Djsm~, AnJnj~¥' Frank Thomas and Olli ~ J
1-
The Illusion of life Disney Animation
YSNEp
1:01'1"10:'
New York
Th~
Illusion of Lif~ Disn~y Animation
Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston
Thi s book is ded icated to
Wa h Disney ~1Ild
the sta n' or artists
who brought the magica l qua lity of lire 10
character animation.
Cnpynghl"
19~1.
Wa lll),,,,"Y P,od""hOn.<
"II ,iglll' """ ...."'01, 1'1" 1"''' of lh" b<~.l "lay he u""d or "'pf\~I"<,,," ," any "~",,,cr ,h"", the "nl"'" ]",.,,,,)Sinn of 110" 1'"hIo Shc(, Pri" ted i" 1",ly, I'm ;" fo r"" " ,,,,, ,~~I "'", D,>,,"}' !:"ILLlm,_ 114 hflh ,\w,,"'-'. Nc",,' Yo rl. r-. Y 100 11.
wi"""",", ,...
l.ibm!)' of(;01'11"''<' (,:"~I"it'ng-I".l'ubbc"i"" Dal. Tbom.,"<. Franl. 191 2 rile ,II","''' "f hr~ l)""C)' ""ima"O" I I ","k Tho,,,-,> "nJ Oil..: .k,kn,'on, I
p.
_II"
K~". <', l. "r : I)i ,H "y ,\ ",,,,a,,,, l\. Pop" la, .'t!, I~"", . hld",I .." bibh~" I,j,,,:al 'de.e ....... ' 000 ",d<~. ISUN (). 7 ~I\lI .tw07(1. 7
I. \\"all lli>ll"Y Pn.d",'lIol\S. 2. A"""alc't! mm. L.n,'c't! Sllllc." I hstory and cr",c,"l1~ I JoIIo<1olL . Oll,~ . 1'11 2 II 1l1'Nua,. rml1k, I ')1 ~- Ui,,,,:y allll1\;l"()I1, III Til le M '1 7 (,(,.U S2n~~
1'1<15
95_1'1427 e l l' IO'J87
6~4J
Contents Preface
Acknowledgmc ms I.
An Art Fonn [s Bom
13
2.
The Early Days 1923- 1933
29
3.
'111C Pri nciples of Anim ation
47
4.
Oiscowry 19J4- IY36
71
5. c.lnoon Comes of Age 6. Appea l and Dynamics 7.
,. ,
Hyperion; l bc
E~ !lI()1;ion
Burbank and The Nine Old Men
Our
Proccdur~s
93
"'
14 1
159
10
How to Gel It on the Screen
185 243
II .
The Disney SourKIs
285
12.
The Follow-up FUll(.1 ions
303
13. The Uses o f Live AClion in Drawing Human> and Animah
319 367
14.
Story
15.
C h~ractcr
16.
Animating bf'TC-...~ions and Dialogue
441
17.
Act ing and Emot ions
'"
Deve lupment
18. 04her T )'pcs of Animat ionand the Futuro
Notes Apf't'ndices Index
393
509
<
• •
Preface Thi$ book is about Dimey chanw:~ animation . an an form !hat CTtaied such " 'OrkHamoos cartoon fi,u~s as Mictey Mou~ and Dornlld Duck . DiUICyanima-
_
makes audiences really believe in t~ charac· and misfortunes make prople laup-and c"en cry. There is a t ped •• ingn:dient in 0\Ir type of animation thaI produces drawings that appear 10 think ;uwj make dec isions and act of their (I'MI volition; it is whal Crea lCS 1M illusion of life.
1eI'$, ",ho$e ad,'enturc:~
No • • stud;" Iw been able 10 duplicate this I0O$I ""I'OfWlI (but!fasc .. 11(\0:0100<1) clemen! in our fil ms. b ~ be prodU«d by Ifl(lney alone. When a pro~ M15 he is coing") make a " Disney_type" film .
IIr may thint (hil rull aninwion. nicc c:oIor. and I IaF 1ludgtI .e .U tlla! is n«
is
mort
lIwI dra ..... ing, or animating. or storytcll.
l1li. or p;iliMin,-~ is what this book is all 1000ut.
In tracing the de~clopl1lcn l of cl\aracler an;nUllion ndIer than the stooio or the men in it , inevitably "'l' will leave OUt the names of many fine anim.. We ~ slighting anyone , but we n:~t even more ha y· ilia over!ool:ed a key scene: in anim~cion hiscory or a IpKW SoeqIll:I'ICe in a piccull' chac WOtlld h3V~ helped apilin and clarify oo r meaning. h is. perrn.ps . mis· ItIdiDg kl CTtdi! specifIC ar1iscs ,,·ich lhe drawings we .... in me book. since Ihis mighc imply Ihac bach Che . . MId the ~ylc (I"", from one person: for this was Iddom me Cas( . So much of OUr o ,,·n ...·ark appears IItrt !.imply b«lIIse ;1 was aJl dIM was available after III lIIII'Iy yean . AnimalOf$ uwaUy do noc save lhe ~I $kdches. chuxler drawings. and uperimmcaI plans chat re~11 lhe mosc imporlanc slage, in dtvdoping I pmonalicy or piece of business. In any CIIIt. the tmphasii here is o n lhe research ralher Ihan lilt ptOpIc who did lhe drawings. One ofme mosl rcwuding pans of Ihis project has beat me inkrv~ws wilh old friends and colleagues.
e!lablin, us 10 gain perspective and insiglu 011 e~nlS lhat had gone: wh;u ing by ~k when ..~ wen roo busy 10 1\01;•• or appnise . Ottasion:llly _ individ· ual disagrttd wich anorher over inl.rprtUlion and e~n Il'«>lIccrions. buc. lhen. argum.ncs ..·.re Ih.·ays daily (l("(:urt"tn«S when we " "ell' mU ing chc pkwrcs . ThaI was an i"'ponanl pan of Ihe I.am effort . Many will loot. to Ihis book to teach lhem the S«rctS of Disney animal ion SO Ihac lhey can become: huclnl $lICCU5eS. Unfoounac. ly. Chis craft canllOl be learned by j use readi ng a book . and not ..... emighl under any c il'C\lnutancu. Our original intention had betn 10""';11: I book 00 how 10 animal •• hoping we could offer inspiration racher than _Ihing 10 ropy. bul as ..~ did our ,,"search ic became obvious C"'I c....... was I greacer need 10 record ju~ how this sp:eial kind of animacioo had dcvdoped . 'Those Ii""" ..·ere uniqlic: and will never be dupl kaled : ~ nHath of " ·...1 was lutnW had been valid in the lhealcr for 5Cvend hun· dll'd yUIl a nd concinucs IQ be valuable where.·.r there is commu nicalion wilh an audience . We fcilihal lhis .... ahh of knQwledge in animalloo ~hould be prc5CrvnI. Ron Milkr. cxecu~ive head of all production I I the Oisney Studios. hoped 10 doobk ~ suff ofanimawrs by 198 1. bu~ he foond. e ven . flC1" an inlCnsi~ scam.. lhat " ••. lhe~ just m:n ·lIh.1 many people capable of doing Inimalion in lhe Disney seyle:· Wlw ii the Disney style? Can il be uplained? We hope MI. This book is "Tillen for lhe SllKicnl who want~ IQ know how Dis.nc-y animalion was
Acknowledgments This book bclong~ to the pn>ple. pas! and l'"'5I:nl . of Walt Oi§lleY i'rodU('lions. wl'los.l: ooop:n lion and ass;sI.lo~ made it .11 possible. Speciallllanks muSt go!O
(he CAl.'CutivCJ E. CIf\lon Wilker. Ron Miller. and Vince Jdfcnls. for without lhei. continued suppon (lVe. the four 1<)Ili yeal'll we spc m puni!!g it together. this book wO\Ild neVer have been wrinen . We wi~h to Ih~nk the many
o.·ed a remar1cablc underslanding of our purposes that was boIh reassuring and apprttiated . Our !hanks abo go to our ~ympalhclic publiIDcr RCJbc,r"I E. Abrams. whose> persona! intcre ~t in the proj«t and detcrmination to makc a quality book of our writings and i kelchcs inspired us 10 an cven more critical approach 10 our work . "The day ancr Wah died. Woolie Reithemlan said. ··From this day on it will never be li ke it was. but only ascach person remembers it.·· We want tOe~pre5SOUr Iwm'ialion to the following peopi( who helped us remembor the way il was:
Ed Aardal James N. Algar Ken Anderson William Andersoo Xavier Aleno;io An ll abbin Ted Berman Al 8enilK) Carleton (Jack) Bnyd Roger Bmggie Bob Broughton Les Ron ClementS Ufry Ci(mmons aaude CoatS Evelyn CnalS
•
aart:
Ed Cool< Bill Cottrell An Cruickshank Jack CUlling Marc F. Davis Lou Debney Al Dempster Don Duckwall Becky Fallberg Vance Gerry Blailll: (iib$on
"""" '""_
Floyd (iol1fre
Bill JU$licc: (ilen Keane
Richmond (I);ck) Kelsey Kalherine Kerwin Belly Kimball Wan! Kimball Eric l..aJ$OII Fini Littlejohn Ann LlQyd MIS. Ham ( Frukic) Lusl:e Eustace: Lyecll Jim M",donaJd Bob McCrea Bill Mc FlIdlIen Bob MclntQSh Dave Mictr.cnc:r Oarence Nnh Grim Nal wick Maurice Noblc C liff Nordberg Ken O·Brien Ken O·CQnnor Dale Oliver Bill Peet Ken Peter$Oll Elmer Plummer Manin Provensen Wolfgani Rcilhtrman Leo Salkin Milt Schaff~ Ben Sharpstetn Mel Shaw
A" S1evens Sandy Slrother Hero Taylor Mary Tebb Ruthie Tompson T om Wilhite
1.
An Art Fonn Is Born
. 'Animolian elln f,rptnin .. 'I"II~,'er ",,, mind of ""m e,m COll(t;W . .. Walt Disney
MiUI always has had a compelling urge to make repr!:senlaljon~ of .he things he ~s in the world around him . As he looks 31 the creatures Iha. share his dai ly aclivities. he first Iries to draw Of sculp! or mold their f()l'm$ in recogniUlble f ..~hion. "Then. when he hewme. mon: ski llful. he anempu to caplllre some.hing of a c«ks to ponray the ,'cry spirit of his subject. For some pn:sumptoous Il'~. man reels.he neW'o creale something of his own thaI appears to be living.lhal has an inner 51I'1:n&,h. a vitality. a separate idenlil)'-SOrnelhing that speaks out wilh authority- a creation Ihal gives the illusion of life . T"·~1I1y.five thousand yean ago. in the caves of
soothwestem Europe. Cro-Magnon man made ast<)Und· ing drnwings of ' he animals he hunted . His repn:scnt3. tions are no! only K\:urate and ""aU!ifully df'dwn. but many seem to have an inner life combined with a
suggestion o f movement. Since that time. we ha,'c been inundated with ani.lu· a!!enlp\S to .hape some· thing in clay or stone or paint thaI has a life of itsown. Cenain anists ha"" achieved marveloos Il'sults: sculptures that are bursting with energy. paintings that speak with slrong inner forces. carvings and dfllwinp and printS that have captured a living moment intime. Sut none can do n,OTe than suggest whal ILappcnedjUSt befon:. or what ...·ill happen afler thal paI1icular moment has p;1SSCd. Yel, through all the centuries. anists cootinued to search for a medium of CX p"~ion tlLal wookl permillhem to capture Ihal elus ive spark of life. and in lhe late 18OC1s new invenlions scen>e:d allastlo mU:c Ihi s possible . Along with improvements in the moIion picture camera and the development of a roll f'lm capable of s urviving the harsh m«hanisms for projecI. ing its images. a new art form was born, animation. Sy making SC
.... 1lJIll'
JoIM S.......II. fir;~
~8ambi.
and I"..*,,,tin& their phmographs onto a screen al a con>lant ralC, an ani~t II(IW rould creatc ~II of the m(w."",nt and inner tife he " 'as capable of. An artl~t could rcp"'SI.'n! the actual figu .... if he c~. mcllculou,ly caplUring its mo"enICnts and aclions, 0.- tIC could uricalul'<: il . satirize, il . ridicu~ it . And he "'""15 OOIitmlted 10 me ... actions; hc could silovo' • mOIlOlllo. fcelinl~. c,·.n innermost fCar$ . Ilc could K,,·t ..,alIlY 10 tilt d..,ams of Ihc visioNry . He could • ..,al. a chuactcr on lhe scr<:cn thai not onty appeared 1(1 Itt li"ing but Ihinking and making dccision~ all by himSl.'If. MOSt of all. to c'·.ryone·s su rprise. this ne w an of animalion had lhe pow.r 10 make lhe audience: :telually fCcllhl: CIllOlions of a ean""n figure . What an ama7.ing an form! Jt is aSlonishinglhut so r.",· prof.nionalS h.,.., in~.Sligated ils possibililies. for ... he.., else don lhe aniS( ha~. such opponunitiu for self u",""ss ion? The.., IS a ne",' ueilemc:nl 10 the fanuliar e~mcnls of dl1lwing and design whcn thcy arc '""""'n heroi<." $i~c on a large screen. bul. Il"IOoR: Ihan !hal, the oddiuoo of n1(w.menl opI'lIS the ""ay 10 alll-' uftlimllW new Il'lalionohlps in all areas. And the ""00dol"$ continue on inlo color . E",n thc brightcSl pigments on a painling Can ..,nccl ~k 10 thc ~Ie""cr only a limited amount of light . Their appa..,nl brighlness is 1'<:13I i,'c 10 itsel f .• nn~ fronl dark 10 light of aboul 20 10 I. But w'lh the light intensily of III<' proj-eClion lamp ~nd a highly ..,ncctivc scfftn. Ihis brighlllCss factor inc..,ascs 10 an udtina 200 10 1_ II:n l ime~ a$ g..,at! Just as thc slained glaS> ,,'Indow had brwghl dluling brilli..... afttT cenluncs of ... Iat,,·dy dull ffl'SCocs. tilt inlroduction o f lighl behInd till: film made .... hol~ new I1Inges of color ,,·ail. able 10 till: artist . Add 10 this Ihc potenlial fOf building «>lor ... IJIKlmhlpS in SoeqUCnce for wonger cmotional rcspoIIse. and till: artist has before him "" incrNib~ med,um for self e~",""ssion. BUI re .... arding as anima-
lion is, it i~ al:>o . m t:mdy difficult . Slill. once an an iSI sees his drawing,; conI< 10 life On lhe 5O; ... n. he .... il1 IIC,..,r again be quite p.lisfled wilh any OIl11:r I)'pc of upt<:ssion . "The unique challenge of Ihis an form "'"as aplly dc>e:ribed by Vladimir (Bill) T ylla. fir$! animltOr 10 brlnl Irw cmotlons 10 thc cartoon scfttn . ' ·· It ..~ melMionc:d !hat the possibilities of anlmallon ...., Infi • nile . It is alilhat. and y.t "cry simplc-bul Iry and do il ! There isn't a minI )"ou can' l do In il u far as composition i~ to ... emcd . Therc isn' t a carKaturist in Ihis country ,,'00 has as much liberty I S an animator here of t.... isting and .... ea'·ing hi s lines in and 0111 •••• But I can't Icil you how 10 do il- I wi .h [ (ould.·· Bill "'a~ spea king 10 a group of youn, animalors ....ho had boc:n asking how he achieved his wonderful rcsults on lhe Kreen. II. ans ..·c...cl simply, "To me il' Ii jU>l as much a mysICry as cver bcfore-$Ol"l"lCtlmtS I g.1 il--somccill"lQ 1 don'l . I wool tncw . ItlCn I' ddo il mo«: often . " "The problem IS IlOl a single Il1>Ck one . Anllnalion is IlOl just liming. Of j usl a ,",ell-dn,,'n CharaclCT. ~ is Ihc sum of aillhe facton ~med . No matter ""IIlU the de"i1 one talks aboul-wllelhCT fon:e or form. or ,,~IJ· dn .... n chsl1lC'lers. liming. or 'pacilli- animacion is ,II lhese Ihings-not anyone . What you I S an animalor ~re intcreSled in is conveying a ctnain f~cling you h~ppcn 10 h~"c ~I that panicular time . You do all sons of Ihings in or
lbe mosl imp<>nanl aspc'" of ll1i. an for the young animator 10 study and mast~r . As anisls. "'c 110....· h.,·c new responsibilities in addilion to I~ of draflsman and designer: we ~ave added lhe d isciplines of lhe aclor and the lheater. Our tools of communical;on are 11-..: symbols thaI all men understand hecau:;e lhey go back hefore man df:veloped sp«cll.
Scicnlist and aUlhor Jane Goodall repons Ihal c'·en les:;er primales. such as the chImpanzee. have a ....·hole ··complex nonverbal communication based on touch, posture. and geslure. . ... The:;e ~clion s vary from an exchange of greelings ....·hen mceling to aclS of submission. often ... ilh lhe arm extende
poop. "!he OIlier chimps invariably hurT)' to plIy Ihdr ~.lOUChlng
hIm ·... ,01 ou!Stlffi:hed hands or bow· ,ng. JU!'! IS courlieTS once bov'w befln lheir king . " Mll'Ii Goodall describe~ how a lone male passing I mOIher arod her family Il:!ponded 10 her gll:eling with a ''''''h. "as . himp eliq..eue demands. then greeled her lOfant. plIuing il gently on tile ""ad while it looked
up al hIm wilh bil! staring eyes . ·· 1 Some tWO hurodrcd ~ s Igns Ib.al clearly d,s.pLay chim~nzcc cmotiomi include preenIng. embracms. charging. kissing. and pounding . Chimps are apt 10 ning lheir arms around u.ch OIlier for runUnln<;'(:. throw Ihings in anger . steal objects funivcly. and scream wildly wilh excitement .' Most of these ex·
.•
I\
,
I, ! !• J'l'cssions of fcding.! and language symbols are well k""",'n In ",~n. W~It..r lhey "'" burktla,-;or. Dogs. 100. !la'-" a ""hole p;!uem of actions 001 only clearly un
Even ",Wl<)\l( u~ing sounds. ~s can coovey all of 'h~ broad s!"'tlrum of (moll om and feelings, There i.< 1\0 doom wh<:n l dol!- iJ ashamed. or proud . or playful. or sad lot hdhllc,cm, .1«1')'. disgusted. ,ndillnant). He Sprats ""j,h his whole body in both attitude and
mo"cmc:nl 'Y'I1c XWr is trained 10 tnoYo ' '''~ )ymboh of com· munica'io" becau'>C they are his 1001- In trade . BaSICally. the animator i. the actor in IIninkl'cd films_ . Ie is many othf.:r things as well : how ... ver. in his druns to cO""0unic:,lc his ideas. acting become:, his "''''' imporlanl dcvk.... Itut ,he animator ha, II ,pedal problem. On the " age. un of lho: fOl"C'goinll ~)mb()ls arc aerom· panied by sonK' kllld of personal magn<:,isnl 'M' can ro.lU"unlU'C ,he f«lings and al1 i.OOes equally;o,. "ell as .he action lIsclf. n...re is a ' P"" .n . his kind o f rommunicalion .ha. is u.renK'ly ali'c and ,·i!al . 110\0'cver. wanderful a.~ .he world af anima.ion IS. i. is crude la '''p'ure camplc.el)· ,hal ki nd af ,uhliely. If in ~"ill1aliun we are tr)"inilla shu,,' Ihal "chamcIcr is sad. we droop lhe shoulders. slump lhe body. drop III<' 11<':.<1. add a long face _ and dlOlg lhe f«1. YCI lhose s.omc: s)"mbols also can mean Ihal til<' d.arae"r is
'00
,ired . or discooraged. or e,'en li . tlc" . We can add a lur and !,mpoint our ~llil udc a 1I11le he",'" but 1M' is ,he U lent of oor capabililies. "The: Ih'c actor lias anulher :.l In racl. lho: producer relics ho:avily un Ihis. When ho: bc~",. a I"'e acllon pic. ure. he SlaMS ..-ilh two "'''","S ofp""'cn "hili!) ,,110 will gellcr~l c somc lhin g sp<:ci.1 JO" by being lIlgcther TIlere " 'i ll be a chemi,,'Y at ""'k Ihal will create charisma. a spc<.'iaJ cxci'ement Ih'" ,,111 dic., an imme diale re~sc from ,he audience The ",: l<", ",it each proj«. a unH;jUC' cn<:rgy simply beea\>,"" the)" are re~1 prop • . B)" ron'ntSl. in anima.ion " 'c , Ian "'Ih a blank pi«c of paper! Oul af nowhere wc h;,,·c 10 00"", up wi,h chalOlclers 1hal ".., ..,31. that hc . that illtcm:lale. Wc ha,'C to work up Ihe chcmi>lry hc lwccn thcm I lf ;IIlY I< la ui,' ). find way' 10 creatc the cou nter!"'n of ella.· "sma. ha,l' lhe ehar"",e", muvc in _ betic"able man· ocr. and do il all wnh mere pcncil d ..~"",V . That" enough ehallenJl(' fur an) body TIlesc problems ,,-uuld SCCm ,u C .~~le COII,KIe",bkdiffoc:ullles For achl~~ing the c"mmonIC~lIon ct~lnK'd for ~nlltlal ian, . 10'" can 11 ,,'00 "" " ooo.rfully? It dncs il in ~ ~cry simple way Ihrough "h~t "'~ "all "auditnce ,"~ulv~mem .. In '~Ir ,,"n livc'. w~ find ,hal u we ge( (a know JlCU1Ilt ,,~ , ha.e their ex!"'· ricnces-w~ sympathize. " 'e cmpath
theu ...·df~. We IIecome invol,·w in their lives . We IRvol'l: the audi~nce, in our filnlJ lhe ~"'" way. WeMal1 with something they know and li ke_ This ... n bo either an idea or a characler. M Ionll as ;t is famIliar IIIId acrealing. 11 can he • siluation everyone IIu c~prncncc
mlCTOphone. ~hoing footsteps. a creaky. door. you wc~ held spellbo
T IME CHART
1923 to 1933
1923 Walt maln "Ii«·. WnMt ,/,,1t/I W" allSa. Ci ty. In " ug uS!. W.lt romcs 10 Holly.......,. Coo,Tr\ for AI ~ Fonn. COn'Ipany ,, "h bIOthtr Roy.
.mes.
1924 J"incd by lib I...~fl< .nd fncnd< from " "n.., Cit y. Tum out ,,""
~rin 5"".. " ful.
~tu fe
• """'th .
19 25
... ff gro'n ". 12.
Ne'" cooll"lCl rot one picTu""
. '.ery
th"'"
",ee~ •.
lJuy pl'Of'Cn)· "" U)·pelion A.·e. Stan buildi"~.
1926 Mo .. e '0 ne"" "..clio 00 UYP"non .
192/ Complete I. .. Ioiia f,lm . !>!an new ... ie> .... i.h OM "hl
,h~ Lud~·
R" Pt>JI.
1928 Aftef 26 P;~l" t"I: ' . Wah 1000$ rights to O, ..·. ld. S.an, new ""ie, ",·ith Mickc)· Moo ..
-- ---- - - -- -- -- -- - - - - -- -- - - ---
SOUN D COMtS I N - -
Nov . 18. St fflmboa, Will,.. open< in New Yor\<.. 1929
More Ira« netde
Use of soo nd m. k.. Di,,,,,y·, f"", most c. l1oon stooio. Animato" flOm No" Yor\<. btli n ani,'mR Firsl Silly S)'mpbony--Sk" ~"" Dan<"~ . .IIid,y·, 0 (1<) C/wo. anima.ed min
."1'''.
build; ~ e ~pa!>dod .
.oJ()
Chain G'JIIg. has OOi .hat later bee."", Pluto .
Staff in"ea.... '" 30.
Nt "" buildings added for plu ~ wund
19.31
anim.",,,.
U~ ly Duc*'in~ .
nample of .. mnger "ari es , Fi"t I'yoot mon hi red .
,tage. 1932 n()~W'
nnd
T,,~• .
fi rlol eanoon in rolor . S,.n of.n s< hool al nigh,
193) Thru Urr/t
Pi~. _
" Mou nd,ng """".. fi nance < e>pllniloo and man: ""dy. Bottom oIlJtprt:I,,,,,,
.
SOIIIIily. aoo. ~rerably. an intcre . ting 011<: . tl~ muS! be • WIIIf..,.,:>bk ;b an old , hot . lCl "" exc iling as a -!fIriIIc OIIt(oI . Sp«tators ean laugh at a gaG. be daukol 11)' I lit...· df""I. be ,n"'guN by 5<'fM' Wng ~kly (re. h. hul an of Ihi ..... in hold their Itlmlion r... hardy leo mlnUl ... A ~ Ch.rlie Charlin aid of hi~ oUln beginnings in lhe m","e husiness, "uuk as I kno:w .1x•.11 movie, . I k..., .... III" I\l)(hing t"ns«ntkd I"'r
""'1
...,.
nc ,rnt AIIII.: , icall lIIime and an ise Angn. Enters' II!Cd 10 &i'~ ller d~ lhe "",i,nment ,,( " 'riting " po.!$4C..:I ....... r IllUIl:innl cire"m"aocr$. beea"", il i. III KIlon «m' d of an)' inlere.' "h.b,,~'·er wilhoul 1h<..scM.... of rc~nati')" . BUI once a , lfOl" 1"'......... ali\y is inlnxloced g'"" i""',ibili,ics sIMJdcnly bc<:OnlC
apparent. To be,;n "i'h . i, hdps 10 tlc"dop a s ilualion in ...tlich )'011' im~glllcd personalit y ca" (uIICI ;lIn. Say thal)'llU'" .. .ning 001 on a too.; it is 1II01"l1l0g arnJ I"" ~! is fUlJy 10 kave . You ha'-e been urged to hurry lIP. but just lhen )·ou "''''''mber IlI;It you r",gut 10 put tIw ~ 0lIl he(..re Ita" ing hom. ! You mu!>! "rilc a ""itt 110\( 10 )'' '''' neighbor "'ho Iu., It..; lc ~- . a,king her 10 ca'c uf Ihing,. Now. huw w""ld y,,... " 'rite lilt cud'! If )'011 h,,·( chosen a ncr-.·O\IS. in~cu.(. and dilnic . lhe I. . 01 be,o, left ,"",hi nd. lhe inability '0 phr.>-.c " o rd.s 10 II.- they n..Lc ~ny ''''''''''. the fluuc r o f inm"""nt .IIM». the Ik>rcrallon . 0.. ""PJK'St 11\0 po!.rotl .... ,,"og It..; card i, highly ind;,nant """",,, • Ctlmpulcr in si.ls Ih:.\ It<. n", not p:lld a o:cn~i" b,lI antl has jn>1 scm him hI> 1;1\1 IIOliee . No ...· tilt wool. mn>! be chosen w;,h c~re . T"" comPUI'" and lhot '·"'"p.n)" Ih'" h.s b«n . Iup,d ~ nQUgh to ....·n it 1!III;t "" told "If in TIO unccn ain tcrms. There ... ill be 110 on..,."... (rom the ioc ",,,'c ,""eu, allons you
we
ar.: stuing tlnwn. You """Id be g~~rul . ~njoying c:och <"",I ...·"'d. Or you cou ld be "rumphanl a, )·w Ih;nt o f benef . ~''''''ger . more biting ...·... ds. Or you could be ''''mbling " -;Ih ragc a, , he ",hoi" idea or lhe lerriblc effrontery of Ihis mechanical age . Suppose lhe ",riter " -en: 10"csick and " ·riting IU hi, dre am girl- prohably the th;rd ~ uch rnM Ihal "I\If"· ing . A ~ill)" smi le might become fi~cd o n his rae. a.. he rc,"Cicd in each sug~ry word . Wilh II;Ilf·c kw:o.I ()'cs and heavy ' iglls. he wo.. ld gale inlo .\fIOCe _ing a mofM"tal"Y VISion of her precious fa«. '1"..,.., ..,,,,,Id be kiss,", o f the <...rd ",hen he ",.;;tli fim. hN . a rel"",a~ III drop it inlll the nllllho~ unlll be Iu.d sighed onc lasl ,ifM and ki,><:d lhe bek'\"cd n~II"I< jn>!
,,'-en
OllCe mOr(" .
II is easy to !OCt: ht' .... Ihe dc"cioPIIICIl1 of '''' ill(iivi. dual pef5<) n~lil)" in a .Iory s ilualion ca n nwkc ewn lhe dulln t action b«omc cntcnainin, . In addilion 10 (he personality . hO\O't'·(r. the", . hould be ~ ( han1-'C in the initia l aclion that ..·ill enable an ani ""'Ior to show mofl' than one side of 'his perwn;t]il)·. n.. ,nnsl ;nltr. es,in, e llaraclCr in ,"" ...·orld is oot "e r)' u e i, in, ,,-hen ,il1;ng ~nd l islcnin~ 10 .. ~)' nlphon y (oneen _ Our \rue personalil;", arc bes, rc\"uled h)" uur feae,iu", 1<> a chan,c we d ,d nol e~pec' Take a . Imple example of .. goll"cl ~cuing ",ally 10 make a eruc: IaJ shot . He >hu>o.', conccnlrat'on and !l..1er·
" ,·'wAf(;lll
o.;,n,ld·! C
"',lmJ;,,! ~'_li~
ella"",,," .
minalion as he prepares for the imponam swi nS. llien . suppose he misses lhe ball enlirely. His lrue characler will be revealed 31 once! If he is Donald Duel:. . he will fly imo ~ "'ge and blame lhe ball. If he is insecure and nervous. he will blame lhe club and promptly break it over hi s knee . Or. if he is a popular amateur who has been off his game but has 3 sympathetic galler)" trying 10 encourage him. his response will be biuer dejection. and you will have pathos in your slory . Our goal in these s tudies is to make the audience fulthe en>otioni of the ~ haraclCrs. rather than appreci. ate lhem intellectually. Wc want our vie .....crs not merely to enjoy the situation with n murmured. "Isn't he cu-ute?"' but reall y 10 feci something of ""h~tlhe char· acter is feel ing . If ""e succeed in thi s. the audience will now Care about the eharactcr and about what hap. pens to him . and that is audience invoh·cment . With· OUI il. a canoon feature will ne,'cr hold the anention of ils vic",·ers. The various aspecls o( what animalion is. whal it could do. and how it worked were learned slowly over the years . lliey werc ccnainly not evident when lhe an form was flrsl di$Covered. c~cept in the epic works o( Winsor McCay. the N..,,· York Hrmld' , s kill(ul canoonist. Working essemially alonc:. he turned oul several aSlou nding films between 1911 and 1921. with SOme canOOll figurcs so convincing that he was accused of tracing them from p/IoIogroph,. In responsc , McCay drew a dinosaur for hi s next film. and. incidentally. dis<;oyered the imponan<;e of a canoon chara<;tcr" s per. sonality in establishing rapport with the audience. Today his films arc historic clusi~s. but in their time chey "-':~ not commercially successful. and Chat forced McCay to return to ,",wspaper work . His c re.tions were vinually forgonen for fifty }-.:ars. OChers enlering lhe animation roeld lacked McCay's awel'llrne calents. and few autmpted anything more than whal was commercially aCttplable . Aflcr all. in those early days. movies wc~ Mill a novelty and car· loons " 'ere added 10 the progrum only (or amu seme nt 11Iey were not an imponam pan of the shnw. and very liule ~y carne back to the studios thac made them . Audiences responded tO,he gags and preposterous sit · uacions. so creative energies went into a search for different approaches. fresh angles. new tricks. rather chan into making hener pictures . When the men in a
Sludio f
was 10 the wall he had Ihe strong suppon of his staff, whose loyalty and dedication to both lheir boss and their wort kept lhem mak.ing sacrifices Ihrough dllJls of uneenainty When it came right down to it, most of uS were more interested in keeping animalion alive Iban we were in making money. We were beginning 10 sense lhe magnitude of the an form that we were discovering. and ils polential held us like a magnet. Wall was basically a communicator. and in the ani, mated film he found astounding potential forexprening his ideas_ The cart()()n drawing always had been a very simple and direcl graphic form. and whether it WitS for social comment or just amusement it had 10 pcescnt a unified. single idea with nothing complicated ..... traneous. or contradiclory in its makeup. When IIle cuIUUO was transfem:
TIME CHART Aoolh<:r building
[(If
1934 to 1943
1934
anim.,;,,"
New wave of .11,,, , ",ns com ing. A,'t i"n .naly,;'_ cia',"". Icrlu", •. Pla'full'I"", . FI.\;n~ Mm"~, G""Id~>5 of Spring . Wiu I.i lll~ 11m in'reklLl«"
• character 'kinks ! Donald Duck .
Buildi"l\ fOf In k &. Pa'n!.
•
1935
Band Conca'.
Person",,1 passe. 400.
C"""i~
fi,,,, Midcy' in color.
Cam;,."I.
/j,<>k,." Toys.
Goi
19J6 Mick~,,' ,
Grand Op<"' . Elme, t:l~rh,,"' . W,,/>-.... Thru 1M Mim)' . A'pi"t Climb"•. Cmlnln, COO"" . Thru
Another anim.lion
" r~,,")
1937
bu ildi ng ~"""""l
Liltl~
1I"~
Animation on Wall
~itk,
f~al u ",
to make one
Smwr~' s
Holid"."_
Clock C/~,,"us . The Old Mill
pas,.. 800.
IJr",'~ UII/~
raj/"r.
in'o
1938
a yo.r.
Anima, i"n
Ugly V"dNnl/
"Of)"
1939
n"",ho
eurb.nk Studio fln ishcd:
compl.,ed on
,. ,""""'" "Of'
""'"Y lI"mbi
Personnel p..... Ioc)).
I
r,,,,uui,,
(l" Prac,imi Pig.
Thf I'oimfr. Goofy & 11'j/b"r.
stafr mov .. a, work i.
II .n ,n"'",,,
A.pl'renli,y grow,
""rerimen,,1 oni",., ion
.nima"""
,
"or)"
Fa"'''',,,.
full c'rew 1940
I
anima'm"
Nn\"Cmbc, I'M()
,,.., Warin Europe lake, f""'ign
market . Staff cui to 700. Or,obc, I'M I 1'M2 PirlOCChio, Fanlasia. Bambi .11 I"", money II box office . Golden Age i. over.
1943
,
"''''' _,1,"1 ".otl< , ",n,,'K'" ,,,no
ju~ SI)rI
of droJnli~e. IIIe(re pleasanl 10 look 3t. dlty"re ~helic-;n'lead of understanding ..'hal the bait mini is about · image .' [don ' t know how e~ anyone could ~ this e~«"pt in motion pictures. and . panicv.I;arly, in cartoons-you sure don't He! il in an
111 school," II ii impossible to judge the films that were m.de, or 1he animation that was done , or e ven whal is worth Jft~ing in tile mcthodli that " 'cre used, without an
undef'Ualldin, nf this language of imagery th.l1 spol::c IOdtarly flQ!!lihe K tte.. no! drawings by tho:tmel,"eS 01' paintin,~....- i!lOla' cd M iles, oot tile v;wal symbolS o(_io;~tion , When the oulSl.nding violinisllsaac Stem 10';1> ;l>kcd tho: difftfCllI:e bctw~"tlcss natuTC and never liked to do the PIllt thingSl"'ice , As he said o f himse lf, " I can ne"cr SUI'Id $Iill. r must uplorc and e~periment , I am never Alisfoed with my "on:, I resent lhe limitations of my own imlgination _" Where OThers felt luc ky if they o;oukl hang on to whal they had , Wah was ronstantly ~an:hing for new way~, bener ways, and, especially , ways th31 hi s sma ll grou p of artists cou ld handle . As mlny ofl~m .g~ ;n latcr years, "One of Wah' s g=lCSt gifts wu his ability to get you 10 wmc up ... ~h things )'00 didn ' t know weTC in you and that yoo'd ha,~ sworn you couldn' t possibly do!"· As the alidicncc response verifitd Walt's cof"'ic· lions aboul entertainment. he wa~ able to fight for bener tontriICts thai brought in a lillie more money. Now he could begin to add to his ~w ff men who had be.n b,wer traint:d and artist!; who had a greater variely of talents , Tlle Depression had begun, and young anisu ..'C~ fKed with a bleak foture, if any at all, ;n the~ial ftclds, Tlle only two places fOf employ·
w.u
mem were lhe government.financed WpA and Dis. ney's . In tcn years the studio wem from lhe ow vitality and <.:ntdc. dumsy actions of S,filmOOaI Willit to the surprising sophistication and glowing beaUly of Snow Whitt , Togelher wc at the Disney Studio had disco~crcd many Ihings about communicating with an audiern:e . Wc weTC still to learn muc h more , Wc continued to experiment with many approaches to filmm:.lting and different uses of animation, from · 's top motio n " wilh cut outs, limited move ment , stylized design , puppets , and )·0, 10 the full «"I ani. m:u.ion , Whate~r lhc method. the pictures that tOIthe biggesI response in the theaters wen: al ways !he OlIOS thai a(:hicvcd audience invol~cmc:nt by telling dermil-C Stories through rich perronalilies, h had begun wilb Mi<;key and Pluto, a cartoon boy and his dog, who appeared to think and iugge>-ted !he spirit of life , Tllen, the "Silly Symphonies" portra)'Cd tmotions in their charactel'$. and there had been I feding o( lifc , Finally . in the tell;ng o f fea~-Icngth tales aboul spc<:i rlC characle rs who wcn: con~inci""y real. the full illusion of life WU K hicvcd. Tlle Illusion o f life is a rare acromplishmcm in animation, and it was never really mastered anywhere e~ccpt at thc Disney Studio, Of all the characters and stories and uciting dimension $ of ontenl inmcnt to rome from that incubatOf of idcllS. this is lhe truly uniql>C achic~emenl. This is what moSI he CIamined and uplained, un
(
!he: refinemenls in Ihis language of imagery, BUI il also clme from new ways of looking at siorie,. Ours "'ere n(lII "rillen down in Ihe usual way: li>cy were dra"'n. because a few ,timulaling pictures could sug· &tit far more aboul the potential entenainmcnt in an episode tilan any page of words . More than that . our 5tones were kepi f1e ~ ible unlillong after ti>c first ani_ mation ~ been dQne. Oflen a whole new chardctcr "tlUld appear from nowhere and take ovcr the SlOry. When we ~ed Snow While. there was no Dopey in doe casI. Pinocchio had no Jinlin)· Cricket. and 8 ambi hMi no Thumper, An of ti>cse characters evolved as !he: pictures de'-cloptd. A~ Walt said .. The i'>cSlthing, in many of 0111 ptclUrh have come after we thought !he: $lOt)' was tlloro\lghly prepared, SOmelime, we don·1 rtally get do", 10 our personalities untillhe story is in animation ..• Jt "'lIS ne'"Cr 100 latc Itl make a ch~ ngc : nOlhing w~s el"Cf ~ as long as I"" possibililY c ~ i,~led Ihat il could be made 10 relate beller IU the overall piclUr.: or com· munitate more 'Irongly wilh Ihe audience. We slrug · gIed to build interesting. appealing characters. bUI Il105t of all ,,'e worked 10 frod ways to make Ihe audio (Ott Jttl lhe emOlions of the animated figurcsemotions the audience could ··relate to. identify with. and \!eco"", im'ol'·ed in .·· All of lbis look ,lUdy and desire and knowledge and inspil'3lion and monlhs of selection and building. but that is true of any great a1'1i,lic a<:compli
exer.:ise of constant critical judgment. That is why the ,,'orld· , greateSl mime. Marcel Marceau, say~ of his own work. ··h takes )·ears of Mudy . You can t ju~t walk Out on tile slagc and do it,'· Marcel Marceau also said that his teacher. Etienne ~crou~. had lold him thai II>e principles of communi· cation with an audience were the etic feeling •. as well as techniques used to poriray emotions. 10 please. 10 e xcile. 10 capti,·ale. and 10 cnlenain. have always been known by sollle. At Di,ney· s ,,'C leamt.-d lhem painfully and slowly by lrial and enOl. Although wc had the greatest of leaders. I>e was nOi "rictly a 1eaci>cr. Still. by learning the ru!es this wa), we learned them thoroughly. and son"'tim.s wc think we may have added a few foo1notes of our O"·n to the histone lore of Ihe tlu:ater . Most of our work has been in only unc small pan of the vast lield of animatiun . There are so many arUS to be e xplored. drawings to be tried. emotion. to be cap. tured. effecls 10 be crealed. new wonders to be secn. Jt is an exciting prospect. Wilh electronic aids being perfected and new tools and materials being used. who can possibly foresee what lies ahead'! It prom.bly will not be another Wall Di sney woo willicad lhe way. but someone Of ",1m group of anists will surd)' disco"er neW dimen.ion. to delight and entenain the world, Hopefully. Ihis book ,,·ill be their springboard.
- ......
,....... MrI1t
DIIi, Jo~ItSl()lt .
""fin
Ward K im/xJlI.
:-
W- _
AlIt/Sf Frank Thoma.
,-
iny.m "",ilt
~.
