Nguyen's animation blog RAINPLACE , then get it on your bookmarks list and visit regularly. Mike has some of the most detailed and thoughtful pieces on the nuts & bolts of animating that you will find on the internet ---

RAINPLACE - Mike Nguyen's Animation Blog

Recent topics included : Fielding a Scene (the effect of field size on the perception of an action) , Amount of Extremes to use when animating a scene, Phrasing , Squash & Stretch Applications.

Great stuff ! This is one of a handful of blogs that I would gladly pay a monthly subscription fee to view. However, Mike is such a generous , giving spirit that he is giving it away for free. (seriously, Mike you should at least put up a PayPal "tip jar" for those who would like to contribute to support your efforts)

In case you don't know , Mike is directing and animating an independent , self-funded feature length animated movie "My Little World".

Chinese master traditional animator Te Wei 1915 -2010

2010-02-06T07:28:00.000-08:00

(via Jerry Beck on CartoonBrew.com) --

"The master of Chinese animation, Te Wei (Sheng Tewei), has passed away at age 95.

Te Wei, a pioneering animator and cartoonist, was one of the founding fathers of the Shanghai Animation Studio. His most significant film of the 1950s was 'The Conceited General' .

In the 1960s his animation style was influenced by the painter Qi Baishi. His 1963 film , 'The Cowherd’s Flute' (Part 1 below), and his masterpiece 'Feeling from Mountain and Water' (1988) are two of the most beautiful animated films from China - or anywhere"

(watch the films full-screen)

Saul Bass on Art and Commerce

2010-01-27T11:01:00.000-08:00

(found via Alan Cook's page) --

Saul Bass:

"I want to make beautiful things, even if nobody cares"

This excerpt from a documentary about the legendary designer Saul Bass is worth watching several times. I haven't seen the whole documentary, but it now goes to the top of my list of DVD's to track down.

If you don't know who Saul Bass is you should find out.

You may have seen his title sequences on classic films and not been aware of his name:

(for a high-quality version of the Vertigo title sequence go to The Art of the Title Sequence web site: Art of the Title : Saul Bass titles for Vertigo

------

Lip Sync - Gesture and Body Language speaks louder than words

2010-01-17T11:32:00.000-08:00

Good clip via the Speaking of Animation site :

http://www.speakingofanimation.com/2010/01/gesture-vs-lip-sync/

"Here’s evidence that proper acting and gestures are more important than lip-sync.
(It’s a clip Pete Docter showed in a lecture a couple years ago.) It works really well and makes me laugh every time.
So make sure your character’s body sells the line before you go crazy trying to get the lip-sync right."

Cordell Barker - Master Class in Animation

2010-01-14T16:49:00.000-08:00

Via the excellent National Film Board of Canada web site.

A master class in animation led by Cordell Barker in which he talks about the making of The Cat Came Back and the making of Runaway. Filmed during the 2009 edition of Get Animated!

Highly recommended.

(the embedded videos may not play in the Safari browser. View with Firefox.)

----

"Run Hamster Run!" - New Hand Drawn Animated iPhone Game

2009-12-15T10:07:00.001-08:00

(story via CartoonBrew)

Animation students pay attention:

Here's an inspiring example of an independent animator, Erin Humston, developing and selling his own work directly through the iTunes Store . I hope this is the sort of thing that many of our present day students will be thinking of doing (i.e. developing their OWN original properties) rather than just thinking their only option is "I'll graduate from school and then just go to work for Big X_______ corporate studio". Nothing wrong with that and it's a good way to learn the ropes in the business, but while you're paying your dues toiling away at Big Studio X always be working on developing your own ideas and characters , and thinking of ways to market your work so that it benefits you directly. (something that will support you , not just put more money into the coffers of Big Studio X.)

No one knows for sure where hand drawn animation is headed - but one outlet seems to be thriving: mobile video games.

Here’s another for the list of intriguing new 2d-cartoon iPhone games: Run Hamster Run.

Erin Humiston did all the artwork and animation, and produced the game with a handful of people in Orlando, Florida. The animation is all hand-drawn.

It’s now available at the iTunes store. Here’s a sample:

Disney's The Princess and the Frog - Dec. 11 - Go see it !

2009-12-09T19:08:00.001-08:00

(lead animator Bruce Smith, animating on

The Princess & the Frog)

It's been 6 years since Disney has released a hand-drawn animated film. Going into wide-release this Friday, Dec. 11 - The Princess and the Frog.

The time to go see this film is opening weekend , Friday Dec. 11 or Sat. Dec. 12 would count the most, through Sunday Dec. 13 is fine too .

The opening weekend box-office numbers will count for a lot as to whether Disney's return to hand-drawn animation is perceived as a hit . (and hand-drawn animation could use a genuine, revival-inducing, Little Mermaid-like hit right about now).