"'" , tJfItra ~B"'"
A WALT DISNEY COMIC M.J. WINKLER DISTRIBUTOR.N.Y. WINKLER PICTURES @
2. The
Early Days 1923-1933
.....tfirsl Ihe curWon medium wm just" "m'dry. but il nf'wr uully begun 10 hil umil "'f Itad morl' flam tricks . .. ,,11Ii/ we del'flOpi'd pUJol/dlilies . W" had /() I:el 1K)'0,," gf'lling u laugh. They may roll in rite aisles. bUI that dotSIl " meall ),OU }'m-" u grew pin"r,. You Itav,. 10 Itav,. pathos in the thing:" Wall Di,ney
When Walt Oi_,,,,y first cam~ to f-lollywood he had no in(enlion of continuing 10 ma ~ . animated canoons. I Ie had done that kind of work in Kansas City. achieving
only meager success with his Laugh·O·Grarns and none
been praised on T uesday was regarded as only. stcpping· s!one 10 something better On Wednesday . All his tl\Qocy went ioto films and the development of a swdio. as Wall began colk'Cting a staff li kely 10
at all with hl~ li rst film. Alic,.·" Wonder/and. Now he wanted 10 try something that offered a greater outlet (Of
his continuous ,(ream of creali,'. ideas: Walt in-
tended 10 be a mo"ie director in one of the big studios_
II "'as only after his money ran Out and h. was yet 10 be "f'P'l"'ialed by the major produc~rs that he was forced to return to the one thing that previou s ly had paid his bills. Di,appointing as this muSt have b....,n for Walt. it was extreincly fortunate for eYeryone else . Altboogh he was interested in many different aSpe<:ts of the entertainment world- as he demonSlrated in laler life---animation was lruly the perfe<:\ oullel for hi s special imaginalion and sense of fantasy. Slill. the year 1923 Willi a p:micularly bleak one to be entering that field . As. ,howcase of hi s work . Wall had o ne completed folm. Alia' s Wonder/m,d. and when he sent it off to a cartoon dislribulor he was surprised to re<:eive. in return. a contra<:! for Iweh'e mOre fi lms. This WaS a startling beginning. and if One pIJnned films <:arefully, watched expenses. and <:ul e"cry <:on<:eivable comer, it was f'Os,ible 10 make a profit . BUI Walt was nol inlCreSled in cU lling COmerS. It waS Iypi<:al of him thai anything he went into had 10 be Ihe best. and not just the b<,t of whal was curreotly being done. but the be SI it was possible 10 do. This always made lhe job of pteasing him very difflcull, since the drawing that had
E'S TSEA
for lhe average canooni51 1l'~lIy 10 kllOW how 10 imPfO'Ie his "'OI'k. The fun 01 aninlilling. of duinggaas. of
IhinkinJ Up funny businrM IIl{$
gro'" along wjth him . Ben Sharp5lecn.' firs! of ,he: anima'," tQ~ (lUI from New York , said. " [ ~ a job with I fUlUre. and [ did 1\01 see a promis ing fUlUre at the$<: lllller s tudios . S UI W alt was diffcrc n1. Hi s hiGh regard for the RnimatiOfl medium 300 his
detenninalion 10 produce a _,upcrior product grea tl y 3Jl1X'alw 10 me ." Wah had 1\0 idea then what lho~ superior pic!Urc~ mig\!! tIC or how he " 'oold go about makillglhen,: he had nO'"filans and no spe.:ifte ~Iorics. just the conviction thaI thc:y " 'en: going to be thc: best canoons an)'OI'K' had .,,'H seen. 01' COUI'liC. Ihis was no! a ~w or U";quo: aim. />bny of tho mm in New YOIt. had tried comtanll)' 10 impro~ tho: quality of animation . An cia",.,,, in lioc c".,ninll~ " 'ere fumi5hetl by Raoul Bam! al his !-ludio to help impro"" IhI- drawing Ibility of his anislS. Occasionally. an an imator " 'oold ha"c an opportunity to study a specifIC action c"""fully. and everybody would be awed by the animation thai followed . Still. i, was difficu lt
B,/"" ,h, d",..
r ..... O. ...... ltF. ,,~ .~"I Iw
I.i. abj«"'.,.
of ",,/.
"f....,
_,,/~
tYJotlJ ,,,,,",,
~~IK~~ (,lve, the
Iong-Ierm, II'«mingly distanl n: " 'aRk of ~If.impro'·e_ menl . In many CI5eS. lhe aspiring an,lit " 'hoo;c c uriosily kept him lleeking more and more knowl(dge oIl(n found himself lilt subject o f ridicu\c from hIS coworlffl . Bill Tylla was asked. "Whalillt Iltll do you wanl 10 go 10 an school for_ yoo'1l' animaling. an:n'l yooT ' They could nOl know il al lhe lime. bUI ilClua ll y lhen: was lillie chance for lhe~ canoonb1-< 10 illiprove. givcn the Iy~ of material lhey wen: animating . The spo! gKlI$. Slc1l'OIyped figun:, . a~rw.:( of personality in the charactcrs. and s lipshod method of working gave lhe anists lillie opportunity 10 u~ any new· found kOO\ll·ledgc. E""n the g1l'ateSl 01 animalon would t.a'·e w ithered under such limited demands. This is as lrue today a~ il wa. then: Ihe1l' nluSI ~ litO!")' buSlrocloli It.at calls for lood animation or the1l' will be no wcllanimaled scenes . In 1923, lhe animated figure was muved as lillie IS possihle in ~ canoon. and lhen only 10 n:ach lhe loca_ lion for Ihe next gag. If his fttl Went up allll down. he was wal king . If they Wtnt up and down fasi. he was running . As oflen as possible. lhe animall),s cut 10 a $l;cnc wilh lhe characl(rs in place to " pull the gag." and lhen Cui a""ay aflcrward 10 lhe ne~t ~I·up . lIow lhe gag was staged Wll.< very importanl and given canfultbough!. bulthe mo,'Cml'1lI ""as considered more a c~ It.an an opportunity for elllenamment There was 00 allcmp! eilher 10 imital( 1l'al acllon or 10 earicalun: il . Bener W<>I"k had ,,"n dorIC' e~rher . especia ll y by Winsor McCay. but no orIC kllC"" 110.... il had been done . A fe w wished 10 impro'·c. hut whe1l' " ""Id lhey study? Who c(""ld leach? It "" as e~Cn m01l' difficult fur begin"" ... 10 learn whul tricks already had bttn diS(o~ered . Th~ lead
animalQn; g='eryone logolher to point il 001. Or if an action seemed clumsy or 1"~"ly staged. h~ would diftt1lhe anisl immedialely 10 gel help a 'Ironger man. Alllhe de,k, ....'ere in Ollc large roum all he lime (which encouraged di!.Cu!&io ns of Ollc type or anOlher anyway). so lhe .nimalOr'$ talked abool Iheir an and !heir problem' and whal Ihe fulure of the , Indio might be. E"cn in Ihose days. Wah was moving so fasl inlo onoc:haned areas thaI his men Wl:re hard put 10 keel' up with him . No one cO\Ild dony thaI Wall was exceed· ingly stimulating and cxdling 10 he around . 1'Iltre wa.< anolller faclor besides lalent and abilily thaI was 10 playa major pan in Wah' , success. It was hi s background as a fannboy living dose 10 lhe soil and working w;lh animals. which had given him a pIlilowph)' ;md approach to enlenainmcnt "ith a uni_ "crsal appeal. He ne,'cr pUI on air<. WI' alwa)'s sincere and heme.l. and Ihesc b.,ic "alues permealed bis .."Or!; . Atthnugh his tastes ha\'c hecn called mundane by some. lie alway, soughl qu.lity and slyle. Wah said Ihal h..... med hi s pic lure. 10 reneel Ihe "feeling of happy .~dtemenl 1 had when I wa' a ~ id .. And trn.1 .piril no....·cd Ihrou~llhe project> he touched, There w,,-, one last custom thaI enabled lhe Disney animalors 10 forge far ahead. and Ihi' seems 10 have ~nquile ae.idemal. The)" u",d peg" al lhe bouum of theil drawing boards In hold lhei r work in place ..... hile iJI!he EalllOp pcgs alwap had becn Ihe rule . 11 had _mtd lo&icallo pul Ihe pc~' al Ihe tol' of the board. 001 of lile W3)' of the arti,,', band. and no one recalls why Wall ,Iarted 10 use hn1lOm pegs hack in Kansas Cily. No one knows why Uh'1wcrks' and Ihe olhcr urly animalors conTinued 10 pm up wilh the lillIe OOslluctions Ihal cnnlinua!i)' nicked thcir wriSIS and hands. bul wilhoul Ihis chancc pmccdure animation mi;lll "",'er ba>'e de>'eloped intn a "ilaL forceful. and varitd art fonn . "The rea"", for Ihis is more ,uhjccnvc Ihan literal. OnIwin&S can lie made almust as ca~iI)" wilh ei lher Inp or boltom pegs. and. ""hile rclali,m,hip, in Ihe aeliun
r",,,,
,
~
more difficult 10 see when the paper is held alihe lop, much of the action can be ponrayed almost as well. BUI there comes a lime when the drawings are near completion that it is necessary to "feel" the life sUPJIOO"d to be in them . Thi s can be done onl y by "mlling" the drawings back and fonh. with one finger between each of any five drawings. The aClion is checked forward and backward in minU!e delail or in brood relationShips. Drawings 12 frames apan c an be checked against each other 10 see whether Il1<::y really give the illusion of the aClion wanted. and then al! the subtler secondary leHon s can be studied frame by f_. A whole SUlek of drawings can be lifted off the pegs and nipped in !ieqlltnce to give a good check on the overall &CeRe. but the only wayan animator can le ll if his character is acting as the scene was <;:Qnceivcd is (0 roll tile drawings whi le feeling the action in hi s own body. Usually the animator tries 10 feel tbe action as be makes !he initial drawings. and man y a night he goes home with a stiff neck or a wrenched back after animating a dog in a quizzical look or a stan led duck whirling about in astonishmen!. I! is possible to do a vel)' nice scene simpl y Ihrough careful planning and hard thinking , bIIt withoul being able to roll through the drawings it is impossible to get that extra juice that produces tbe illusion of life. This "'rolling" action ~came so impe<.n trained to draw with their teeth . Even !bat Was attempted . Those were days of invention and IlIl'
e nthu siasm-nolhing Was impossible. Wall had grown up watching the great vaudeville aclS of the time . acts that had taken years to perfect before an audience. amQng them " Willie. West and McGinty" and " Joe Jackson and his bicycle, " aod also the work of Ihe great downs like Emmet! Kelly. Walt admired Chaplin and lhe olher film comedians, KeatOR. Lloyd. and Lan gdon. and he quickl y unde.stood a basic truth of comedy: the personalily of the victim of a gag determines jusl how funny the whole incident will be . For instance. falling into an open manhole is 1>01 funny in itself. A lillie old lady trying to sell her lasl bunch of violets would gel a very con cerned response to suc h a lumble . An uger Boy SCOUI who fell while demQnstrating counesy to his troop by helping a lillie girl across Ihe Strut mighl draw some c huckles. as long as he was not hun by the fall. BUI an arrogant construction boss who hadjusl ridiculed some wone. for not watching what he was doi ng would be cenain to get a laugh. Marcel Marceau used a simpler example: if a dign ified man slips on a banana peel. il is funny . If il happens to a man who is down and out. it is no!. Walt also n:al iud that it was beller 10 build on a gag and let the situation develop than to mOve quickly to another gag. And mosl imponant of all. the thing thaI n:ally g<:>I to an aud~nce was their knowing how the character on siage fe l! about whal waS haJlPening to him : the "' looks " at the camera . the ··bum.·· the rage. the helpless stare. the blea k express ion . Lau rel and Hardy used these ructions extensively. and Edgar Ke nnedy was well known for his bum of mounting anger. Years later. Jack Ben ny became famous for his abiJiIy to provoke sustained laughter by llIerely looking blankly out at the audience. Of course. the situation
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qualily Ih., Wah inmilively n:a<;hed for before lhe dlys of Mickey Mou§e. In his f~ film$. !he c lw'Klen look I I !he Camel'll allll 5hNg. or ha,>:: an embarns§cd . 1000hy smile. or regiikr con~cmalion " 'ilh womw brows allll ~WUI pouring off .heir faces in a 11n:am of droplcls . To I~ of us who knew Wal•. i. wlS ob"ious Ihll he had acled 001 each simalion and. cNde as Ihal early anima· . ion ,,·as. we C(>Uld ,·isuali1.o:: him up lhere showing how il oughl 10 be done . Walt". glop wen: illlrinsic~lIy n(I I:>cner .han any ocher ~udio·s. bul lhey " 'cn: llagw beller. " 'ilh ~ Call: taken '0 establiloh .he s itualion . Thc:n: was ~ concern for dc1ail. for building comedy. for mak ing lhe lag payoff. but . mosl imponan •. for undernanding lhe fedingsof lhe clwac.ers ;nvolved in. he gags . The dcSQlslion when Ih ings went wrong . lhe happy. bouncy walk when Ihings "l'1Il righl. annoyance w ilh indigni. I~. dc.e""inallon. scheming. fear. panic. compassion _~ were .hings Ihal could be animaled! This ""Ii acti", . and i. ga"IC the animalor a chan« 10 Ui<: his medium effecli,-.::Iy-in limi", . in carica.un: . and in ac.ion . Animation began 10 corne .live. and " 'hen lhe audieoccs recognized familiar situations they beGan to iden. ify wilh lhe char:>elcrs' predkamenl$ . They laughed harder and remembered . When Rfflli,r"s Dignl w.nled. biographical s kelch "TIllen on Walt. lhe nug.zine hired Richard Collier. who aln:ady had 1...·0 suc«ssful credits in lhis field. Ont: on MU»OIini and lhe OIher on Captain 800lh of lhe Sal'"ation Anny. While at the ~udio. Collier ""ali asked if lhen: was anylhing al all that lhese Ihn:<: men had in c:ommon . His answer was a quick and dcfinile affinnal;ve . "1.11 of lhem had lhe abili. y.o gel oc her
people .o work for lhem, and not jus. a few frknd~ WI many people of diverse inleresls and backgrounds. ,"el)' unlikcly peOple. III wori
in" o l\'eo.l. la ken OUI or Ih~m , xIVe5. ~ 10 fOfg~1 I~i, own wOfIo,!, and I(}SC lhe m, K lves ;IWI'S fOf <.'lInOOJl) to ""'''ted. W311 had 10 f,nd Xlions lll:M "'~,~ funny tn I~I ,~, yet u s;l)" =<>r' nitt' .ude<.l up 10 one simple Ipproac h--~ cl .i"aturc ()f .nti" " . He could be endle~u. ·· Wlltrcd J••,:hl>f1 said. "WIlt .... nted hts dra"'-ing.~ th.:!! "" e re anima!ed M ~m to bt ru l th inS' tMt had fee ling., 200 e (11ol)o tions IIId rhou~, and the marn thing " 'as that the lUd~ " ...... td bt lieve them and that lhey wOIItd e:m: ....mt happcM
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d~ in the I"" ~ nll"_< ",:os uJMlmiably trude . but the an"n;lIors n.: w . failed to [WS(nt the poinl oflhe sa~ clearly, and lhey d~ !lie rillM s)'mOOhc II) )ho,,· tM attitlMb o r Ih( i. figu~> . Nt\"frWk-\., thtK ""lis .... ,.,,,igh!. ..... auemp! at anal· .,.y. 110 ;Jt,ouldcn; Of ~pine ' <1. bone> or m ~"",Ic, . The
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for 00 ~nal y .• i, " I' an)' lh inll hc)'ond tho: .t~f!ing of lhe bu $in.: ss, II i> ,,1<0111 "'onder thlt Wa lt "tark:0.1~. enc ir· d e ;0 larce ,>bjN1. it fTIC'fl:ly "'3> "",,,he<.! unt il ~, ( _ ~h to do tM job. If :'l io.·~e)· ,,"', >IIf'I"'!Cd I() t>cd Minn~ . I]u, .J1on ..... s o f hh ~.m II.,..Je tilt h3nd 111<1/1; a~ if il " 'ere "'mt~hing hi, nt""" . '0 the lIIo. malt" sim ply drew the ann k"'g enough In got tile hind , kat "r the head . oot where the &,·,1110: ~',,,,Id be _ no One d••y. ~ lntO!lt by """iden!. "''''l<~,"" ",:ok a !lC'f;'s of draw ing.s that looked far toell Cr Ih,m "n)' lhin~ ~ bcfure . Ea,'h drawing. had So d"", a relali<>",h ip 10 lile tJne prec~ding that "one line " .... ,10.1 1'0110101' Ih ...... ,h to the I..," , .. L., Clark.! who h;,o.l C'"I I(' In II ..' . 10010 in 1927. Io/d of how ama7ed cw.)',,, ...· th.:t.t ;om nt:tk· ing the l i",,~ tlmo.' throo ~h eac h dra .. 'm~ in a !o( ntS coo k! mak e ...... h a di ff...tOCC In'I,·:.1 .... Ihe " XUIO accti' lIl "",,111«<1 by a ~p o f ",.".Iy ",Iated dnvo'· inj:s. -ud..Icnly WK "'·a. a plC3-'in~ ' 1I•• ~hness thai In! tM eye from drawing. to dra,,-injl. " '[,hi, .... 3. ",ally an c.w itin!; thin!! Ihat we di""" ',,il....r: .. Man )' pr,lbk01S could""" then bo.' ..>I,'C«n ,.. , diffo.:u l! . but in the ...: da~' .. til.: :.",,,·cr< h;td d udo...l lhe m.
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If an animat",'s drawings fi~lIy refl«:tw I more Ulllul "'ay of moving, Wah would be likely 10 say, " V.... r guy jU)\ ~ in and M 'l then: , ., I don't .lee him do an)'lhing_ V·know •• guy nn be fllnny 1M w~y be ~ Ihing~. Look at your comedian~ and clown •• they've all gOi funny ways lhey wal k orfunny timint- ihere'$ somelhing lhen: . We oughta be looking !OI" fMtnaininl way. of ooing Ihinp. We don't wanl IO~ §UaigN , y"know-",~'n: not copying n.atun:!" " C.ncalure " and " uaggclltion" wen: t ...-o faVOl"iI¢ '''Q\h 10 !o1imul'le lhe animalor's a~h 1(1 his lttI'Ie. The!;e words could be mi~interprcted as a TC'IueM for wild , uocoolrol1ed action , bUI that course alway~ ended up with, " Look, you'l"\: not gening 1M idea (If .........TIl .rl« here !"" T he K lio;m ....! III be tw.'iCdon rnlism . IIlKl 10 fit the stoI"y ~itualioo , pul o V"T Ito.: point ql tbe ~tne, and be in c haracter with it !be hut lie could, make lhe drawing work for tvtl)'thing lie was trying to say, keep the personality ilthe movement, use enough anatomy to be convincins, and do.1 all .n an e nICn.ining way . That ",.l1y '$ IlOl tiki.g lUi) much if one apprttiates whal any good .nor or monte llai 10 consider constantly. Bill lho$oe c-ty ..imalOn ...~ jus.! beginners . As one recalled withoul malice, ""It didn'l mailer how many times )"ou did it over, Wall bad to get ...·hat 1\<'.0 wanted_ "~ SilM were ~ 10 help animalors ",member " 'hal ...,. had Ieamed: \
"000'1 tonfu~ lbem_ Keep it ~ imple ." " Too much action spoils lhe acting ." " Mushy action makes a mll~hy 5Iatemenl." "Say 5OlTIC:1 hing . Be ""'~ . , • One man had a sign. ""Why would any""" wanl t(l look al thaI'!" which was " conSlanl reminder Ihal he shoold be s un: lie was f,.ming S(J"JClhing up on !be SoCreen lhat was worth another person 's lime 01" money to watch_ Whenever he lhooght he had • yea! illra. Ihal sign >«med to tik, "" Rea lly now, would anyone other Ihan your mother like il?" Many aUlhoo h~ve reponed Ih"l "nilllalion W;tS tbe one thing Ihal Walt coo\d not do. A~ he himsclfrealiud Quite nrly , plenly of OIher aMim rould draw bclter than he , but non.: of them seemed tn ha~ his .... ealth o f Otkas 01" the knowledge of huw • pie<." IIf buSinc1:5 should be Pft".'Cntw . This gradually callied him to give up hi s own dra wing board 10 concenlrale on 11\<'.0 areas of his great('t taknlS. Alone poinl, he sct up a lable in the middle of lhe animators' room and had them bring their SoCenes 10 him ... hen lhe y we", done . Stlldying the action. Walt ull«! (
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Rabbi! cartoons, !ook over !1Ie: righ!s!o!he O1~in ehar;>c!er and h i~ away all but four members of Wah' s mim"ion ~tafr. It KConW li ke a diSilStcr at lhe time , but xlually it ~ncd the way for I new group ofaniINIOrs " 'ho would IIOOfI help anirMIion inm _ surprising art form . le:!i Cbrt rommentw abwI lhe men .... ho had lone with Mint7~ "Thesoe animators left the studio " 'hen Oswald len and Iht-y ,,~ nQI the group who Iller animated on Mickey . I think the devel · opmenl of animation $tarted with the Mickey anima. 10<$, i nspi~d by W~h 's interest and enthusiasm." At this point, Walt 's undcrMamli,,!! or the meehan ·
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bolani"'alion beoan to fall behind . Son", r~n
io n, anti ~ u ked all animators 10 work more loosely. The assist.ant woold '"clean up" these: drawinJS tltaI looted I\() sloppy , refi ni nlthem 10 I s ingle line that could be traced by the inkers OIItO celluloid. "The ass istants became: k""",'n u "clean' up men ," ..,.;I the animators developed one innovation after the othn. achit:vin& effects on lhe screen that"" one had tlIougbt pcwItib!c . In _ CIl'lH. the drawings _rc I\() rough it was diffICult to find any cartoon figure inside the tan· glw ~ w;rI or Ii..,,.. and the men who " ,..Jc I dock ora doi oot o f s;mudgcs and 5Crate~s had to have I ~ry spccial type o f knowlwge.
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merely lock" ... the palie~ ever 10 ma~tCr the art of ",Lat ing "'rawings to each ~her . l'rob;d>Iy he lacked lhe particular talent 10 KC the movement in drawings as he nipped them , I! is a spec",1 ability. and many of the arti$ts Ioimply did 001 lIlIye It . Whatever!he rcawn. :os It\t teChniques o f animation progressed. Watt underMOod Ie", and len o f how il all worked He knew the iIIcmlicn!s • Kene ~"""'Id h~ve and " 'hat the acting should be and what could be done " ' l1h a ""enc that wu IlOl quile working, but he coold not ~ it oJov,'n at a desk and make lhe drawings Ihat would demonStra le his idcu , It was.n itt(reuing mystery 10 him and , in some ways. an '~l of annoyance, s ince it was §Ome· tlting he could not control or s hape into something new. lie was r~ed 10 rely 00 others . This led Ben S~lCen 10 claim that. "Animation was dc:veloped fat more by the animators themselYH ~ by Walt ," This is true of the specifIC techniques IlIIt adYJllCfll lhe art. OOt th is adyan«mcnt ,,_Id lit,," IIlIve o«urred wit....... t Wah . As le:!i am ...it!. "AnimMion developed bcausoe or Walt ·s insisle~ and wpcrvision ." n.e animator had to ...· rc~1c with die problem of how 10 make the dr3wing~ work pmp. my. 001 .... i!hout WIIt' ~ drive it i~ doubtful !hal any of !hem would have tried so hard or learned whal to do . Wall inlroducw two procedures that enabled I ~ animators 10 bellin improving . Fi,."t. t~y rould f~ely $/IooIlCsts of their drawi nJS anti qu ickly soee film of what they had drawn , anti. soeeond, they each had an mistant leaming the busiMSS who was expected 10 rlftisb off the detail in ex h dra .... ;nl . Walt was quick IOl"CCOSn;« tllllt lhere was more vitaloty anti imagiruo · lion and M/Tnl,h in SttMS animalw in a rough r..t. .
rough enahled I ~ animators !u check .... hat they hid done before showing it 10 an)'OOC . Any p:u1 I~t was .... Iy uff could be correc!W quickly and >IIot agaill. 'rhis e ,",ooraled experimentation, uploration , and ,mli,naloon. quickl y promoting a cimer bond amoIIlI the animators . This probIbly beg.n .... hen one man wantw 10 s how off the surprliinl results of his ~, OOt the animators 'lOOn icarned t~t lhe~ was &reat value in sharin& ideas. A..... the sharin, of judgment. did 001 end with just Yiew ing the lelit. An animator coold take his drawinp to any of the other me n and lhey would happi ly make suuestions, showin& w~l had worked for them in . similar si luation or excitedly consi dering some!hing completely new . .. Each gellCration of animators btllCfilCd (rom what the pn: vious had learned by trial and error:' $aid Bcn SlIarp:>I.cen. "and con.cqucnlly were IIloOft tlcsiblc: ill .... hat they could accomplish, and they could ruth creater heillhls." 8 uI it scnm that the ~t\CfIliom he C-
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w:os ~ftrTlng 10 la"ed It.s Illan a year api«c . Wilf,ed JilCksoo add •.••... lhe~ was aIW!l)·s _ Ihing new goin~ 00 . We ...·e~ al1 Itamlng $0 fast . ·· The: Marodard 1\). whkh the 'Iudio·~ effOfis ...·e re judged ..·a\ un f'Ir lhe "nimalor~ . A. Dick Hueme.' !laid. ·· Wall 'HlUld lak" stori"s and acl them oul 31 a mcel· i.. : kill y..... llou!!hing lhey "'tn: $0 fURn)·. And rM)I JU~I becau~ lie ..-a. the ~ "ilhe •. And then: it ",..... ld lie . You·d havt llie feelin~ o f 1M ,,·hole Ihing . You ·d know uilClly wh.1 he w.nled . we oflcn wonden:d if Wall ~O\J ld have bttn a J;rcat actor or comcdi~n ... , Wall al ..·~Y' could ., lInw y .... , exaclly how Ille busi. ness sItoold Ite 00nc. bul tM animator "'·as upccted 10 SO funlter willlihe idea . 10 C()ft"le up " ·;111 ""melhin, of hIS o"'n. loOOI1oe loucll or bil of liming or an expn:.sion Ih .....oold make il 001 only perwnal bul special. It did IK)( 13ke lOllS 10 Ins",·er any questions or .
E.!Ich direclor ~mc:mbers at kaSi one dismal c~ · ni ng 001 lhen: under lhe ~tlttl1igtt'$. becausc .~ meeting> made lhem face implacable n:~llIy. II "-a~ II() longer lhe e~~il.mc: n1 of ""hal mil:h! he but the unde· niable hJ"hness of what was. Wilfred hcl
It " ·as • lIar0 much talk at><.>u t wh;11 should be done ne xt time a.there was a dissection of ,,'hal had been done WfOf\g on lhe ,u,· mil fIl m . and Wall' s commc:nb on lhal were as ,-,'u· abk a. his slimulation had been in I~ f .... SIOf)' meelings . By 1933. tile animal"'s had lurned lheir ha,jc let· wns well . and Ihey produced a film Ihal ",,,,,Id be lo"cd aroond lhe world ; Thru UIII, I'itl' . h started. new tr:1 al .1It:: Di"",)' Siudio .
Types of Action Widely Used
TIle audience was ra5Cin.ated with animation thaI reo
pe<1lwlhe same action oyer and over. and. since this -~.
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developed 10 ,ivc this 1ftU11: TM Cyd, . This was a series o f drawings that ani. mated back into iuelfby having thc I.asl dnwing work illlO the lim one, cn:ating a continuous action thai wtIl'
never Stopped. II was ideal for walks, dances. I nd tef1ain "scramble IICtions" as a character tried to gel
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R'I"IJI A('liM . Sometimes an aclion CQIlld be repeated jUM as it was in a second scene:. but mort: often • new beginning or. different ending were called for . In thne cues. the animator could l'qICat part of (he IICtion by borrowing dnow ings from the earlier scene . In OIb:r uses. there would be an action WI rould be IqItIICd intact in the same sa:roes-a clwxlerclimbing I $I i~ pole. or sliding down an incline. or being knocked down by a mechanical device. BcIWftn
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limes. the character would do something di fferent in his allempls 10 avoid or 10 conquer. bul whe:n he: c ..... .gain to lhe: »me spo! on lhe: paper . !he: actioo of lhe: climb. slide. or hil could be repealed. TIw Cr0S3-U1'tr. Even better lhan having lhe: actioo repeooled in a cyc:k wu to ha~ Iwo or more characlCcrs doing !he: same actioo . A sySlcm called " CrOMo(lV=" 100II:: care of thaI probkm by lining lhe: inkcn trace one drawing in IWO differenl plates on lhe same ~I. matching il to..,IS of s mall croues on the: drawing. By animaling a lone figure going 10 the: lefl in a simple dance slep. lhe: animator cou ld gel lhese drawings trnccd over and oV<" 10 nlake a whole line of danccrs . AI the: appropriale lime. lhe: drawings could be flipped OvCr and traced from !he: back. callsing the: line of danccn 10 sashay to the right. If cvel'}'Q'lC liked this. il was e~n simple.- 10 shoot !he: ~Is I second lime . making !he: line of danccQ go thrwgh lhe: wOOlc prottdure ag,ain. TlIC audience was cnthralled and could 001
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AlIOIhcr popular roul",,, " -as to I\a,'~ the tan""n Ii&u~ come: up 10"'ard tIM: ca"'era. usually umil lib IIIOIIlh filled It... ~n:cn . ~nd lhen retreal 10 lIis originnl posiliQll. us ing Ihe Same drawins' .11(>1 in revu!oC: . AI50 pllpular was lhe series of drawings run in a cyde tllal animated the road as a character ' .m or dr<,.-e Itta'gh, inlll ,he: Camera . This ck:~ ,n [lCt"l'pe<:li'·e. a bush or t ...·Il. and pi.'S' .ibly some fence pmb lining the road . 8 y putung III a
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of <""oon fcw Slmplc Inbel",·a:n5. lhe riM polo: anin,atro ba<; the KWnd and the second 10 the Ihird . whllo: onet was moving back to bttOllIC' ~no!her. The publk alw li ked 10 $tt e/aOOralc produc lines fut fanciful factories thai made toy s Of HI eus ut in,aginati"c prodUCIS. These S«1\r'!; W(~ t OIlS 10 animate bttallse of all lhe mo"mg pII1~. chere ....1$ an ad'"anlagc m e\'Crything beinl in a <; lhal rould be run o,'er and O1Icr and over-and usu ....1$ . The same W;l$ lrue of lhe g~at crowd shOll t 10 sIan so many pictures, Such a scene WIIS often only contribution Ihal panicular an;mat
The~
" ,,, no n'"""mcn! in the ligures in earl)' ani mation btsKks a $in.pl~ pn)g~nK)fl ItCR):!;S !he p.>per . No one tlle'W how 10 gtl any change of "'al"" Of flow o f Xlioa from . - Ih "' lnl! 10 another _ ll>ere was no r't!alioMhip of forms. ,0.'1 !he . .. me linle canoon lig_ "~In. lit ... po-u ioo on the neM pieCt of p;lpe' _ O~ solution 10 thi , . !lffllC" of aclion "b!O conceive of a figu,('5 appcMaktS as ,",clions of a garden ~ . Since no "!If kne ... ""yhuw "here bonrs ano.l musc le, mi ght bt on a canOOI. fisure. Ihi . "'lion of rt.li~II' the COflC~pI of the c haracter was fIOI 00.: of ",a1i fluret 10 cm;c;].e . We can imagine hI, fUClion 10 lilt canoon calne l lhat O §" 'ald has jU~1 kidC'd inlo KIK:m: "'00 his leiS h3v~ 10 be "" limp like th at" They don't look li kt the y cou ld holo.1 up "nything. "Get ~me S1raikht line. in there. like you've gnt in 0..... 10.1, Doe,n'! that camel havc" knee or an :!nkle'! And )'oo "'t gOi tile 00d)' the same all the ti me- he ran btnd h:.d Of forward. ( know. And gCI rid of IhoK limp IIO
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Animal
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3. The
Principles of Animation
"W/!tn Wf ""'sitler u ne,..
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Ane .... jilfgoo w~ heard awunu the studio. Wonls like "aiming" and "overlapping" and "pose
to
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IUggested that certain animatiun procedures gradually had bee" iMllated and named. Verb, turned jnm noun, IWCmighl .... r", c'~"'rlc. when lr.c '''lIge.rirm ... Why don'l you melch him nUl ",nre '!" hcc3mc . '( iet more ilrt~h <>II
him . " "Wow' Look at the <.qoa,h on that
dnlwin~!"
did IlOI mean th~1 a vegetable h~d sp lancred tlII: utworl: it indicated Ihat Sf Ihi, terminology wa, just assigning new !IlC'.nin~' to familiar anJ convenient words . . . Doing"' I stene (Ould mean acting 0011he intended movements, making exploralC>ry drawing." or a~tua ll y animating it: and once it was ., done:' the scene moved on to thc next deportment, Layo ut> w~r~ done. backgrounds wm done. recvnling w~, d()ne. and. e,'entua lly . the whole picture had ocen
Thty could IlOl expect 'uccess e"ery time. hut the..e specia l te<:hni,!ucs ()f drawing a ~haracler in mol ion did offer"""", ",curity, As "acli of th"'" processes "'luirtd a name. il Wa' anal y;.cd and perfected and tall:.ed abool . ~nd "'hen nC"" arti,t, joined the staff
they were taught these I'r-~~tkc. as if lhey were the tlIl~s of the trade, To evef)'one' " surprise. they bttame the fundamental principles of animation: I 2, 3 4, 5, 6 7, ~,
9. 10. II, 12.
Squash ami Stretch Amicil'ati()n Staging Straight Ahead Action and p"", 10 Po,;e Foilow Through and Ovcrlapping Action Slow [n and Slow Out Arcs Secondary Action Timing Exaggeration Solid Drawinl!Appeal
SQ•. By far the most impunant disC(wery was what we call Squ,,~h and Stretch, When a fi xed shape is move<>ut on the paper from one dmwinl!- 10 the ~xt. lhere is a m~rked rigidit~' that is emphasiwJ h)' the move· ment In reallifc. this occur> unly wilh the moM rigid share" , u<:h~, chairs and dishe, and pan" Anything composed of li"ing tlesh. no matter how tKmy. will
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show considerable movement within ils shape in pnr geessing lhrough an aclion. A good example of (hi, is the bent arm willt s ..... elling bicep straightened 001 so Iltal only the long sillCws are apparent. T he figure cl"{)\lclted is obviously contracled into ilself. in contrast 10 Ihe figure in an cxueme stretch or leap. lnc face. whelher chewing .• miling. lal ~ ing. or just showing a change of CApre.s;on. is alive willt cltanging shapes ill Ihe clleeh. the lips . lhe eyes-only 1lte wax figure ;n (he museum is rigid. The squashed position can depict Ihe form ei1htr n.llened out by great pre«ure or bunched up and pushed together . The stretched position always shows
_~i-'.:.~.I(.'."..
the sa me form in a very cAtcndcd cond ition. The mo"em<:nt from 0"" drawing to the nCAt became Itl.: "cry essence of animation A ,mile Was no longer a simple line spread a<:ross a fa<:e; it oow defined tnc lips and their relation to tlk: clk:eh . L<:gs ,,'ere 00 longer bent pipes or rubt>cr hoses; they s"'elled as they benl and strelched to long flexible shapes. Immediately tllC animators tried to outdo each other in making dr''''ings with more and more squash and stretch . pushing lhose prirn:iples to thc "cry limits of solid draftsmanship: eyes squinted shut and eyes popped open; tlk: sunken cheek< of an "inhalc" wcre radically diffcrenl from tnc ballooned chee ks of a blowing aclion; a mouth chewing on a straw wal' first shown far below thc nose. and then it actually "'as compres,ed up beyor>d tlk: nose (which changed shape as " 'cll) in showing the chewing aClion . Through the mid-thinie •. everyone was making IWO dr-Jwings for ""cI]' conceivable aClion. and by wor~ing back ar>d fonh be Iween the squash [Xl,ition and Ihe "retch we found we could make each [XlSilion sironger in both action and drawing.
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1'hc I'o.-M :t,hkc for t «ping It..: .!I SI~mkoJ .!'~"'ing~ I'm", looki", !>I();ote.! ur bull>uu ~ . ~n like ~ h,,' f· fill~d flour "lICk. If dropp.."ion it Iq, no Jongt/ a t1uur ,:.c~ . W.' r,,,,nd Ihal Illany lin!e inlerior lines we re "'~ ''''''~ '''''y . ;......, the ",!>uk , h're. conc~i"ed properly. llid il all Tiles.: 1"",,,n. "'~re aprl ied ro ~'1ick,, "'. h<~ty . "r hi, ch"ck •. III Pluto', Ic~s. ur hi, munk. ur ~ "en I" l)auld ',!
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a gold mine that hw been overlooked. Here Were great photos showing the elasticity of the human body in every kind of reach and stretch and violent action . Our animation principles were clearly evident in the bulges and bumps thai contrasted to long. st raight thrusts. Mixed in with these w ntonion s wcre examples of the whole figure communicaling joy. frustration. conce n· tralion. and all the other inlense emolions of the sports world . lllese examples opened our eyes and staned uS observing in a new way. llle standard animalion test for all beginning anists
,/lQws dr· 'ifling his 'IIi inf'ottl Whil, Iitt ,.,:ogni,.
was to draw a bouncing ball. It was quic kly rendered. easily change<.!. and surprisingly rewarding in terms of Whal eQuid be learne<.!. The assignment waS merely to represent the ball by a simple circle. aoo then. on successive drawings. have il drop . hillhe ground. and bounce bad into the air. rewy to repeat the ""!>ole pl"OC<:ss. We CQIIld have either a forward movement progressing the ball across the paper. or have all tl>(, aClion take place in one 'pol. allowing us. through a cycle of the drawings. to make tl>e ball bounce continuously. It seemed lik simplicity itself. but through
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Ibo lest we leamed the mechanics of animating a scene while alro being introduced to Timing and Squa~h and Stretch. We were encouraged to change the shape of the ball in tbe fasto:r SCl:mcnu of the bounce. making an elonpred circkl thM wO\, ld be ea.< ier In see. then quic kl y to nliltn it as it hit the ground. giving a solid contacl as welt as the squashed shape of a ruhber ball in action. This change at the bottom also gave the feeling of Ih t for the spring back into the air. but if we made 111 extra drawing or IWO at thai point to get the most OUt of this K tion , the ball stayed on the ground too ton!. creating weird effects of hopping instead of boullCing. (Some tests looked more like a jumping bean from Mexico than any kind of ball.) If we misjudgro oor arrange ment of the drawings or the distance between them . we created apparitions reminisItcnt of an injured rabbi t, or an angry grasshopper. or. II\DSt often. a sleepy frog. Howeve r. many of Ihe circular foons just seemed \0 take off as if they had , life of their own. The b
Then. if Ihr botlOm drawing was flal/m od. i/ ga'·e Ihr approrana of bo"ncing. ElongiJIing 1M drawing. 011 each side math ;/ ~asi.r 10
follow altd 8IJVt mort ... /0 1M octiOll. Th .... 1M b ginning' of SqlUUh
Anticipat ion People in the audience watching an animated ""ene will n01 be able to understand the events on the scrcen unless there is a planned sequence of actions that leads them clearly from one activity to the next. They must be prepared for lhe next movement and exJICCI it before it actually occurs . This is achieved by pre:<:eding each major action with a specific move that anticipates for Ihe audience what is about to happen. This anlicipa-
ori"
. i ,1t
icip<>IiDIo ~U-U
tion can til' as smal l u a change of up~uion or as big A$ the: broadtst p/I),sic.l x tion . Before a man runs. he c rouches 1o.... la' hering himKlf lih I spring . or. the ~>V$f:. he:
may not show " '/I)' he is doing somcthinJ. but there is no question about "'/Ia, he is doing-or ... hal he is ,oing 10 do ~~I . E~p«ting Ihal . the alldKoce can now enjoy lhe way it is done . The: opposite of thi s is the "surprise gag. " which only worb when lhe audKIlCC is upt'Cling one thing to happen. and sutkknly . ... ithout ,,·aming. sorrw:thing e~i~ly different happens. Thc: surprise i~g canooc work if a different action has ooc been a nt ici pated by the audience . Similarly. no aclion on the ~lage u n til' anything but a series of meaningless surpriscs without anticipation . Thc: mo"errw:nt s in early animation wen: abrupc and u~~pccted ; too often the audKntt " .. s not propo.n y alerted .nd missed a gag " 'hen il came. This was one of the first things Walt s laned w correcl , l ie (aIled h is remedy "aiming" and IICted OUI just how ~n action or , geswn: coold til' n,ade clear so that c >'cryo n<: would see il. If Oswald lhe Lucky Rabbit is W put hi s hand in his pockello get. sand"'ich for lunch . the whole body mu~ relate w lhat hand and 10 the poc~et . When ,'''' hand is aimed. il must be " out in the clear " so e>'e ry· one can sec: it and . nlk ip.:lle wlt;ll is going to happen.
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The head nnl10l be looking off somewhere else-the impol1ant ICtion is Oswald's Il:lChing into his pocket. hi. no! a pg. it is 1101 a laugh . but it must be secn. No one should nftd to aSk. "Now ,,"'hell: did he c""r get dIM s.and",·ich? " As Wall demonSIr.Ued how il should lit done. he uauerated lhe action and made it far 1IlOO: interesting than the animator W3li c""r able 10 ~_ As Lcs Clark $IMJ)'C'at'S later. " Today .t may look simple 10 us; al the time it wa,n't It was something that hadn't been ttied before Of proved." Ftw movemenls in real life OCCur without ""me killd of anticil"'tion . It SeemS to be the na(Ural way for creatures to move. and without it there would be little power in any lICtion . To tho: golfer. it is the backswing; to the b.:iseball pitcher. it is hi~ windup. ",., bauer pr<:parn himself with a whole series of anticil"' toty lC1ions. but the one that gi>'eli the clout is the final t... "" and the ~tep forward 15 the Nit approaches the plait:. Without that mo"" the might iest s wing is no mon: tW a bunt .
Staging "Staging" is the most ge""ral of the ptinciples because it covers lO many areas and goes back so far in the tho.ter. hs muning. oowevcr. i. ""I)' pucise: it is the presentation of any idea so thlt it i. completely and wvnifol.hbly clear. An IOCli."., is staged so that ;t is understood. a personality so that;t i. rcc
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The most important cons ideration is always the "story point." It has been decided. for example. that • cmain p;"cc uf busi",," will advance the story: oow. how shou ld it be stlged? [s it funnier in a long sho! where everything ca n be seen or in a dose-up futuring the persona1ity 7 Is ;t beller in a maMer shot with the talllC'ra moving in, or l series of short cuts to different obje.:ts? Each 5«nr. will have 10 fit the plan. and oVCf}' frame of the film mufol help to make !his p::>inl of !he story . If I "spooky" feeling is desired. the $Ccnc is filled ...ith the symbols of I spooky situation_ An old house, howling. lea""s or papers ",stling through the
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yanl, cloud. floating ..eros. the moon, lh~atcning ~k y. maybe ball' branches ranting or scraping again~t a willdow. or a shadow mo"inC back and font.-ooll of lhese say "~poob." A bright fIo_r bed "'ould be 001 o f place . If yw are staging an """ion, you m ... ~1 be ~ure lhal only one ..elion is s«n; il moM 00\ be confused by drapery or by a poor choice o f angle I)f' upslaged b)' somelhing tl~ Iha! mighl be goi ng on. y"" do 001 make drnwings JUSt becaust they Ire curt or look fun· ny. y"" make lhe drawings th at will st3l1e each idea in the ~I mngcst and the .impl•• t way before goi ng on to lhe nc~t :.etion. You arc sayi n, in effect. "Look at Ihi ll-now look a! this-and !l(/W th is ." You make sure lhe camera;5 the righl di511nce from the c haracter !o .now ",hal he is doing . If he is kk king , )'0'1 do 001 have the camern in dOS alone o n a bi g ~tage il iii too euy for the ludie nce 10 watch hi. feet. whal is behind him . his clolllt-S. any UnnalUral movement ; the spectators might be looking al everylhing eU:f:pI wh~1 II!~ magician i~ l/)'ing \Q show them . As a direct"'", D." f: HJnd f:mp/lasi7.cd the valueo( lhe close-up ~hoI : ·' By iu usc ...·e Il/'e able 10 el iminale from !he mind o f the audienu anyIhing that is less impor1anll han the p;u1icular poinl .... e are pulling OVf:r aI the lime ." The animaton had a special problem of Iheir own. The ch.araclers Wt':re black and ,,·hite. " 'ith no shades
of gray to soflen lhe rootrasl or delineate a foom . Mkkf:Y's hody .... as blxk. hi~ anns and hIS Ilan0 Ihal you can'l Stt .... hal·S happening. Pul it a....ay from lhe facr and make d clear." ConSlanl redrawing. pla nning. and expell. meMil\i were required 10 make the aclion look n.:.tunl and real;~lic while keeping a clear ~illlouctu image. We had \Q find a pose that reoo w;lh both dcfinil;"" and appeal.
Straight Ahead Action and Pose to Pose' "There are two main approache. lo animation . "The first is known as Slraighl Ahead A<:t;Ofl ","cau.c lilt- an;1Il.i· lor lilerally ....orks straighl ahcoo from his first drawin, in the SUM . fIe si mply lak.. orr. doing one drawi", afler !he other , gellins new ide"" a.~ he goe~ along . unl il he reaches the end o r the ..,.,..... He " now> Ih. story poiM of lhe scene and the business that is 10 he induded. but he ha~ litlle I'lan or how ;1 will all be d~ at !he li me 110: ' lans. BOIh (he drawing~ aad !ho: act ion have a ftesh , slightly zany look. as the animalo< kef:J>S the whole proce ss very crealivf:. The second i. called f>osc to 1'"",. He re. 1110: anima· tor I'lans hi~ 3Clil'R, figures out just .... hich dra .... ings will M nuded 10 animate the busi""ss, make. lito dn.wings . reLluing lh!:m to each OIlier in $i7.e ~ ¥tihi.,. have been clfl:· fully cOJ!$;derM before lhe animal'" gel. 101) far inlO the drawin8~ . More lime is .pent impl"Oving the key
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dnlwings and uercising ""alec control ~!he m0vement With Pose 10 Pose, thc~ is clarity and $ln:ngt/I . In Srn.ighl Ahead Action. then: is 5pOnlaneity. 8 0dl mclhods arc Rill in usc: bttause they each offer cenain advantages for diffcn:n! Iype$ (J/ Ktion . Usually they an: combined in I way thai keeps !he Stnoigh\ Ahead Ac. ion from gening OIU of lland. The scene is planned wilh a path of action laid (IUt, and rough drawings are made depicting the chuacter', probable progress; although none of these will be used
later in actual animation. they still
se~
as. guide for
siu. position. aUitude. and n:lalionship 10 the back.
JI'OUnd. Tney offer as much control as might be rudcd. evcn though some animators feel that the Ycry lack of control is tho: elemcnt llial gi~es the sponW>eity. They say: "llle animator should be as wrpri5Cd as anyono: at !he WIly it comes out. •• Most wikl. .-lions arc probably more effecti~ with Illis method ttw. ...itlI 100 muc:h careful pre-planning . Straight Ahead Animation will "doom work if there is Slrong perspective in the layout or. ~kgmund lhil must be matched. One; man animated a dog jumping excitedly and turning around. trying to aunlt! auention . While Ile achieved a funny act ion with mIlCh spirit, it cou ld no! be used because Ile had failed to match tile action to the limitatiom of tile layout There was no way to tell how high the doB was jumping s ince Ile roe~r really comacled tile ground, and !be relationship of the drawings was thrown off by !be ~rspecti~ he had failed to consider . With 1 fbi back· ground and 1 clear aren.a in all directions , there _k1
$CDIT1bIm,
ha~
bttn no
prob~m .
I-Io....,,,,,r, many pieces of actinB require a different approach . If Mickey Mouse is d isroutaged, he tUfJI$ IWly , jams his hands far down into his pould be considered in dIoosinK the method o f animation is ·· texture ." A seties of
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of "Srraighr animation. Th~
animalOr is often os s~r pr;f~d os anyo"" or 1M ~
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accions all with the same intensity aM .mOunt of movement will quickly become tedious and predictable . It will have nO punch . But if the overall pe fim animalors to use Pose to Pose were interested in a quic ker resull and were not aware of its brilliant future . n.ey were more concerned with the geographic locations of the characters Ihan any potential for entenaining actions. "The guy is over here. then he gets his hat, then his cane; he looks to see if his wife is walclling. he does a hop. then runs out the door. Si~ or seven drawings, a whole bunch of inbeIweens. and l"m Ihrough with lhe scenef" When han _ dled thai way, with no attemlll to relale one pose 10 another. the scenes were bound to be wooden and /1' jerky. It was not until the development of stronger ,"', poses. improvements in timing. more skillful usc?f ~ Secondary Action, and. finally. the Moving Hold. thaI I. I _.' Pose to Pose animation ultimately came illlo its own
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Follow Through and Overlapping AClio n When I character enlering a sce~ reached (he spol for hi s next action, he oflen Came to a sudden and compklc stop . This .... as sl iff and did no! look natural. but nobody ~'" ",hal IOdQ about il . Walt was conccmcd . "Nnv don'l come to I Stop all at once, guys; fint the~'i
one pan and then another ," Several different ... ays were evemually found 10 correct these conditions: they WeT<: caUed eitt>.r "Follow Through " or "()o.erbpping Act;""" and no one really I:new "'Mrc one ended and the other began . There seemed 10 be
fhc main categories. l. If (Ile character has any
a~mlages,
such as
long em or a tail or I big COOt. these pans continue 10 ~ after the rest figure has stopped . This is euy to 5tt in rnl life. 1lIe ~""'nt of car;h mu~ be limed cardully SO i1 " 'ill have 11M: e<:>rre<:t
or,lle
freHng of weight. and it mmi continue 10 follow through in the panern of aclion in a believable way, no ""'ltcr how bmadly it is cartooned . 2. The body itsdf does not mo'"., aU 11 once. bu1 inr.kad it "retches, catches "'p, twists, tllms, and COdtrICtS as !he forms work against each OIher, As one pan arri~es ~t the Sloppin g point. OtheTll ma y still be in movement; an arm Of hand may continue
ilSXtion e"en afler the bodY ;5 in itS pose. (Peg LI:, F'tte'l beUy conlinued 10 boy.~ and llI.g intermi , nably.) In order 10 JltII O,"e r the auilude dearly. the head. chesl . and s hOlllder!; might a ll SlOp together .
1+-- ~
.4U4. ~""J~' _,(...1...,. _
- '1' ~ ~ ;JR _ _
.4nr. AI~
-'y.J" -. ~ -.",-........ .i~
Ihili i.
l~
~"'f""7- ---joII-f,&... _ . /_ _
/'-7
~" "'f"
pan ttw: 1l1l,hc1KC >-houW
!IX O~
p.v11hat 11:~>kf~ how thedwX1er is f<."CI'~. 'llItn • few (rall"lt~ later. the resl of the p;an, " "",td >oCt1 ....
;mo lhe;, fin.1 """"'t;"n, p"ssibly ..... all :" lhto
~a.n'"
1;1l"It. When lhe wl>ole fij!u11: has \.wnc tu a -'lOp in ' I ,k fin,!c all itudc, thi ~;, ca ll .d ;( "ncld" ..ira"·,"g. 5on", of til<' aninlaturs th"'-'sht ".~ WCfe genin" too (u$oS)'. but that " 'as ""[)' the b\:Jlnnlnj( ~' WaU ""w ne ...• po»ibilitic:s in the "..".k h" ll"Itn W"11: !loinS. l..es Clark r.:ohl " ·'th a ,·h""klr. " . . . We couldn'l undcfliland ","nclime.' why h,,: was gi\"in~ us hell s<>mtlhml: ...~ lh
t''''
) . The looj;c fk:~h 'III a fi~un.:, ,ueh 'I> II, ~htoe'" or D.mald Dock'. body Of aim",,! ~II vI' G"of). ,,'ill mfI_"e at a . I" ,,'cr . ""cd than 1!\c
,'''''Y'
uf ,...". Ir".,~,
"",-"
,h'/d!
~ ~ - ____
_
--r _ .;(_~_r
'm. ..~; -I4t""" · 1
~"""' _ o,(..,.1~1
:;..-:..:..~......-
mul inl behind ;1\ an actio.. i~ S<>mClime. c,,11ed " dra::' and it ~i"es a h~ .....,.. and ~ ",.lid;I)' .., Ihr figure th~1 i~ ' -;Ull to ,lie ftt linj: " f Iofe. Wbm dn"., "-en. Ihi. t~·.:hni<.JU<· ,. ""an..... !), d.:t~'·13t.le ~ th~ film is proj«lc,.L In cffe<:l. the anin1:l( ..r is ur.I"'in~ in the fourth
tlllnen,'''"' fur II< i~ a.... "''' tksisned h' "" ,",,,. od 11)- ltu.m><,lvn. but ""Iy in ,. ","'Tk~ 1'",,....,k.'II;\ • [i,ur~
".t~l>Ii,hcd
.p.."C.... Man)' ",,,,,k ;oc1~'n' ha,.., Il<.~n 1>.,........." thl~ prin' ciple. ~s tile rat un a ,.unnin~ ,'har:M:iCr droll' ("nhor ~nd (mile, he hinlcdcloo runs ufr. ka"in; It.. llcs.h 10 (.,,1Il for i,...,lf 'I'hl~ 1)'1'" o f n~~~cr~l i".. ,,-ill I>ri,,~ tauPlS in tilt "h.lI1cr fitm~. t>ut l~ ,'hid '·all ...• "r lh" kind ,~ r...,I10-0· Thmll~h I,c~ In Ill"'" 'liNk II,..,' .
,t,
4. TIle -..'ay in which an action is cc>mpJet~d "ften
"r
lell~ ~$ n~ .bout the per.\oOn than the drawings Ik lIIO\l:ment ilSelL A golfer lake.• a mighlY swing. -..'hich ('<)\l:n only a few frames. but wh.u happens 1<> him IfICf".-ard Can easily lake fi~e fee! of film and i. mlltb .....:n Il',-uling. whether he is ,racdul and $Iick in his follow through. or wraps him~lf up in a knot . The anticip.tion ~ts up the action .....e e~pect (OJ il it the ICtion the character expe<:ts?). the ""tion -"ili7.1,t~~. lOll now ,,·c rome to the "punch line"
p,.
of tilt the follow through . whkh tells us what llappcned-huw it all turnc:d OUt Ob'-;ou.,ly. the tDding $/\wkl be cnn.idored pan of the entire aclkm bd"", any dl'll ..... ings are made. hUI. am~7.inl'ly. the etlding "'IS hardly ever
nt()fC
cntcrt~ining the action itself c,>uld be. or
it could tdl u. about the
ch~rJCtc'"
pe~lity_
S. Filially. the ... " 'as lhe M<>v.njl Uold . "hieh pIoy~ pans
"-Nit
~m·
<.Jf all the ocher elcmCnI.' '" O,,~.. lapping
Action alld Follow Through tn ach,ne a roe .. (... r· ing of life and clarity . When a careful drawmg had becn made of a po"' _it ,,'as hdd ..... ithuut mu"clt1(nt on the screen for 3 fc'" fmme~t lea,t e'ght. maybe as m3n~ as si~teen. Thi, wa. tu ~1I"w the audience
to abwfb the aUituok . That ant<>Untcd 10 !eM lhan a .«
wa" brol;cn . the illusion of din~n,ion "'as IOSI. and the d", wing began to I,-",~ 1l11t . A way had to be foom! to "hold" the dra " 'in, and ' Iill ~eep it moving!
The "n""~' "'~ S 10 m"~~ I"'," d,"" ",~,_ one 1tIt)'~ nlrem,' Ih,," Ih~ olher_ , '''' both contai~,n~ "II tl", ~kment' "r th~ f"»c . II c'p laiol'll Ihi, "ay, "You hu Ihe Ihcn drJll nn i>e)-,<>lld I" an "\'e'n 'I",n~~r 1"''': ,,'"'ylhing ~,,.., fwnl,,"r, Ihe ,-hed,
1"'''',
w",
Arcs \" 'rI f,," ti' i n~ or~~LI'i'"'' are ,·;tr"blc of @wo!, IIt!t h:
,"'n_ TIl<" ,,,.,,,,,, "f"
\\",, ~ljXTkn 11l,~hl
1>1- an n,'<1'"
'ho! ,'"" 11)' '~
1"",. anJ. h
"' hi, P"'" """"~ wuld u'" III.: F()II()" Th"~Lgh 00 Ih~ n"h} P'LTi' to ):i\'c '" Ih" ",)id'I> "nd din,,'n,i"n. we ,m,ld drag lhe pan. I" ~ i w III<" added kd 'ng ",'i~hl and 'calif.". "n,1 we n,u'J >ll~n~lh"n ' >lIT 1"'''-''' fnr mox. "italil y, II "il added Llr h) ",,,ro! life in th
"",'d "wIJ. !>ttl Ih,' 111<"-"""''''' "I ,,><"1 lil-ing "'.... -
~"up . "'''~.
"r
1m", ,,;\1 ,;,\1"" ~ '1i~1\l1) ~ir"ular Ilalh, Th~ Ix'..! ,d,I"11I lit ..."" ,frJigh, w1. Ih,'n b",'k aga in: ;1 lift, ,h ~hth, "t' dnol""' ,I relum,_ I\'rhar> Ihi, 10,,, 1" .1, u ,lh ,,~,~hl ,;r ,,,,,)1>1' ";110 1h~ nlnn ,tru,-,"r~ ,,11il<: Ili~ hn fur"" "I Ilt~. but. ",h:Olner the 1~'a,,)1'- "~"1 \\ill dcwr;l-..:.n ,,,., ' "f ." J"", kind_
""'\'e""'''''
Slow In and Slo\\" Out Om:c ~" a"imator 1>;1<1 " '"rk,-,\ ,,'cr h" r"'~' ( 110,' -"",~,,!<:,-,
and r,'d,"wo ,hem "",il Iii", ,,~'" Ihe 1>1,,1 he ,·" "I d dn. he naiUmlly I"",,"d lilt' ;[",Ii~t\i;, I" ",,' then'- H,' liITlt'o.:.... lec, dr:,wmg' '" I\,nw hull: "I 110,' f'''-'Ia~~ "f The "'~,,~ "'"uld bt: ~; Ih~! ",I '" d"", to lliow '" Ifen",, _' fh pUlImg the inl>l'lu'ccIh d,,,~ I,) C"dl nWflle ""eI oHI, ",Ie 11"~ling dr,t" i,, ~ halh",: 1,<>I"...-n. til,' "nion;,lo, ,,,'hi",,,,d a '.") 'ririt~,1 ,,·,ull. \\ilh tho: dMI;oc)cr /ipp;n~ fr"", "n,' "'''Iu,k I" ,11<" 'Ih" \\,,, ,'~Ilctl Sh)w In "nd SIc", ()IlI, ' L n,·~ 110", " Ihe way Ihe '" h.:(wc~''' "'ere 1llIk:J, ro" mudl of 1111' gaw" n,..chank,,1 fed 10 Ihe aClion, "'~hi~~ I!le ":~'k: of lilt, H':' lil< lil"t "';<, i'<'ing ,,, ,, gil l. hLL! il "'" ,t ;1I ;on ""l~"t"nl ,Ii,u,,·c,) Th"l he"an1C' Ihe b,<", "I ];ofn rcfin<'m~nt, m liming and ,raging \\-,it """1ioued 1(> ,,<~ U, 10 ""alYlc th .. ~clions <-ardully. ,,,,d III unJ~"t~ml I", ,,, th~ ho.~ ly lIurkd. Ihot wa' fhc otll)' "'~y \0 ~.t tne ,'a,;,·"I",,' or
'Il'"
"k'''
,i,,,,. ,""Ii"" he "Jnted , "Our" ,"~ mll
c; " fmllld~\;, '"
"I I"",.n ""Ie, to h",'c ,il\c~fi l\' , n", ,"0<1 h,Lt,,,,,,> ""lIlcJ\' i, "Iwa,'s b~",(l on Ihing' an""I ," 0"" '1\,,,,,110' fr",,, <)1", i,1< the studi" w,,< "am,u"d Ih.1I anyone w""ld lx' tlw inkr<'t~(1 "' the; ",.,h"(\i,, , ()I m'~,')"'" bUI lh" uni4uc app",ad\ \\'3' th" 1'Cr) l>I'aft pf n", \\'or~_ ~'"'C D"'i, ' 'umm~J il (11'. 'Il" · !\<;) anion"I",n i, ju,\ vC'Y
1h,' ", -ri"" ,~ a h" ",/ ,~'·>II"·" ,"·,,11 " 1"''''"''~ Ji" ,~'" ! "II "".,. '-"(11101" paIn . Ih, a"",,,"<" ,-Jw"" Ih. 1~).\lII 'm ,,( h" ,1,.". -
""" "I ,," ~ fhl ,' " " 1/,- 111(11" '.' I", /"., (I,,,,, ·, ,,,,, , 11),1" """ "·/'a,- ifll~ ·'~n'n.'- ,)"",1.1 I~' 1>/'" ",( k." " , 0/". /in,· <'I ," .", ~ ,,,, Ihi,·
'0
d""'~f II,,·
"m"" ""1"·,,,,,\
Thi, d',,-'ol-ery m~,I" a maJ"1 ,-ha,,~,' III the 1)1" "t fI""·c,,,clIl, ""iTWllo" &';gn,,,j for 11,,'" ,-h"r;k'le". hr~akin~ \\ IIh Ih~ 'i~;d a",1 "':I,nl" lhal had ~""" I"'f",~, I" " w"I~, ,h" dlan"'t'"" 1",,1 1"'1'1,,-,-1 "r.nJ tl,,"-n I;~,' """,han,,·,,1 ~adg"1s nn an ,-n~inc; n"'" 11." , ":or,'cd" <'In ," II,,· "'r ot' II,,· .. ,1C)" ,,,KI --,,,·,,1-u",l~r alii", l>· ,":tighl Ii,,,'. hul th~ l-..:~in"ill~ "I II>: ,,(li
",t'!
""'i",,_ I""k-,,"",j.
charac1er sllould go in any ac'tion. Arcs were ,k~tc'hed in, as the key action, were planned. 10 guide the even lIW drawings along Ihi> curved path . When the final drawings were being made. more way' "",,uld be,",,",e Bp]!>m'nl for the chamcter {() go e"en fanher in the action, e,pecially using Squash and Siretch and Over. lapping Action to good ad"antage, One of the major problems for lhe inbelweeners is 1hat it i~ much more diffkull to make a drawing on an arc than one halfway bet ..... een Iwo olher dra ..... ings_ Even .,lIen the po';tion ha, been indi<:aled. or a Slcrn warning 'Hillen on Ihe extreme> .. 'Walc'h a,,"~ . lhere i~ a ,lrong indination to pull back toward a more normal inbelween . 11 is only a, a >crie, of dra""ings i,
""'lied" on Ihe pegs Ihat Ihe proper location for the drawing become, e"idem, No one has ever found a way of insuring that the dra ..... ings will all be placed accuralely on Ihe a"'~, even ""hen nperieneed people are inbelweening the "~tion. and ;t is one of the mosl basic requirements for Ihe scene. Dr~wing, made as straIght inbelween, compleleiy kill Ihe e,>cnce of the a<'lion
Seco ndary Ac tion Often , lhe onc idea being put m'er in a "'eoe can be fonified hy subsidiary actions within Ihe body . A ,ad figure "';pe, a lear as he lum, away _Someone stunned
>hakes bi~ bead as be GelS ' 0 bi, (ttl. A (lllsl~.~d perwn pili. on bi, gl~sse$ lOS be reg;ins his com· posure . When Ibis e~lna busi~$~ ....1'1"..1> IN: ..... in ac.ion. i. is cilled a ~rondary A~'K:>n and i~ always kep4 .ubo... din~.c !hy. rlanding . SotoclinlO!' lhe S«nndary Aeli"n "'i ll he the cxprt'.· si .... Itself. Suppo>.C lhe...: Wl\> I" be a ellange from a painful h" n 10 a helplc.c seen. The <: hange tnU'C come bc:fQr~ I"" nlo~e. or afte •. and myst he 'taged .'" that it i~ o/)vklUs. ~"cn lholl~h of ......,onda.)" imporla",:e ,\ ('han~~ ;n I ~ middl~ or a .....jot ,",we ,, ;11 ~o ynnoliced .•1Id ~ny valoo: ;nlcn
"",'cr
t""
, ""'::' i
cO'l1 inoo:d I" change an" :odju>I unt il all pan, or tltt "rawing wOltc:d lOf-e100 in a "cry "". uraj way . It is odv i,.;iblc in any ..'~>C to Iry il all in thllmbnails-lill ie uploraliX)' s~etdt(~_II<:f"n: doin~ an). thing dsc:. 10 m•••• u"': Ihat evc')'lhing will >Ia~c "dl and ....;n hlk "S conv i"" ing a' the anim~h" hall h"I1.:
"h:r.=.....
,.r
Timing The numhcr "r drawing., u-cd ;n any ,,"'ve .k:lernlHwl the amounl " r lime Ilia. OCI;'", ""iIIlak~ " n .he ",,,:.,. If the (1.-.", Inj:~ .re "nlple. de"," .• nd C.1 pr....... ' •. lhe "''''1' Jl"int Can be pul ""n qUICkl y. ~nd ,hi" ....,. all Ihat cooccmc-d. the anima,,", duril1~ Ih,: ca.ly pe.~>J. Timing in Ihu"c can""n; was li",ile,1 mainl)' I" f~>I ""}\"~s and ,I"", m"w,. "";Ih ".:.:cnls ,md th""" ~all. in)! (or .~·ial handlin~ . lIuI lhe !,("",,,aliloe, ''''''1 ·...rt .....·'·clopinl: " 'eo"<' defined nl<>« by •...,ir mo~~""""! lhan tlock ;lI'P':or.ll, .•ela",-d, Neilhe. aclln~ ... attilude cuuld he ""nmycd .... ilhuut I",yin~ ,"cry d<,.;c allenli,m h' Til11ing. (o"'pli~aled rela'ion,h,,,,, . hat ,alllO! ",-ilh St.:. ondaJ)' '"'''''' IIIS and On,b(lf'inl: M"n,,,,ent. ,-~tlN ftlr cuen.i,,, refi"".....,nt •. hUI ~"Cll lhe Ilk>Sl hit.... mo,'es sho ..·..-.J lhe ;m(l<"'''''O:'' of Tirllin~ and lhe «,". stant ""cd f... 11I0re slud~'. JU.I 1"-" drdw;II~' of I hc,lIl. Ihe ti ..1 showi n~ it lcanin~ I"ward th,' lI):h1 ''''>II)der ano.!.he _'ond wilh il 'lVCT "n lhe 1ci"1 and II> "hin slij;hlly r~iscd. "'an be m:t
T...,
y/
No
intM:tw~~ns
One inbet"ttn
T""" inbet"'fens
"IlIrff inbel"'ttns Four inbelwfens Fiv~ in~lw~cru;
TilE CHA RACTER has bo~n hit hy a l r~mendous force , Hi . head is rlCarly snapped off. ... has betn hit by a brick. rolling pin, fr)"in~ pan. , has a n~rvous lic, a mus' cle spasm, an uncontrollable twilch . . i. dodgin~ the !:>rick. roll , in~ pin. frying pan . i. giving a crisp order. "Gel ~oing !" "Move iii" is more friendly . "OH' here .. ''Come on-hurry! "
Six inl>:I"'fens
. """. a good-looking girl. or lhe .porIs car he hao alway~ wanted . xI'en inbet"'fenS . _ . lries 10 gel a better look at something . Ei,ht inbet"'ttn. . sun:hes for the ~~nu1 butler on the !.:itehen -'''<:If. Nine inbel"'ttn~ appraISes, cons iderin , Ihoughlfully. Ten i!lbelwecn, . sireiches a sore mu ..le . The 1'(,,>;,lcnl 4uc.linn. eS!,<,cially from Ihe Ne,,"'
York men W3 S, " W","n Ju you u"" 'ones' and when do)'ou u.. ' IW~ "!" This referred 10 tile numbor of
fr.,,-..:t of film to b\: exposult
w;'"
~hOl
of a ,in81e d""',ing . One
tailed "UACS, ,- IW'O cxpoMlre. '- Iw",,_"'
II Ita;] lon, been koo,,·o Ih.al f", moM IMJJmal :aclion IiIcn WillS ..... n«d 10 make a new drawing for el'el)' franoe or rhe film Each dr1lwing could ocrupy IWO of the ~iotrS f"'mes. and the audknce ","Ou k) deIeo:I il at 24 fraOles a SC<."Ond. This sa'-N immen ~ am",,"!> of ........ k . nd in the slo"'er mo"emem~ gal'e I ,11lOO(her appeara fICc 10 Ihe aClion. More Ihan thai. a
11<'' ' '
---- -
~-
~
...... ~
.
""" ~~',
.. - -:
-
~ .
fa'I""tion on . 'IWOS" had I11O!'l: spm kle and ,piri t Ihan lhe $3me aclion with inbclw~r"" . whkh tetl'"~ in " 'hkh lhedwx, ters f~t or a poinl of contact wilh the backlf'lllOd we~ show·n. lhe :aclion had to bo on -.~.' to nwch the moyes on the pan. or lhere ...'ould be ~il'P're which looked p"uliar. Similarly. if the C'a1tlC'fll ~ moving in any dirtttion (" 'hlCh mil$.! be ..... "ones",_ lhere wQUld br a Sirange jiHerin~ unle5~ the ch:m.cter'. action. were Ott "ones' al", . When more daborate aclion! were called fOf and more delicale change~ had to bo seen. lhe animalon ~soned 10 1he use of "o"".'·_","nCli me~ thrO\lgMuI the ~e ... and OIherwbc only in ~rtain place" A !lCl1Imble aclion or 'I""~d ga,. a _,h;jrp :OCCCRI or flurry of lIClivity , lhe pay-off aflCt " big anlicipation. all . nee
Exaggeration There WI.' some confusion "monl! tile animalm when Wal l first asked for more ~alism and tile" crilidzed the re., ull he<:ause il w~, not euggcrated enough. In Walt· s mind. lhere wa., I"ohahly no difference . He be lieved in goin8 10 llle Ilearl of ~n ylh;ng and dc_elopinSlhe esserIC~ "f wh;jl he found . If a chancier was 10 be ~ad, ma~e him ~der. bri~l_ make him brigIMcr; worried. ~ " 'orried: " 'ild _ make him wilder . Some of the m ists had fdl lhal " uaggfflllil>!t" meant I ttlOf(' distorted d ..."wing, or an so ,ioIenl il_ dislurbin~. They found lhey h;od m••!ltd lhe point. When Wall asked for rul i.m. he wanled a ,;oriea_
"",ion
I" '" 01 renl"Ill, One ani'l "na lp .. ,1 il ,·",",«,11 ) "h,' n h,> " I !Ion't think oc n"-'~nt 'r~~II"tl ' I thin\. h" ">t;~lI t """,,,thmg .ha. "a, mOJ~ Ctl'" 'OClnG •• h:o' n ~,de ~ hili'~trc"nt:K't " uh propk , ~,1Il 111: .1"'1 . a ".1 'reali,",' ",",,,,,..., 'rcal' ,hinl'S 00" ~.w~ '" "tkn [in 1"'= a"im31 ~"" l ' ht l'hamc'e' w<>ul
",i
\" i ocin~. 'If
III , no " , · 00" clewr 1"'= ~nlln:Ol<'"
"-;0,. ano.l
il I" . ,n·1 rc"1. il "'3< plm'" ". W:tli ",,,,,Id ,I\,t J(C,'PI ~"y l hi n ~ Ihat ' k'Irt>)'cti ~Ii e""hnil )', hl'l I, e ,,,"k ,,,, a,ke,1 an anim" I"" to I,m ,e <.Inw n ;on aC'I,,'" if I~ iJ"" w~s "S hl
" ai l r" t Ilk· iii ", I",·,,,,,"
",iii ..
h;,,'.
11'111" "n II..: ~ 1c)\';,'l l ,
\\'all ': :tnto.: ~" ,1 " 1',\\ ''' ''''' . •!t,'" ""1'1"'0.1 b:.:~ and I.,,>ltd al " ,,' . 1 11~",ghl I,,· " ", II" "'!! ,,, ,.-[1 me k'
t""
Ica,( ~u,tJ"" ~UI "" said . ·"-""r.·. [)aw. Ihal-' JIN " hal I "~n,,,d:' ,. It taughl III\' "h" h' "" all l..- I),,,,,') ,,,,,II,, l no:n ,'I' { ",,"cr h:td a n~' lo'OIIbl,' "" h CUgj!etJlk>:l WII\' '' I " ,,, dnc,l ing I " ",'01 In ,:t} '" Ih" anllnal"" ' \\' ill J"" ,I" '''"'''l hin~ f ('f " ,e.' Will P ' " P11;tl c;1 ,,, nltem' Iha! y(>u """,' II". ",;,,1 ,."
h,,,,,
lor'i><" "'c''''_
Halld 101.1 of a lC,1 he had 0.1011'" "f ~hcl <~ nd,nll ,,1' '''11 In hIS ' a ,"cah. ,,·h"llInll. " 'Ih C\'<'~'lhln!, 00 IOC cat rJtlhn~ and t>oo,.n(lnl' . WI..:n 11t<~ (3m" I" lit< 'W1I<.'r. It-..· ,oar ~k id nll mlJ.,·", "1""1<' d"" II an,1 ~pcllill~ , " Oil , oc,'k l)" ,," "as "n,' Iltal "J," bu~l .. and ho: ,,'a' cate fu l !" ' I.. ~( il '" Ih al 'I "",,10.1 mil ..... ", ,,...,,1 "" Mlentl) lit had "' ~ e,>II''''''r,·,llh,' "h"I, .-,or I).. ,..,
1>' a..-lion h"n 10 du II o~'r IIC ' I IC" ,., ...·.·i ••·d 11.._ " ,,,I\: t,·a..·Utln .. It' ~ tI(I( brood "'M '''lIh, II', lin' Iunn .·~ " S" I;m..·, I)a .~ ,'orr,',:led Ih" ",·Ii"". """ "11 ;lntl Tc~1r~,, ;ng LlLllil Ite " a, '''':n l} Ih,,,ug!' lit,' I'''r.: r . and , Iill W" II d,J nut kd 11t,- "d illn " '" ,p iri led "n" ugh 1,,( ,,!tal he \\ :lII led , ,\1 Thai puinl 0: .... !"~ r"d "I' "rhe ,'''I~' I I"n~ I ;0"
'~lcrUJl). lur Walt ~'t)n'pl;ti"'.:d uf th..· la,:~
and
~,~ ~d
.n....
"""I",,'. laL.'_ ,,,
kn,·" 10 tk. " '" '0 dn ""'I\'I""'~ oc "'''~, " "" nlr.:n>e Illal "" "OIIld ",~. ' 1 d,dn' , mcan ,II", much" S" I ",cn. bac k and dod "'t1l('1""'!! 1k1lTi"[~ d"h,"\,,1 I ,,'a, k ind 01 f'C\oud ,,( ,,,~,df an" ,·",,1,1" -1
Solid Draw in g 11,,: "ld · I" 'M" '" "co', hat'! l'r""",I I" ~""r up "ilh ,'" d,'m ,,,,,I, " f II", ,,,.,, 1'1"" " I :"" ",,,1,, ,,, Mo.\" ' hao ,,.... 1"1'
i', ~
rJ"'" ,'"""",,,,.1 Ih~ oc~ """, ,.,,. " y"" , h""IJ I..,~"
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I" JrJ" '" \\'.-11 a, I_""ib lc ""I"'~ '1 ," H"~ I" (Or"" No" , "' ~ .' ".",,,,, """"a' M'" .·~",Cf .'I,m'~ "' """ ,,,.~ ,II 1'):4 . 1"'''" '-.1 ' '''1. ,. n..- ..... lTer ~ .... ,' '''' .II~", 11M' .'a,,,',. 11'11 "" f'J< ~"" y,,,, '11 h,n' It, dtn lho.- .'h~r""·'~r m alii_Nit"", and IrOIl" •• ..w~ ~"!,-k·. u,! ,I' , ,," ,'a,,'1 ,k' t1, ,m" It",,· I" ,I ,,~.' ,I 1',1\1" "",,,. ,~I,.., 'I" "cr~ ',-' Irl<'j",' "lid ,,,I.,., h,"~~r_' ~ l",( I l.t< i. " '" ""-'''' phi 1'''''1'1",· " Ie " ."',,,, I,'h' (; " 1lr""
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lj.oJ, E'<'!; ,Ui'- , ;lIM ,f.I.OM>, FINGE.'R. ,l€G ,aUAIi:., ~ , ~'fC. lo::>K'5o 714e- ~ A5 '75 ~. PAIt"f · ,~c ea "'1" r.;; .It vcf!.!< .;;r'FF i.OOI(ING
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new. were full oflfic" and {cchnif 11k: ,1\",,,. thc ,lick line. Ihe tlashy "er.'e of clothing re:"'lin~ III "jolent .,.nion--all Ihe-e de"ice' Ih'l had imp'C"C<.i US
11\
high ";h,,,,1 were of litt le
use anynlOrr_ .~igns
were hung on many walis where the young ,,,,ince, w,,,,ld he 'u"-' In cr he" waS Ihi , - "Docs your drawing have weight. depth and halan<"e'!"-a ("a,ual reminder of lhe ba,i" or "'lid. ,hrce ·dimens ional Il' as OIl<' Ihal ,aid, "IJU)' Saving' Bond,:' or pointed 10 l!>c nearc't exit. Aoolher sign admom,hcd uS 10 w"len oul for "I,,';n,' in "'If dra ..... ing' , Thi, is the unfonunale ,ilualion \\h<:r~ to:lIh arm, "r lk,(h legs arc nm only paral · lei 001 (k,in~ c '"~tl)' (he ,ame Ihing, No one dra ...... Ihis way on ",,'po, e. and usually the aniSl IS not cvcn .ware Ihat he has done it. This affliclion waS not l;m;(W 10 th. thin ;." ror again ;n the ,",vcnlies young animal"" Ron Clement' wa, ann"yed to find "twins" in hi s drawings no mallcr how hard he worked 10 keel' I~m om , "II wa, <>ne or Ihe roN drawing principles Ihal I heard "I' allhe studio , If you gCl into acling, you
would never think of c\prc"ing an en...,.i"n ..... ith twin. anywhere, bu(. sornehow . in a drdwing, if you're no! lhinking. il creeps in lime and again ," Our main search was for an "animal.ble" ,hal"', one th.t h.d volume but was still tlcxible. possessed strength without rigidity, and ga,'c uS oppor1unities for the mo"Cmcm, th" put ,,"cr "ur ideas , We n.,.,
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t"" di. prol>lt "-
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r>ppMIito
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pf'6'1 i. tht fa sd"ati"g ,
II
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o
l<3;t ""ilil the ,'alic fonn. W~ used the lenn '·pllltlC.·' and JU51 the definition of the ""on! seemed to ron"ey !he feclin8 of potential activuy in the dra""ing: "Capa· ble of being shaJlCd or form~d , pl iable."
Appeal Appeal was ycry irnronan! frOlll the , tan . The word is often mi.interpreted 10 . t.ggest cuddly bunnies and $Oft kincns. To u •. it meant anything Iilat a person llle$ 10 IOee, a quality of charm, plea, ing design. sim_ pllcity, communication. a nd magnet:ism . Your eye tS dra""n 10 the figure Ihat hilS appeal, and. once there , it is held ""hile you apf'",cialC what you """ seeing. A Sinking, heroic figure "an have appeal. A "illaine!s, even though ch illing and dramati" 'Muld have appeal: otherwise. you will not want to walch what she is doing_ The ugly and repu l si\'~ may uplure )'oor gv.e, but Iilere will be neither the buildi08 o f character nor identification ""ilh the snuation Ihat ""iIl be needed There is shotk value, bUI 110 Story .trenglil.
TM pmalld lin" of the pis~ Or h~., go,', no chana /er solidif)' or di"'~JUiCl1,
lI'h," hrn,. ilUtN>d of"""", "'nlh, f» """.flh. " ..... ""I)' "
IitWlr d.si,n .
Addinlflnl! i ....rrns.d ,h. ",>!um ... Jlhoulli,·m.f " fluid , (u: ,i,., po""'ial ,
,
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,
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A weak drawing lac ks appeal. A dr3wing I~I is complicated or hard to read lach appeal. Poor design . clumsy shape •. awkward 1Il0"cs. all are low OIl appeal. Spect ator. e njoy watchin g SO,"",liling. Iilat ;s appeal in! to them . whether an c~pru,ion. 3 charucler. a ~ ,"",nt. or a whole story iuuation . Wh ile Iil~ Iwe aclOl' has charisma . the a";n,at~d drawing has appeal.
Young people, exciled aboYi Ill<: ~r~al su ..'c~,,,,,s a:bje,'.d with Ii .... dr.,,-ing. are al" ""},, perplexed to hr. thal delicate rdi'ler!!cn!> are ntIl flO".,ihle in Ihis medium They r«~!1 scene, or g",al beaulY and picIInS wllh strong ("""ions and C3nllOl sec thai lhere is an~ problem ;n communkalion, BUI Ihe prohlem is Wit. in every Keoe and c,-cl)- day, Sinee Ihe medium lackltlle lublie shadow pallems on Ihe face Ihal can Itveaitht , hade, of character in a per",m, we mu,t concentral<: on Ihe acling or Ihe sillry 'Iruclur~, Deli· C~ expr.:.,ion. can be misinlerpl"Cted. to .,'cryon' s ,,,,,fusion. and 3!lempl ing too much rdi""n""m can make lilt drawing SO reslrained or m"oh'ed th31 no rommunicalion is po."ihk_ Only .imple arnJ direel anilOOes n'a~e good draw ing>. arid "' itlmul good draw. ingl "'. ha,'. 1;lIle appeal. The "'hole idea of Irying 10 conllllunitale feeli ng_' wilh mue lines doc, ,"oem ridiculous .1 lime, . There is alwa)'! the lemplalion 10 gel in doSC S
len OUt ,,'tten you gel 100 dose on it. W. arc 31lempling ' ooven;"n", Ih31 now. wilh ~ new dye proce«. bUI il will be son", lime before it's perfecled. " ( It ne"~'
was. ) Many greal effe<"" are ro'~ibJc. bUI I'~ nflen lhe)' COSI "'''''' Ih~n lhe a'd projeeled onlO a g'anl "",retn. Tiny. sen,ili,'" lines on 1M dr~wings ore now enlarged unlillhey ~It more Ihan 3 fOOl wide. and '·ef)". "cry black. In lhe mid·.hinks. we wished for shading. for le ~ lures. for are .. w;lh no oulline,. bul Ihey "-ere nOI pm'·lica!. We had I" find Ulh"r " " ),5 of pU!l;n~ u"cr the point' in Ihe scenes. and in S(> doing
,
4.
Discovery 1934-1936
" I okjiuir.-I'-fi-..! ,/"" ..... , ''''''''" ,/" ,h", /'''''''-'';<"'/';''11.