So far the reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. Let's hope the general movie-going public agrees.

Time Magazine rates the Top 10 Movies of 2009. Look what film they rate at #1. ---

The Princess and the Frog

“Musker and Clements have bucked the odds and made a cartoon feature that is true to vintage Disney traditions (like wishing upon a star) yet moves with a contemporary verve and bounce. In an amazing year for animation, The Princess and the Frog is up at the top. “

-Richard Corliss, for Time Magazine

November 11 Second Club - B.J. Crawford

2009-12-04T18:06:00.000-08:00

Another great entry from B.J. Crawford into the 11 Second Club competition (November 2009) --

AAU School of Animation Fall Animation Festival - December 4, 2009

2009-12-01T23:06:00.000-08:00

AAU animation students, attend the annual AAU School of Animation Fall Animation Festival , held this year on December 4, 2009.

The special guest speaker will be Disney supervising animator Nik Ranieri.

Nik Ranieri is equally at home in CG Animation ("Chicken Little" "Meet the Robinsons" , "Bolt") as well as Traditional Hand Drawn Animation. He has been the Supervising Lead Animator on many Disney feature films. His latest role has been as the Supervising Animator on the character "Charlotte" in Disney's newest hand-drawn animated film "The Princess & the Frog" .

(see Nik Ranieri IMDB )

Event: School of Animation Fall 2009 Animation Festival

Date: 12/4/2009
Time: 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Location: Morgan Auditorium, 491 Post St., San Francisco, CA, 94108

Google Maps link showing this location

Phone for info. : 415- 618-3625

(*This event will be video recorded and posted online at a later date .)

(from the National Cartoonists Society web page)

The Secret of Kells - Special Screening

2009-11-21T08:16:00.001-08:00

For Your Consideration: 2009 Academy Award Nominee for Best Animated Feature -- "THE SECRET OF KELLS".

If you live near Burbank, CA "The Secret of Kells" will be playing it's qualifying theatrical run for the Oscar nomination at the AMC Burbank 8 from Dec. 4 - Dec. 10, 2009.

Tickets and other information here: http://www.gkids.tv/kells/

(click image to view it larger)

A Day For Hand Drawn Animation - 2009

2009-11-14T10:53:00.001-08:00

"A Day For Hand-Drawn Animation -2009"

(click on image to view it larger)

I posted about this last year , here:

http://hand-drawn-animation.blogspot.com/2008/11/day-for-hand-drawn-animation.html

with a follow-up post , here:

http://hand-drawn-animation.blogspot.com/2008/11/forum-for-classical-hand-drawn.html

This annual "Day for Hand Drawn Animation" is sponsored by Tahsin and Lâle Özgür at Maltepe University in Istanbul .

All devotees of hand drawn animation are invited to mark the day , regardless of their geographical location. (the internet creates such a small world).

This year Tash and Lâle write:

November 18th, a Day for Hand-Drawn Animation

A universe of dreams and fantasy that opened up with Steamboat Willie on November 18th, 1928, or even earlier, with Little Nemo in 1911. A universe wonderful for the spectator, and even more so for the artists and craftsmen.

The tradition is alive and well in 2009.

May we all celebrate, those of us who insist on keeping it alive, and those of us who never tire of watching!

-Tash & Lâle Özgür

I thought the point that Tash made last year about the distinction of "hand drawn animation" is important to repeat:

"We call it, in our quaint Oriental tongue, Çizgi Film Bayrami, which clumsily translates as "Line-Film Holiday" or something ... "Line-Film" being what we call this kind of film. English lacks a direct equivalent, and the more generic term "animation" might have even facilitated the CG takeover ("it's all animation, isn't it?")

Think of our concept of "line film" as closer to the French "dessin animé" ("animated drawing") - it's French, language of culture, so it probably has more weight in the argument. Which argument? Why, that hand drawn animation is a distinct art form, and not simply a step on the way towards something else. "

------

Recently the veteran animator/designer/director Gene Deitch made a similar point in a speech prepared for the Xiamen International Animation Festival (Oct. 30th-Nov. 3rd) in China. Gene's speech is titled "Quo Vadis Animation?" The entire text of his speech is on Cartoon Brew:

http://www.cartoonbrew.com/ideas-commentary/gene-deitch-quo-vadis-animation.html

Here is the summary:

“The core of my speech is a pitch for the survival and eventual return to primary favor of “drawn animation.” (Don’t provoke me by mentioning the term “2D” in my presence!)"