"',ud (>II ,11.. "'
""I"s$ .,., JkJl /"'''''- ,II .. n'''/. .. Wall n;'n~)'
Thl mid -\hlnl e~ w~. c~" 'y 110,' """I lhr;lIjn~ ~m'd fOf the Dj'IIe)' "nimJror~ . II "'''' a lim, explosiw ~row(h r,1I" 1he wtmle ~!ilt1in. In., 11 ...· ,",pl..,rin~ and
ur
eXf"trimeminr_ ~OO d; ;:<:"""y
CI~Jled
an eXcllcmcnl
..,w, 'Iulle mald.,:J a,I1ain. J">I t..",au~ ,,~ h;td n~mcd 0"" "r II,,· n,'" prirn.'j· pit> IIf an,m.,ion did nOlI me~n lh~. we ",,,.kf.t'~..J ;1 I. ~~I,,-\l d ...· <' 'Mil ,,( il~ r<"<;1>;I/,;",_ C"n, 'am study ,r.! ",.r,·h;n~ had hmughl II> Ih,,' fa,. and mOre , [u,ly u, In. "nly "3Y '" ~ ~cp ad\'an"i n~ , Wall >~cur/d 111m"" from "rh~r wmpanies for LlS '0 sec al Ihe
.w-
~i(\ afln homs. and 110:: ,,,1<1 '" "r Ill<" g,eat ""ud~\'ilk :0:1, ,<> ",'e whcno:wr till'}' were in I<>WI1 . b'~r)''''hcr~ ~... ":em aoo c'-~I)'lhing "'-' did he,'a"", "'tloclhing 10 5/ooy: fu, liminj!. 'I~!! ing. hum"r. pcr""ml ily Ir~ih . mo,...n ... m,. ",:Ii .. n (ln~ ~tli m;tI"r horrghl a Ihn,m r..,lCO~ wllerr tloc~ (11'1 ,~n .... "uthe "'~r~ct . 10 pho",,· mph hi, "wn fc, ,,,,r.:',' mal~ri.1 and Slud)' i, r'r~mc b ) ' [rime. II pul him all('~d uf the <>(h,' I', j",m~d'a ld y. "rw:e Ik' was able 10 crc~ l ~ new ;'""O"S bcy""d llur ul>;kr>i4,KJing. Don Graham. 1 h')l in,rrue'",r '" (,h"lJi"ard' ~ A" In . "i,nlo:. wa, t>r.}I'ghl QUI 0111: c"cning a wcek IU imrrnvc Ib: dr,,,,ing lakms "f the sl~ff. ,\1 fim il "'as jusl rqular lif~ dr~" ing. 1>111 il " 'as "'~ I"nj! hef"", l)Qn nmc undcr Wah' ~ im~n>i"~ drivc ~I,,- ap 10 gel ;." "",. lhift1 ","lItT. He "'~nlclll)on 10 be,:,}ln< lhe QUISlan
" ,duL hUI il did nm ~u Mally fa, c"ough ur fa>! cnough. DOll soon was ,pend·
an ,eho,,!. Life
d'~wing w~s
ing ",on: tin'" 'lullyin~ Ihan la,:hin~. as he Ir i~d to ke~p up wilh W~It"~ "nl hu .;a~m_ Wah r.:aliled 11\;11 lhe anin'a,nr» I~a("hing lho.· ~n "-~r~ Ihe OAC'S "'ho shaT~'" his desire 10 achie'.., hi,her "andaru;. ~nd in 1936 h~ put nu, this mCmo: ··W,· plan "n inslalling ni~h l clas~~s nn aClinn anal}'sis immedialel}' . I in1cnlllQ ha"e '0"'" of lhe he" anima_
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,\" i• .
",.... ~",d 10 '61 '>f,Iot~"i_.
1/ ..... doN-s ,lit ilI>iI ,"" (lIma ..."
,M,.I.:
Ion ralk ro lhese meo and discu ss with them Timing. mun~ of obI~ining cen3in effecls. . . in this way I hop:: 10 Jlir up in this group of men an cnlh.. s;u rn and I knowledge of how to ao::hievc: mull'- that will advarott them npidly:' Now "''C ...·ere comin~ Net two and rhrcc nighls every " 'cck eilher 10 talk or to lisren. TIlere were liso guc.1 spea kers from OIllside It.. st udio. bUI. while Ihey ...·ere stimularing and cn · rkhed ou r general bac ~gr[)Und . we did not ge t a.> much from lhem in a praclical way U we did from our own "upcns:' As Le!; Clark said. "1 karned more from worting wilh rhe fellu. and from Walt:· The memo ~inucd: " 1 also intend 10 Iu~e Don Graham siudy our beller animal ion. 50 lhal he will be Ible to analy •.e Ihings for the younger . nimaton.·· M ~ work for Don. and thi.l in a;! lance will lot betl<:r using the one lhal matches lhe direclion he is luming. ,nd "''C Iud to know lhal ~ISQ. Our OIIOSI stinting obscrv.ilion from films o f ptOIlte in ~iOfl wa~ thai oJ"""l all actiOflS ~tan Wilh lhe hips: and. ordinarily. lhere is a drop-as if gravily .... ~r~ being used 10 getlhing' going . From this mov..,. lhe.~ is u~u~lIy a tum or tilt or a wintl up . follo,"'cd by a whipla"ih type uf action as the 1"C51 of the bod)' Slans 10 follow through. Th;, was evident first ;n sport.
landl
fil",~
sl\u""ing ba",b,;,11
pit~hcrs
and Ilolfefs, bu l soon
we (wid see il in n>
I""~
~aning 10
mm"C from a ~ill. st;Inding r-""illOn . ""hellier walking or pick l'OIT1C1hong up. alway. bel'"" lhe ,",,"~ ...·i th lhe hip" . Don Graham c"cntually did I>o:e,",,,, lhe Icad;n~ aU lh ority un line were ....,,·cr o' ·c. Ih.".,·'!uan<:," "f an inch "'"' (llcn ing shc gcocr~ lI)' talkcd. '" ru, ....,,'er s."".. d I" have a pbl<;( to put 0111 lhe smoldering tip. moving it adn,illy from one SCI of pioclll.'cnled the ennsl ant 1"'''" 1<>W2rd mo\fC ",alism in every acl" "'. To lhem. pulli", o,'cr lhe gag. lhe busil1Cs.~. thc ' tmng p<>SI', ""a, all thai ",'as needed to be cn lcn~ inillg . '1")'" .esl "'·as ju!.! frillS . 6111 lhe ne .... types "f pi<'tllres clliled fo. action. that had to be analyzed carefull y if they ,",'ere to COItl~ off. Then: was a famull' S<:crIC in "'h~ Cl,P'''' Shol' Ih. t W;t.< (:lI ked about for )"Ca.,.. The ~IO')' was simpjc: In
h,,·.
St"'''
* r",,"nn COlI'" h) I,fe
lI u"1I.: >Ce .... or.he k.nd ly old shoptccpr< .~k"'g a la •• kll, k around •• lI.:n opening !lie douI. "'alk,n~ .hruu~h it. anJ dosing. il behind him "''''1 qUill' 3 change from the br"ad gail> and ;oC t ;un~ in !he earlie, fil"", T he ac tinn n"t nnly had «, be Cun· Yill<:inl. ;1 had tt) have Ch;"""I~L The u ld man h~J lillie ptrSOll3lily.1>u1 hi: had ." be old and kindl y and _ ...'h31 ... mini .....",t .". ",",,,,one oul of a Dic ke n.
•.
~
~ lIIi.m.uor ".~> delen"i","...! ." ~..."t • shumin~ ....·al k. a \)(nl po.»t ure . aPb 10» on lhe far , 10k.". lhe Ill .. , •. a Ion!! di,ta~ from !he eklt.I}· ihoplocpe, Ho had 10 walk o,'e, clOlo< enough to ... arh 'lin eas il y and ~ '"'P it lIul th is Ieli him sta ....hng directly in 'he p~lh uf the dour. which for $OIIIC ..., _ ope""J in"'ard~ T...'O )'c~ ahe. Ihis. lhe .ni",ator .... ould have run back 10 IIIe Mu,ie Roo'" and !'C"reamed aboo. ,he rmrieIi~~ la)'O\ll. "Why d""" it hne to he at th is anSIe?"' " Wh)' doc, the door '>f"!n in in,lead of OUl?" " How am I , upl""'ed 10 ge t him Ihroug.h thi s door?· ' BUI tIIil ~ion had tm1 been con,ide .ed al the lin", of nt (/Ii"" Sloop . That animalor. " 'ilh great de.erm'l\3· IiGa. .txkcd "'" "rublem fro." an ;o,;lioo >I;mdpo.oinl . probably hoopin~ >«retly he "·,,uld >ho,,' e'"Cf)'Ofl(" ~ . ,tli he 'nalyJ.~ the si lua,i"" , oprncd foo. incoc.< and hil the ~entleman'. fOOl . li e ~ Nck in a casua\. ~hu ftling. mao"" •. Ik OJl<'ned tile 6ot:Ir anothc. rnur inche~ unly tind il had bumped a,a,1tSI his other fOOl . A!;8in he slepped hack_ IIIOIlIer foo. inc""" . Now W do", " 'lIS again~llhe tiot rO\lt~......., . The.e ....... no "'ay he could " ep bac~ fartllOllgh ;nlo ,he ><:ene In dear thi, door. and lhe fllllle, lie backed up tm, mo"" I,,,,hlom the.e ..... " uld be in WlIlt.ing around the ob'truCli,,,, 10 get our-ide. " 'here be \IId.o lit by lhe 000 of lhe s<:enc:. So .s ,he film roIIrd by . •he poor u ld man . huffkd endlessly as tile door vaduUy ."",ned e", ... ~h fot" him In .n·elS<' IIQ w:ps and ''''ru~1e in lu the night. It a comedy of fITO<$ on .,'eryooc·s p.a". but lhe animatur br>.c lhe bruni 0( lhe k iddin~ mo.e than the dirOX' lur 01 the II)'IM I113n . The"" WaS much I" be learned .
.rue
.,,.,w
,ha,
n...: ""'..
,ha,
'0
Throuj:h lhost d.y •. the piCIP' .' ,,·c mad( rdlttled lhe ",ide rang.: of c~ pt> Wah Wa~ uploring. 0.. film COfl\:CnlrlleU 00 dances and lhe E""""'''M; pM' terns danc .... made lllben see" (rum above. TltilO had become a popular camera ang le bc<.·aun sludi .". we", m.~ing: it ......., felt ~ mi~ht do it bctt~ • . bullhe audience, did no! .glft ... itb lIS. We deal' ""'Ih fanl''''''~. ga,s. ,,'~a". IIKalM. ad,..,n,u"" •. perwnalitio: lhe . il le, alone suggnt lhe variety of ' Ubj«1 matter: Tht F/"'III1/ MOIIH. bl/ally {.<1M. M ickry'J P,,/ Pluto, Tht P,'~d Pi!",. Th," Th, Mirror. Thr KIQ"dikr Kid. "buy or lhese w~n: ~ 'occes~ful. but Wall anal),lctd ..... ,,!kilO h~ ,de •. but the bcsll\.',;I"J''''<' from both hi~ sl~(f ~nd lbe audiefloe "'as to h;~ talent for "" ....oping po:~lilie •. II pel· nlealed hi.< Ihink ing 011 a lmO!i! ('"Cry '·cn lo,,, .
Wall h;t<.l . Iway. lo\'ed train!. with thoi. 011llO$! human en,'~. and as carly a!I In~ he had one of chem f""II..:d in lbe filn. Mil-Ic,.... 1 CIooo·CIooo. 1kn SIIarp!.I«n hOKl lhe as";gmnc", or aninuting lhe lie'" chara<.:!er. ·· Walt was n
.boo.
w.,
I
',,-
IUId hlUlds; lhey n:ached OUI and grabbed lhe rail~ all a person mighl gnb a rope 10 pull himself .Iong.·· This wlS more !han ju.. a mallcr of personality. it wu the wboIc ide. bIIih on dW10Ctrr relationships Wt wuld be .niJTUO~ . Mickey haod a dear ~uitlKk . theu was something he was trying to do. and the engiroe offe",d all kinds of opportunity to the imaginative animalor. A characler was never placed in a lI<.:eroe unlellil he had. definite ",ason for being lhen: . He had funny bIIsiroess. gag materi,l. dialogue, something to make him illltre.sling . and . ullually . 5QfTICthing Ihal showed who he was and how he feh . Otherwisc . he ""as 001 shown. W.1t roevrr left a seeroe atlhe COfIIinuity level ; he made $Omething out of il or uworked the story al lhal point. As lhese ideas became s tronger. the cuning and Slaging of the scenes bttame mon: important. Dc.:ision~ .s to when: 10 have the carn<:ra. how far bad 10 be. who 10 have lhe camera on. when 10 be on someone el_all the fllC(:ts of filmmaking became imponanl to the lillie c anooo . From. 1lO\"dly. _ wtn: coming of.~ in the piclU", bIIsiroess . n.c U!iC of real pI'_lit~. for the c has"ac1crs had rome aboul slowly as the belter Iype o f comedy and gag'! developed . At firsllhen: wen: jusl geroe raltypc s willi. the traditional conootations from the comic slrips: big and tough . small and quick. fit and jolly. Ihin and mi..:rly . n.c g~gs called for altitudes . np",ssions. a cenain amount of lhought or con silkn lion here and thcn: . but no need was felt for pl'rson.a) ily as e~pn:$SCd in walb. n:actions. mOOVlIlions. or thinking. n.c audience was drawn inlo the piclU«: Ihrough the Iyl'" of gags and sprighlly bIIsiness; Ihr.n: Will 110 necessity for anything more . Ptople wen: delighted by eye,,". and OIher tricks 10 make lhe impossible look plausible. Prior 10 1930. none of lhe characters showed any real thought procc ... Althougl\ Mickey had ",placed Oswald hr. WIS doing lhe same things. and lhe only minking done: wu in reaction to $Oftlelhing Ihal Iud .... ppcned. Mickey would 'IC>C ii, UKI. u alitt Ihal he
had to gel a counter idea in a hurry . loot around arid su hi, answCT. quickly convert il inlO $Oftlelhing Ihat fil hii pred icamcnl. lhen pull the: gag by using il wccc»fully. Of course. the poIe",ial for having a chancier ",ally appear 10 Ihink haod always bttn there in the routi1l<.'S Il\al Wilit had envisioned . bul !lO one knew how 10 accomplish such an effccl . [t .... a$ r>OI even realilrd how much such an addilion would in<.:ru!iC the audio ence 's enjoymenl and involvement in the piclures. Tlw all changed in one day ""hen a ~eroe was animaled of a dog who Ioot.cd into the came", and s norted . Miraculously. he had come to life! Walt was qu ic k 10 apprc"c ;ate lhe diffen:n<.:e and 50 was lhe aU0$1 cenainly none of hi. con,ptliIOOl. bul once again Wal!"s intuilion was right . Sturie. with hean and warmth broughl the greatest audie nce involvemenl, a ruponsc far beyond lhal for picIU"" lJuilt only"" gags . "The biw s l diffc",nce-and 11M: gamblc-wl>< tIut ,hcsc films would haV(C 10 be laken lleriously . Cartoons
heretofore always were intended to be funny, Would lhe lileater palrnn, accepl thi, new genre, or w(mld they I.ugn.t 001 ,-rude. pre,umplive efforts" How far cOIIld we "re"l tllem w rollow ",'? Fortuna{ely_ {he audience wa, more {han rcady for Walt's type of entertainment Even in the grim day' of (ho Dopre"ion, "hen Hny{hing li ke" r~i.y \<,," would seem eompletel)' out of pla,e. he had one ,ucc-e', after anotho'-no! ",'ery picture. nor rcHII~' "Ven h"lf of them. bul coou~h {o ,how u, 111e way {o go and encoura~ Walt in hi' ideas on communication, It was apparent {hat more {han mere nln{ inuity was nffikd in presenting a full ,Io'y, An "kl favorite ioke Babt, in ,he \\"HHI.,_ u,ing {he Han",,1 and Gre{eI ,tori.,. needed 4"ile" bil mo.e 10 m~h i{ cnt~rtaining in thi' new form, We quickly learned (hat a drab re{.lIin~ of any ,tory or an cmpl""" on c-on{inui1), and c'l""i{ion "'as the w",ng way (() g(), Nothing is more
deadly in animation {han npI3na{i(In' of who {he char. ade" arc Hnd what they ,"~ doing there. followcd by more discussion of what {hey are going to do abou{ it! We searched for (he entertaining si!Ua{ion~ inherent in the 'tm)" ur in the I'ersun. li{ie, Ihal <.'1 Ihc Iype of pic-Iur<; Ihat 'ICC
TI,,,
\lui;' bIIilt ~1"""1 entire ly on prr:
lhoe prak of Wall's
t... dillocue de\'dopment
f~elinr
f()f
~1ickcy
and
111;01 is SO . pecific for Ihis
1IIe\ 't'J' ........ 111 fil Oun~ld or Goofy or .. ~ but Mickey. One s imple ...cclIIe of Mickey reading Iu PI~ !O froln a hook OIl I!o.... 10 lrain h~nling dogs. llortgff , hoi"f It..il camp in tl\(: woooJ •. ~nd Ihl i. all anyone otN\ IQ know about lhe situation . Thele is lillk: ro"linuit)" once again. and ea~ h scc ne is in lhe pielYI': because of il s entertalnmenl p"lential. Mid(y'~ leaclion 10 seeing a beal ri~ 11l before him ;. pun: " I)isnty:' uni dialogue Thi s wa, r.efol~ he had "'o!~fd in fron l "f a ('"mCla. ~n<.i hi: wa, reticem Doin~ I ~ood job of nxordin~ the voice "'i1h 311 11>( smdinJ and ul1"n~ and expression 111;01 ""C le "'quiled ..-m tlll.lU~h cn:ali", d fon f.,. anyone, c.prcially ",·t..n mlricw.J 10 an unnatural fal>Cllo voice for Micke)', Wall ..~ ~cplical of l i~e aClion 31 1h31 I,me and no( too Wlc ,Ji how "-e "'~Mlld U,", it, bul Ollr cnlhusia,,,. woo him owr , Reluctanll y he ~glfed. bul wilh n:$lric_ lion.: ·' Well ... if)'oo keep lhe .an~ra in (11<: booIh--not 001 011 It.. stage, mind you-and if I don'l kno'.i "ho:n )'oo 'n: oo!ng it : and , ... On Ihat day. he wore his ba~~i(>1 dothes and h, s favorile old felt 11;01. " -hic h
dwvltt lhal il
did noI give hi m a c li.p aPJ)l'araocc bUI d,d Illake him feci comf"lubic and ",Ia~cd , The ,'an~r~ ..-'" ",I up SO f:ll" a""ay flom Walllhal ,MIl ima",,,, on It.. lilm .."3S ' -e-ry liny, bul .(·'" Wal( in>lioc1i>'CI)' reached 001 " 'nh h,s 1I;on.! 10 ""...,.~ It.. hti~ht of a link kid . It "":as the only lin ... ...., t"O:< knc ..· JUs. how bi~ Wah considered M,dey to be . In spite of lhe help il gavc 11$. he """ 'rl' k l us pUl a .~mCla on him again : ami yeal .laln ..... hen .... e ..-an(e~ to Iilolk allhm film onc~ mort . it had <.ii,aP!"'ared, No one kno w. what happo:ne ...·cn: beller d ... ftlolTC1l meant Ihal the ~Iudio coold di'lltn>c ""ilh lhe lricks a/llJ techniq"'" thaI had brought lho: film~ Ihis far aIIC,\ e mbalk on a mOre ambiti"". ,·,MlI'M . Mou,J began 10 play an imporlant part , Well ' 1n", lime lhey "'" in va luable , The y ...,aeh ,mn,woald), in lO lhe ,'it..... ,,' imagin.a l;'~n. involving lhem in your ,,1t;lures before you havc Nrdy beglln . We were helped in Ihi. by ... hal we ,"< ... Id do 'O'ith both wund effcci. and mll"c . s,)U.1iabli>h a mood . Music e;m do e,..,n mo~ 10 arouse OUI ~'kM i"".; and, ""hilt .n thr Cally filtm _nd "" " '..,.1), and ~mln'so:e", of I .mall ban.! in an "",,,,,.lflI pil , nIY'''' ,,"" 'kly found ii, wa>' to a ITlOfC an;sl ic u_'" IhfOU ~h .I imng thelIl<'S tlaot Iilcr.l1y Il"lInspor1td Ihe audience ;nlo OIl' maJ;.e·helic>e ",'orld • . The Layoul l)cpartme nl had ""en . 1",,· I<> &vclop, proo'lbl)' bc<,'au,", the...: haI:cn lilli( (". 11 for (he art· im)' Ime, brou~hl to lhe Iii" " . a,1
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Wall was I>tJI aware at the time "" hal goOO
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even. layout that matched the 5Cope of ide," secn in the action . 'fhcn: was a Ixk of el\ar.l<::ter in the dnlw. ing. wl lh one: hoose lno~ ing li ke another , all tl'ttS looleing ~ I i ke. and IIIe final ~i nl i nll so gent ly lin lC<.i lhal il hardly cou ld be ~n . No one kne w yel how 10 support lhe pe~aJily of an aclor through lhe han· dling of his surroundings . 'The aclor had 10 make hi. way alone . By lhe lint(: o f the Thru /.illl.. Pigs, Wah ""a$ ""ginning 10 look for cnte n aining id.::u in a "harnelcr'~ loca le. ~OO he 10vC<.i 10 11'11 how the ~nist~ h:,d drdWn pictures of bo~eD and spans r,gurell on the walls of 011(: foolish 1",'$ hoose. and ptclUn:$ of ,iris in the nU l , ",'hile the p1on.ma and f'apa . n ils " 'as a ""ginn;II" bul few ~ >.IIw lhat touch in the background while walChing all the ;"lc re Ming act;"n in fmnl of ;1. S; ~ shon 001 busy ye~n; later. lhe ~ud;ence was !<:eing the unforget·
I2bIe figun:s In GeppeIlO'S hoo,;c lind dcl~iI aftCf nlL:m· OOIble delail througho,u lhe ,,'hole pICture . A " 'a y had been found to do il. By 1936•• new Iype of pitture ""as be<'onllng p0Ssibic , TechnICal skills Were advanc' ng and a ne:w cam · era was be ing bui lt Ihal pmmised wonderful illu .• ions: animalion of ruin ~nd clouds and lighlning had ,m· prm~ 10 the point tlral they were quite coo\tnclng. canoon colors; wen: beginningkl glow: and roc.stylon, coordinaled all 0( a fil m ', pans onlO one unifted con· etpl . W""n I"",,", achievemenl' wen: C()nlb,ned " ,(h lhe abi lity 10 portray mood on (he screen. a 1m<: mllc· SlOne in the dcvclopmcm of Ihe an imaled carloon n:sultC<.i: 'fh.. Old M ill. Acadcnly A",'1Lftl ,,',nne:r for 1931 . Wilb no Slory OI""r tban I"" reKIIOn of vanOUS animals 10011(: -'lOI"my n'ght.n a broI;~n do... n ""11 . tlte: film sho'.... ed thai an audience ~""Id "" ~wcpl up by sheer artls(ry and become deeply invol "cd In an 3111 ' mated fil m. Wa lt had not been so sUcce"fu! in his au~mp1s III
1
estaIIIUlo new frootm in OI~r ar(Cas. nlMabl y in t~ ani_ion of .... nWl figull:s. He clilled f..... cartoons .... Pn~ in the Godtk.u ojSp,int . II charmNI, "',. cootie ,i rl In TIw Cooilit Corn/I'ui. a win. SOItl( ~tuffed lOl')' .... hich h.... no! b«n ....'Ofkcd oul with -'y the c~ that ....s customary. It m~ Wah real· iullw .. Story ... must beoonsidtred the hean o f t~ 1Miro:"." He continued . "Good aninlllon..-an make • &COd strwy a kn
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sillCC're voi~es. real voices. 00( lhe ll'llinni voo Qf the slage bul the completely natul'lll voice of the boy and girl nUl door . In COQJd~ Corn;"ol and 8,,*('n TQ)'s • lhe voices were so eommonplace th at lhe animators cou ld find no g<::slures or auiludes 10 caricatull:. Slraighl voices demand maighl action. and the anisl~ si mply could IlOl make the characters come alive . l3ul Wah ...·u IlOI worried . He feh su re they ...·ould get ;1 on lhe next piclure ! Theil: were changes in audience I.Sles, 100, which b«ame ~ sop/liSlicaled. ~ accuM.omed 10 !Kt· ter anima.ion and ~ ...,aliSlic prnentMions . !>topIc ...-en: upecling higher quality now and looted to us for nt...,,,,,,ly co,wincing clranclen . One hislorian, as III' lried 10 .race lhe growth in Wah's lhinking. u ketl, " Would il have been pos.ible to c...,ale anOther char_ ICIer as broad as Donald Du~k by lhe end of lhe thinks?"' DIe answer was unanimous: " No onc wanled a1lOlher Donald Duck al Ihal lime." We had grown
.,
CttriSlopher Finch in his book. Thr "" Of Walr DiJnty, told a Slory about Dick Huerner mee.ing Ben Sharp$.etn on the weel after Ben had 80M 10 wort: al •he newly ~sdu] Disney Studio. Dick asked him. "What's lhe 1«1l:' O'"e. II Oi.nr:y 's? Wha. do you Ilu)'$ do Ihal' S dirr~nt?" ' Ben answered simply. "we lIIllyu ." Dick r!:spooded .hat hi. people lnaIY1.cd,
'00; everyone did . There had to ~ mure: '0 i. Ihan lhal. A. he thought aboul ii , Ben deciUrd 1II:.II .he key ing~ dienl muM. be- "r!:alis m." In hi~ n ... n upenc,llCC'. lit had found Ihal much of.he material in c an""" "hm was lOS! on the vie~r5: Ihcy could nor U~r:-ery doep.onment , 10 make <\Ir!: .hal the finished film ..-uuld faithfully ...,neel lhe irku .hat had originalM in the Siory IXpanmr:nl , To do .hi~. he had '0 h.o>-e imaginalion. ~licncc. drive . diplomacy. and endless c...,ati ve ideas . The di...,clor· s offt« was c alled.he Music Room in lhe early days of sound because .he lIlusician had hi, desk and piano lhell: . L~ler, when music acquired a broader role and .he mU.l ieian g01 a room of hi. own, the name nor only persisted bul " .. me tn .usge••• he whole funclion of pn:paring .he wort: for animatior>----even af.e. there were II10K directors and "Musk Rooms " . han lhere "'ere musicians . The euieS! limes for lhe direclor ....~ .... hen he was Ioid uactly .... ha. he was supposed to do. His rTIOi\I diffICult momenl. came "'~n his inslructions had bttn vague or he had miS;nle'l""led Wah 's Il:marks II a
met!ing . 'The lau~r was ~asy to do. "i nc~ Wall had a wly of awiding a positive commitment when h~ was IIO! quite sure in his Own mind. His usual method al such times was 10 bolster the direclor's confidence. sell him on 1he glories of !h~ ""que nee. fill the air with t~ciling geDerali!ie~ . then duck out while evel)'one was still.la!ed. II was no! until hours laler Ihal anyone WOIIld realize there had boen no real resolution. The slronger directors. such as Da"c Hand and Wilfred Jackson . would not let Walt leave the room that way. bul !hey ",'ould push him 10 the point of annoyance until they were positive that Walt knew and approve<.! of .~ac\ly whallhey "'ere going to do. AnOCher direc· lOr might simply work ahead s!oically. hoping that Walt would dmp in later with cie"",r instruction,. but realizing alilhe lime thai his posi1ion was pre.:-arious and his responsibilities enormous. The animator received hi. "'enes fmm the director in a special session called "the handoul" ' (or "pickup"). This meeting could stretch out over several days as the dirtt!or e~plained how he wanted the scene done. ideally in a way Ihat captured the animalor's imagination and excited him about the scene's potenrial--whil. keepi ng him on Ihe right lrack. In the days when scenes were only gags . a descriplion of the action Iyped on lhe bottom of a story sketch was all that was ~d. and the handoul consisted of dealing Ihese out like playing cards to whichever animator w"' f"", to W
sonal involvemem. the animator .....ould only illustrate another person'. ideas , and that is as harren an assign· menl as anyone ever had. Walt had been mOSI e~plicit aboul!he necessity for "geuing the animators into the 'pirit of!he piclure. and nO( making them f~el outsiders just executing someth ing workM out by S<.lIt\WOC else. " Dave Hand explained the whole busine~s of the handout Ihi s way: "Our entire me<.lium i, tran,ference of thought. "The thought is created firsl in the mind of the stol)'man . . then transferred!o Ihe director. who aUempls to transfer it !O the animator . This is ..... ~ere the big problem of transference come,. bee.u,. the animator then altempts to transfer it pictorially. He takes it out of the intangible . and places il in tangible form. in picture. for lransference back !o the: mind of the audience and picture presentation i. clearer than any other nlean~ of transferring tltought from one person to ano!her." At another time. Dave was not so poetic. " We can talk until We "'" blue in Ihe face in the Music Room. but (he animator thinks entirely a differem pictu"." No one really knows whal ano!her person' s undefstand· ing is. and the difference in conception can be unbe· lievably wide. A director on a live_aelion picture can ..... "rk with the aclor and see what he i, going 1000. The actions can bo altered. refined. changM. or questioned, and the results judged on lhe spol In anima· tion. there is no way of kno ..... ing ahead of time how the scene will look. Perhaps the animator ha, a dear picture. but he can be fooled. 100. A. more and more animators ..... ere added 10 the: staff. there was an increa
SWEATBOX
Wallllad w have a way 10 sec dte animation before i, """"I into his pktu~$. He could nip u.., ~nes and 51udy the drawings on the pegs. but tlx: ooly way he really could t~lI how they would IooIi: \... ~ to h ..'c the dl'llwing~ filmed . Thi s was known as a "pcncil test:' 300 ;t gave both Walt and the animator a chance to siud y the OCI;on and make colTttlions before the scene was inked and painted . Ub Iwens had devised a way 10 look inside an old projector while the film was run ning. e liminating the need for I sc=n and v~wing room , and the Illen slQOd in line tOSCC the effect oft/M:ir drawings on film . It was 001 long before this innovation was contributing
so much to the making of the films that a standard film
compared 10 lhe new linle closel under lhe slairs . By tbis Ii""". as many as five IX s ix people would cbe<:t Ihc ~nes logelher . as Walt showe
Get a nervous head on Do<: to "W HO'S A ... " he is mad at the stan and you have him calm down 100 much . As Grumpy says .• A W SHUT u p " have Doc jump bac k (jUSt a liule) in a fighling pose, dropping his fanny and gelling a streIch in the legs . . . . gel a spring in his legs and fanny wiggle (as Waltdcmon· strafed) while in lhe /ighling pose. Sweatbox noles such as these were taken do,,'n by lhe Musk Room secll!lary. and il was no easy job. Explicit ~ they sound. !he discussions tilatled up to Ihc final decisions were full of a ltemale p<)Ssibililies and anemJIIS 10 find com:ctions that the animator under· stood and li ked . No one tal ked slowly enough for complete notes to be recorded. and much of tile lenni· nology "'as in wortls no one new 10 the business would usc. While the secretary was trying 10 rephfasC Ihc t houghl~ so her nOles would be clear, she would hear Walt saying. "Yeah. I think that's your besl bel . y'know? , .. li ke ,,'e tal ked itlhell! ... do illike tliat a nd "'c'lI see how il looks . .. whaddya (hink?" and she would know thai one of Ihe ways had been agrtcd upon . Which one? To any<:>ne not in the meeting. the swcalbox 00Ie!l made no sense whatsoever; and to those of uS who had been thell! it waS s(ill a mystery most of lhe (ime. since the unfortunate secre(ary had gone through IItr 0010$ a nd tried to use her Own memory for the pans she thought she understood. to make il all mean some· th ing . If she was q~Slioned abl)ut_ of these ralhcr p"l'SOIIal decisions on her p.art. the normal response was .. 'Well. you were (here. "'eren'l you?" said in 3 thin , piercing , and slightly thrcatening voice . Wall gradually turned o\'er lhe "nuts and bolts" of making everylhing ",'ork properly to the din:C1ors. and devoted his own lime to the bigger ideas . This did 001 mean Ihal he let things s lip by or did tlOI "",ice what each man was doing. Not 3t alit He !llCl"<'ly n:alized Ihat if he told a supervising animator or the din:ctor how he thought a particular tiling should be, they should be able to see thaI it was done tbal way . After all, he had trained us carefully over (he years by going O)vcr every lasl frame in each SCenc-not once. but maybe fifty times-until _ had all seen clearly "hat was 10 be done .
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Jackson and Da,·c Hand could handle. and SQmwlle was needed whQ could deve lop the !alents o f Ihe
and inbe!"·eeners. no! so much as a compel i!ion but $0 lhey could learn to lal k o ver lhe di(ficultie~ and observe the variety of solutions. One f~"ori!c assign· mem was a tug-or- war belween Goofy on one .side and Mic key and Dona ld o n lhe OIher. Ben wanled !O see the rope tau!. the feel plamed ~uarely on!he ground . hands and amls !hal carried the strain of lhe pulling right inlo the bodies. head" Ihal reflected Ihe effon. and an o"erall arrange me n! Ihal showed dearl y whal they were doing . In addition. he SIIWS1ed Ihat it " 'ould be good iflhe whole Ihing cou ld be made co tCrlaining. wilh some fresh slam o n lhe Slaging or the way each of them was participating in lhe action .
younger men being hired al (hal lime. men Willl abil ity but no prac tical experience in canooning o r comrne , cial an . Ben Sharpsleen WaS chose n for Ihi s lI-
Many animalors were slill doing straighl ahead ani· mation 31 1his lime. and il had a grealer appeal 10lhe young and eage r Ihan lhe more lhough lful. disc iplined "pose 10 pose" melhod . The danger. of couro;c. wal lhal 0{) 0"" ~Iopped 10 make a solid drawing !hal had
he aclCd 001 c~cry!hing as il should be. and then again in "swcalbox ," when (hey showed him (he scene 3S they had animated;1 In he! .....cc n limes. the direc tors discussed wi th lhem wha~ ac.ions would be used. argued about how
to
stage them, how long the scenes
shou ld be, and how besl to do lhe business. The an; · mators le~d from each of Ihe dim:tor... and animalion nourished . In 1934. ""I\cn the hig upansion be ga n. lhe~ Well: lhrl:c dinx!ors. Then: had been more woe\( than Wilfred
("CI)'lhing in it. The animalor kepi !hinking. " The ... XI drawing will ha"e il- a l! Ihe characlcr and Ihe aclion .nd the funnies and Ihe siraights and the good drnw;ng, You'll be able!o see what he's doing in this "01)' nexi drawing , , , , " lbe nexl drawing was j usl as weak, as waS Ihe o ne af! .. !hal. because a good drawin g is not made casual ly, especially while lhe ar1 isl is Ihinking about somcIhing else-in (hi s ca!le, how !o gel (he fi gure from 0'" pi""" on !he paper 10 anOlher. Ben Sharpslun k... w lhis all 100 well, and he knew the o nl y cure for lhe nMhy, indecisi", aclion that ine"ilably "'suhed was for uS 10 work over each drawing, ~Ircn gl hening 10<1 darifying, until the drawing proble ms had bee n soh'ed, bd= we weOl ahead with anything. Wilfred l ackwn (Dave Hand called him Willie but wrole his nan .. "Jawn" once. and i! slUc k as a nickname "'ith lhe reSI of us) (aughl uS Ihoroughne ss and lbc imponanc:e of detail. He had an immensely crea· live grasp of his whole picture and what he wanted il 1000, bul his big strengt h was in the aSlound;ng allen· tion he gave to e"el)' last delai]. E"el)' frame of each su ... "'as cartfully consi dered and made ;nlo some· thing .. Iuable ; lhe animator was never al a 10.. to koow whal should be done in the fOOlage he had been handed, [f},ou had a beller idea. l axon waS all for ii, bul until yoo did he provided you with some very good material to anima Ie. laxon was easi ly Ihe moSI Creali ""oflhe direclor •. bul he was also lhe m",,1 " p icky" and look a 101 of kidd ing aOOuI his Ihoroughness, D."" lland 's major contribU1;on was in keeping up lhe qualily of the work while organizing lhe proce· dures, forcing deei,ions. and keeping it all moving in the dirtClion Walt said he wanled , He look on the job of making Walt's dre.ms and vague feeli ng~ tangible, and 10 do this he conslantly had 10 try 10 pin Wall down 10 specifics, BUI Wa lt often changed hi, mind, and Ihi'! led 10 some healed . rgumenl ., lie confided 00Cl: Ihal Dave would slom, in'o his office "while "ilh rage, He'd grip lhe wge of my desk until hi, knuckles lurned while. . I'd keep Ihe desk hetween us. " lben Wah would gel a twink le in his eye, a nd " 'e knew Ihal he enjoyed ""'i ng Do,'e Ihi, concerned about lbc produci and was not heing unsympalhelk , As D.,'c had oomi u(d 10 him earlier, " I can 'l funclion until I gCI mad!" It was an inleresting siluali on.
BUI Dave knew enough 10 recognize qualily. and if Walt said, " Let' s gel Ihm into lhe pic!ure," OlIve would make sure thai il gO( in and jusl (hat way, If Walt said, "We Can Save money here; lei' s keep lhe COSI down,' Dave would "!Ie every s!>oncul in the boak , I-Ie never mnruS«! his own "iews 0.- ambilions wilh Walt' s, and he never queslioned Walt' , au thori_ IY, He Iried 10 prolect Walt from ge ni ng swamped wilh delails, and he Iried equally 10 prolecllhe anima· lor.; from 100 many inICmtp1ions. Ik liked 10 see things working in a producli"e fashion, and he was ,,", afraid to do anYlhing Ihal mighl he needed 10 ach ieve thaI. These qualities made him a "cry good direclor for Wah, and later an excellent Produc!ion Manager, From Dave we learned courage and integrily and an "&gres' si "e approac h to Our work , When Wah was deep in lhought he would lower one brow. S
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mceling 10 fillll 10 our s urprise that we Were bcinS sludie.:! inlemly . No words coold break Ihe spell. aTld being un~ure of the meaning o f lhe look il was inad· visable to say anything any,,·ay . So " 'e squirmed. .!JI1ikd " ·eakty. looked .houghlful. Slared ~k . P'l" ltnded II()( 10 00Ii«. or nodded wistty as ifin tenlalive agrttmtn •• until Wal! ~~nly bunt oul wilh 5Ome· thinllike " Why don' l we ha.~ Plulo Jel mi~ed up in Ihis sbting busino:» . •oo?"· He Upecltd evtl)'OlIC' to work as hard as he did. .1IIl1O Ix I S in.eres.ed and excited about ...·hat ...·e ,,'ere doing . He IIC'ver splIred feding5. he<.:ause hi s inlerts' w" in the prodlKt.TId no! in "'00 had lhe best idea or who had malic ~ poor suggest ion or expected applause. we WCrt all in it logether. and lhe fellow who Went off 00 his o wn. developing an i
a litt le confident aller a sl>ttCssful meeting and would try makin, a few kiddin, ren,arkli aboul W.I! . This rash decision " 'as quiekl y regrened .~ Wal! . ...·ith liJhl· ning response. made lhe culprit look uuerly ridiculou. _ in I mailer o f seconds and in • very funny ..... y. Stodcknty thl: .ables had bttn turned. and e,·nyont was laughing at Waif. commenlS delivered at the expense of the man who had s toned it all. Ward Kimb;oll' said. "No one ever ~ (hi: bes t of Wall in any exchangc. kidding or serious . Those who lrN:d were cuI to riboons.·· Through all these days. Wall was consta nll y plagued by money problems and by dislribulors who took the lion' s share of .he tiny profit f...... m h i~ cre~live efforts. He al" 'ays fel! that the wly 10 win in Ihis Iype ofbanlc " 'as 10 "beallhem with prodUCI:' 10 make films SO good Ihat.hI: ""Ofld " 'oold beat I JIlllh to his door. Ben SharpSl.cen told of. 1929 conve' "$.l Iion " 'fth Walt: "He was de.cnnined lila! he wookl no longer be de· pendent on a dislributor or I victim of his chicanery."' lllc in'pott.an' "'ing wu to improve lhe product. he<.:ause audientts ...·ould respond to a bener film. ~ did no! believe in CUlling corners to save money if il hun lhe qualilY nor would he lum OUI a cheap prodUCI jusl to make money. Inslud of looking for Ihe ma~i· mum profil. he was looking f(w lhe maximum audio en<:(: response . E"cn so. hi: wa~ watching Iti~ pennies ..cry careful· Iy. An)'onc no! "'ooing at thl: sludio fooM Ihis Iwd 10 believe. sintt it Wa.'j obviou.s Ihal doing. sec:nc o'~. lhrec: and rour .imes was ITIOI"C npensi"e lhan doing it oncc:. Re:aching for IIC'W :achievemenls. Irying Ihings that had never bttn done before. asking more of his staff !han they kne .... how 10 do--.lllhis cost money. ATId Walt knew il. bu. hi: chose 10 spend whal money hi: had in .ho", .. ery areas. figuring Ih3. he could sa'" someplace else. For uun'plc. simplifying lhe coneept for a "'hole picture "'ould make it les~ cxpensi,'c: eliminating rosily scenes. CXI", dWlIClcrs. crowd .$Xs. anything thaI look more time or more work for lhe same result. Too many c hlr:aclen in a Siory no! only run. up the cost bul divides the ludiencc:·. imerest. It lakes a"'ay time needed 10 Gct the most OUI of the: main CharaclefS ....·Ito are supposed 10 be !he moo.I in.cresting an)·"",y. Changing his procedures . using his men di fferently.
Gagman umi ,..11"" 'u/'"'
Pin'" Co/viS ""rjormJ for "rtiSl AllN?rt I/"n.r. Pinto ~,'" ,Jr • •'Oi,', of Pi"'o. GoofJ. Grumpy , a"d
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/i.Jr, lI>ing more cycles. more repeat action. careful use of staging and cuning and field sizes to emphasize the cntertainment and eliminate everything else- these wcre tk areas in which he saved, The new ideas . the better pktures. the things that paid off with an audi o e...:.. and even the training of his staff- this is where he spent every nickel he could gel. We were "' ked manytimcs to find more economical ways of wor>:ing. but never to compromise Ihe quality of the producL Walt was no! maling worls of art 10 hang in a gallery . He was striving purely for entertainment. and there Wert many ways of doing Ihal: il could be in Ihe story. the personalities. Ihe visual e~cilement. innova· lions. silualions. unexpceled twists. beauty. mood. a spirit of fun. or just comic movements , If one part bec:une 100 expensive. perhaps il could be balanced somcwhert else wilh somelhing Ihal cost less but was just a5 effe<:live . The biggest saving proved 10 be one Ihal slaned in the Story Department . If Ihe work was carefully pre_ partd there. il would flow through Ihe plant al r«ord speed. Too often a storyboard would be approved just because 00 one quite knew what else 10 do wilh lhe
malerial; il waS felt thaI any ......,akne.. would show up farther down the line. or new idea. for "renglhening and building ....·0010.1 beromc obvious once the first ani mation was done . Walt was "~ guilty of Ihis as anyone. bUI he slill pUI out a memo stating. " Very Ihorough prepamtion of lhe Slory in lhe Slory Department plus the follow through of 1he story man with tk dir«lor ... in lhe handing out and in the planning of
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First Inspiratio nal For SI/OW Whit e 1Uf"
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lhe x lion in lhe Music Room , .. will do a ]01 10 elimin~le losl mOlion on Ihe !"In of lhe animalOrs caused by ani"",ling a ~ne IWOOllh= limes because lhe xtion was nO! planned out properly in the firsl place ." And again. " ... , we would find thaI doing the preparalory """' in Ihe beginning is a very snlall c~pense in comparison 10 having 10 do il when lhe picture is In anlmallon . His brother Roy kepi caul ioning Wall abool spending man: than lhey ..~re gelling (or the films. but Walt's allitude was. " Roy.)'011 gCI!he l1'IOIley. and ...... /1 make Ihc: fil ms!" However. the lime came when there simply was not any more money 10 be had for a canoon shon. Roy pleaded with lhe rest o f the staff. " Hey. look. fellas. you"'e got 10 wOft on Walt! Hc's gOi lo Slop spending:lO much money!" (Years laler Walt was mak · ing Thr MagniJi"rlll M r. TQ(.d "noJ suggested a ]ine of dialogue for McSadger: "Somet hin 's gOllo be done about Toad! IIc 's spending to-oo much money!")" Walt had a different ans ..~r 10 Ihis predicament. a.ceording 10 Dave Hand: " If we put 10 of these 700 fOOl shons logether . we've gOl us a feature--7 over what it was a year and;i. half ago . I know thaI evelllually"~ arc going 10 allain a degree of perfeclion never before lhought possible . II IKll>'CS to me Ihal the lime we have Spe nl studying_ Il}'ing to analyu:: our problems. and systematizing ourselve~. is bearing fruil. The hit_and_ miss is goillg, He ~new he had the Sirenglh in the Slory Depanment because he was carefUlly adding new people.
experienud wrilers. to his rt:gular staff. ~nd he was also d iSCO"ering greal lalelllS wilhin the ranks . Pe(tt Pearce. who had on<:e ghosted the comic Slri p Thr Coptain orrd 1M Kids, had beell moved outof Inbetw""" after contributing one gag after another to the StOt)' ~panmenl . Once lhere. he s howed an ex«ptional feeling for pe~nalily coupled with Ihe abil ily 10 act out the traits that would work besl for animalion, Perce was one of the first ~tol}'men 10 add the lillie une~pected louches of characler and business (hl1 enrid..:d lhe films and made lhem SO memorable . One section o f the picture might tell its idea ~II and fil inlO lite story niedy. bUl it could still be bam:n and cold , Pe"", would immediately Stan ,,~aving his touches of wannlh through lhe aClion:o and the personalitiesnothing big or importalll . just lillie things Ihal added charm and appeal. 11 mighl be a bil of a.cling or perhaps a colloquial phrase in the dialui\ue . or i{ even could be a few additions to the background that would make lhe locale rroore dcconlive. more special. more imaginative . TIlere was also Pinto Colvig. ex -circus clown. en\eflaincr. clarinet player. " 'ho had joined the staffa fe .... years earlier contributing story ideas. voices. and fllnn), ways of doillg things . Stimulaling visual suggestion!. would be needed for the fealure film Walt had in mind: S'WW Whjl~. In production management, lhere was Dave lIand with his great ability to organi7,c and man· age. along with his creative i1l<:as_ .!lte directors had provelllheir capabilities, and ill layoul there we", t"" outslanding anislS Hugh Hennesy ~nd Charlie Philippi. followed by Tom Codriek. Wah ""OIIld need the besl a<.:tion he rould gel for S .... w While herself. and lhis meant careful planning and analysis in addilion 10 lalent . A f"ature film would have 10 have lender moments, sincere momenlS. quic1 momen1s . There would be a need for dl"'dw ings With great appeal. characlers with life and belicvabilit)'. and personalitie.< thal could hold an audience for well o,'er an hour. Gags. fun ny actions. and visllal Iricb would ....1 do il. If Ihe audit",e ..'ere to be dra .... n into this film. Ihi s world of fanlasy would have 10 be a ",al world wilh real people doin!! real things . Thi s woold not be a canoon . It would be "Ihealer:' and Walt would have 10 have men leading lhe way who coold . make il all come lruc .
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5. Cartoon
Comes of Age
NORM FERG USON AND HA M L US KE
1M dr;"ins for,..' bthirw/ 1M «Iw.. Is 1M mouJ. flit ~r_Qliry. lilt ""'I/Uk of 1M ..""" . IXftr-« al/tllrrt. TII"rfo". II" mi"d is Ihr pi/,M . Wt rhink of liIi"IIS btlor, IIII' bud., dMJ I/"m .· · Wall Disney "/~ _IM'~I't('tJ.
OisneyslCf)'man Dick Kelsey once said. " There is 00 perfect window for. hoose:: 1M", is sotllC thi ng wrong will! III of IMm . They warp, conutle. rust. swell. 1WiII. 1IIII need ronSlanl paillling. I,' s a mallcr of ..-hat you tile...:l "'~1 )"011'", wilting to put lip with . " And till: ume applies to Inimalion . There is no ~s.I WI)' 10 ~..,y more than thtre i. one "greJl«1 ~ni n' • • kII"'_ pulCSI painlC1" or wrircl or actor. F..ach brings bis own prr$(lIVl mn.sagc and inlt'l""'lation 1Q his mfl. Md if hr Iw IiOmClllilll 10 say lIw audic:ncu wan. 10 hear, and if in Iddition he Cl n effectively «I!nmuniu!e lhal """"'"ge , he may be ronsidcml grl:~t. His woct. may grow and l>ecome limelus. or changing lIP)' CIIII~C him in his 0 ...·" lime . III II~ 19l5. Wall .,;eked four IMTI from his t, l. t..:I crwp of .ni~lon 10 supervise lhe .nimltiorl ell S-- Wlrir... ~ men ..ere Norman (Fer,y) FerJu-, wilh I ma~lery o f broad Slaging; Ibmi hon (fi¥n) l.uIJ;( , " 'i,h greal ability 10 analyu and develop procedurn llIar: others could follow; Fred MOOf(', willi II!)C1tI appeal in his drawings; and Vlad;mi, (8ill IX T·bonc) 1)11a, with an abi lity to ponray llrea! emer lims aod inner feelings In hi. characlers . We have 10 IItlievc thar Walt, wirh his uncanny inluition, muS! luvc IUliud that he had round a magic combinatiorl ill Ihis lfOIIP. Tbrir had been rapKI and thei' contributions II'tllltndous. But lheir car«rs , whethe' due 10 ch~ng. irIJ IISIe$ or pe.sonal problems, were 10 be fairly sllon· ~\f(IIj by Disney studio s.randards. " 'here many ani • ...., have produced SU«eMflllly for periods of 0'ICf IISItJ
me
fony years . Their "';ork. beginning with shorts in tile early thini~". ",ache
won, Anric'p;lIion. 'flIeir ,.-ark
"'"2J!; ":.sy '0 unlkr· rttOC."iu. and to ) tudy. Bu. lOll new men ...·,111 formal an rraining came along. and WIIt ·~ rhink · i",.umn! •.,..·ard an increasingly sophistica.ed .ype o f anim.1'ion. I ,,~ sub.1e kind of >l<"tion wl.h more CQIl'pk~ K . ing and more ,,~aninltflll u:pres,iOfl~ dc · ,"tIopN . The anima.ion became w sophi,;c icalCd tlla. ,r ... alll'lOSl impossihk .o «ugh or clean . inlui . li,"t or .nalyric~l . ir did not nMler . It .... as rhe combi ·
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nation of these four men that helped Wah set a COUrse that would take Disney films to height~ never dreamed of: lhe creation of chardc!crs that reached Out to audiences in a way only a few live-action pictures e,'er achieved. However. it is conj«ture to say Ihalthe big development in Disney animation came just frum the chance combination of Walt. Fcrgy . Ham. Fred. and 8ill, 8uI because these: men "'at put in positions of authority. they aulomatically had cenain re.ponsibilitics thru>1 upon them that opened opportunities othe rs may 1\01 ha"c had . TIleir chances for greatne ss cenainly were incre3M'd.
D.iw Hand believes 111M Walt .... ould ha~ rome up " Ilh buically the p.me type of picture no maner ,,-hkh top animalOTs he had 'hosen to lead off. Wil fred Jltbon f.lt1lM: same way: " II is my opinion th.at if Wall had ~ .t ......., d,ff.rent platt 11 the same t,me w'th a different bUn<;h of guys. ,he resuh would Iu.e been more or loss arona the same lille'. be<:au.sc: I .Junk Walt had a real finn h.and on lhe liller. 11ltre lTIIy be some lh,ngsthat some of the gu~ bmuaht ()Ul " hlfh shon d po$sibililie. 10 Wall lhal he look advan~ of tha. spread lhe gospe l and the rest of us pk ked up. bIn really wemed gu~ in other d Irections could 11.1,,,, &i'..n h,m a similar thing [ believe, becau5C he
really K1 the COIII'Je _ He was always OIIt there and " .. we re trying to calc h up. ,. Wah ga~ inspiration with his IOClina and storytelling. and his animators ,arne up with 11M: e"menu that brought about 11M: Golden Age of animauOII. [I is doubt· ful ,,-hether the warmth and the t.nderne" and .he heart would have aPI"'an:d in the pk.ures without this combination . Wilhout these men it would h.I'-e been I different SIlO»' Wllirr--if the picture would ha~ been mad. a. all . But Wah drew ()Ut of each man whal he 'ould, and the n ~ontinued to build on .hal conlribu· lion. always askina for more . H. was opponuni$lic. in a way. in his ability to usc what a man had 10 offer.
,hi.> X.II. fr- I'cculi. Pm,:uins. ,Iw ,iri. """"'1ftI ..,,10 10., iMP' boJf~. flips M • •ail/....Jon. i~ INs It>«. ,Itno IOfMS Jon .... in ,lor at'. HI'''' Laut.-...,;· ma.d.1or s«rrr flap"""" ..,.10 rood an.jr'J>
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and then 10 make the feUow produce far beyond his
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Fergy Norm RIlI,IWn (or. as " "C 11"'IYs called him . R rGyl used 10 lib to tell of the lono:ly night " 'hen he s" 'itched from camcnman to animator . He was SlayinG Late to finish shootinG I ocellC .... hen he disco«ttd t\lM IiOlM of the drawinss ""C~ mi~sins . 1lw:K wlS no one: cise around to complete tbe animation a nd no one: to call. so IS RIlY put it. " [ had 10 fill in." 1lw: scenes ,,'W: so SLJCCeSsful thlt be was offcm! • job dn ,,·i nS. And he ~asoned. "' If this is III there is to animation, I suess 1"11 switch o~cr_it beat5 beinl on ca mera."' Fergy . who came to the studio in 1929. had an
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...t1I'~III . 'f\'~ti~" mind. and lit J"'I~, ...... I ~nOJ .>/o>;e .....<'d _ ,1ufI1It 1.IIk<'d. ....'bal lit did say (lo_ 0\11 ",ilh a .toctM Htw~ l~ n ~ .... 3nd,1 ""~~ uw .II)· jl0 iL " 'as difflC:oll In 1.11 )U;I hew (kepi)' II. felt ahoo l IlIing; . MOlt of tile lim.: dU 11"ll • "l>TIvcl5alion he would be fooHn, "jib I lillie cu.l of hair (\Il his f~h.ad that .1'11' Io«~ II> so.p;rrate from 1M ~, . Jack. ClJuin~ ' Aid thM wide-open pf-le'bluc e)'oS :md fix<'d loIoi!c ..........J ,uilekss ~nd friendly , bul ~'Cl)' SO often )1II ~ tk (,,<,lin, WI his ~mile ",a.1. ..nd Ihat lIthialj il he "ls OO>c ....·ing and nOlln; .,'u)'lhing you "I'll oI.linr. Fill)", IUle. did n[)1 run 10 Ihe inICIl~(lual. He Ie"ed the old vaudeville eo",.di~M. and Ihis " 'as prOOIbl)' loll chid form of cntcrla;m""nl while gro"'.. ..,.11. o.awe"eI)1hing as i( il " 'ere on $llge, nuher iIIIII in ImnI of lhe in~ ol~<'d movement, KmlC anima1m """ IIbk 10 do after slIMlying 11,·" lICTion . A big JIll! of. o:omcdiln', act was oflen lhe " " Y hi: looted .1IiJ I~dicnc. in rupons.:: 10 ~ llelion or line of ~lIoJllO'-'htring his re":l ion broadly with Ih. spec W
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~.C (I"ing. Your ch:lraclcr g"'.:~ 0.10::0<1 a..J il Ivob lit~ ~ d. a .... int::· Ben Sh"'l"'l«n. ... ho had ~,<>mc f",,,, "'~w YOft 001)' a fc'" monlhs hdore Fell;)', f'-...,~II$ thaI Walt 'hell a~sil:""-..J Fer,>" to the hIOOllho.",d '" Chain Gang: "Ferg}' was I>u.;(cnful in ' gening a lOO$Coc» imo Ihe hloodhound Ihl cngger~led it~ abilily 10 sniff (a wrinllljng of!he ("O{I!;e, and 10 think (fao;ial expte.',ions. such ~ a qllizzicalloolo; or a s.. doc!! .mile dim:tcd II the: audience) . Fcrgy ilott«do:d in Jcuing a feeling of fl.,..h in", his animation . No <>nC n'aJitcd ...·hat ~)' had done. IklW·C"CT. unlil afler lhe preview . " No one rcaJilcd. dlhCT. Ihallhi s dog " 'uuld dc"clop ;1110 I~ flmou~ Pluto . And l>0 hard 10 gel hi~ I"III>'C dow'n nc:~1 10 IhI: s _lI. ,,,,I he had 3111h~ wrinklcs buoo.' l",d up OYer
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1M ftI-s JlYfNJIWr ~"U from Pla)·f~1 Pluto. " ",11._ '" prrSOMlIty """""''''''. f ·. - ,ltrfi_ '" tIN";,y",oJlyiifJ" Pt~.,,·s prob/,fftS ' "", '" !>Hom, ....y, M ' r i,. u'r;""" .i"..", TAr~A i, 'rtJ(",i(}lt '0 M. prrdkam,/U "nd M. flw\l.ghIJ of .../w. '" fly ~,~. Dr, ,/w,rd ..·i.~ ,h. audi,nr, . II 'hr Jim """ a r/w'(I(ltt 10 Iw Ihillki"8 on Ihe K'''''. and. Ihowl(h il last,d ollly 6.~ .,("(}Itds. ;1 ~"rd Ih' ..." ,./or ""i"""ioll of rrot c"'"acltrs
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Somehow he had the a bility 10 make)'O\l seo: what wu funny abool!he characler ilself. and il was lhe c harac· ler's ~xpr~ss;ons thai yoo saw and /aler tried to drlw; but. still . lhal dog·s eyebro .... s could ooly have corroe from Wah . When fellY projected lhe tirsl tests of his new charICier sniffin& and snortin& and Ihen s lopping 10 Ihink . everybody was enlhusiaslk . No <:MI<' remembers what Watt Slid. hut vel)' probabty his commenl ..·enl like Ihis: ··Yeah ... y'know. he ooghllo have. big snort. righl into lhe camera. afler he·. thoughl Ihinas overlhey do that . those dogs-il's 10 clear lheir tKISC5 or something . BUI y· know. he·s look ing around. side 10 side. and lhen suddenly he looks righl at the ClnICrl and gives I big ,nort-not really disgusted . you don·t know why he does il. hul .it". funny. ~nd lhen he goes bao;k 10 sniffing 5()ffiC tnOI"e . " Wah never Slopped 10 praise; I\2Ivi", seo:n somelhing he liked . he stancd building 00 it immediately. making il betlCr and flllVlier. Once he had seen whal FellY could do. he asked for more of the same I)"pe of Ihing. hul Ilways somclhing new and somelhing stronger. U'idllly the animator barely had been able to ac hie ve lhe oriainal ((Suit. and anylhing trIOre _tned 10 be beyond his upabililks . Bul. once again. Walt would ··talk it"· and ··ac. it 0111 .'· and you had 10 admil thal;1 was funny busineu and the scqucooe ,,"OU1d be better with theM' new idellS; so. once again. )'0\1 woold S1r:a.in and struggle U)'ing 10 IC""Ir."t
P"'" 1()41
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In spirational Sketches by Gustaf Tcnggre n For Pinoccilio
uprH$ioo or ~lI1CCnt or attitude . Wootin& in this way. how could anyone daim crMit
apllIft &/I dusive
for doinJ a o;erWlI K1I:ne or evtn an outsandingllCtion? FerJY blew IlIat he had made the drawlnp and limed them. They ~~ imll1CCnsc:ly lucassful because he had been able 10 capeure c
opportunity tocreate I world flmous canoondwxter , In his anal)'$is of Pluto . Ted Sean; , It<>p ~<>r)'man , said, "The: flypaper s.equence in Playfol PIUlo is always 1I1CC1I1K.>ncd IS lhe: best eumplt: o f his pantomime . This is beo.;ause i. illustrated clearly att of Plu.o's charat'ler. istks from dumb curiQSity 10 pilllic . It is limed in such a way that the ludkntt fecls all o f Pluto's sensationseach 'hold uprH$ioo' after a surprise action was c-. fully planned , and uprcsocd ~ definilC attitude causl", the audience 10 lw&h. Eac:h small climax builds up into a bette, surprise , " Wilfred J ackson also (Qm' menleri~ how I did thaI aclion? I might do it dif· ferenl ne1ltill1CC ." 6 111 this shows ~ of the e"tileII1CCnt of that periOO--e"ff)'ooe "'PIing around to sec how _ _ elK did _thinl, It also shaws s0mething abwt Fergy's approach; he would IIQ\ WJp trying to find I new and betIC' wly to do lhi~ same action nell lime . I. was all well and good 10 I~am how some· one did a good piece of anirmotion , but .o o;opy it was very limitina and something Fergy woold never under.
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Mgy h.,;I had no formal art lI1Iining. SO he ....as IIQ\ inhibiled by ...... omy and drawing rules . Fred Moore used to Ilugh and say. " He doesn't kIlO"" that you can'l raiK .he e)'('brows above the head c ircle , so he goes wad and does it and it gives a &real effect . " And thaI was bu. ooe of the many Ihinp MIY initio ated 10 liw: his ViOCI;: that exIra life and vitality . Marc Daviu ays. " Norm R:rguson wasn ' t the ani~l. but he wlS a shatp performer . nd .. s ho""mill-hard to know if his dnwing WIIS lhere or wasn 'tthcrc-he had his own kind of symbol. "
Fngy"s drawing during this pc:rioo in the develop· ment of animation actually was quite good and had a solid sculptured look . Hi s feeling for stretches and !ension right down to the toes and his handling of the n~d! ~nd getting meat on bones-without losing the SlIusagC body and stuffed legs-were outSllInding Hc worked very rough for first te,ts-usually just a tilde and two lines for the body . This kept the staging simple and gave him a guide that ..... as easy to change. With a quid test on his first rough dra ....·ings. he could see whether he had something to build on. He could keep making fa'll changes. never feeling thaI he had invested so much time in a scene that he could nOl discard it and try a ne ..... idea if something was not working. This style su ited Fergy because he always had something he was trying out. Most animators ..... ho emplo)·cd this very rough method seemed to be cast on wm in which they experimented with fast action and gags-all SttIleS with broad movements. Maybe the", ..... as a cenain amount of impatience in Frrgy·s wanting to see right away what he was get . ting. or maybe IS Jack Cuning says. ··Fergy was nCr· V
Fngy·s witch in Snow Whitr was the first of the great Disney villains . Her impact on the audience
exceeded all expectations; in fact. to many. she wlS exces:.ively terrifying . She. like Tytla·. devil in ·'Night On Bald Mountain .·· w"-' nlenacingly ugly. which was · nOl a characteristic of WaIfs later villains. The witch seemed to have an Anhur R.ckham ' quality and was ",mini.cent of his evil old woman in Hansel andGrt/r/. Fergy·s handling of her face was less of " typical formula than most Disney designs, ..... ith shapes that did not relate as well as they should for animatioo be<:aus<: of the witch· s illustrative quality . The mouth to check to eye and brow relationship. which i~ so imponam in animating expres:.ion changes. suffered from his concept in design . By 1953. Fergy had found it extremely diffICult to keep up with the new refinement. in acting and draw· ing, and he had left Disney·s 10 won. in OIlier uudios. He had suffered much of his life from diabetes, and that. combined with other health problems. brought on his death in 1957. Fergy·~ style of animating influenced younger ani· mators and is still in usc. panicularly the quick test to
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Ham Hamilton Luske was opening the door to a new, more refined approach in which e"'(!')Ilhing 0"" hilS is put
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into tile firs! tesl. Th is ~ui..,s an uninlClTUpted continuity of thought . h may lake days to do the scene, but you musl not lose the thread. c hange your mind, or lose your confidcnc<>-you mUSt be sure! Ham had an absolute fascination wilh how things moved . Eric Larson. who was Ham's assistant in the early thirl ies. says , " Ham was studying anirrullion all the time-it was his whole life. " O ne "ttkend Eric and Ham were on lhe deck of lhe Catalina Steamer with their wi~e$, enjoying the ""3 breeze and appartntly Irying 10 forgel lhe care~ o f lhe day. But n~ Ham! All of a s udden he pulled off his tie and held il OUt in the wind . ·'Look , Eric! Look Illhe overlap . Sec how the end keeps going down after the center pan Start5 up.·' Every time the y would play golf;1 was lhe same Ihing. "Now watch dose . See the f<:lllow· through "" my puncr.· · But this was actually Ham·s way of rclaxing; and if a fricnd was going 10 relax wilh him, he Ud better be ready 10 do SQmC analyzing and observing .
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Of the four animat<>ri in thi s group. Ham was the only one wilh a college educalion. He was graduated from the University <:If Califomia al BerJocley. whcre he majorcd in business. His wife Frankie laughs about thi s, becau se she s.a.y' that Ham would OQ( cven 1001: al lhe bills or lhe bank book . Like Fergy and Fred 1\.1 <>OTe, hi s only f(>mla.1 an training came primarily from lhe classes thai Wall inilialed al the studio . Ham had to struule with hi s drawing. bul he bad I nalural fccling for animalion, story. and for what ""35 c menaining . So despite his lack of an anislic b.J,ck . ground. he had many things going for him. Perhaps il " ·as hi s college training. or ma)·be it was ju,t inbeTCIu in hi m to have a """'1I -organi 7.cd analytical mind. Eric Larson said. " Ham pla)·cd a I~ of ICnnis. so when he was givell the chance 10 animate Max Hare in lhe tennis Kquence of The Tortoiu and the HOFe, he knew precisely what he wanted to do , ··llIe impona/ll thing " ·as his krK)wkdge and fet'ling for lhe game, and Ham had the ima.gina lion and the vision to dream beyond what he himself rould do on lhe coon. He knew the exact poses he wanted to use in his held
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po"l,on_ and j usl 00'" much overlap he I\\!~dcd I() llIe: (lO>Cs .Iive. Thi s ...a~ a piclUl'\' in ,,·hich liming ... ~~ "10'" in, ""nan! 10 IIIe: I"'fSOflalilic:. Ihan anylhinJ: done so far . llIc roc ky II.", 1.i~d from I'll"" I<)~ ..... iih ~mpha,is on lhe movinl hold~. ~nd 10 folio .... the sp«dy ac!ion bcctw«" these holds. Ham and Wilfred Jackson. the dir«lor. dc:visW the bh~ Mlul; l«h"iq~ . Juon says . ··1'baI·S lhe: firs! lime I ","~mbrr s hooiinl a color lesl for a PicIUI"C!o find 001 if the bI~ SI",U WllS goinl lO ,,""Ofl; oul all rilhl . and il·' a JOOd Ihing ,.·c did . The firs! IWO or thm: time:. ...e did i, did"·, ~ui t Walt .1 alL·· k~cp
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E\"cIYbOOy credi ted II.", ... ith an~lyl.ing the e.. the)" may Iu.,"t bec:n casier for mo..l ~hcrs 10 undcrsland . E' ·cI)1hilll .... as pl"",cd e X""'II)" ,.·he", he wanled It . nlOf"l: cnode" Ihan in Frcd·s dr:l"·ings. 001 " ·Ilh 'I'\'~ cla"I)·. dd, .... I;"" . and caric~u"' . lie "",led outlhe char,ICle~. finding lhe ekmcnlS ia. a JIIM 1""1 ",all)" pmpoinled lhe ~U"'" of lho fttl and body. the ";ghl pi"",,, for the hands. the arch of thI: back. the lili of the head. ,,~hl down 10 hi~ famous ··noah·· n\OUlh . Wc C~n'" IQ Ihmk of II .n. in lhesc ter",s. a grown man "ctin~ OUI Ihis cUle stuff- lillie an imals. d .... rfs. ()f Pinocchit>-., nd ",·cryone urin. lUred him 111:01 ,,·ay. arod always with the .. 000/1 .. mouth ~l the bottom of lhe loog ui'P"r lip h~e S....,.,~y", . No one ","cr cancalUrcd Fcr~)" ac!ing li~" Plulu. bul H;tm
. had b«()f11(' a symbol for Ihi , Iype of acti ng. Wilen Wah a~k~d Ham and Le, Clark 10 dnlw a bdirvablc. pully girl for Th~ G",/J,u "fSprinjl. boIh uillW«S ,,·tre slumped. Eric l ar>oo aoclw oot lhe ~' I(I htlp Ham captUIl' !hi: m toelle!. e,'en " ';Ih 3 real ~i'l fl)l ~ modeL "I used my ~t'l(r. Mar<"~i l . for Cfnlin pusc'''' lie
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The animators were all wreslling with Illeir filSl attempt 1<.> draw the human figurc ;n ;001100, and tllty often wenl behind dosed doon to pl"Xlicc their roovq withuut the com .... nts of their c<>-" .... kers. ·Tm .un: Walt w,,-, thinking aheaoJ to .mo,.· Wlli" ." In Clao-k ~ h,dei ... Ahhougl\ he didn ' t tell nW tllat . I a.sumcd later be"Ust S"",,' Wl\ite hnwlf wa~ de.ignc'd so that ~he <"1m'" be animated . ,. 11Ie ll1limattn ocr ...,ionally g
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.... hat Ham was bl:st at : lhal. and de~igning the char· acteNIClion relationship for ~n appealing, interesting ~suh on the IiC re~n . NO! everyone has the mental dis· cipline or abililY to think these problems through . As Ham bl:g.an a &Cene. he Illade careful. neal draw· ings that sho",-ed aU lhe actions, expre.;sions, and details of timing . This done. he nipP"d the drawings , and when he found an aClion lhal seemed .... eak he reached in and crodely made a big. bold correclion on four or fi' ·e d",wings, as he held Ihe whole OOlch in hi~ hands. It looked as if two people had animaled lhe &cene, one a Dr. Jekyll and Ihe olher a Mr. Hyde. bUI il kepllhe ~ne strong and alive with inf.llable staging, dear action. and strong accenlS. Ham "'·IS always probing around: Ihal wa, the key feeling in lhose days _lhc animators .... ere al .... ays trying to come up with a new way of handling an actioo . fbm kept experimenl ing. trying 10 lind a diffe~nl walk: so he kepl varying tlK: timing and relationships until he finally wem so far Ihal he no longer had a wal k. He had shifted the ~Iative timing of the am"to the legs to the body until it waS now a peculiart",i,ti"g mo"emem . [f he saw an unusual Iype of animalion or viMla! cffcctlhat some Olher studio was using. he would get I kind of pUl1.led. annoyed look and >;ay •. . • woOOer why we aren·t doing lhal. We should be able to figure OUI how to do il. maybe even bene .. " And he would Ihink aboul 111ill he had a beller way . A.... the things Ham thoughl about- how be could do something new, gO further and make it IllQre entertaining. give;1 more personality- theM: were all things he was beginning to understand in a way that IK: could define them for somebody else . This was one of the greal things .boul Ham . He realized thaI thi, typ" of knowledge mmt be:
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IJIIIu lhe YOU"!; amnlal"," ,,.. lhe ~t~dio would lOt ~ And Ham', ~rI(".'k:n ~ mad~_ \I'lltn .. ~ ... "", I~l k in~ O'~' ~ ~ce "e Of a "ory poinl. "" M H> ... y. "rm Ihinbn~ OUI loud" Wh .1 he !IW>IM ""'. "Dun' l take "hal I'm going 10 sal t()() >f,;',",ly)·c I I 'm nol c\"Cn sur<' my,d r. ·· And ""nlCIi"" , he w,,~ ld "'y . . Tm ~ "'~ ....·"h)·.wa~h) on purf"lS<." .. hoeh ,,'~' a l'" \u 1.:1 )"0<1 ~,~)\' Ihal h<' wallk...J 10 ' «li the 'h""~hl ali ,c. and 10 c'""1)1hinj! hcf..< "",ion, II dovo n. A. In ~n'malr,... llam prohabl) ""'WI ~ h,_, _" ghb >Cl OIl he,,,, a d,rn'OT or ~ ,ut'<"""'g a",,,,.",,-. In IY.lI. lot '"'' "nl) begonmng I" rea,'h h" peal poton lial in "",malo,"'- He hdd )", 1 "nim;' I~d ,h~ eha"":I "' of Jtnnl W,,·" ill \\'/", Kilhl (',,It,l1,n, ur ",-c'tht. I"" charoclcr"uc ""3y ~"" rnllnlhtt t~n ~nol talh-.J "ul " r, he of her nl(\\llh I'" $lk'c....Jrd m 1"l1in~ ~., cdlenl diaIOil'''' >l"". bu. ;" I more lublle way than ~\"e' d,mo: Ixfcm_ And ,h:., ;, _ of 1100: ,hiogs Ihat maW.' he r Come off SCd _ ",..a.",. "zed up the OptlO:>iU' lfI , aoo "' ''-~ ,n <"0111fiItIt e"nll<~ . The maleri31 Ilam had In ,,
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and I. 1lIcir lhoughl process mU~1 be quicker than QUI'$. thoir uninlCfCSling progressions from one si ru· lion to lnochor mU$t be ~kipp:d . " In those fcw senICfIUS Ham had summed up much tlult iJ in,portant about picture-making: the Cntertainment , the time demelll . the acling. and the elimination 01 un""""","ary action . Similar principles ha~e long been known in the freld 01 ' il(11lture. for II.S one di"inguishcd prOfessor has said. "Great fICtion is art and in~ention , not dupli _ Cited rulily . Most lifetimes do not POSSoCs~ the crises you find in novels"" h that not what dOll"a is any_ way. life with the dull spols Cut OUt? Wall probably wondered man y limes. i$ this the right time to sun SIIOW Wltite? Have we got tho man , power and. most o r a ll. :m they capllble of doin&; the job1 Who should be tho fim animalor to lead o ff on tho picturc1lbe aru;-""(c1 to those qtIC$tions came in a casting memo put OUI in laIC 1935: " From 00Y0' on
Ham wkr is definitely anigncd to SIlO'" Wltirr!" U....",y a casling memo is just . routine ~ of infOl'_ mation , but this one fai rly tingled with e xcitement IS W alt announced the fim man to be cast on this dari", new proj«1 . This iihows the imponantt that Wah at tached 10 casling and ea;pcc ially his great dependellCC on Ham al !hi! time . " Ham Luske moved up quile fast," recalls Wilfred Jackson . " He w.. one of the firsl guys I re .... mber who had nlOre t/uln JUSt an assistant_ prOmising young guys ho would hand o ut lillic IOUnes to. One of tile first guys .... ho bad a c rew to supe .... ise . Then On Snow Wltirr he took complete chargo-ltic girls. . tho ani_ mals. If you lIIIm: dirttling the se
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OI'kft .... II<'ft llam ~1IIl Fml MOOfC "'ould be dis· 1ur11n11IlIouI tl"oce. full of cnthUSIasm. hoping 10 sell lIinIlhrir ide. of ho .... 10 corrttt it . But .someho.... Wall oouldll .... y. scmc if it "" as WffiClhing he did not .... lnt 10 hw ..,."" 31 Ihal Ii,"", AIIIl be.ides. he: did 001 warn .n)'one in III<' position of telling him . o • .-;e ll ing him. Of conf."",,ng him . Wall had", @rcal curiosily. but he pl'd(l'f~ 10 find thing, out in hi.' o ""n ",·ay. til<' quc51ioo. he "" anted an5WCI$ II): arrJ his opnIi", ~m'lflt) .... e..., usu~lIy duigMlJ to pUI you I)fI .., dd...... I~c Of! 001: occ;o"ion. before Ham arrJ Fr.:d cwkI JCI.' 00'00:1 OUI. Walt ,>,,-id ... ~. Ihm. 1 dodn ' t
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lie to """'k ."' whi<.-h gOl thc:m and off Ihc: .ubj""" They had a nice chat. and he~nll""'m on thcir way, When Ihcy gut ha lfway dooon til<' 11;.11. they Slopped aM I""kc\l al each tllhe.: Fftd >aid. '" Iky. ",ait a rninulc~ 1)0 ),ou r.:ali l.( wc didn'llI'l a ,,'ord in'!"' Ibm si~ and said. " Yuh. he: did it again "' ~ "'JS of",n d,fr",ulllO koo'" prccisely " 'hal Wah loa" ;. • pocu of business. and .ft... eac h ITICcting dim wouW be wme di&agrecmCnl OVtl' ,,'hat he h.ad Aid.:on:I c,'on more confusion o" cr " 'hat he: had mtant. Durin, thom SIOQIO' IV/tjle \lays. Ham was u.ually the IIISI at kntw"n! jUM ,,'hat Wah wamed . As O~ man p;ot~. "Somoonc: ,,'oold say Ihal Wall ui\l M want S il liM '-;l. Ibm " 'oold ....y. ·No. lhat' S not what hc: _ . Tho. l< ....11;01 he mean< ... But no one hil il
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riP .. tho Un", wilh Walt . and Han,' S fint Iry ~t the: a~ Wait and n100M of klk.., .. , ,,'e.e cOfICemed . llam had an Inl ....csting idea. iIol>'C"CI , H i~ drawing . ugge,ted an aw~ wa.d. pIJIy teen.gel' ".. ilh a wim;"mc " harm . who could ¥Cf'j .-ell b>w t....,n animateI:utcd 10 go a diffcr.:nt way b)' this lillie .
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• !bon's F"I "'.." lurMd oo-..·n. If a ~tory $ktl<:h man lid IIII'k the dr:l" m! it " 'OOIld not ha,'C attr:oc1Cd I i -acrit",,,m. bolt when an an;m~I()f lUg~tS a " 'ay 1(1 *t.... the ch.u-a.Mcr , c"cryonc figu.~ thai IS lhe " 'ay it is loin, 10 1),;. Siocc he: i. the uoe 10 pul {he char", · 111'011 lho: >c.een. til<" animalor r,nds him~lr in a "cry .... omble p<"ilioo. and oflcn he "'inds up ,,"ilh a WOUIIIIod elors a.e dl'll"'ings. We cannot
" '00 on lhe in~pindion of lhe: """"lent as an ao;1Or \1""5. bul mu . 1 prc~nl our Char.>Ctcri7.alions through a combil\;u~", of an. ltChniquc. and mcch;onic. {h;ot takes months fMIIl lhe concepliun to the finishW I"oouct. And ,,"'c h ~"c to make the au\lic~ rorget that the~ arc \I...... ing • . We Cannot ri.k ruininl a SC
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duling wil h drawi ngs inSlead o f ~al being~ . The .uc· ccss of Whil~ wai d ue: 10 lhc publ ic accept ing (IU' ChvaclCr$ as living beings. and llw: Ixt of 5UCCC~~ of the PrillC'C and llw: Huntsman las clw"~Iersl "'as ~ 10 lheir unprofcSliional ~~ult ." ~hfgie Sd l, who did the Ii"e action of the girl in S"",,' Whil~, Idls of a funny incident during the shOUt· ing , So Ih . t Ihe g irl's head size would ha\'c bellCf car1 "on proponions and relale more 10 the . athe. la.ge· headed dwarfs, SOmeone sugge sted, " Why don ' t wc pul a fo<)[""1I Iw:lmel on Margie 10 make Iw:r head biglet'l Th:1l oughta 00 it . ,. That did it all righl . Margie, who 12tc. achieved fame on TV as M arge Champion , said thin " 'ithin minutes. under those hoi ligm s. $he was re.spiring rr..... than a 260-pound tackk . She added. " We lave that up in a hurry!" Ham made an enormous contribution 10 Snow Whilc by ~ way he directed M argie fOf the Ii,'c x lton . Ham', chokes in handling lhe gi.L lupin, he. inno. cent. feminine . appealing. and .ince~. ,,·e. e lhe ~al
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keys 10 her acceplance by lhe audience , Th is Canno! be done arbilrarily. The live action mu s! be s!udied m:I undc .... ood Of , wilh a chaf3O;lCr like lhe girl , it could bc<:omc comical . A I llw: lin~. il was juS! lhougl\l of IS a Iw:lp 10 gclthe picl u~ (lUI. Of a cf\llch fOf animal"" who could no! dra .... 100 well. or I way of keeping!he elwaclcr ronsisrent even Iho\Igh :ie,'enol animalQr$ \OUt handl ing. her . Bllt looking back <)11 il now. " 'i1ho.t Ham's control and imagin;otion. tasre and inventi~, Soow While " 'o,dd no! hav( h"" lhe conviclion and appeal lhal reall y sold the c haraclcr. Wall fell lhat Ham had Ilccn ~ uoxess ful in slunng the fellow, in th~ Ti ghl direttion on Sno'" Whit... and for llw: n\OSt pa" he h"" achic\'l:d IIw: ~suhs wanted: SO Walt rewarded him with lhe very difficlill la.oJ: of shooIing li,'~ xlion for lhe BI~ F~iry in Pi_'flll" . In I tal k given by Ham 1<> a group of animators m:I direclors. it bc<:a"", obviou, thai Iw: was npecially valuablc ,.. a con,n,uniUlions ~id hclwttn llw:l'C {WO groups: LeI' s say the character of the Slue Fairy now tI pene<:tly c""""ived and perf~ll y ,:0.>1. 'Illen I ~'"t 10 go over to the """nd stage and shoo! livc actioa on her that will appear na .... less and life· like as ani· malion later on: afllJ 10 do thai . I have to in"m! m,l" enlCnts agai~nough movements 10 be ablo to be inbelweened . And IIw: only movemcnt< "'c can find for Iw:r 10 do ar"t 10 have Iw:r lean f"""'ard and b.Kk . So con:ie'l~ntly. in cvery scene. we IOId MlU"gie Ikilio lean ("""lnI fow one ph""'" and bact fOf the nUl. unt il it "" funny . We did cono...,i"C s.e,..,ral walh and one ~ne o f her bending confi· dentially inlO a cl~up with IIw: Crickel- and thai will be OUr be .. scene of her . . . . You !Ihould rel111w: actor wh~1 1000, no! how 10 do it . J think the trouble with mO~ 1 of our li ve ac!ion has been in not giving lhe actor enoogh business to do. and then meddling w ilh the way Iw: docs it wben the scene look. "illed. If the movcm",", scems inad · CI: ;ng lilt fire or SC'ralching the head . An uample of in"cm ing busine:s. for ~ char.ortn occulTed in lhe scene: "'Iw:~ Soow Whire (old< "" arms as Grumpy " 'ould. while slw: os ,,'atching him. lr
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WIn ",'e pick our Ii>~ ;tC,ioo lakes, a person !hat !rtIM', aaima~ is '~ry apt {o pick them for flCial 6prtlSlOt"l!' . and 001 for K tioo . And we can' • • fford 10 do lhll .
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a proce-
clift WI rould be ",Titlen in outline form as a guide
lor othm rudo him " too yaluable " to be oonfined to _ board . I" ..." though he did some an;mation on the PI in S/ICIO' Whirr. Ham wa~ reall y a directOi on the pK-llm. Wall felt Ihal Ham' S value lay in the influence lit could 11>.,,, on 11M: younger animators. So , much of ....."mation handout, on the Prince. Snow While, .. IIUM$JJIaII. and the: animals was IUmCd over to HIm. SomdIow Walt always seemed to Io»d Ham up .-idI.-. wOO: than anyone else . Fred and Bill sham! the supervision of the dwarfs, ~lId Fergy took over On lilt wiu:h. Any Olle of these: jobs was a handful , but Ham'l WO\IJd have been inl unnountable for I1"I05t people. KowcVCl, he h.ad • wly of spreading himself ~ .. hik still be ing effecti,·e . Ilul 's arW)'lii. of tIM: beSt approach to desi,ninll a d:w1ClCr that ,"el)"OI1I: rould halKlle i. s till in use klday. Cflliinly the execution is more sophi)li cated . but lilt princlpleli are the ,anle-a, arc the problem s. k II _~ing to see in lIam's 1938 outline (in the "wt.:Iil) OIl his app.....adl to ellar.octe. handl ing how ~ • iIIIJIIic. !<>dop areas of animation thaI needed Stren~tlll:ning . He w~ gtl":M with the you nllcr n~n, and . alo na with md Moon: . WIIS prob;I.bly the beSt "'ac~. ;tIl_Jthe 1IIIioruIon. The suptn';~ing position tllat Ham held 0- 5_' Whitt" ...,." MkaJly SU;ted 10 hi. abilities. lie _ " his pc:ak when he wa~ working do..,ly wilh lhe youn, ",imtiOtS and still had 50"'" lime at the b
"lilt
if thr sit uat ion IkmandW it . For one: thing. he roukl 00( wlente anything that "'"as 001 clear and definitc: . " If you are going to ~w ~thinll. be SUIT )"011 don't do it halfway !" When ~ drew fOi you he would oontinually "'ork his mouth and his brows. and he seemed to be uraing hi~ pencil on and willing it 10 Omethi", ... thought wn really funny . ~ ",_Id laugh so hard his fllCc ",'ould lum red IU1d teat$ would roll do"'n hi~ cheeks. His favorile joke& were punr-the visual kind. and the more farfetched. the bett~r . 01{«" in a meetin, someooe mentiot>«! Bell &. ~Io... ell projectors . In an ;n!;Can! Ham "'";IS on his fttl ringing an ''''''gmlll)" bell and then ju~ a~ quidUy I'amo miminlt a , ikal howl. Aft~1 that he would !;Cart laughing . usually in lillie $hort bursts. Rnd our disapproval only made. him laugh hallkr until finally he ..... ould Ito inlo convul . .ion_ particularly if he Wlil reall y proud of his dfO!1 . When he " 'ould eventually regain control. he "'ouid look Nd and fonh among us with this half·bun upR$' ~ion and wonder why we could 001 iCC the humor in his joke . Actually he had such an infectious laugh that it was harolo resist getting inlO IIII' ~pirit of hi ~ gagl . It is doubtful thai Ham or anyone else could hive realizcI"d theM: advancemenU. TIle direction for the funher develop· ment of.nimalion had been SCt. alKl much c~dit coo ld go 10 Ham . ..... hQsc ability to Bn.>J YI.e. organi« , lind plan had helped open the way . Ham was a top dir«1Or on both P;If("-rlfio and Fd~ ' lus;l>. a position that he e njoyed. '«Iing;t ga,"C him the Iype of conlrol he n«ded 10 be mn"t effeclive . Dut as lime pan ed his interest. dll'w him funher Iway from animalion. and iIJi lhe MW group of M1ptrvilins animatorS added their contributions to the rapidly de~l. oping craft flam h.ad Ie» and It» innuo:nccc Oft the an. fOOT! he had done iO much to advance. lie ~inucd 10 direcl memorable ...qucnccc •. notably the cartooo _ _ tion of M a...,· PoppilfS. but. in<:reasingly, more of hi s time was Spenl o n live ·action problem~ for the weekly TV sOOws. until his lIcath in 1961l.