Here is a video Gene made since his travel visa was not approved by the Chinese government , so he was not able to present the speech at the Xiamen International Animation Festival :

On the survival of Drawn Animation

2009-11-12T10:43:00.000-08:00

My friend , animator Tahsin Özgür has often made the point that the term "2D animation" is inadequate to use when referring to what we know as classical or traditional hand drawn animation. Writing of the annual "Day for Hand Drawn Animation" celebration that he and his wife Lale sponsor at Maltepe University in Istanbul , Tash says:

"We call it, in our quaint Oriental tongue, Çizgi Film Bayrami, which clumsily translates as "Line-Film Holiday" or something ... "Line-Film" being what we call this kind of film. English lacks a direct equivalent, and the more generic term "animation" might have even facilitated the CG takeover ("it's all animation, isn't it?")

Think of our concept of "line film" as closer to the French "dessin animé" ("animated drawing") - it's French, the language of culture, so it probably has more weight in the argument. Which argument? Why, that hand drawn animation is a distinct art form, and not simply a step on the way towards something else. "

Recently the veteran animator/designer/director Gene Deitch made a similar point in a speech prepared for the Xiamen International Animation Festival (Oct. 30th-Nov. 3rd) in China. Gene's speech is titled "Quo Vadis Animation?" The entire text of his speech is on Cartoon Brew:

http://www.cartoonbrew.com/ideas-commentary/gene-deitch-quo-vadis-animation.html

Here is the summary:

“The core of my speech is a pitch for the survival and eventual return to primary favor of “drawn animation.” (Don’t provoke me by mentioning the term “2D” in my presence!)"

Here is a video Gene made since his travel visa was not approved by the Chinese government , so he was not able to present the speech at the Xiamen International Animation Festival :

Pups of Liberty - a new animated film by Bert & Jennifer Klein

2009-10-13T21:48:00.000-07:00

This new animated film looks absolutely charming. "Pups of Liberty" is a 15 min. animated film directed by Bert and Jennifer Klein. The story of the 'Boston Teabone Party' told with cats and dogs. Beautiful 2D hand drawn animation.

(and check out the full crew list : http://www.pupsofliberty.com/FullCrewCredits.html . Quite the impressive pedigree this film has !)

--------

*UPDATE: There is now an interview about the making-of "Pups of Liberty" with the directors Jennifer & Bert Klein on Michael Sporn's blog. Check it out :

http://www.michaelspornanimation.com/splog/?p=2018

Many nice stills from the film are posted and Michael mentioned that in his next blog post tomorrow he will be posting some pre-production artwork from the film that the Klein's sent to him for the interview.

Tom pencil test (Tom & Jerry)

2009-10-13T12:27:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted a classic pencil test in a while. Here for your inspiration is a scene from Hanna Barbera's MGM Tom & Jerry cartoons. Not sure which of the regular T & J animators did this scene : Irv Spence, Ed Barge, Ken Muse, Ray Patterson. (or another ?) Enjoy.

Behind the Scenes at Disney's Talent Development Program

2009-10-13T11:53:00.000-07:00

“You learn something from every production that you’re on, even if it’s, you know, a commercial that lasts three weeks. You learn something from it.”

All of our AAU Online animation students should be interested to hear this podcast interview with young animation artists who have recently gone through the Disney Animation Talent Development Program and are now working on production at Disney:

Listen to an exclusive interview as Clay Kaytis, Disney animator and creator of the Animation Podcast, talks to five young artists from Walt Disney Animation Studios.

These animators share their educational experience, what it's like to be mentored, and their journey toward becoming members of the crew with a voice in the process of creating animated films.

To hear the podcast, go to:

Disney Talent Development Program alumni on the Animation Podcast

Check out the other great animation podcasts on the site with great animators such as Dale Baer, Eric Goldberg, Nik Ranieri, Glen Keane, etc.

"The Apple and The Worm" , new hand-drawn feature film

2009-10-04T07:31:00.000-07:00

The Apple & the Worm is a new hand-drawn feature film from director Anders Morgenthaler.

The film was hand-drawn, but was animated paperlessly on Wacom Cintiq tablets using TVP Animation software.

I don't understand a word of the Danish dialogue in the trailer , but it looks funny.

THE APPLE AND THE WORM TRAILER 01 VO
by Mister3ZE

Another article about "The Apple & the Worm" --Click Here --

Pencil Test Depot - great resource

2009-09-22T22:44:00.001-07:00

Add this one to your bookmarks and check it frequently:

The Pencil Test Depot

This collection (which is ever-growing) of pencil tests was put together by animator Jamaal Bradley who writes:

"The Pencil Test Depot blog is for the people who love pencil tests. It can also be used as a resource for animators who are looking to study another animators work."

Thoughts from Brad Bird

2009-09-12T02:22:00.000-07:00

I came across this quote from Brad Bird on CartoonBrew recently:

"It’s also worth noting that (Wall Street) analysts are always bullish about any studios whose production slates are loaded with sequels, remakes, and “re-boots”.

This particular poverty of imagination is absolutely mainstream thinking when it comes to businessmen, who are all about recognizing patterns of success that they assume are repeatable… no matter how often that very approach fails.