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Speed Lines, Staggers, and Vibration s .hQrI film' .if'he ~I! . n~
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Appeal and Dynamics FRED MDORE AN D BILL TYTLA
"W. ~.m 10 too... "'h,,, 10 "'01' tit, htoTl. ' O,h". ha,~ hit 'ht imrliter. 11'. r.." /rillh,,,, h' '''' """,rional"Yl}'. 1'IIou IO'/w uPINal tt) lit, im,lIrel only "ppr.d to a lorry Umiud group . Tit, "0/ rM"g ~hind ,his is : (IT, in lit. lIII)fi(Jft picrwr, tn..inus, onl)' ..... ar, ur"K'ing Ih~m ;"SI.M of pholOgruphinlf. rhm':' Walt Di~llty
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Fred frtd Moon: never did It I 10 be a bilIUY, and wben be " ' youn, be ,,'as mIlCh smaller than his broIbers . l1q ..wid all pl~y buebaU IOgelhtr. and. OfCOUr5c. !bey always made FrW play in I~ oulfidd and nevtr ga •.( him a chaoce at bat. Finally. his mOlller made the bt"uthm leI the linle guy bal . BUI the firsl ball wtnl ovn hIS head. and t~ KCOnd one came along the JI'lIIIId: tach time they " 'ould yell. "Strike!" The third pil~h was Ihrown behirKI him . " Slri ke Iltr«. you'", OUt!" F1l'd wou ld ge l so n,ad he could eat din .
BRAVE LITTLE TAiLOR - R:M 14 -
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However. his brolhers did 001 know whal Illey were missing. bee.uS
back 10 back "'im him so ''''Y could measun . wilen Fred "'Of'<' his lhkkc~t shoe •• he was ~lill looking up II the OIlier feUows. E~n
He ruUy wa~ a funny liuk iUY, bue IC..... ~~ noc Iliac "" " "as If)"ing co be fUMY . h " 'as jU!1 Ihac his propor· lions ..~ ' Ule. lib, his d.a,,·inp. MId il kind o f licUed )"00 10 " 'IIl"h him moye:.round ,m'''linl ~ like FmI ASlaire orChaplin. or trying _ raney jll"linl acl. Eyen if che stuff dropped on the Ooor. Fred .... ""Id al ..... a)"~ end up in I good pose-junlike hi, dra,,·ings. He could IIOl Secm 10 do an}·chinl,,,·kw.rd . The chinl ch.1 firmly csl~blishtd him a~ che Ir>p alhlele ~ moni the arlislS " 'a!i ilK: way 1M: cou ld Ihrow pllSbpin.••nd make lhem Slkk in lhe ....ooame lAd make all "iel:. This " 'as an ;no;mJ ible d"pia)' o f lim;nl! and nalural ahi,ily. beelU,"" the a,·er.se feU" .... '~nnoc eyen bo: ~urc of sli, ~ i ng 1 "" loud Ihal il carried up"lain ..... here Wah could hur ;1. and he could no! "JUre oul " 'hai .... as going on . Gradually 1M com~li· lion la~red off becalU" Fred had ma~lercd "'''ry ...3)" M could chink of 10 Ihrow lhem : MI he 10SI in le re.<1 except fn. an O«"asional h ISS behind his bac~ '" O\·c. hi s shou ld.r . An(lIhcr Ihing about F.cd--}·ou ...."OUld ha"c 10 ~all il a ~r :l.xk· " 'WIO re .... ind i1. H: probabl y .cl)"fd a.... ake half .he nighl Ihinking how funny il ..... ould bf '0 run Ihe :I<)(lnd backward fur us in the mornin g. TIle ne~1 day he .... as lbere ahead of any of u• . ... il'lIl OUI ,n tIM: hall and about to burst " ';Ih ~nlicipa· lion . lie pulled us inlO the room "here Ice ha.I the: ~Io"ioll all ""V1TICd up and ",.iu"l " Wail lill )"ou guy. he .... lhi~!·· He stepped on 1M pe:<.b.1 Ind imn",di · alely Ihcsc e rv.y sounds ... ncd ,~,mi,,~ 001: " Yah. yah . yah. osker baby. (FQfWanl Ih is is . " He nevcr lried. hah . lIah, hall .") Then. " msnik de middem. " .. hic h Is. '"1" m agin' . em ..• The lau~hler Ihal Fred had penl up fromlhe pre"iOllS c"ening (lme OlIllikc. dam ~aking. and " 'e III doubled up laughing " ',Ih him.
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as funny:' hi " 1 kne'" )'011 IU)'s "'OlIld chink And lhe ",eird ~n~u:lge contin""d 10 1"""" of !he ~"u"'er. Fred ....... onl)· eighteen atlhe lime he ....... hirtd. 1IoI art lraining had been limil'''' '" a few ni~h. d~s>cs. 101 in e~c hange for janilorial " 'nrk al Chouinard', M ~ In §liIUl( . He ",as given a ~" rlCAI 10 Jack CUlli",: ....·h" wa. nne of Ihe )'oonger ;'ni"'~lor... Jack
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i"p . I c<)uldn 'l belie .... il . lhe end of ~ c~"' l he "'as slan ing to animale :something. " "e,)1bUc came ca.)· 10 him." ·· Yes. Fred "'a~ j usl ffghl for the Ii....·," W.4 Kimball sa)'•. "He was Ihe one In e",ape fro. lhe m., ld "f the nJbbcr h,,,..,. ,,
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. .. be n""" nr less cn",r!cd Ihal NoI:><)('! y '"""~ 10 rctll<.·mber any dc,·d upn",n!. n. rnl of us came inlO Ih i~ I'l:u:e- it ....·as a strang! placc--"'c adapted 10 il. and .. e k(pllryin~ I" imp<tudent of anin1<>lioot. IIr ...'" JUS! a !IlIlural. J!ifl~"" ani m:llor . .. ht.>sc "iIl'k MIl dc ,d"l'mc:m " 'as perfecl. IIming· ...i ... for lhai pooa in Ii"", ,' " E""n lhe old· hand 1\1 "'k~y nrcn. su" h as I.e, C"laIt wcre "'l1a1.ed a. whal F",d e,,,,ld dn. ··1' ......1 ..... a~ I natural . li e had a nalu,...~1 now 10 his w'''~ . Ile"ooklD'l m~kc a h:tt io llObk ...·helhe' """" fonnal an train,n, " '0II1d ... ,.... a.j,-ancal him . Ik JUS! " 'as not as ",icnlw 10 ... assmo. ...... "'" lc<1urc.' ~, >OlIte or the "",n ..."re. Ik wuuld '""y. .. Don G.aham can giye )""u 11'1<: ru le ; I j ll" !oay .1 looks b,w er ...
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Thi ~ is Plnbabl}' Ihe I)igg(>1 Ihing Fred had ioin~ for him : he h:t r.."II. .. F",ddic dJII"'ing" lhal did 001 hl\'c e Ye ' ything in 1!If
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juSt did ii ," Fred eould communicate his ilkas Ihn.lup drawings bene. than anyone around. and that i. one of the nu,n rcawns Watt made him a supcrvisoron S_ Wiliit . II was not that Fm:l1Iad any special leadership qualities; il was because he: had such gn:at dwm and
appeal in his drawings . When
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right place . l1le arms were always retaIN to lhe restof the dnwing. and e~en if he put !hem where they would nOl ~ lIQI'Tnalty . they still looked right. The head ~med 10 ha~ the righl lilt for t~ shouldeR. and w,,",n he su=hed _thing O~l he could make thai 1001:: ~. too. If Fred drew il. it was pleasing 10 look '1. and it was this pleasing quality that earried his work II\Cn than the acting. FfW could not uprns hi~1f in words ~IY wdl. but hi: had • feelina for ",hal I drawing ought 10 be. As Larry Clemmon s says . " He WI, such. hdp to
other guys. Guys would come in his room and say, ' FfW . how would you do lIIis?' Fred would say. 'Well bm:!,-and he 'd ~w thc~ didn', in;lUfI:, he
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rom.:! hing well. Walt wanted everyone to benefit from it. Walt kept prodding Fred to make drJ,winp fOl lilt upe~nco:Ilnilmlors as wen as tIM: youn, ones. 10 Ihat .n tIM: dwarfs would look like hi s. This wu. very difficu lt assignmenl for Fml . He would say. "~.I ~an'l go inlo some guy's room and say 1(1 me sitdowl and make I dying • much as looking . Ariel' that 1M: would spend a mism. ble six weeks or so trying 10 incorponlle what he Iud learned . He would have no end of trouble mastc:ri" 11M: new ideas thai 1M: was trying 10 gel inlo his o.ul. Sometimes il was hard 10 \ell, during this period, ...'bIt Fred was talking about or whal 1M: was trying to lIIXOfI\o plish . But finally 1M: would come out on lop and ha .... another period of. couple of months in which be mi· Iy was happy again . AI limes Fred felt Ihal B different pendl would givt him a new s lant on things . WlM:n be could not dr.tw what 1M: wanted. 1M: was inclined 1O.\.U5peCI the pape!'. the color o f the lead . or 11M: weight of 11M: pencil. " I
don't know what's wrong with this p.;ncil: it ju~t
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all. His line Wls beauliful; it aimosl had a quality of $ba.lin,. When he nalunlUy made the line thicker at ~ bonom of the dwarfs' juwb. it gave them an UU"ll ktlill, of ..-ei~ and dimension. Will IIIU very . ..-an of the , harm and plus;ng quality of Fred's drawinl! and usually brou,lu the impo!\lllt vi.ilors inlo his room. Fn:d found Ihat lhe visilm wen: pani<:ululy enlraneed wilh seeing IWO do:Iwiq:1 llu.1 could be flipped to show a dlange of upmsion. goin, from a frown to. "lIke : ' CIIIWft 01 ~ eyes that showed tho: brows and the ria: lIIO\'in&. ~ shapes Inimating . Fn:d rommenled om and over •. 'llIey love !O s.ee tt..: d",wings move IIId the characters think! Remember Ihal! Ifs what IIq like to!iU in our scenes. II's what they liked wilh Fern's l'Iuto. you mow. We should always let them 101 tbc dwaclm think r' . . . dIIring this pIwoe thai the animators diSOO\"ffW ~ INt imponaoce of !iUing the characters think by a of Clpl-eSl;ion . llIey were concerned wilh the principles of ""ting when lhey stumbled upon th at idea .
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11 was just lhe heSI use of Ihe medium in showina audiences what. you wanted them to "'"" . o.o:r the )'ean " 'e ha"e upcrimenlCd ronIinually. uying 10 I11#e the most Utreme statement oflhe change between tWO e1prnsions on the dnlwin,l . Ward Kimball_mcd 10 go further in this exer<:i~ th~n anyone else. but Fred 's drawing. moved just,.. well. Fred did no! Ihink in lerms of eure,"" movenW:nI hi''''idf. Out he was ~T}' impre !.SCd when he wo,dd Ii« it in _ elK', dnwin&,. AIbef1 Horter did I dnw ing of Sleepy with his mouth "',d~ opt"n in a y.wn . and once Fm:I had Sttn something like that he <:I)U.ld inrorpontte ;1 illlo his Own drawings. making il look even beuer with hil natural !;fnlt of appeal. The tTlOfe F~d worked with Mi'kty. the more he suuggled w' th over<:oming the ~itrictionsofa charlo:· Ief whose t in:ular head and body the lJIimawl"S had traced rrom qUll1trS or hair doll ars . He kept puul in.g about why he was not able 10 make the drawings wt would give him Ihe aclin8 he ",·anted. "Suppose [ WlJlI Mickey 10 be cocky. well then I have to make
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him chesly- and Ihat means arching his back. To do that I have 10 push some of the mass of the lower body up into the chest, and I Can'l do it with thai rigid body." As Les Clark also observw. "Us ing dimes and quaners for Mickey's head was li ke moving a cut-()\lt across the scn:en. We found out that if we pulled somelhing oul and then brought it back to its normal volume. why it would look good.""The anima· lOr.; realized that they would have to be able to shift that mass around. 10 drop it. raise it. squash it and slretch it for whalever the attitude needed. "The natural evolution for Fred waS 10 a pear-shaped body. replacing the hard circle. Now he wu ld get the flow and rhyth m aoo flexibility. With thoese new shape n:lationships. he began to get a very appeali ng Mickey with stronger aUiludes. beneT acting. and more personality. Mickey could be anything ""w~ with slopi ng shou lders. chesty. or angry with shoulders up. "The head and body wuld stn:tch oul. and the ear$, 100. for a take or an accent in dialogue. Now the animators cou ld forget aboul coming \0 work wilh all Ihat loose change for the diffen: nl- sized Mickeys Bob McCn:a, who was an assistant at the time. n:members that when Fred made SOme of his changes in Mickey 's appearance he Wali nervous about showing lhe n:suhs 10 Wah. Fred cou ld not bring himselflo tell Walt before sweatbox whal he had done, so he Wali
perspiring ali he waited 10 see if Walt would notice. W"'n the SCene came on thoe screen, Walt called \0 stop the projector! "Then he had thoe see ... run back and fonh several limes while fred sal there and died. NOlI word Wali exchanged; then Wall lurned 10 fred. one eyebrow down , and said. " Now thafs the way I want Mickey \0 be drawn from now on!" "The squash and stretch of the walks that Freddie animated had man: life, fell beller. looked bclte •• lIkl probably seemed more real jusl because of his ability to change lhe shapes. He had such a simple. clear wty of showing the straight leg, the bent leg, thoe soo...eoff. and the high!; and lows of the wal k. He did not expo.imenl with a wal k in the same way Ham did. varying the timing and the relal ionships to gel sometbing unique , because Freddie's was all feeling. He alwaY' thoughl in lermS of a nice. plealiing drawing. He camt up with new things. but they were based on whlil looked right to him rather than an analysis. He hlld I way of hooking hi~ fonns toget ... r that gave a nit. solid look . No one drew the Ihree little pigs the .... , Fred did. nor had the freedom that he felt with Mickey. Mickey Wali not a design based on logic. there v.m 100 many cheats.. BUI that kind of problem did 001 inhibil Fred because he only would pick a view tbaI looked plealiing 10 him. If a drawing looks clumsy. or lacks appeal, Of 00
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",odel, perha~ the animll(" is IIw Miould noI be .,hc,own. givi,,! a ...11< on drawing Mickey . he ~. "How you draw him lookin, ri&hl down 'f hi, head'! " fred . esponolcd . " Why ww ld "('pta! in the dc.ign of the ClwllcleT "'"s II:M. bIlaroce uf the can. 10 the fIO§C: . Ihe I ' of the cheek. to the C )"Q .n
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1ft.inB the fi nger; it just did n()I seem imporgh to do right away . So every week in sweat·
in ~""'tion. and 1"'-'" MS the projc<.: lioniM ~n ag);" 10 the 00, 1 ,;cene Wa ll wou ld lum to '~).' rh.1'5 '1, Fred, lhe: finger 1I 1Ql> b ig .. ~ "Ht sccne WI, nne thaI Fred wa~ very proud rl,od Wah 10".,.,.00\ wh,le it wa. running by ioIld b. tooling al Fred and OOId ing his Qwn l ~ !oII}m" Yes , lI!at' ~ II: tile lin,er i> 100 he would '"m IlfOIInd and look ~l lho: J-..t 10_11>0: nexi ~ne In o rder Indo this
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w llIctlli,,!;.: 1 ...... !;Ilt~ make a ~;sn a"d Slid it" 'n {",," of me on thedC".>.k so I 'hl>t onidc a~ ain . aUI ,he, e an: "bool a doM~ n Ihin~, I "" ..:va s hould (orgel. Instead uf ~ s i~n. they oo#lt 1<.1 be "". " heel : and ncry <1<1)' "",,,",n }OU ,.""", in. }"" j1.I>! ~i\r Ihal III" wh~e1 a lum and that wa)' it ,," ... ,Id k«9 rem'niling )~ .. ,~ .. So he st:utC"
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Fll.!il>"S ,,, POINTS 01: AN IMAnON I.
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lhe projection i" " 'ou ld ha"c to run !)xk ~g ...;n for a fres h ~t;u1 and he would overlap into 11M: -CcllC ""i(1t the bill-linger again. l"hcn they "" ould ~ off on anoIh<·r round o f "( hc finge r is 100 bi~ ." Frcd WNlld crin~c and wunder why he did II()I j u ~t ~ il do"," and 'OITcd that dUlnb finger. Week after wcek the s""calbox notc "'oold be: lite this 0 "" from O:l
Scene 26. O .K. for c leanup with ch.an~~): Make [)opo.y . Happy and Snn-' y smallel . Gronlpy'S arm and fmger gct quite lar~e " 'hen 1M: says. "SHE'S AN O l.D WITC'II ". TIM: ~cti"" b okay. juSt Cll( down on tht .• iu of the flllt:.c r and Ihe lenglh of Ill<: arm. TIle Ilvu ,h~r.acte~ in the rij:hl f.g . ,'ollld hc sil· houo:!lcd ~ litHe b it .
II is WfIlCtnncs hard on the ello to lakc all ihe criti· cism thai goes ""ilh s"'·n,b<,.i"~ . bur F,etl mu,t ha'"" ",aliud thai h~ WM one of thl: fe "" thai W~lt Wi<> usmg 10 set ~ Manda.d of excellence fur hi s nrsl featurc. E"crylime Fred got "ac~ a Ic, l with " t,n,lal e un it or an Ktion Ihal did noI pk",<,f hinl. i, wool.1 hc bee"u"" he had foreonen wmething basi<:, som.:thing he h...! a<.:lually kllO""n for )""M$. lit would lool; dis~u .. ed and ~y. " H«k. everybody kno",'~ rhat. I I-hout.ln·t m;l)(c. mii l.l&ke like thaI. h 's ju~t bc<:au,,", ytJU a]",'''YS
". 5. 6. 7. Ii. \I .
10. II. 12.
13. 14.
Most im~"''';ng way'! IW""ld anyone ,~hcr Ih~Ul )'"u r mother lil~ al It( it?1 b;t the m"~t CnlCTIainin~ way? Af'e )'00 in chara<"t~ "'",,)" ...... adYa ....·in~ lhe ch;ll'a<'I~ Is thi. r"" $implc._1 Slaten",nl .)( the maIn idt:I of Ihe IKflll:? I ~ the >II><)' point dcar"? Arc lhe !\CCQndar)' ,...·ti""' working with tbe !Nit a<.1itm ·! Is .he prc""'Malion he:oe>; il h3~f 3 dimensional wlidity'! Don;t h~,·c " dimcnsion;>l df~"" in,"! Io.~, ~"d (,,110..' Ihroo Khl Arc Y"" Ir),ing I" ,10 SOffiClhing Ihat should,,'1 be.
,mt"lf"'-.[ ·' ILike Iry ing 10 ~ho... Ille lop of "1k~~y 's lleooJl
'n.., rela., .. .1. ul"""'f'IIiSlil."atcd nll,"n". th.aI lnotr hi, d"''''lI1p !\t, grc;K al..., nt.adc" il difforuh r" I'.....t to :tdjuSl 10 Walt·s 'OOSI~nl p«""-"''''' for ...". thinp . On.: ..... y Fml nn", hock from a 1II<"tI~ allll a;~ed . "Why dove; Wall alway, Iry 1() ~, .. to Ju Ihi"i(S "'''' " "n', do '! Why (\;""n' l he ju,1 let u~ d., the Ihinp ..·c .."n d,, ?·· In lhe publ",' , ",;nd lhe", h.,·e bc~n "" ,,~ ... Ill<:nlOl"ahk d>arKt",. tJun Ilk' dwark and lIo......,· in p;orticular. Dopc~. s«med tV r<'fk-cl .... (on_ .;0 mu.:h uf Ff~""ut with ju>'l COIlUp,
"fI'(WldJi"'m, Tho.., '""a, !IOthin, h;d~n or m)·stc· riou5 aOOul f m:!. H i~ pe1WfIa1it y ",-as on the OIIt_ low t'~\IIlC 10!;« ....'hat he: lact ed in sophisIiaIion tit ~ up in cllarm . Ht had honu ly. _grity. and ,..." al,,'ays ,..ill;n~ to help the youn S .,i","fro. As Dick Huem( . said. "He was the: 1'II'rtlCIIIU)' )"1'\1 woold want II) know . " "My God ." M.,-" Dav is ~~ys . "F,-"d M"nfe """ Disaq ""',.,;ng ! W( ' ,,( ~ II done thinp on our O'II'~. bul 1M w:os the I);,.i. " f "hat Dhney wood 1(11'. II " '-a> <..,rt~inly the opr ingbo.a.1 IeIl ye~rs of hI> life Fre
~...
fru>lr:lI ion.,
He had
bUl>l
nthe ,.,. ..-hole tl icnt, flowered nrly. Ilc found that he 0IIt0 lhe s.:erlC in full bloom a .... li ke some
h<>d achic"ed all his gnal . in a .ciati,'ely short timt . He "'a~ quoted as sariiii-•.. • h;lse ..,ached e' 'Cf)'lhillg • wanl_ and ' -m (,,'(nty-roor. Now ,,"'hat do • do'!" He could nnt h" 'e .eali~cd 11131 the ,'ery Ihing Ihal made him greal wao now the thing thai held him back ; thi s childlike qualit y tbat pre~enteOld is (he f"'l 11t;o! they were IlOl secondal)' men : they both Iud hecn lop 111m, and I' m sure it "';t.~ ~ c rushillg blo .... tu r""' ir pride _- On November 23 . 1 9~ 2 , Fred Moo•• died a. a resuit of al\ auto accident at Ilk' age of fon)'-{wO,
""'y
,
/
,, "
polite 10 inlerropl: so while he was wailing for his he would uncon§ciously Slarl maki", fUMY linle half-whimpe:rilli, hummilli noises. IS if he _re luning up 10 be ready ...·hen his oppor. lunily CIIIX. a kind of an1icipa1ory sound. 8ill lo~ed and believed in 1he chan<:ters he ,"'IS crea1ing. bOIl he was concerned aboul whelher he would animale lhem U ~11 ~s he should, fU rIttd 001 have worried. for he had 11M: s.cnsili.ily ~ning
I
Bill Bill Trlla was (he last of the fou r supervising animators on S""", Whi/t to come to Disney's. Part of the great strength of these men was their dissimilarity . and many would $lily WI Tytb. was the lea$! similar of the fou •. Dick Hucmer said , "Bill Tylla was the broodin, type . He was the grealeSt ." Physically Bill was very uriking with his 5wanh)' complc~iQn and bn'.Iad shouldcn. He "ad a big mop of coal black h.ir, heavy black brows, and very piercing dark eyes. \JUI more than (hal it was what was under the surf""" thai IIIOI
,/
I
., IllldersLand his characlers' motivalion in tenns III a1ing, and !he abilily 10 interprel !hal inlo . . . . and staging. He could ~y !he darkesl CYiI and !he mosl frighlening lerror. His powerful . .wilIg of !he devil in Ihe " Bald Mounlain " ""......... of FanU1SitJ was the mosl awesome pitQ: III uimation ever 10 reach !he screen. and hi s SIromboli was probably the moSI lerrifying and WIly evil persooality of all lhe Disney villains. [I
is !rue thaI the basis for these characters is fOl/Ild in the story. bul to capture SlrOmboli's mercurial moods. his lighUling c hanges, and 10 show !he emotions !bal came from !he inner f"",rings of his characters was one of Tytla's greatest achievements . His conunenlS in Snow Whi'~ Slory meetings. wbere personality was di scussed . all show !hal he was looking for !hal inner feeling and mood to
I /
( \
Nil"'.."., Bill Tyfu.Nigh! on BIId M....ntai PI>"'trf~1
aClio",
s,
d"J ."·. g, aM d.""" S"'li., Miped '0 rrtiJj c/w'OCIe'
""y~. tWo
',mpltd pttvi(lw.s!y ;" ,
""'fI''''', "'"
i, ...... Jlot fi i"g of
s"." •.
help him determine Ilow Ihe chanc~r wookl ~ac;t , Amid constant suggestions by OIhers that the~ ~Id be • $peei.1 anirudc in Ihe drawing on each dwarf. Bill !!ubbomly came block to Ihe ....,., II'gIIIllCnt: the way 10 get a diffCTt'llCC ;n the appearmce and Iltitude is by knowing the mood and the p«JOnality . In a meeting on November 17, 1936, director ~nd storyman Perce Pearce pickro Bill's brains on this subject:
Pcr<:e: let'S take Doc. get him from scratch. an;! uy, noOOdy knm.-s him . f int hi$ most obvio. feature is his pompous Iltitude . lie show$ this p0mpous altitude with his che!! . For instantt, Ilow do you $e>e him. Bill. when he is pompous? Hi s pose is a reaction to something. It is ooly I ~action of what he i. going to do. otherwise y"" are juSt making a drawing . Since ;t is up to Doo; to
Bill:
",'I,WAr""
8i11 T." lla-
Snow White . ThiJ PO>'P""' ~lIil"J, QI! DO<" cam, fwm Ih, WI'","· 10"'< kM ...I.d~r oj ...hallhr chMocur ,,'uslhinklng,
expllin to the group what is going on, ~ son of tmS the leadership whether he is entitled to it or not He immedialcl}' ,;trikes that al1itude He gelS flu\lered. and doe,n't ~now ",hat he says. trics to mike OIIt-><>r1 of ~ French Provincial Mayor' s aUi· hick. Grumpy Ihrow. him off balance Doc recom(l'.IW ~imself and tries to regain lo,t ground. So far we had no oppor1Unity really try to do any· Ihing IS far a' mannori,m Or ge,tures are concerned -ill '" far IS g:stures react in dialogue. There has been IKI opponuoily to us.e any ,cratching or Doc fooling lIUl>nd with his beard. We ha,'e only had dialog"" '" far.
h,,..
10
While Bill"s wOO:
March S. 1937 Walt s",calboxing with Bill T~11a T)'lla Sceoe 8 5eq. 4D Original Make Doc' s "come on" gesture 8 hmader oneno! a point at himself on . 'follow me." The feeling now i, that Doc knows he is going to say HEN instead of MEN. He should say COME ON. HEN "'ith a bro~d gesture. seeming to com · picIC it. ;IOting as if he were saying tfle righl thing.
then do a quick half gesture on the mistake. and follow with a broad gesture On Ihe-MEN . FOLLOW ME, The half gesture is not too defmite. but just a ne'""oos feding Have Doc tum on t~ fOLLOW ME in antici~· tion of "'alking OUL The range of BiWs characters was phenomenal. His ability to get inside the innermost reaches of tlte;! personalities enabled him to develop great scope in his work. He .eemed to understand the problems that his characters faced as well a~ their feelings about what was hapl"'ning to them, Could anyone's thoughts be ponrayed in a betle! way Ihan Grumpy's afler 5now White ki ssed him? The audicnce literally could feel the warmth thaI ,urged through him as he finally released his bottled·up fcelings . BU!, Bill"s mosl poignant scenes were of the lillie elephant in DI/mho. Bill', inspiration for (he of Dumbo b~lhing ~ame while watchinj!. his 0"'0 ron playing in lhe tub, and hi, great pereepti"n enabled him I" adapt to animation the spirit of w!utt he saw in real hfe. Hi, draftsmanship is at its best in this 5<.'<:lion. and I~re is excellent analysis of ",hat to euggerate in the action as the baby s.eampcrs playfully around hi, mOlher. But through all this. the big overriding theme is the elusive quality of love and affection that Bill's animation capture, '0 beautifully. Many of Bill's characters were muscular like himself. and when they came on the SCreen il was like a charge of eloxtricity, He made everything ",ork for him. be~ause he drew >0 well and felt the personality so Mrongly . He wanted his chardctcr.; t" move in a special ",ay. to really live! ~Ic animated the head, body, hand" and dr.. pery all in different colors . [I was nO! until he had each pan working. communicating, and mm'ing properly that tlc would make one oom· pletc drawing in blac k. The eye" the mOOlh. the ges· tures. and the SC<.'Ondary actions ar<: an: all brilliantly ther<: in Stromboli, Thi. charJetcr has been criticized for moving too mu~h. making it hard to follow on lhe ser«n at times, yet no canoon ~haracter has pul over any beller a rich. \'0Iati1e. and complete personality. This character i~ extremely powerful and frightening . Bill felt all these things through his whole body when he animated . alwa)', trying I" !fan,fer his tre·
""I"""""
mendous energy into his characters . T . Heel recalls a day durin, the making o f ""an/asia " 'hik Bill was working on the ~vil in " Bald MO\i~ain '" f-k " 'anlC
" 'as
a"'~
that Bill leaned a liule toward the nw.y So he n,ade Bill hold his pencil ill tht very tip. He IOId Bill that if he k .... w " 'hat he ". trying to draw and rc:ally knew how to d", ... it , lot CO\ild 00 it that way . Too man y ani sts have Icallltll tricky ways of making a drawing look imprc:"i~. even when il i. actually "out uf dr~wing" (i.aceu· rule) . As Bill himself said • .. A whole bunch of nit" can draw the figure. bul one: or lWO of the men n n do something 10 the drawing that g iv~ a hell of a 101 of meaning \0 it . ... here:1S ~r$ in thr ,""'pcan imprtSl you. for the time. wilh n:WIy >luff.. · Later he st\ldioM sculpture in I'ans . .... hich accoullli in pan for thr M1lidily .nd weight and e~cellent rela· tionship of forms in his wl)fk. Because of thh an
$I)'1e of dnt.,,·ing.
",. ....," RIll TIt/,, _ S_ WI",• .
G""""., ..... /, " S'n" ,"'...
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Whll~ kiuM /rut d, h~
h"" /t<~J.f;yt-.
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th~ a~di~"N
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""I'''' §/,,'" "'hole />od,'. __ ~MI!Id. lIill tl>ou~ht of hi s "'tn~s more in tern" than 111",1 animat,n l ie ...·anlnl Ucpth . DOtoaly .. the dr:lwin~ 01" tm: eh;,ol"Kle •• hUI ~hu 111 lhe ""Y it """"~ d"'",gh tt... la)~lUI ; ...... 1m: tOl~IIk"!n " I" !lIo: >C(II< II;od In be riShi. Ken Anderson ~ay' lh~t it •• diff""ult 10 mak~ a layout th>t would pleas..: liill: be: 11"'a~s h:ld ""me adju,lmcnl Ihnl would make Ihe 5«11( more inlc","inS. h~,·c hellC' ~lagin8. and t>c
",,'' '\"'',)I.n ...
_~y~m ...·.
8~I'u,
nne of It... fc",' animat" " ~llho1t lime " .... , 11~,n,n~ . He ...-as [he ani mal~. Ih~t Wall ...·..... Id.s0 M' f~f "10 $e1 up hi, own an seh",,1 unlk. In e~pcrt lil:e Dot! Graham I Kill and Don !r~w to h~.·c greal "".' pc"t for <.Io
_in,
Vl1Im I fiN C3 .... ou1 ""'" aboul t,,·O :md a half )Ql. . . .. 'Ioc~' >I..ned ha"ing xti<'ln an.al ~·sb cla~SC"S
.., 1 kll f
,\ I y "''''' in Nc,,' York neVC' ~tk"W ahoo.t1 a mowi· o!:a- he f"'Oh;obly >lin docsn ', When he ~~" ~ Ictk. from uno.: of ,..., !:>o>'s here "-'Ih ng about 1..... IC:- lhen lhe "hole thing is doni: again. he would,, ' t hclie"e il. My t>o.;s lhoo~ht il ,,'a, runny '" 1H:11-~ hunch of fellow, runtl'ng a.ound in h.111· ".. ,,~· s with pic<:e~ "I' hlad and whilc fil", in their h~nd, lo"k,ng (or mo"i"I:" . H... ""d. " When! h"e a tn.1O to aninlate. I " -an' h.m 1<1 kno ..· 1\o.oYI ••• 1".... tb,njt> doni: Ix-.~ '~''''' . I " 'oold n...,.; .......n""tk,"~l . and I k""",- tbe kll,...'~ bact C~.I ~'~r Ihcm lo( nsa[ional ... htn lbo.·y heM dcsc.ip1IOO' of the I,..~i"'n~ and opportunities "'....., . lim he", al Ihe _ ""U· di" rhose ,hint:. art con""" .... d conmlOnploc;: . Tilt' a,·e.a~~ (cll" ... he1\! dIX,,,'t ... wo reali,,, .. hat i, beinj: .,II<,,'~d on him . lit is bo:,n~ ,'oaxw ~nd en~\lU"'Agcd 10 belle. " -ork . ~nd Ix- pr..mbl)· lhink, it .. a p;lin in ,Ix- ........,1:. I ,ull)' can ' l con'pli .... nI Wal' ano.l I ..... ' ...~ani/.alion mouJh fOf h:onding nUl ,he , luff. ",.,~ is no olh... , fdluw ............ '11 ...... II .
m·.,
8,,~ide . 1... II;ng K lot ~b
, land lbe ",d,naIY. If you "'c,e inln' Ihtn ~"" >hould late ,he pain, 10 ob."",'< :lnd . tudy and makr P'''' charar"lcr:« diff"rcnt and uniq ue . N" two SCelles should c~e. tIC' ali"" and dO 1... 0 Char. ... icrs should ev .... "0 som"!hin~ lhe ..,me wa)·. Ijill pul it Ihi~ way: Hill "",Id
eMcd in
noI
)'fltl' "" nr~ .
Sh.d u""hod , of doin! IlIinll' ~r" """,1<:" ~nim•. rion: "(f)' nften . morro'·cr. rhey arc b;o"..d nil "" oIr>'Crv~lton at all . ~""'n1ly . ,;orne animalrO' will animate 001 ..rmelhing he ha. ~n..,d . but so ..... • tltill& hot h:.o.' nICn)oriwJ ,11:11 S<'mc.' QlhN anim:olOf
lias dooc. In such cases. it is a matter of ""'" anima· lOr copying another. memorizing a 101 01 !tinct stuff. Thi. is ev.nt in eanoons ....here all the dtua<:ters. regardless of pcfJ(>na!ity . wal~. run .nd move the same way . The animator has not given even a thotlght to the pcrwna!ilies involved. 10 dcline~ting character and pcrwnality through variations in reactions and actioos.
Bill was intolerant of any animator sloughing off on
scene just because
it did not inlcre~t him . Ui s advice on an animator's resp.ms ibility has become a dassic: I
'" 8i11 liltti", "1X:,~t
Another thing in animalion . When yoo sIan yoo will probably wi~h that you coold get a lot of stuff
..
., ·tII j~ "", .........", .,M "",,10 CA ' r;~il
rkJI·
that i. already funny to stan with . Yoo may CtI very dry pic« ofbusorcss to do. and no mailer you work at il, you .... ,11 f~1 )'ou can 't make n
jmer~5r"'":,':;',:,:~ .:~,:~:; I
funny . If you Can make it done a very good job. But if you c: business that is dry and uninteresting and i YOllclO!! animate il so lllal it WIll be ali"e and vital. then IS an animator. I think. you llave fulfilled you. duty. Not evcry aspect of B,]!' s animation can be properly analy~ed. for hi s thinking was complicated and in· volved . Uo,,·cver. it is intcresting and cnloghlcninlllO list the comJlOf'l'nl$ thaI are found in BIll's work. bt his IJnt an imation lhey Ire all '~r... It takes steady ooncentratioo to h.~ this kno"'ledge and ~klllll)'('lll'
flllJMlpli and be able 10 lise il righl Like a baseball pIdwr who 11M Ih-. rn<)me1lWy Ia~ ud giv"" liP' home Nn.1be mimalor ~an gel himself ;nlo a hopdess IoIhUllon Ihrough lack of concentral ion. This lisl of components in good animalion is quitt an imposing JIIlUP l(loombino in any scene:, any """ element on the till ... challenge 10 \be 1:>0:51 of ani ""'ton.: Inner feding~ and emotion Acting with clear and definitt action Owacrer and po:rsonalily Thought procus through upres.sion chang"" Ability 10 analy>:c
Clear 'lliging Good composilion
Timing Solidily in dnwing Power in draw ing St re ngth in movemenl l ma,in~lion
Bill had done I scene on PilltKXltio that he and the other animalon. thoughl was grell . . ' Welt , iI's good," was Wall' , comment. " but il'$ not what I'd cxpect from Bill Tytla ." Bill wlS crush<:d . For I time, like many highl y emotional. sensili\'(:, and ern t;\'(: pe0ple, he fou nd il impossible 10 wort. A week . maybe two Yl'(:l:u . pas$Cd before he plo.u.tly swted 1(1 JaII"tIt around Ind explore other possibilities . In the end he ,lid find a bcuer way, and Wl tl liked il . This had been
Pinocchiu
_ _ Bill T,'/II S - White.
,_.
""i_
Wilt.. ,lit
"''''"1'
,Ie (
I
e:( l
turibiy hard on Bill, bUI he had been ,hown SOme-
IIIirI& aboul hi, own greal capabihlie" . Ihal he had more 10 offer than he realized. and Ihal WaS why he iovtd lile ,Iudio. According 10 Ben Sharp,lcen. "T"lla ,umchow gO! ptued as an animalor of heavies, Aflcr Sn,,~· Whirr lie was ta>l on Siromboli in Pino<,<,hio and Ihe dc"; I in tile ' Nighl 00 Bald Muunt.in' sc'lu~ncc uf ,",''''IlIS;(I. Wall mad~ ~ui le a point ufTYlla 'IOd his ahilitie. on tile tal"'r character, He buill il up as a spedal fca · hUe." Wilfred Jackson. who direcled Ihe " Nighl On ibid Moontain" sequence. describes how he and Bin TytIa worked lugelher On it; 1 was told hy wmehody . maybe Wall. I was SUp' posed 10 gel IBela I Lugosi ar>.e. no one- al· Ihough .Iomeone may h3\'e laken o,'er his assignment 8ill Tylla. lih Fred Moore . Ham Luske. and Norm ~"son. brooght his special magic to Ihe screen, and wiltn he kft Ihal panicular way of doing ~"melhing disappeared wilh him . Il would not be possible for 1II)'OIIe clse 10 duplicale Bill'< way uf animating Ihe
powerful devil or the lenderness in his handling of the poignant Dumbo sceo~s, What OIhe", do mU~1 be dif· fereOi. for a. both Fergy and Hill said. "Ii is too limiling to copy someooe else." BUI il is IlOI U\l1 of reach fur those who feel as dct:ply as Bill did. 10 do something eq uall)' grul in their own way. No one thing seems 10 explain Ihe reaSOn for Bill's dcpanure from Disney' s io 1943. Ihough changing st udio policie, ar>
7.
Hyperion: The Explosion Wall Disney
t.t.~ .phi~t has obsen'ed (hal 1 pcr,;on's ph¥s-
ir;aI_iIonmeN Fa.ly dct~ITI1iJ\eS how he ",ill ~It.a,,, JDd . 'haI he is ap1 10 do. One historian 01 aninwion J.claimed tllat doc: okI .. udioon Hyperion """nue al IIIe farcaslml edge of Hollywood w a.~ t~rgdr rcspon· Wk fOntiv .. and imaginali>''' thinkinl of !he lI1iru who worked inside. The .wdio was indeed unique . bill I""" it would not have been filling for Wall', "udio 10 bo: like any other place of bu.;",,",. m.n III insignifICant beginning. the sHidio seemro J1IduaIly 10 take on a li f.. of its 0"'0 and crow like the IDfCicloI ".."Id i. waS creating. The Ql"iginat building. ,..,. oo:upied in 1926. was a mere t .fA) square feel 1IIl ....,.lLu\tly ~i<,:ed on a quiet 5t~t 1M. munllernl down I 'l1l
[
.
,.,
.',
lon,
.....
Wlllin rno.uhs ~Ti ll """" space was ,,"ok<;!: the arptnltll rttumW. and soon the liule building w~s bultin, and prOlNding in unexpecled place s. In 193 I . Walt ~iOOJ 10 PUI an end 10 1hi, rnaktShifl arrangeWill and 10 build an edifice especially de.igncd for animMion ..... ith In offICe for each animator and his 1SIisIaM. and I"'''' rwms fOl"" directors . Hour. and hours of pI1nni"i ""till into The design of this " perfecc " !ddiag. bul il W;tS ouldJled bcf~ Ihe ~inl dried. f"onI . theft ....as only a SllliIII addiHo n 10 fl. then dim ..·as I tonnc.::tion to another buildina. lhen >ometIrini 0111 in back. and lhen suddenly a " 'hole new. imrnell)e tW()OSIOT)" struclU",. Soon the swdio flowed clw 011110 the side .l rUt. then back Ihe other way.
with alkkd bungalows ami things on top or thin", including . finally. a special Ink and I'~int building thaT used a ll the propel1y up 10 the Streel un the eaSI. The studio wa~ spill ing oul in all directions .
ilCroU the SlrcCI. In Ihc main building the rooms ...~re ~
n.c~ ~ ;d~
a buildi", across the ~T«tthat had been built compkte wilh I skylight facinl tIM: north for tIM: 111 c1;ISSJooms, offkes (or Don Graham and vi~ilin8 lnists, and endle5s cubicles for youni hope· fuls learning !he craft . The ~hape of the peaked roof irtUntdil1ely ~m.inded Wall o f the chicken sheds hc lI!OC:d 10 know as a boy, ~ he dubbed !he bu,lding "The Incub;l\or." Before: long, he added 10 lhe back 01 lh'll. thcn inslalled pens be side il for Ihc animal. needed for study md drawing , Like lhe cooking pot in th. fairy tale Ihal t'Q!1tinued \t) produce oalmeal because someone forgOlth. magic words. !he Wldio t'Q!1linued 10 If)tIwl and spread and COVtt the wllole ~. in a s iow-molion CTUption. Then: wen: tunMIs and pu. sagewlyli and bridge. and link: """""', ~nd partilion> were 1'\11 up and taken down. and walls we~ moved. aIId projection booths were made OUI of confere""e rooms and offICeS and even closets . As Parkin.on·s Law MaleS. "During a period of uciling discovery or prolfUS tIM:K is 110 lime 10 plan Ihe perftel head-
qu&r1crs.'" When every incb of open space had been filled. neighboring buildings ...'ere: I"'"hased and cOIl\'ened8par1ment bouses, bungalows, offICes. any lIruelu", \hal w" near and could house anis.ts and slo.-ymen . In $fltakilll of hi~ own uperiencc in those "tan~ ac· commodations. Mcl Sha~gid. "klhn Hcnch? OIl. yes. 1M: had !hekilChcn of my apanment. , .. I had Ihc bedroom and blIth." ThI: artisl' who were no! on lhe main 101 felt left OUI and isolaled. Allthei. hopes werc based on "stepping up" someday to lhe main building
small and evCl)'Ol"lt "'"IS so pmmcd In ~elhc<" if one IUY " 'amed 10 I,.'et (lUI, a ll thc <)tilers Iud 10 move thcir eh~iB to let him through . With e"eryono that dOW, there ...·as an exchange of ideas ;t.l. ...·elll! I lot of funny incident, and aags that wQUld n\lt hhe happened otherwise. Walt kepi Il)'ing tll shkld hi. animalon from disU"aClion~ and annoyance~ thai WOIIld drain !heir creative cnergic$. buI. ;octually. more """,. was achieved through thi, a.mIn!.~ment th;on if ""C hld been SfIIl'W out in neat ro ...·s. Exciting new thing. w~n: happening all arouoo lIS. and Ihis dose personal rontact and lhe cruy a§~il' lions kepi u. stimulated . Wc wc~ all uying 10 OIItdo each 0Ihc. in thinking Q( Krc ...·y actions. delibtralely trying 10 be difTercnt . to be fUMier. 10 cume up .." III an unexpected gag in everythin~ wc did-away fro.. the sludio as .. ell as at work . ~ uf the carly anillli' lor •. An Ihbbiu , said. "[ach teSI you did. )'0\1 tnN to be as inventivc a~ pmsible..., the <)the. guys would
comment." Unle" a lagman is thinking " funny" c'"Cry diy. lit mighl find it hard 10 think 01 an unusual gag .. heft 10: need. 0fIC. and we we~ <.\o:lcrmined alwa)'. to iCC tilt unu.ual in the world around us , All ~ man had to do was stumble over a chair. or knOCk something off I de.k, QI" juSl make I chan« rcnwt. and inlllled;a~ly hc " 'ould be inundated w ilh gag dnlwings. buiklina !he s itllation 10 0liliandish prop:.nions. II looked li~e I w..\le of valuable time. but. actually ....·c "" CI'I: all leamin~ our IUO!iI inlpoC1anl k".orul in S1aging ~nd communintion . If the gag was 100 obscure. if tho dra""ing WI> no4 funny. if It was not OOffiClhin; tllM could bc IIn
M.Ug Franl Thoma. , Sooroton, ,ugg.,ted /hal ,un lamp' b, inJ/aIl~d ,0 ".imOiarl muid lQ(}k mor" h~alrl'}' _ Imm,diru".". /h~ lOB' bt,a. I'<"'ring in, Hn" Frank Thoma> , Mill K.~I, and Olli. Joh",,,,,, ar" dt:picud QS n~edlll~ far mort t/ron
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Whil, Vip Panch ",'as an ""ISlam a/limawr. hi, d"".-i"I_' ,iwK'ro Ih, "agillg and in,ight thm I.t" mad, himf.",OILS a, a commerdal ('ar/oonl,'I, ,1./>0"., "Th, Gog" mlehe. Ihe pre('iJ. a"itud.. II"d upr,,,io., of th' f"loo', lookill~ at a "'''' gog Btlow, Vip' , \'fr.iQtr o/Ol/i, }uhmta"" animalioll ""it, Whn! told h' hod 108ft an inbetwuner to mo, ... Ihe "'ork f",,,r , Vip mri;murro 1M on/l' typc of pa.",,,,lil." M fell he ro«IJc""lroJ. ufl. ",,;mlllOr< O/li~ John.",m a"d K"" O'Sri,"
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personality . Thi. incisive uJ\dcrstanding of personality brought on elabora{e practical jokes as well. We had to have .orne idea of an intended victim '. reac1ion to Ihe gag, or it would be hard to see the possibililies in il. Thi, ,arne approach was used daily in wod,ingoot {hc gags and situation. for our cartoon charac{cB. If you had a Donald Duck .oort. immediately everyone knew what type of gags 10 use. what si{u.a{ions would be funny. It was easy til find business for Donald because we ali underslood his perwnality. l1>e bun of the studio's moSI elaborate practical jokc was an Englishman, Ted Thwaites, The men who wllrked with him had ~ized him up as being rather square and had planned {he .. busin.. .... in their little scenario ac.:ordingly. Floyd G
small can of fruit cocktail and Ii<: loved it so much and Ii<: smacked his lips o"er il and he'd tell AI. "I juS! couldn't eat a lunch without this ," So this staned AI's brain 10 working and one day he brought in a can til<: same si/.e, a can of mixed vegetable •. When Ted went out of til<: room he would always tell AI where he wa .. going, So lhe minute lie gOI out of sighl, AI would jump up and lake the label off, and put rubber cement OIl lhe thing and wail Iii il almost dries-and jusl swilch the labels from the mixed vegetable Can to tbe fruit cocktail. So Ted came back lhe first time and he opened Ihis thing and he aclually took a spoonful of the stuff before he noticed it wa, nO! his fruil cocktail, AI. of course, waS watching him. Ted 'IoppedIhen he took another spoonful of til<: stuff and be looked at it and II<: says, "I can 't believe thi s, ,. He was still very British and very gullible, He ""ys. "Something's wrong here," So II<: ,hows it 10 AI and Al purs at it and says, " What 's wmng? What is that- vegetables?'" Ted says, "Yeah! Look al the label-this is froil cocktail. " Al says, "Thafs strange," So between Ihe Iwo of them they de<;ided Ihal some way the labels had gouen mixed up al the canning factory, There wasn't anymore said ahoul il eXCept Ted went around and told everybody in the depanment, He couldn't gel over it. So AI let it go for three or four days and then he switched I.bcl~ again, and Ted said. "The only way I can explain this is that they must have mixed up a whole 101 shipmeni-jusl imagine! The.., thing.< arc on the shelves of markets aU over the counlry," Al did it just far enough apan to keep Ted intrigued. He'd have peas or carrots and even hominy one time--and Ted had !Ie"Cr seen oominy before, To put a linle variety in {he act, Al re"erred the procedure and put a vegelable label on the fruit cocktail can, '"That's crazy'" Ted says. "I know I hought fruit cocktail this morning-AI. lnok at {hi~," Al says, "What'. wrong with it'!'" Ted say., "Tha!"s mixed vegetables!" AI says, "That'. funny, You must have pkked
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FiolaIly ~ was Ted him..elf ...·110 ~ioJ. ··Well J lftily!hint lhis is an i!em for Ihun KipJty"s Btli, ..., 1,0, N",. [ think I . hould .... rit" il in 10 him Ind tIl~bt 1"11 gel some money 001 of ;t ... So we aUagr.:ed und by Ihis time everybod)" knew about il. and he aclually wrole Riple y. Afler he had 'll'rimn 10 Ripky. knew we hod to 00 WI11C'lhing "pay dI~,.,hok Ihing off. We wonde..w fot I,",u or Gftt days ,,·Ut ...~ could 00 . We ro&;u..w il ..."OUld tale richt days ~f~ hi: would expecl ~n an,""CT. Tk plan called for this las! can to "" lNIiled to TII ... llile$, witb appropriate King Futures J 1~""ls IIIIde up by the comic mi p men and was to conlain ,rather poIent mesuge from Mr. Riplc)·. But AI ~·lln'e il alone . He had II> swilch one more <21 and Ted elme back 100 §OOn .f\IJ AI had 10 ru.h
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WIn Ted came in and ate his lunc:h righl afler WI Md he pku4 up Ihis can and the J~""I s lipped ott IIoc o;an and he,e was Ihis ",·"t rubber C"mem. He iIOpPtd Ind looked al il for a minule. lhen II<: says in hi. 8rllbh ;,cecnl. ··You so and so·~ . Sud
Will wu tttnly a",·a~ of the cn:ali\~ procc5s and 'hOI criliciu lfl)'One for tu;ng time off to do gags. He anncd I(l bo: ,War( I...... "'.., ....en: sharpening our stiIk. Tht only Ihing he usc:d \0 say "'·as. ·· Why don·\ ",.. FlI()
dreamed of.nd did 1101 unden.tand . We did not know how any of III<: .ffect. were achieve.! or ",·ho had done ",·hal and how;1 was painted. Even lhe inked ,·d.;rod back groonds 4id not look like anythlO&; ...., had ncr seen ""fun: . Unk""", n 10 us. Wait had hIred wkx upertS and "n&inane and had ben! expcriITWnting wilh "'",.. w~y. uf lightin~ and a multiplane ~an",r:a and all sort. of thin!:s. And when ...·c talked wilh fellows like Clau~ Cool.l.· who had been .... orkin!: on lhe pi.lure. .... e could tellthcy .... ere almost a~ surpri..ed and hew;l. dercd as we ""'re. uOh. I don't know . Well . il was juS! like :lily OI~r picture. W. tried to do .. hat_ needed; ..... had our problems and our MUle,; "'~ had our troubles .. Each new pktun:
not getting bogged dow[}--at time, would get us so involved that we would lose sight of where the studio was headed . Everyone waS working hard but few complained. If there was not always exhilaration in the work from day to day. the enlploy«s would he filled with awe and overwhelmed with disbelief when a new picture wa.. projected for them. Where were we going? What was to happen with this cartoon medium? "There were not enough hours in a day for one person to keep up with all the n<:w ideas and inventions and I"ocedures, let alone deal with the imaginative concepts and ideas for future productions . But one man did' And he miraculously rode herd Over hundreds of enthusiastic employees. A. somwne said. "If Wah had done nothing else. he would be remembered for hringing together 1000 anists and storymen and controlling their work. No onc in history has ever done that." Mary Tebb. who staned with Wah as an inker in 1927, e'plained her feelings (his way: "That dedication wa.. the greatest Ihing in Ihe world---<>ur dedication to Walt and the prodOCI. our unquestioning auilude No one ever said to Walt .. Aw th"t', too much ..... ork. I don't want to dQ it." Oh no. you'd take it home and ,pend all night if you had to . Walt had something. that po ...... r, It was just his pers<>nality. hi s genius. I goc", .• ""It wasn'llhat you IuId to do the,;e thing.>." Marc Davis said. "You ..."med to do them You were so proud . Every write-up the studio got. e>'erybody Went QUI and got it. Very few people have ever. as a group . uperien«d that lype of e~citernent. What we were in
on. really. was the invcntion of animation . Animatlill had been done before. but slorie, were never toid.'"' Milt Schaffer ",membe... a meeting in Ben Sharpsteen's office of all the young ani't,. &n lold tilt. this was going to become a great artislie mcdi~m.llt1! they wCre all really going 10 work- that they had 00:( even begun!o learn animation yet. In the c{)U~ of~ talk he said. ··It will tic with yoo like it wa • .. if! Michelangelo. When you gu)" arC ""',ut ,i'ly·r,l't. you'lI be read~' to hang out your shingle," Milt " l' they Were all impressed. even when !old they were 00:(1 going to be any good until they were sixty -livc----<: ... that was encouraging! All of this deterrniaed the ~. ity of animation lhat ..... ould be dolle. It grew as 111111 fonn because evel)lune mred- and not j ust in tile";' malion depanmen! bU! througooU! the whole .r\ so",e ~ the power and arhstry of men like Honore Oaumicr, As Daumicr himself ,aid. "[f my drawing doc, ~ convey anything tQ you. i! mU.<1 be Il.ad. and no caption can re!ncdy that, If the drawin)' i. g,,,,,l )"00 1IiI be able to undersland it.· >~ There w~s hardly" ~ m",. mood. or human rela!ionship lha! D,umicr did , illustmtc . Animation was beginning to mcan ",mcthing dif· ferent to each of u•. and every""" was ,urprl""d aI till ~finiti()n 0"" employee found in the dkti,mary , "~1oiI people !hink!he word 'anima!iQn' n","ns he ,aid .. 'but it d"e~n·t . 11 comes from '3"im11,'" 1Q
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tiorl, m..1 juSt lhe mechanics of it. " , I. thr wi)' pictures there ""ele indeed glin'p~~ uf . . "lift:' but .i~ 00 animator reilly kne"'.. then . ..Utile NoJ do"", ;1 was im~,ible for it 10 be .uOntd a >t1ies of draw ings . In 19)4. Tit.. F"i~1 MUlOl', with iu pathos, turned tIM: comtr_ lhm any Oilier tarly film _ fmm Mock gags Ie'>
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~I ():'l I'"""nality. ~nd it Wa, immedialely appM' nt!hat this <;Q.nmunic3ttd /)enef with tIM: audience . lMf. die ~~ ani_ion
And.e ... W)'eth had compar~ble f«lings about a painting he was working on and c~pr..scd them beall' tifull)' in these ...ord~: .. Alld then fin;.lIy when you g<:t f.,. cOOIIgh along in a .hing. you feel as IlIoogb you'll: loving. there-IIOI ju.1 worting at I painting. but actll· ~lIy ... orking in th~' v::ollC'y . ~'",,'Il: lhell:."· This is pos.s,bly what savC'd the anirrnttcd c~rtoon! The whol~ ~orn:ep!inn of a sce"" bc.:~me diff"rent. II ne ..... type of businc~~ ..... as demaloded from tIM: .IIOf)' depanment. planning that ... <>old invoh'c showing a widC' rangC' of c~ions through the f,""lings of the dla",cleJ5 . S'Of)·",.,n now had to think lip sil~iQns .hat wouk] drnw an ~udicncc into .he pictu. e. situa· tions that r~qui['('d a"'ing that dC'riv<"<>nality that ",.. panic. ipa.;ng;n i. ""her than a ~Iock canoon charactn'. Truly 1M age of .he animalor arri v<"
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experiments might be in each other'~ scenes. that we could hm!ly wait to see the film of what had been tried. llte hall' echoed wilh the danering of film in the Moviolas and, ,oon after. the sound of feet running lhrough the halls. "Hey. have you ""en Lundy '~ te'!" 1l'1I kill ya!" One day Boo Carlson was trying to COmplele a SCene Qfhis own while thi, aclivity waS going on outside hi, door. One I'QOnl in panicular down the hall had attracted quite a crowd. as lhe film was repeated over and over, A film could be run through lhe Moviola as many limes as yoo wished without stopping. because it was always faslened togelher in one conlinuoos loop. Often. if il was a IQng scene. SQme of lhe film woold drag QII lbe noor as il made ii' round trip thmugh Ihe machine. As Boo lislened he could hear the pa11em of hushed expeeuncy, the clal1er Qf Ihe film. the explQ,iQn Qf hilarity. the bun Qf VQices discussing. CQngratulating. suggesting- then the hush as the action came amund again . Finally Boo's curiQ,ity g
addition of '·Mr.·· In his name. Slili. he deserved 100 much respect 10 be called simply. "Jim."' so some-how a compromise was reached whereby hi, name was run logether like one word : "Jimvcrity," In Ihe lale Ihinie., speciali,ts in <>Iher field, were being added to Ihe 'Iaff. mechanics and engi",",,", whose salaries eoold not be assigned 10 any >peciflC job. Walt did nol know where he wa, going 10 use Ihese men---some expens from machine ,hop!; . 0111< .. graduates from Cahech-bul he knew he could IlOl pursue his dreams wilboul lMm . When he wundered. "Can'l we find a way 10. 7" hewantedamanal his elbow who could say. "Well, lei me wor!< Q[I it." Eventually Ihe ,tudio had eighteen highly ,killed engine<:rs. headed by Bill Garil y.~ designing. build· ing. crealing. experimenting. extending Ihe capabili· ties of the animated cmoon to reach"",w heights. ne ... achievements . Walt personally direcled lheir efforts and chose the areas for experimentation. but someone else had 10 find lhe category Qn the production cl\3lt where Iheir talents and salaries seemed to fit. In 1935. mosl of the country was still wallowing in lhe Depression. and few companies were hiring. so. j oo was a very precious thing, Where once Wall ~ w<:>Tried Ihal he was getting into lhe busincss too late. aclually it seemed Ihal lhe liming was perfecl for him, and he was able 10 pick and choose from 1M c reali"" talent of that period . BUI there were lensioQ' and anx ielies for II>o!;e seeking the jobs. since COmpetilion was very keen at>d only the mo,t outstanding were hired . All manner of hardships were endured to gel aad keep ajob ~ of lhe uncenainty of the times is reflected in lhe recollec· tions of Betly Ann Guemher about lhe apprehension Ihat characlerized Il)'OOtS in the inking depanmem: '"Every Friday was Elimination Day . aad we all sllool:. in our boTried they could hardly relax enough 10 do lheir work . " Ann Lloyd added. "'1(". a wonder we learned 10 ink. we were SO nervous. and it really takes a loose arm and relaxation to get this technique, and we ,,"'ere I1Crv' ous wreds all the time. ··lltey needed lhe jobs desper. ately. but il was more lhan Ihat ; it waS the innocence of Ihal period. young people hoping lhey wQUld be good enough and that lhey would be liked.
On Friday" tlleir ranks werC thinned dawn, Th.re wtrt many"''''' aoo hysteric!_ Butthme who survived
h.d real dedic,Uion and Ihe sen$e of accomplishment diat "wid ~'O w;lh w.:alhering , ueh an ordeal. The sgptrvi><>r> .Iil\ ruled them with a I1rm hand even after thoy "'ere taken Dll. being . Iem and demanding in thoircrilicilm .nd e,ening extreme p",,,urc on every
on Sn.)W Whil~. Katherine "'"' .,ked 10 wllrk all night lin
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she "ill ,hr was plea>ed Ihal s<'rneon~ would ask her '"The pwple werc all so young and had SO mue'l! cncrIY. alld ",hal lhey could give, they gave it, " The girl., wtIt.1I ••)!Cr In learn and wcnt III night d""ses, lou to ~n t<) Ihe Il><:atcr when II><: picture, came OUI an
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"It "as ~I"'ays" lhrill when W~II came by." Ann Uo)'d ~y! _ "He didn't con", uften. but tic always
tinll'i""Il'td .1 f:hri'tma' wilh allthc,;c gifts, He fell the ~irl, h:lIi hr"n w"rbng "or)' hard w he bro-ught a ~ltm f()f eac'h of u~," And one Chri.\lmas wtlcn then: ~.~, '~l work he gave lh" girls a week's vacalion iIIsle..J of loying them off. "Walt wa, ,hy and uncom-
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Katherine adds affectionalcty.
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strenuO\!< cfl<>rt_ And when yOll finally have it on raper, you have sialed , jusl as dearly a.' if il were written. your mller Ie..ling, ahout how thi, thing
himsdf becomi", bel[i~nl o\"c. some faull found in his woot. 11 was not al ...-ays criticism either. 5OI1\Climes il was just the lac k of. compliment that hurt the most. n.e majority of us had become accUllomed to havinl our work criticized, but we had ""vcr been in, situation whell: we ~artd so much. Love and hate are closely allied. You hate only if you are dccplyinvolvcd in some thi ng. Valatile stOl)'man Bill Peel ooce became so angry ""n Wah's criticism !hal he !Mew ink ,II over his wall , flc, the Slory merlinl was over-and left;t lhell: in defiance. Walt prelended 001 to OOI ice for a lonl time: then. one day. when thinls were calm. he turned 10 8 ill and u.id. "Whallhe heWs all thal ~u fl'?"" and loki him 10 "clean up ,. his room . Wah underslood the intensily o f comm;t,""nl lhal Sill and lhe Il:St of u~ had for the work. and he nc,'er wasted an opportunity to take advantage of this commitment. In an early SCrttninl of Snow Whirt someone had "'rinen 00 an unsilJlCd questionnaire the SW1ling IUClion, "Slic k to SI"-,tU," little knowi nl at lhe lime that he had touchet! Walt in a mosl sensilive spot. That ",mark wouLd lLaunl uS for the "",xl three decades. It indicaled to W,II Ihal lhe", was a rotten apple in lhe
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botml. and sin« no OI>C k"",w who il was he upon this incidenl as a pc~nt device 10 keep the defensive . Through the years. lhe lerm .. Shorts" became synonymous wilh you well: tryinl lO ""I[ an idea thaI did I[ ""er in a m«Iinl. wddcnly there wouLd be " Ah iraaa!" and Wah's finler " 'QUid come out toward you: in a triumphant voice he "YQII muSI be the IUY who JIIid 'Stick 10 And for thai day you ..·tr" the IUY. and everyone would keep look'ng at yOli and wondering . The til possible. SonIC of lhe men insisled they real culpril w.s and thoughtlhal Wah knew , I if he dod. he was \00 smart 10 k:t on. and he relented in his «Inlinu;nl search. Walt fe lt Ihat every idea had been thought of. PI and even evcry ~ory-lhe key was how,..•• lhe material 10 upress your o ...·n worit . So he never con<;emed about .... here: an idea ea_ f........ day he slopped, young artist in the hall and nlented him on his drawings of Pil1OC<:hio~o When tb: animator slancd 10 say th~1 he was just IryinllO like the ()(OO fellows did. Wall interrupted 10 say.
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iI." mate best use of ...'hal talenu hi. ~ had. <>tr.oiously. not e""f)'QIIC caml . As Mill Schaffn A)'S. "Then: ...·en: all varieties. some -.: worldly wise than OIlIers. some cynical. some .... ~"'(1$. " The practical-minded adopted tile view tbat it "'as just I job. Walt was conlinually searching Ie. rrftnli~.$10 ,elthis group moTl: involved. 10 gel 11K lllUimum effon from everyone . He hOld used the boMIIl)'UCm of balancing salary against fOOlagto OUI1*1$ early lIS 1933. and . in spile o f Tl:pt:ated failllres. 10 belie,~ thaI it held the .,'s"'-er. Blltllle ~ had III ;nIle",nt ...." akness: the largest "''''ards _ 10 the swiflest ratller than to tile beSI. C.nain . . tOOk • w:ry pragmalic view of Ihis opportuni ty .t spenl mosl of tlleir time looking for shoncuts. ofI!II ,i"in, thei, kuer-paid assistants much of tile Walt
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wen 10 do. ~ idl the burden of responsibility for qulity to 11K COIIIcitlllious animators who fell lhat tile picru", ca. fll$l. They rould 001 stand by and ....atch inferior qtIIIity nul. ;1If'OIIds: so they look time from IlIei,
CIII1I ..'('Irk to do whatever was necessary throughout
the pklure to plItch up. Il:plIir. or Te-JIIimale work that lacked tile illusion of life . In the long run. this ruined their _ 'n Ippcannce on the " limo: chans .·· and with i, a chall(" for any .iuble bonus . The bonUll s)'SIcm did 001 produce betlCT pictuTl:s---OI" e""n load ones. nw n:gulations do. Efficiency is beller built through dedication ratlle, Ihan speed for ilS own :;.ale. Surprisingly onen. confusion armc from not knowing ...·hat was Upccled of you . It wa~ even hard to find out ""hom 10 u k. and Ihis caused u~ru.inty and crealed uneasiness aboul one' s posilion . Thcn: ""en: simply too many people alier a while 10 notify about """,,1hing. An~ j,c,ty over Ihis lack of rommunication scnt many people scrambling around looking forWll)'S to prot«t themse lvcs--to.hoTl: up thlli, jobs. To do thi s. some began fonning walls of people around them . scc'~larie$ and assistants 0' wlul1eve, . l1Icse "EmpiTl: Builders." as Parkinson might have called !bern. "wanled!() mull iply subordinates. not rivals ."" HOYo·ever. if anyone started taking himsel f too seriously. he was ccnain to become I w,el IOOIItT or I.t.r. One new employtt in man.gc~nt was quilC officious and lried 10 rcorgani2e lhe workings of me studio overnight wilh a flood of memos and orders. aU
intillWing thatlhey were Walt '~ wishes . He " 'as vcry and very 'luffy a nd ~ry gullible. One day as ' tOl")'men Ted &~ and Webb Smith g< 1'eCretlry $;Iy? She did not know whal he was lalking about. And neither diu Walt' We gradually developed so many separate units of diror;l(n and layou. pc""",nel on the fealUres and shon.. JIfUIlrams and trans ilion sequences and spttial cff«ts seqUCntts lhal lhere wlt.> a conSlanl traffIC jam on lhe rt'Ctm!ing slage. in inkers. in came ra. and even in inbetwcoening . Some way had.O he found I<) sehedule and ~impl i fy SO that tho: bc>.t usc could be made of all the facilities. 11 wu in thi. almosphere. wilh so many people around. th~l the Unit Manager was born. lbese men started nch day wilh a meeting in whiek they pw,ented the work schedule of !hei. individual uniu and !be pro;cc,ied neeekwn '. unit cou ld record from 10:00 to 11 :00 Tues· day , have two extra Layout men for fi ve days on WC(!nesday, and gel .op priority in camer.l for two w«u starting a week from Friday . Jack King'. unit would r«on! from 11 :00 10 2:00. giYe up hi s two 11)'001 men on Wwnesday , wait .o shout his tests for tWO wcoeks--and so it went, until each depanmcni was a«'O\Intro for. As work loads ~ifted, Of • SC
fai ltd to gel apptoV".oI. o r Walt cha nlled his mind. e,·e,}·thinll WU adj usted in the morning m"eting. Supposedly, each unit manager W<1S ",spon~iblc 10 hi$ unit dirc.: tor, who to ld him each dd)' 0,1("11." ",.r..c he needed and " 'hen he had to have il . But often tho unit" S rqMe,;entali"e " ..... ld return to hi~ home ba!.t 10 report that they could not h~\"e any of t~ things th. director wanted . After hearins his job rctkfil1l.'cr of the drawing I)n his board and malch i. I<) tho: nposulll slM.-el ,,·i.h an in,inllllinl mumble: · · Itmm_mm. " 'f'", st ill on this p:ut. di! Didn' l get ,,"tT onto \),., ,;erond page li~ c w~ lhought. did we? C~n we count on Ihi s scenc by 4 :00 I)'dod thh afternoon'l We're up nc~t in In k ~nd Pai1l1, yo. know. " All in all. tl>< unit manaj:crs slowed lho: wor\pOlS doing j o.q what they :are SII~d to do in li1r ..... y 1hIt has been ... I«ted for them to do it Thi~ "'as uttn11
Mrri~
10 WIII 'S IJIIlnl'ICh II, an)·.h,ng ~nd c~pn:ially
io_~
abk---i:ven lhough we W<",~ all Y~ry diffo:n:nt. Fur .he ;tnimalon; " '00 "''tre nlOtlt t'>HICC",ed wilh drawing u, lC•.-t",i'!.... or visual df«ts. ,h".....t..d OUt "''til (nougb .ince they had linle inlnn! ,n story Of clulrncter delineation. figuring IIw Wall the job 0( :spnt· one c1.e . 8m r", many o( us. 'hi~ 'lopped the (Url"", ~ve loprncnl or char-4Cler animation . With Ihi~ pieceltlCal c~tin8. lhere ",'as no way '0 .u"ni" a cha,octe, '" e,'~n IU kouw {he preeitot' way he should 1"'"0'111. We " 'oooetcd hov.' Walt would interpre' our toC<:1Ie, II",,· ""IUk! ..... Stt it? Would he go for lho: p;t,hoo
""r'i'ti of his mcn . ' !ikon! ,hem 10 00
IIIiop w .....,dy ne ..· day afl.:r day. Wall 1It\'f!' ~ tickling Ihc Mi ff arou' 'heir dfxirlcy and hel ..· much "" ork ,hey wc.e !Urnin, 001, Mill KaIIloclll !he s'
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1raacJn ..... ~ f'C'P1e~in!! chain of co'mnand for
,he hU1l1OI" he/('! BUI there "'as no w~y '" find ""I ewn " 'hy the !il:cnc w"" in ,he Pk1u/( , 'I'hol SfIIld ide~ lhat w~s ,uppbed '0 .• implify prucedu"" an
the - . -...ih W~I' a1 ,he '''P. Thou,h his idea. " 'ere ~ 10 -r down to us lhfOl'gh lho: Pfodu" I;"" Sltprrv~. lhe SUI-.:rvising Director. and f,nally .he Sequeno:c f)ir«I<)r. the}' never Quile did. and il was impg!sibk for ~ny of u, Iu knnw whal W.I, rcall}' h"" iI ~ ""~I\ool. >rtin~ .00 hearing h" .dc ~~ f,n;lh~oo, " I dido', ..... 111 Walt "',jng an )·,hin!: abou. th~ re,{ of
of distra.:tion had
lite """'." In\'e 1I:uod. ,hen l'rod"", ion Supe",i",... - . "kmo>;c he w,"" , . , "cry valuable in the ilk. ~ .. It .....~ tho: lhinking of ,he 'ime ' hal lhe
"* job rA {IK-
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din.:elor .. a:< delivcr lho: itloca o( In" l011le animator and Ihat Walt w~> '\I hc ,hieklcd frMt .,ll'-"Iihlc oIi 'lr"~Iiu",. When ~ GllCs,inn.d a p,ece of busi,,,,,. in {he 1IIQUI'tX't'. lilt d,!'«1Or laid il .... a. the .... ay 1M." hod Uodtd ~ to him . and ...~ "'e", nu' '\UPf'O$~d 10 ....orry ... ~ , TM,' h ie ..· """. i, all ..-orkw. and Ihis h (ho: ~"y" .. ~m,'d 11 . To Ihis day. Yo'/! ,..,11 are nm Su,e no~' _.n ..,c know is that ",,/! "''tre no! ~mon~ WtI, l""alin~ U' in this "'anOCr w~ , a ".,Wl"" dc"im.., m<)I.t "r.1I h<.",~u", v~t)' few l"'''rk "ould inler· prtI Wall for anyone else So .he hando .. ," WctC ,:arri.'
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Few "'ere .",arc or the polenli., f, .. beller (Illf!" ,ainme"I Ih~1 ...'a. bei,,!! klsl {If {ho: "'~y in ",'hich Ihc>e dn:isiollJ ""rre endm!! ~ ~/(ss "f lho lit 01 :an;om-' ion . Ken 1\.1~'11cginning I" realize how mu,:h <'uuld be dooc with Ihi, ""'~," nf c~prc< sion. thi . ~ fnon Iha{ w~s so fulfilling aoo rewarding. E~cell(n' animalion .... a' 'Iill bein~
done and """'" di ...."'cnn wcre still beill!! made. hilI lho:y ~ndcd 10 be in ,he area~ of n:finemem MI'he.- , nan in hold """ of
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rbe nledium . lltcn:: waS link: inclination 10 c.perinlen! . We thought of safe W~)'. 10 do the scenc~ ralher than exci ting ones .
Th b had effon
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through any consdous
do"'ngrade the ani mator ~lCn;on.
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f""lors !eroded 10 bring about the: isolation o f the animalOr . One was the cQlnplcxiry of rhe animation pro_
d"",;on which led to • business of speciali.' ls lin e",aling new visual images on the .1M' was that the studio was upanding .0 bse. " By 19)9 this upans iQn had forced !oOfl1e unilS 10 ",ut miles
''''.Y in buildings thai could be ltaw:d in
Hollywood. The ,",'hole fiu",bi unit "~'as in 3 complex 1rn.1 un«: had hou>C<:l 31101111:. canoon studio: ~ group worked in office space above the Ontra Cafeteria near Iloll ywood and Vi ne . AI a lime when we nccdtd the stimulation o f our friends. " 'C '""e", fan ller apoln .
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l1Ie mo,.ing o(lhe.., unilS to Ulhrr quane .. did noIhing to rd ieve tile congestion in the main buildin~ wllert all of us were squashed togcth;.ck Ingelller 3gl1in Undc:1 one roof, In 19J9 the move began 10 the glorious new sludio 0 011 in Bu.ban\; . There. Ille explosion that I'IId begun on lIypt'OOn would be conlairoe<'
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and The Nine Old Men Walt [)isney
Thr
isol~ioo
of tile .nimal'" did nO! end wilh the
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10 Burbank. b"l it wa' Ihe luming point. Except SIt"'l'in~ iJem"", where color SIyIisl Ey>'ind Earle had" 1.,1 magnificenl ning. (here
fu: one: final picture,
wm no .pt.i"1 "~W breaklhroughs by any of the SIIflIIOI1in~ fundiOll.' . The wJr and economic factors hadf",ctd" rutboc k. and the day of th~ ,,,,,"ialis l was (f
manaftn1enl of the animmion depar1menl. lis memo iid"i ..d on hiring. firing. ""ignrnem5, moves.
be~
proIIIOIions. and Iraining: bul. bit h)' hil. they were what an ~nimator should be and how be shoIlld be " ... d most effectively. The perwnnel of !his board chan~cd ac(ording to the rrohlcm, being
I pm11ancnt SHl"P of oine '''pen'i,iog animato" , ~se key eTC"lo"" h~d an ;mponance beyond their duties on th. hoard and inn"cnced the way pictures tk\'cloped mltlle type of entenaioment that was done, Although toc ,ujX:rvi,ing animal",.,. were ,(il l in their tlIinies. Walt joked about their rc,ponsihitilies and
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their wisdom and affectionatd)' r.:krr~d w them iI> .. Nine Old f> kn ... after the nifll.> justices of !he Su Coun, The board ~()nsisted of Les Oar k. Woof Reitnerman , Eric Lan;on. Ward Kimball. Mill l\aU John Loun,OcI)'. Marc Da";s.l and. the author, of . book. Frank Thomas and OUie John.l lon , We nn . tho"ght of oo[Sel"e. as >ome elite group. and tilt lime it even nosscd oor minds waS when Walt mae.: kidding remark about hi~ N in~ Old ~1en I>cing over hill. or gening too work. or losing all old z ip. In later }'ears. after Walt died, the press pick(~ thi, group's colorf,,1 tille and us.:d il as a ~1~nJOr way of lin king Ihe.>e anim:llors " , hi m. The \t publi""s kepi it aliw as s)'mbolk of tilt old gu Ihal had surviwd from Ihe eJrI ,' days of animat but the;r on!)" re wc r,' ,,'mole at ","SI. Til<' fi"t, 10 animat~ On Ihe scene usually had t~e lea,! ~hat:l(tcr and (he '~ond animator oflCn had 10 animale 10 thing II<' could not f~d or qu ite umlema",l. Of sil)' . tne director was Ihe arbitrator . bUI cenain of deci, ions and compromi se, w~", SU'" to make u.. ' mo re difflcu ll for at least on~ of Ihe anima1ors, The t1<':W casling overrame many problems:md, imponant. produ<','d a major advancement in ~ e ntertain",e nt: lhe dWr(UUf fflulioli shiJ' . Wilh man now animaling ,'wry dlaraCler in hi, """"' . could (,..,1 alJ the ,'itlrati,ms and , ,,bile nua",~s !xl" hi s ,haraclers , No ]O"ilcr "',Ir;eled by whal .0' cis<: did . he w:iS free to try oUl hi. own ;,lea, of hi. chardCl~fS fell aOOuI ca,'h OIrn.'r . Animators 00:' ,,'ore oo",rvant of human hchavi
IC"""".,J "" ,.,.. 1
1oMfST.
Ward Kimball.
Wa,d Kimball s,l,u,m I" hi. prncil "Sf: irnfJgi1Wti,'~ doodl .. don~ during "If Animation BQa,d muting . cit.,:o /957.
,moto of tn~ Njn~ Old M rlf, Front row, Woo/j~ . Ward K jmball. and Joh" Lo~ nJl>rry. Rra'. Milt , . Fr"nk Thoma •. E,ir La"on. and Olli, JohnslOn .
K,,. Pf'so"",' O«O$io""II,. hod to ~ art"" in Sf""",'
K"h1. Marc OOl'i •. Fmnlc Tn"",,, •. Walt. "lid Wiljrrd JlKbooo • Joh,,>to"'s drawi"g durinll tn. ma~ing of" TV .Iw", Beauty.
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""",h oClhe ~nct unok. hi s rontrol. the Supe ..... ising Animalor can plan a Il"IOn: effecl ive " 'ay of using lhe animation to put 0"" the Story points. by elu.nging rOOlagc~. >Ilifling scenes. calling for long sho!~. dose ups. expre~sions. aClion s- anyth ing thaI makes a .tmngcr Statement aoo richer c ha.octerization . One of lhe fin;.( example~ of Ihis was the !>Cqucncc oC Ba,nbi and Thumper o n i«. TIle conceJll o f an a.1imMOf takin~ an idea like this and de"doping it into a ~uencc ",ally s Jlfllng from the " milking" o f a situation in the earlier , hons to get evcrythinll OOt of it . Nom! Ferguson'. Pluto and tht flypaper aoo Pluto ()II icc were IWO of the Clrlie~t and most outstanding pi«t:s of entc,uinmcnl built by an anim~ tor . Fr"W Spcn«r "'as s~ssful with this t)·p" of improvisation 00 00N1d in 1010";"1 f)(ry . But lhe Bambi and Thumper ~uen« had something that the Pluto and Donald Stttions did nol have. Th at wa.~ a charactt r rdation_ ship with Strong beginnings in the "tory dcpar1mem. whe", it wu workffi out by a man who had • feeling for animalloo .· With this U I springboard. the anima · tor cont inuocd drveloping this rdationship ..... h k h only could have bttn done by one p"rsotl Iu.OOling both charxtc:n and eompletd y controlling every s inglt bit ofocti()ll. limin~. and cutting . JuSI how much we "'e", reall y aware of the value of this type of casting then is hard 10 ny . ~,"er-al )"Carli later . for " 'hattver ",asons. the mold was fur1he. broken on the thrtt Uncle Remus seclions 0( Solo, of 1M SOI'lh. " 'he,,, all the supe ..... i.i nll animaun handled footage in large blocks. Bill Pect' s s",al Mory ",or\; seemed to lend itsel f to Ihis type of casting. He had de.'elope.:! ente r1aining situation'! wilh
suong character dclineal.ion. :and the dcsign of the dw· acters inspired the animators to I!:et J very Ioo6c: .... dling in their ,,'Oft. But Il"IOn: inlponam. aill" s busintM called (or much personal contact bc:t"'"CCn the bo... tbr fox . and the rahbit . Also. his ",Iationships or ~ characters-from the broadest to the_ drlicate . It involved ex~sion scene. Ihat often rep. te",d the mos t Sttr<:t thoullht., nnd innel enlOlions 01 the char-deters. " 'hieh as lhey became more subtle 11m also more ",,"ealing_ With moncy in §hone. 5Upply. ""C CUt OOt the frill s and put OOr energies to wort ill new direction . doing the most with what ""C had . g. ing up for WMt had bttn l05t in one area by corocGtrating on outstanding characters in entenaining situtions . It W3$ a new dimension in animation and lilt key breakthrough in ",aching lhe audience. Just. as the «>nceJll of ··l ife in. si ngle dr-awing" ' UI 00( bttn recognized as a dominant factor in anillWXll that ~~ to li,"C. cha.-acte. relationship II~ IllI understood as a major contribulion for many ~ars. Th~ G",ssh"l'I~r lind Ih~ A n/S had brief mo""'nt~ 01 exciting ",Iationships. and thi s could e xplain why iI was so successful. Tlte seven dwarfs had slrool ftb. tiom.hips. but thrso: existed Il"IOn: because 0( . tory ~ animalion. "The animators:u that point coold not hart developed this by themselVCl; . Tlte Nine Old Men eventually we", able to do. because lhey inrorpordted all of thei r "w""~',:~::,~:, (along with what they had learned from tl tors) ;nlO this new way 0( ,,'Ort.ing- nol animatioo . not jU51. good dnw ings that ~,..~.