They always try to copy the original THING rather than the CONDITIONS that allowed the original thing to come into being."

– Brad Bird

He totally nails it. They try to copy the original thing rather than the conditions that allowed the original thing to come into being. Exactly.

"Hey, make me something like Bugs Bunny... yeah, that's it , give me the New Bugs Bunny" , they say , instead of considering "What were the conditions operating at the time of the Leon Schlesinger Studio that caused the artists working there to create characters like Bugs Bunny?" Why not try to replicate those creative conditions that gave rise to those classic cartoons and then see what happens ?

Also for more thoughts along those lines from Brad Bird, read this article from the McKinsey Quarterly on Fostering Innovation , which has been around for a couple of years, but is worth reading again if you've seen it before, or if you missed it the first time around take a look:

Pixar’s Brad Bird on Fostering Innovation

This link is to an excerpt from the full article. To read the full article you'll need to subscribe to The McKinsey Quarterly.

Among the gems from this interview with Brad Bird are :

Lesson Five: High Morale Makes Creativity Cheap

The Quarterly: It sounds like you spend a fair amount of time thinking about the morale of your teams.

Brad Bird: In my experience, the thing that has the most significant impact on a movie’s budget—but never shows up in a budget—is morale.

If you have low morale, for every $1 you spend, you get about 25 cents of value. If you have high morale, for every $1 you spend, you get about $3 of value. Companies should pay much more attention to morale.

Again, he's talking about creating the conditions under which creativity can flourish.

-------

In a similar vein these thoughts from Frank Zappa about the demise of the music industry which can be applied directly to most of the animation industry today (in the first 2:10 of this interview) :

Frank Zappa Explains Why Cartoons Today Suck

(from CartoonBrew.com)

-----

Sylvain Chomet's "The Illusionist"

2009-09-09T17:11:00.000-07:00

"The Illusionist" from a script by Jacques Tati , directed by Sylvain Chomet ("The Triplettes of Belleville")

The film is near completion (post-production) . Pathe is releasing in Europe, but no word on a U.S. release yet.

Latest images of the film released by Pathe (via Victor Ens' blog)

(click on images to see them larger)

The film is about “a dying breed of stage entertainer whose thunder is being stolen by emerging rock stars. Forced to accept increasingly obscure assignments in fringe theaters, garden parties and bars, he meets a young fan who changes his life forever.”

Milt Kahl pencil test - King Louis and Mowgli

2009-09-08T22:20:00.001-07:00

Some Milt Kahl pencil test goodness :

(a drawing or two are missing, so a couple of bumps not there in the original , but this is pretty much complete)

"The Cat Piano" by Eddie White and Ari Gibson

2009-09-04T11:08:00.000-07:00

Beautiful hand-drawn animation and design in the short film "The Cat Piano" by Eddie White and Ari Gibson of the People's Republic of Animation Studio .

(click through to the link on Vimeo to watch in HD.)

Model sheet of The Poet from "The Cat Piano"

© People's Republic of Animation

See the production blog: "The Cat Piano" Production Blog

Richard Purdum - Tate Gallery Liverpool , Modern Art

2009-08-26T18:24:00.000-07:00

Amazing animated commercial for the Tate Gallery Liverpool, by Richard Purdum. (from 1988)

The image in the video (from VHS tape) is a bit soft and the colors not as vivid as the original, but this YouTube video is the only version of this I could find online.

If you want to see what it actually looked like go to Hans Bacher's blog to see frame grabs from a good print:

Tate Gallery Liverpool , Modern Art - by Richard Purdum

Eric Goldberg talk- AAU Fall Animation Festival 2008

2009-08-24T15:35:00.000-07:00

Each Fall the Academy of Art University Animation Department has a Fall Animation Festival. In 2008 the special guest speaker was master animator Eric Goldberg who regaled the assembled students with a recounting of his brilliant career in animation (ongoing) with film clips accompanying his many charming anecdotes about his adventures in animation.

Click on the link to view Eric's presentation.

AAU Industry on Campus videos

(once you get to the "Industry on Campus" site , click on the link to "Industry on Campus: Eric Goldberg") .

I hope you enjoy watching this presentation as much as I did.

If you're an animation student at Academy of Art University (or anywhere else) and you don't yet own a copy of Eric's wonderful book "Character Animation Crash Course" then GET IT . (I mean it : go order it right now. Hop to it !)

"Second Wind" by Ian Worrel

2009-08-17T13:14:00.001-07:00

Ian Worrel's student film, "Second Wind" (Cal Arts, 2008).

Click HD to watch in high-def. Or go to YouTube to watch it larger.

(via Alan Cook's blog)

Dr. Lasseter tells it like it is

2009-08-06T12:37:00.000-07:00

John Lasseter Q&A Any advice for aspiring animation student?