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~ ju.1 <1"".'in~s Ihat weI\' funn)-. btll mm'tJ lhe aud~lII;c . As animalion hls.......... C~I~nc: said. ·· ~I o\ing drn .... inl'. bo...:ame _1J""iII~ ,Jr;r,o. inll' ," ~ fob ... ,,)",1"'-" Nine 01<1 M.n <'olll;nu<'"d . ....-ilh fcar on hi_' fa.c~ , 1<>01< the 1Il1 .ltr ur." lhal "L()Um""I)"~ wol f in Thf S"wd ;. IN SWlI('. with ils bn",<1. ""!Ilk. bul lerrihly rea l ff"lSlr.Uioo. ~nO.J \ ' ill', Shere Kh an. a dC\" ''-'Ial;n~ cari . Cllillt ,II" Ill<" 1.le G,.. ".~~ S~"'k,.,. ~ , ~ ,upcr ,tulf~d. iU! Ii;". "'m: n.mpics of aclin!! 0;- c artoon animal, in die 6O's 1M ~re consi
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cn,dI rIf 1M pOclUfC" ""ifled in 11I.\'or nf III(> 3nimalin. lit had ~n "'h~( (hey could do ";Ih m31~ri:l1 he . . . . . haooe o~a}ed in carher y"~'-Iht:)' mitdc it
!IIIC(IJiJlinf juS! Il'IlOIIgh lheir . kiTlful handlin.~ BemloC' (I( thfJt ~ki!!., I"'mmalil)" animati on bcj;an 10 dvrnin ... I"" 110<)' mOleri,1 H(}IWH' . "... ~Iill n~.<.I~d WOIIJ (.IO{ics. and t~Slid I)on l)a(ir.KIi "-110 gan" ~uch " blIlancc or '*- ntlllflUl of idcilS ....illt lheir dlff~r~nl PC,""p<-'Cti>l1.I'ictur~ _we pl ~nonl .... ,rot "" i(h p",..,I~ en(cr uilllltnll'«(llC'n(r_'-"rit~ in 1""'''n"li r~' .nd charnt ltr -and IIK' .... in (um. oclped the ~nilllltnr c"ntinu"lI) I(l d,.'\'cklp h', :l("tin~ ~ kill, In hi gl~, "'I'e l" l.M,; k ~nd (,mh ....I".o n I'tirIt< MIn. the ,.. in and mangy lI.m • • nd his taP-."CId ~ .);op/wII. Si, I l i~ . Ihal il a",ounled I" -..!1OIl Sm.QIOUnd. " . And CulhalK" arkIN lit" in a ~I k!1<'f 10 II>< anima lor of Ihe~ .......'ne~:
.,1Ii
I " .11)' d~1 ted h)"f>n<>lilcd in my Iheatre >C ~I . In fx( 1fdt lho: "'ay Ihaltllal lon~ · a~o r.d ,u produ.:~r ... ,1 !\:r,c fclt ,,1>0 ~udilil'ncd i:.dlar a<::'gen :ond
OwIio:
~t.,:(""hy.
and ,,-a~ di~gu>1ed "'n~ Ik'):~n kw IlIlInl'lIngovn h i~ toMS unnl McCmhy ~napped: 'Hm, let me 1Ia\"~ a 100).: at tha( ... an.J lhe pm--
-.
do«, .twusr II\(: <'crill' jmo
t~
d""" ny ', inanimale
Mc (I,' illl' (lid ~1"n "ilh.. had le~ll\cJ Ibm arl ditr' k. lA, n ",L hlId S'ar1c-d
Nrrm Wurd Ki""-'ll. W ....d 1<11." ..
',i.-li. j ib.
'" Ir;~ ",'f1,t '~II_' ""_""-'. f -" ",I, ,,"" Olli<:.
"i\h U~ lwerk. ha.-k in 1'l17. and he i tudicd conli,)"011,1)' fro,,, lhen "''- En.." [.arson. W ~fd Kimball , and Milt Kahl had all Ic""",d uoo.:r Ham L.u, k<-: F•• nl ·n'l.Ima~ ;",,1 Ollie Johnslon had b.....'n \I·itb Fn,d M,~...,. I>u, !he)' \I'ere .. rungly in flucoc.'d by Ibm omd DiU T)lla. l"hM~' Luunsl:oef}' tr.u".,.J undtf Norm~ . ~1 a/c Va,·i. undn Grim N3I,,-k k , 001 bulh "r ""'IIl ~Iud.ed ,I\( ....lrl; of all of the lop ",en , woo! .. Reitherman WIlS 1"'>b.1bl}' inn".'K"n1 ""IR' 1:1)' r-ergy 111M 1111)one ci s.:, White 00 (,,'(} of us were: ~Iike. wc ~(ill had many ""iI' in ~<.>mmOI1, Forcmo:;l """""B 1i1c",' lOb (he""";l"< 10 INI the fi~SI pt>S-l.'"IIl> ""'" d~""",,", """"'& all of II! VII '''TfY co"""inbir is.~ ... . Still. 110 ....1C:r how e~ a~pc'al~d we were OI' ilh it en(crc:d 00. lIlillds 10 question hi~ m"li,'~~_ W~ k""'" Ihal he wanled t~ piclure 10 he juS! 3< 11000 a. .. cdid _ fur "va Iwcnt~'-fi\'C yc.rs Ihi~ remarbbk learn """,l~<.Iloll~l~r . Inaf, KIlhl . 'ohl\JtOfl and Loonsbery;lll" tiny bul daz:zling re~' ,'n"'p;!Ily uf 'acton "'il~ a pen<:il!,9 With cadi new film. lhey clwlgc roles. but >Iill ",uin tl>cir
"""k."""'. ""ve,
.,,·c'
individual spttialta. their star qu.alita. if you will . " Johnny Lou.nsbery died suddenly in 1916: Milt retired in 1911: and. in January o f 1918, we. Frank and Oll~, len the . nxliu to write this book . A new en. WI.
jU$! as the one thaI had ~ned nUlly fony-five yean of animation tame 10 an end . Hclt iI I closeT 100/1: " these men in the order of their arri\'lll althe Disney Studios . ~ginning
Les Clark When Wa.Lt hired Les Clark in 1921. he said, "Well, )IOU know thi. is only. temponry jOO, Le •. I OOn' t kno ........ hat·s goi ng to happen ." But as Le. said, "So it IlISted fony-eight years!" Les just kept going---.J.nd kept up! As Walt asked for the b,me,. dnwmg and ~atef refinemems lhai left 50 many othen ~hind. Le. wo able 10 -"'pt and continue: in the front ranks of lhe animatOf'S. year .fter ye .... His
thoughtful nun. who came in with no an backgl'OUlll! yet through lihttr detennination and desiTl: not 0IIIy kept up but helped advance lhe an with his ",fint· menu of many fundamentals. Walt was pleased .... ith Les's Mickey in FWll/lSio'l .. Sorttm'l Al'P""ntice" and especially liked his ddicale handlin, of the Sugar Plum Fairies in the " N... crachr SuiIC." Ho.....,vc:r . the laller were not ~ alitie. but more like birds. lei said he had thought d hummingbirds. and this gave them a chann in timilll as ....dl as movement. Les was a Sequence Direclor on Slap'''' BtInItJ. From there Wa.L1 moved him into direction on TV specials and educational films. )l,Ilt as he did in bos animation. '·Le. never settled for anything that WI$II't top quality-his work always had lhal fine fini~h . "" One of his pictures. Tht RtstltSI Sro. was a winnerd many awards . He continued directing I,Ip I,Intil bis retirement in 1976. He died on September II .
1m
u~ Clar~ had a rpffial luli~g lar lll~ I'mi~i ~,
'1"'111"
I~
Miltlti,
M""".
Woolie Reithennan W!dit
_III( IOOSI physil:i1 of IhI;: group-"'ilh a cuon-
,u1siool1O my young and 10 squeeze in e~erylhi ng loefOft iI is 100 i3te . Ken I't~rwn. who "'..., Woolic's ~s.blanl on the dinD",u'l in f "aMmj(l . ~ay '. "You i:n[)w how Woolic is . .. , lie ', ~onna lick Ihi s if il' ~ the l a~l thing he ~~er iIot~ . The WI)' W,>OIi~ i~. he'U liglll for (n lC1tain -
.....- 1I'''' dIlI ...;n, pnlble" " ~ Md on his Sl uff---OOI lie fi",Ny ~ iI. Sumo: of those p;lIICN. ~..x.o know. 'O'btooy(lU'd f'l In dean them up. \)u,n: wa. pr....1ically noIri", Itf. of \110:," . They were all crumpled like o ld
,
"'y-;.
Ji... ,j;um-Iry
il !" qu alit}',""
~ (ioo(y
IhIIt Wwlie an;m:>led coonmun",ued wilh in a "~'ay llIal o nly W.....l..., could have 101)' p"inl. every scene, ••'cry line or dia· qwload .... he Ihn..,hed over • h~nd~d rime. in lhe Itllth f(lf lhe e<~ncc o f rhe marerial . W""lic 'omuld SlIIhbIImIy . guc hi~ poinl ; then. oft~n rt) enrou",,~ a D/tII' "y ollootin~ al son"" hing '" .., [110l:Il: ,kern. !.. wwld .wileh ru a new position hoping 10 bri ng our tome frnh argum.nt~, Alway, .he search "'ll, f,,, e m.rWnmtnl l n,J .~dic~ commun ieal;!)n , I.il:e Wall . IH: never seemed to run out or energy Ik
1Udit~
atld would s till be going s(rotlll at five o'clock while the n:.t of Us , at in exhausted :od",i..~ti"" . lie was the ooly dit'e('1".. eyer 10 holndk a /Calli"' .1,,,,,, Md perhap. ,,'as lhe only one willi lht: ...~njl.h atld .tImi... l
Eric Larson one of lhe fjnc~l uampln of p'''. ~ime t...,r dune •• the .'IOOio. The xting. lulure in limIng . anct inner feel ing for lh e charal:tcr were ltlI'Iarbble Ihin~" to ""hiew wit~l b.! ncfi r of dia. ' Hi, nyin~ horse. in FmllUliu w'ere gracdul in 1tO\n1t1'll lind coovincing in aclilJfl , He "'fXr.i..:d (he .....ioa ()II lhe "cry difficult " 3g in /1"mbi atld ani&;,:'1 F't pn>
i~
"'''teU trollSt ,,r tho: lik;oblc old 0"'1. 1\..·'. 311,.... "r hi' abilitl t" h~ndk "wry ' YI'" of Ihint tllat ~outd t1 y. En.: bcc~I1'" know'n as a bi rd·""," He did cY<:rything from ~ jT"'Crc hint' wll<' hclrnJ Cindorella make lIer beu to the 'T~liest of 111<'", ~ II. the Ar:ocuan bini. In the A.nl"u~n . Erk dbpJ~}...'d ~ rcmm.bk f""l· ing f,,, an Intagin.1ti,,, C.......c1cr In hasnJ ,WI ;on lIIIIM>-
pomorphkconcept . And one might add th.t t~ wu in Eric', ~ dignifl«l outward behav. ior 10 indicue IlIat this 5-I .....'e inooncruity could take
.-.
ne~ anythin,
His quiet. matUft joogmcnl was ~ even when Will young . Whenever I special committee will being scl~~, it waS always Eric and romcbody dsc . And when. scrious conflicl or disagrcc:menl arose in any large rnccling. il was Eric who scemed 10 be able 10 IOOthe everyone wilh his · · pow-oil.<),Hroublcd. Wiler 5pCCdI," as Ward Kimb.all c.lke! il . lt was _imes difflCull 10 lift how Eric evt:r got any wOft. done, He: had lhe IIl"gC$I c~w. of any ohhe lOp nw:n, and ~~ wu alw.)'$ someone in his room with. problem. often nothing 10 do wilh produclion . Eric was al ways p,alic:ntly listening . occuion.olly coun· scling. but somehow, in spi te of .11 this. he was one: of the besl footage men in the Siudio . When and how he did it no one ever figured out. And 10 lop it all. he w ill able 10 gel rootage (lUI of _ o f his c~w . At this
he
writing , Eric is Rill in clwJe of lhe lraining prog.am f« the new talenl coming into animation . Ace has noll dimini$hed his cmp.tthy with you", proplc .
Ward Kimball Not III niDI: of the $Upetvising .... imatOIS 'Ovt:Te illlCr_ C$kd in personalily animation and c~ ~lltion· ships. To Ward Kimball fell the mantle 0( true ic0noclast of the group, He had tried and done successful per$(lnaJity animal ion 011 Jiminy Cricket. but soon found this style too limiting for his JIlInicular talents . He felt the proper use of animation for him lay funller away from livt: lCI1on . His conception and execution of the long song 5CqUI\'no;e in T~ Three C.II~rOI is I classic in the ulllUtnclod use 0( the medium . The was four minutes loog wilh lillie « no business, and. after lislenin,1O it for a week , Ward says. " 1 decidW tobe optic.lly literal . What you hear is what you lift . When they !-IY lhey havt: serapes-the SCrllpes appear. And when ~ chll"loClen Went out 011 the righl-they'd rome in 011 the lell : ~y'd , 0 OUI 011 the lefl , and they' d c:omc in from the lOp. II wu opcically 1bMrlCI. ··
$011,
WOld KimbGlI
";W' . "PP'u;ochunioj10 ...mi, "'as _ Killy ~. ,
~
""'''' 1)'1'" (Of enlenain'
1(0 I'lL'" <>n
II< _b . . e).ccllenl drafts"",n ... ilh lhe """ Wil ily d t fU
iii
I~Shl oflm.~in"livc ways uf duin~ Il1 i"~i, Il~ n~ve,
did ~'h~1 "'., ~.",,"Icd. and 10 the conslemali(\n of al I.. ~ un. d,m;IOl' never did II><: "-,,i~ nn"' nl Ihc way i1 .... IIandtd 001. Hi. stag ing VIi:.os I~, h b limin~ 1IIiqur• ...J he c"uld , h" ... " 'hal wa~ funny 3h
Iinlc:· ...... 'cN Ir.i" in ~Imusl c>""l)'"alive ide. "r lhe "model in ""'''en",n!"· to n,:U:.c h" dar.o nlOlC aw,"", u f the pri nciple. of animal ion. whil.-b eJW.:uu,· al,:•..., lhe )"OUnl,: sruocnlS 10 lhin~ in Icnns of rI'll,,", and a.:lIon ,n Il!.:i. dr::lwing •.
Milt Kahl ~hh·.,...w
\lfcnglh lay in h" d,~"" in, ~bilil)' ~nd his COIOiclion llul ~nill13lion dr::l"'ings we.., ....,al ly I"·... --..w a .... ,.... JlJld ""Ofk In 111:11 pia.......... ckiM, . . . . . (10 )' ~J ....,ad and unlienland A. "n~ til' four IlIiMlIICf'i \oj ..illl on the ch:u:octcl vi I" II( ..-.:h;... he w.. ~,..." ,be l"i~lIrncnlllf an imaling P",,,,",chiQ ~s a rt:ollxl)' t.,'I:"U'" or hi, carefu l dr'''''ing, Mill '> conlr,,1 .n.bIM him In do Ih~ m",1 sublle rDO\.... lUlling III repealed Call'"1: u" human c har~c Im. lhs 51! I:CIOI' and Kay in Th~ Sh·.ml,~ /he St"",, -m Iht hHl ""man fi,u ..... e"cr done MI lhe ~Illdio, allho::) " '(f( oJone ,",''1Il001 bell<'fil u f Ii,'" ,""lion or
lhe ,uf'PlI'I "I' ..,k",""c malerial. TlIoujth Mill ;o:,;l~· all y pfde-m:J broad char",,'cn;. he ,","I pride '"
\Ql'"
(Jmng ;usignmenu. thaI "'ere l"Ugh '" draw. lIis un""", ..,n~ tlf dlaracler de ••gn oo.nill:ued lhe feallln:. ror uvef Ih in), yean. bul 11 "'as SO Pf'1l""",1 Itw il was "flen d,m,,,11 (.,.. o.lien; 10 fntlnw . lie woold dc:ny Ihi •• 'lay "'!!. ... Anyone who can draw . Can f"I1" .... it" Wh", he reatly meant wa . . .. Any",", who ''''' dr~w Ii~c me can du thi ~. .. He hall fCllt.aO;al>k powe!'> 10 ,·i~II.. lile . ~nd I f ~ .. id . "On..~ ho: (;C'!'
lhe paper."
He '''is hono:.u In the poinl of blunlno;:~, . Unl i~e -,. irascible tcmpcnlllC'lIU ...110 ha'.., fi lled lhe halls d~ . Mik ha
comin, for help to have worked hard lflii rifd ~hing-(o have done his bc:~t bcfe« OOIIIi"$.
Mih ', flftwell animalkm was his brillian tly done TM R~MW~'I. Thi, lime Mill h.lId. c har",,_ . . . 10 ~l\\SII:tf. aRi hi ~ n:wards ,,'en: ,.eat. IS slicN.·n bJ 1M lribute: " The )'(lIInKer gencralion Mudi.", the ~ in
ICtIIC in "'hkh M me . M edun lakes off her makeup
wbilt plQIIlng child abu.>e. The way thaI Mil! Kahl _ (lfraldinc Pa~e's fTUilY. cruel voice by nulI _ itc kr I. , ( lIl1I hard at he. false eyrltih unlil he. f)'dioIlNpIC bKk [ike a IlIbbc. band is like ~ dnwin, m., DlumlCr"s 'S ketcllC:! of E~~ ssion' series. bul iJ1 mov<:mem!" jJ
Frank Thomas Wriit.j: i. Millimtltr miI~I"!ine. John C.ncmake. !"lid 1M triboMe \0 Frank: " He ~ been ";nccrcly' affec Iitc __ 1Im for fony years: he has made them IlIUgh ftl l'I)", hate and fe~ . u~ing basicall y a pencil he hu dlIIJrd Wilh intelligence ~nd humanity, tun s of parer, IItd tht 'pmi"~nce of vision' . .. l ) 1'10 job \,..~ 100 p;oit1>lakin,. no rcsur<;h 11)0 lime_ ~ t(I boy lhe &JOOndwod for a Thomas >c. ~. Each p:>ssibility had to be nplorcd endle"ly 10 fmll t'·'l)' Inl oooce .or enlena;nmcnl , H i~ polller. of gt,ltO'liion and hi~ acutt memo')' for thing.o; he had _WId ~udied ""cr IhI: )·t;m. gavc him a "a~t TC>CI· .... uI nptrien« as he ~~ his s.cenes for anima·
...
His lINoIysis wenl paSI Ham
I.II~k~ '~
rules . Through
1beIC powtrs be was abk to portray WmpliC31ed a, · tiou. llIitudtl . "ld ICI;ng , Hi s great feel fOf chanoc·
tr. K1 .... 111<1 enlertainment c~n be seen in the many . . . 1Ibk sequenceshe ha.cu:d·· in . ~ mo5t famous lIII1lO1 oco;nurily the: mo:st diffiwlt Kene. the d warf. CQinl arouoo Snow Whit e', hier. is said 10 nave
...,
extended \he emolional range of our cartoons. To bave worked under Fran k was to have been subjected to the most rigorous training imaginable. As One young animator said, "II is impossible 10 plea~ that guy. He's never satisfied."' The solution was nOt to try 10 master Frank's extremely complex acting patterns. but to study bis approacb to entertainment and bis usc of the fundamentals of animation. Frank's staging and his USC of squash and stretch and the strong changes. in body shape that gave so much life 10 his work were tangible things that have helped many young animators. Walt cast him with Milt Kahl repeatedly because of
Frank's knowledge of what the character should do and Milt·s ability 10 draw it . Like the reSI oflhe fellows. Frank gave time!O help others. His advice waS sought on music. layOtlt, I»ck. ground, and SIOry as well as the animal ion . On the lIS! few features. Frank would spend anywhere from Iii. months to a year h.elping develop the story StT1lC~ and situations, sharpening up and defining the dtmoters and tru,ir dialogue-and then h.e would animate oJI those same sequences with a fresh eye . Frank is a modest man. '"frank'" in his bone:sty, penetrating in his criticism , bUI always tempering it with humor.
Ollie Johnston Like most of the group, O llie was at bis hest when leading off on a character, par1icularly if the story and the characters were at a stage where they were still f1e~ible. He was often the first 10 perceive that achar· acter or a Story point was n01 developing the right way
and would work lireleSllly to correct i1. He had a vi.iQR of what it ought to be and was dedicated to seeing II come OUt that way. Through early experimental ";· mation. he was able 10 show the potential for t!Ker. tainmen! in the characters that would then be developed in future story s ituations. In doing this type of devd· opment he combined the appeal he had learned fKIII Fred Moore with the ~nsitivity he had for tm, emotions of how the characters felt Colleagues agrud that Ollie carried acting and the feeling of the characters to the highest point. He hod. sensitivity for good picture, imaginative layout ..... hit th.e character should be doing. and how 10 arrange the scenes for the beSt effect. His knowledge of wbat MI needed in a voice made him valuable in dealing wid! difficult decisions of wheth.er the vocal talent was ~i¥· ing lru, animator the performance he must h.ve to make the character think and act . In an interview Ollie said, "1 talk a 101 about any scene I'm gonna animate and get the best ideas I cal; and .... hen I'm convinced I have lhe besl ",a)' , thenl ' put everything I have into e~ecuting il. But just bec:t1M I have a good plan doesn't make it easy . Animation is inherently open to mistake s, and I could know exactly what I want to do and still have trouble . And I" d say 10 myself. 'Whatever made me think Ihis scene .... ould be e asyT or. '1 thought I promi>-ed myse lf last we<:k 1"4 never make that same damn mi stake again ." "
I
I
In .pite of the u,ual problem,. his footage output wasal"'a)'s the hi ghest on the picture. and the fact that he ne,er IoJkcd upon animation a~ being casy helped him Klemph3thize with the young animators and assi,· lUtts working with him . He knew that their problem, rtqUii"td gUldarx:c and patiencc. and this he willingly provided.
Tho Jun ~1o: Boo);
Hi , drawing' of Me. Smee from P~t~r Pall mrned
Johnny Lounsbery As is of~en the; case. the; pupil surpauoed the ma5W . Norm ~r,u_ had inslnlClcd well but Johnny had gone beyond ""hat the Jf:gendafy master hid bttn ab'" to do . His better drawing and bigger conccpl. not limited by old vaudeville acts. brought the bold. crude approach 10 new heights, using more refinement. more dramatic angles, more interest. and .11 without losing the main ide., His simple staging. appealing ctwa.:ter$, lasle. wong squash and 51",«:11, and con· rroIled anticipations .nd follow throu&ll made a big bold SUllelllC'nt. but they IE\a los! believlibilily. Hardly subUc. his characlC:rs ~ always fun to watch. He was good I' wooing with the young animaton and did pose drawings that were an inspiring springbolIrd to gel anyone started . As a draftsman he was ideal for animalion . Hi s drawings were simple and loose and full of energy. Tbey had volume and thaI elusi~ quality of life. He had _ of Ham's ability alway' to find the way 10 go funller in strengthening
,oad
his poRS .
Johnny's favorite of the c haracters he animated was Ben Al i . the alligator in " Dance of the Hours " from FtJ"tasia. whert\ he caplured a cocky. spirited walk and allituoJe....-QlII'! that was particularly unusual since it III had to fit the tempo and lhe .ecents o f the Jn5COl'ed tr.ck . This work was I Ilrt\al innuence on the OIher animalOn doing this ~tion. many of them anilNlting for the f\JSItime. He had an especially good way o f woning 10 live lIottion. bo:ing able 10 adopt
JoM lAoi1lSMty
somc of its subllcties withoot losing the 'tr'"i~ ·' bro.ad cartoon action. Johnny ~nded to be an introvel1. bm asscned h'" ~If on key decisions. He had his own special way 01 lookin! It things. and no mailer how bad they alwlYs had some funny obscrv.tion 10 lighten the" ation . At the lime o f his death. Johnny was d~ 5Cquenccs on Th~ Rucwers.
WCK.
Marc Davis M= Davis is an example of I talent bo:ing shifted 10 .... hert\ il is most needed. This h
he was given his fIrSt chance at animalion on the cJ.. of FIoWCT and his girl friend . After Btmtbi . ., ~ry ~lUt ile Man: returned to lhe: Slot")' dcpartnd. where he designed lhe: Eagle and O:topu5 $CCtD 01 ViclQl)' Through Air P_·~r for Bill Tylla to aniR* Due to some carden oversight. he III'!ver rcceiYld Slory credit on either Bambi or Vic/Qry Through A; Power. In an interview. Marc upres~d this p/lil!>:lClpbr. "To be an animator. you have to haY<' a ~nse of.
Xtef$
dmnllic. I feelin1 for ""ling; you h~~e 1<1 boe a ~10<)1. ... " II his own ""Ofk Mar.: ,I$<) added IIt(SC ~ _lOIl!""lin, 3uim,;Ie" btlln dl'll,,-ing, ~nd UIII\olJM:illJ rTIO\I\'llll'nl thai Came: ",ilh Ihis dl'll ...-ing .aiIy. ~ 101"', unified rc:iationship of all pan, of a cUt1ntr lIIOJ on lhe fI"",ooyant Cruclla \lcVil made IIiC of rvt')1hing from her bony elbo",. 10 her posluring Ihrou,h her malic mC\·emems.
*
OIl Marc',
"bkfi~nl,
lllawlic NS«I
~
he
~ho",ed ~
00 p""'erful
flai r for Ire
sh~pes in
his de,ign
.. 1In'III, 1\Oe of color than 011 broad aclioo . lie had a
r.-,
((0' ihIlmpu:r<.;mce of a ,000 layoul and "",~ OI'tIbJUd the "a!ue of props such as the 11I'~n and I!lc i!4f w madc ,un: they wen: pari of the overall
-.
Mare Ii . vCI")" gentle per",". hoi wilh sirong COnvietions Iholl he nold, 10 lenaci,-""Iy !' He has a special Itol< <>f h~mor Ih~1 ~suall)' has Mln>C unc~pecled Iwist .... He n I ,-et). >UCCeS.'ifullc""hcr. specializi"8 in ~ •.., rot 1""... IIon _ I/i, main courses ",en: giyen io Ii;' sdiooIll Chouinard'~, and many of hi. Mu*-s IaItt f
I
/
/
.
•
'
j•
Refining Techniques Und~r
1M Irodt:rsltip
of 1M Ni.... Old !ofr" ,
Ih,
origt""l a"imil/to.. p, tN('tpl,••..,,, r'finn), p" ,
r/ta,,,,,,,,,'
f«lrd. aNi ,~"'ndrd. By 1960. 1M oc,iOllS had ~ So saphiJIKa"d il " 'as 01. rrwsl impoJJibir 10 isola" Ihr rlrmrltls Ift(Jki"g .Itt", " 'OO'k. SqutJJh /I1Id 'Irr",h. !oIlow Ih'OIigh, 1tr
_ ....TOII
F'aM:~
Bambi. Ot.Yrl<>ppi"6..rn....~ IN)rr IIta" flu. " " "
"'M" n"""""Ilifftriniarti"" 10 I~ 1M
d...nd
,dM", Bambi " Bi, ·d!"
10
~"Y
..s.
oo~io
AN'.... TOII, Mill Kahl_ Pino« hio.
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9.
Our Procedures
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lupiltnf COII>liInl efru." and PCflll~lcn1 d~;n~. Wah ...... dot! budd an org3n17.l1110n on the ~lricleSl ." ,n,. of "word. WI\;oI he huih W3' ~ l"o~l)' umfied ~f<)lIP of IIIrnIOO I"C"'f'lk "';lh part icular all, I,,;e, ..... ho ~(lllid work IIJStthtr in ~Ont i n" al l y ch " n~ ;"~ !"Ilt ern ,_ They did
1M."" I minimum of command and a mllXmlu,n of obIiaIiool. \\'hat Wall " 'limed " ..~ I,,", great"" =al;\"<: tII'on-lIOIlhc 10051 dficienr ~r.:Iljon . Thoere "ere IiItI and d.put .... nls and job ciaM ,ficallOlls .. irhQul mt. bulll1e)' had more to do ",il h rnpon~ib;I;ly Ihan mhonl)' .
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"'P. ItGardim of his job . Slill. Ihis ,eco~nilion alkn IW\nN 00')' a 013),. 3~ ~me ... her l.ka "3' ~mhr:tC'('d iI. 1"«"" 01 coole" gn'" Ih The .lang of the da) ,
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h;od <-h~r:lCtcrllcd the" id.:~1 ho::ro " ' l1h gl/"'-,ng. loe'" as " " 'he F~,r. llaircd Suy:' ~nd ~I Ot~ncy'S I~ role W3< aflilo ho:: .., t. ~n,icnl Ih~1 1M " fa" lI:Ii, ' " .• ~ ~"umc,j to ~ an ca,ill t," n,fclTC<.i ,,-,~ , -n.. .mp!oy~c wanting an up,I:lIC o n "" velop",c nt s in hi, " -oold a~k . a~ he arriwd for " 'ork In the mumin~. "Who's gOi I,", today"" This me1hod ,,-oo-1;e<.I bttauM' Wall ,,-as 1M boM-noI jU~1 becauSt it was his siudio or 1n.1 '"' h"" the author, ity 10 ~tt " 'hat h~ wanlffi. but bocau"", hi. Kleu were the be , t. Mati ) times we (
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~ "cry ,OOIJ w~y, li~uall)' c~dl of liS fde. " Why dldn ' t [ Ihink oflh~IT ' bul ncr)" so ofltn ""e oe<:mly "'llUld feel. " M y " 'ay tS bencr~" ~OOJ ,~a· siQnl,IIY;1 wou ld s.utIoknl)' o;«m so 10 W.II. too . He ",]jed 1Io;;."il)' on hi, sl~rr to feed ;n neatlY' idea, . [n umkrsl.nding Wa lt' ~ methods. il i. imporlant to ",~lil.e Ihal he ..... as no! in 1110;; . nimat;on bu,;ncs, to ....ke lTlllI'Iey. As be ....id . . .M ~y-", ralllel the Ia('k of it to) <:any oul my Kkas- may worry me. hUI II doc.s not c Adtc llIe. ldeu c,dtc me : ' lie ..... a~ tllOIl' [;kc a man ..... ,th a hobby Ihan nne " 'ilh a <'(lmmc",i . 1 en lcr· pri~, li e was doing ..... hal 110;; ..... 8nt.d to do .nd hoped Ih~1 OIber~ .....ould shan: hi s 'Ulio< ;l), anJ eXdl~lll<:nt aboollhe pokntial in what lbey ""en: doing, Hc pllt all tho: _ y gained b.:ick inlO the nexl pielur. bcc3~ thilt ..... as ""hen: the flln "'·as. aooJ he cerlainl)' ne\'c' reached. pnim ...'bere he did nor kIlO ..... " 'Mi lO I'y ~l"'~) ~ " ."
~xl.
He ,lid 1\01 dream" hig , ow rall dream: he m"dc il up os be wenl along , E;H.:h Ihing II<: did sugllc>led SOIIIelhing cl",. somC:lhing new . somet hin~ Ihat hlld nevel bcc:n Iried . something an aud;.""" mighl wam I" ..,.,. IIc rc:ali,...'tl lha, he: cuuld 001 c~rlore thc.... arc:a. ..... 'Ih<1II1 IxClcr laknt alou n.J him. so II<: waS al .... ay. lidding to tile ,Iarr. "Nevel l11in,"C him over 10 thi~ SpJl in Ihi) depanment . Maybe he' ll ",'Uri: out there ." And e''<'" at timc • • if Ihe "I""t "'1111" didn't ma\;.c;1 in thai department. Walt .... 'lIIld"·! ~ive up on him; ,",'e would h~,·. In I')' ye! allOlher spol . To my amll7.emcnl. IoOInc of Itlcse . ' \OM
souls " b«amc: "aluahle conlribulOI'l' 1O"" anb OW pruoJuo;tion pro"".... AooJ ~ OIhe" .....""Id finJ a niche thai ~~lisrlCd tit.: . tU !'elected for tho: i .....· ""t they m'l:hl in II type of story ~iluation . • . vel)' "",n . fter..... ard . as lhe en lCrla,nnlCnl val ues '"'m emerging. lilC direclo.. ",,,,,Id hc sd~'Ct~'tl . The "t~'nl(" kne ..... Ihis <.iifi,elur·, lalent' 1I00J au tomatically 'lalWd "tI;,ping their bu~inc\.S a lung hi, li,~ , At the l;Omt ti""" Ihe nltn ""00 e,'enl ually ..·.ould animale thi. fila "'"rc: cho.»ocn. ~nd e,,,,.yonc """l'kC'd 1<1 p""'iUc the I)'pt "f nlalerilllIM:y did beM . "E~ell in tbe "'01'}' dc~e"", IllCnl f!"riu,J. the bu,i""" hcin~ ",,",idered tf'l.m.p. urn:on sd<)u. ly) is thoughl of rc: lal iy" to a (crtain .rr;. 1lI.a\<)f hci1\~ ahle 10 handle ii," I),,,",, ,aid. " 1 h"'itvt il ,<> ~ a n w~ importanl part nf ha ~in~ lhe ricturt n>lOC '111\ ..... ;Ih qual il)' al 11M: .Kh<:r end .- Thi. ;~ oh\'ioosl)' lit.: "PJlosite " I' approv'n~ a . .:npl. preparinjl. the 1oC(""', and IIM:n callin~ in any . \'ailllhir animators to (Oml'lele lit.: W()fl;, It als" pinl'"inblilc su blle ..... orkin~ rdation,hi[lS lhat mooe an es\;,bh""-d organ;~;lC i .... ~re made h;o., tu be dorIC in lerm. of tile nltn ..'ho made \hem and ho ..... Ihc)' fell aboul IhriI ass;gnnlCnt~. There "''CI'I: constanl e~rerimcnt~ in i..... ,'ali,·c pru,:e\11\.'<1. or all til<: Illtlhods lried ...... e li ~t bere ,110;; rt1
ha,'"
The Team The basis of (he Disney method of makin, • I'ilm alway. has ~n ICam effon. where mnstMl di$Cus·
sion and daily argumcn15 replace rigid procedures. Wall realiled thaI each person connected "" ith the film had 10 fec:llllal whal he did was the element th.at made iI.1l
wort. This meant keeping everyone involV«! in thc lCan:hinl and the trying and the cvaliwing thaI went on through the whole production. Wah summed it up
vcry simply. "Everyone has to ronlnbu le.
Of
lhey
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frank Lloy(! Wright once was trying 1(1 pinpoint the blamr for something he did IIOC Car!' for in one of O\lf rdm$. Whl:n ""C uplaiMd IhaI "'t all Wred in lhe
responsi bility since
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so democratically.
snorted. " lkmocrncyl Ttu,'s nO'
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MOB-ocncy!" [\ is true thaI their lalenls 10 the group efforl. Highly ideas aR nearly always bealen 10 the ground, " . preference given 10 ~ $OIid cnlCftainment. Ioiaet the baK mUSI be as broad as our audience. PnKIIIII prdcren<:cl succumb 10 the:: majority rule. or the dilt(lor. or the producer. bUI in the uthangc of idus Ibm is a stimulation thaI rIO individual cou ld generate ill himstlf. Our proced\U'CS trkd 10 nW:e ~ beSlIl$e of this collaboration by add.", COIIS\2IIt opponullitiH rtf it 10 flouriUl.
..."" Kay N;~lu~ "N;~It' "" BalJ M""",,,i~." fanlb ....
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Stylist M!.IOX)' s«mc:d to call for >onJething new in the .~ of ~)k iUId do:!;ign 10 m;Uch the mood of the m:lle · l1li;10. befono any KlUal SlOfY work '.'a~ begun. Walt _lei IoQI: fOf an ~nist of unique ability 10 make some di70iltp or painl,ngs tlw "'OlIld e~cile e~cybody . From Wl$ido the studio I1c brought in lOp illusmlton III thiktftQ' s books. such • • Kay Nid",n and Gu~taf T~. 10 uplOl'e the visual possibilities of, suI). p:t Witt"n our o .... n staff wen: highly talented stylisls Iott Akn lIurI«. Mary Blair. Don O:oGnwli. and (eo AIIIkrsoo ..... ho knew the produclion problems -' roulel r.uggest specific I~yoots or character s ketches a om not r.upposed to concern tl1cmse"'cs ,,-jth the ~ of malin, the pICture . ll1ey we", tcying to m• • "'I)'ofvisualil.ing the whole concc~ >0 that il ..tdbr IIItratti~e ,nd fresh and wablish an imegnt)' til ~ fl)f both Characters and 10coles. ~ "inspirational ske "hes" Sianed the whole IIIIft"""" AJ one animator saKi. "There ,s some""'(mung about animating on a seq uence that has .~I\'C locaJe-.--a milke-believe plact: IILaI would _'millIS 10 be In , Like the Snow Wbite IiClling- a r.c.ful workt , lloc senings in Pilloccioio--Geppetto's '"" full of all tllosoe dolls-the inside of the "hale. or
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Pkastln: Island-the locales i,"pin: ide"" for [ayuUlS and exciling ~""" thaI you can' , feci in the unlinary siluations. h §timulaleS your imagirul1ion SO Ihat )'QIJ Ihink of mon: unusual ideas . "1 No One ha<.l a charn:e 10 get bore<.l or §talc IX feel he was juSt doing lhe SlIme thing uver and over. Evcryul1C got a lift from ha"ing frnh .... Ienl .;u.uinuaJly SlIggest new concelMs . "Then: " 'cn: times when the dramalk QI' e huming styles suggested could I'lOl be maintained in .he aClUal animal ion-to everyone's disappoinlmenl. l'ossibly ""e "'"ere juSt not guod enough to ron"ert the slrong designs 10 our Iy~ of animation. bIIt we fel. that as long as ""e ""ere achieVing our audience idcnlir.calioo .hl"{)llgh sin_ cell'. believ~b1e characlcrs in real ..,,,ings (no mailer how fanciful). we had 10 keep certain fundamenlals of animalion . We u~rimented ""ilh OIher Iy~s of movement .hal might fil lhe sug~stions of lhe Slyl iS!, but they al"" a)'S seemed 10 lack life. No maner ""hat we tried. "" e well' ,"",ver able 10 adapt our Icchniques 10 lhe n:slriCiions of an incompalible design . w e all loved the c risp . fll'sh drawinp o f Mary !:Jlair; and. since she al"'ays wOlked in flat rotors wilh inlcr_ ~Iing sh.apes. " seemed Ihal her "..ork rould be animated wilh wonc1erful rtsults. AI'hough wc kept the colors. Ihe Il'lalive shapes, and Ihe proportions, once Mary' s drawings beg.an 10 mo\"e by the principles of
animation thaI W ah had decreed they often ~ ~ spirit o f her design . h " 'as 00 problem 10 mo~ die drawings art iSTically. keeping nKlly her suggesll\lIIIi - and some very imereSling innQvat ions came from lhose efforts-bul as won;c; il w~s M«essary 10 Idla $lory with warmth and pers(lfla[ily il all broke <\I;N. We had pro\"ed in Fonuuio Ih.al any ~ could II"OO\'r in almusl any manner to malch lhe "erve and CIC"", Mlcnl of a s.rong "'u~icallrack-as in the stirring dancn in .. Nutcracker Suilc" or the ab>lracl !lcsigns of ··Toc· cala and FugUl:" - bul this nlO,'cmenl could Qflly illlllIralC a Siory roocept; it could not sU$lain iI , "Thtrt a po!O§ibly a way to do both. We JUSI ... ver round 11 Ken Anderson fclt the problem wenl deeper. " Mary', style. . ; form. suggesting their O"'n dYlWnncs thl"{)llgh tbtl Il'lalionships . Anlmalion has ,,~ Own languai"'. and • is pn:ferable 10 dc'"C1op own c1cnlCnlS raloo ..... try 10 force il lO duplicate or augl1lCm another an form Afler alL aninlation is as much a scpara'e ",cilium iI ecramics. carvings, lapeslric~, fll'l'Cocs. or pl"inls.
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How The Storyman Works I~ l10e foa ...J !he Ho.mcI. ,,.,. flu ..... ".is~J OIl 1Mf_ "", _hils h«Io ,~,..u loou ill dot 'WfHNh. Sui",,, ~i/wl ';UII . '" ,",,,.,,.,., ,~I.....,..,... ",,,IIl. poi"" lot is ""'" likr" In""," ...,.. "'ttJl/tI. iUIJ M ",JIltS "'~, 10 "'/P . ..,;,/0001, . t -"illg
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Storyman I'lritlli pf pm,.." ,~ilJ hiKI be~ll brought into the ~tu· diG. oollho)' ~'tf\: 'eldnm J;inn a charn:e to "'Iile, A 5I:ript could be u....-J in Ill<: bo:ginning 10 sh< idea, we'~ talk~d (I\"e,. lo>s~d ~mund, be.llten to dc.lh . ..lIang.,.,] , di5carded , rc\'umrcd. built upon. iIIKI "mitkeJ" \\ i!ll()Ut • >ingl~ \\wd hein~ put tIown on I"'f"'r. Si~ animOl ion i; a vi,ua] medium, it ~ imjX'nanl th.1 the ~tM;- idca$. the ,'harac'l"fS. lh~ biJsinel<, 11>< e<>n1inuil)", and 1hc relation,hip, k pre· se!tl~d in I"ilual [","111 rath"r tha" in wonk So th~ 1WI}''''''rd ""' innnted_ 1M fIN , kctcllo;, to be pinn~d up ""'ere not the romi""il -' "r prof'< ,,,,dad iII n !:>ut gone", I iII u, t ration, 1Ifthc ide.: ~ro"pinp of c'ha,"~le". _,il"atio",. 10,:", lion,. th< fiN attempt, 1<' \ isu"li'~ thi, ,tor)" Ur~d· 1IIl1)'. il,; ,"'>io;~, wcre made. mmc of a ,'Otllinllity was leen.lnd. CI'"ntltally. ,ket"he~ emerged that defined k'l~l so;c"'" Ihol mi~hl be on the >ereen, Thro ugh illl t/Ies( ,h.n~>(" a, io.lcas g.rc ..... into >ome lhing bcll~r or lIiN to hold up, ~r ..... ere found to be 100 elusive to clp!Ure in
...
The misnmem !;(Iundl deceptively $ impl~ . Find the emmainmenl value, in 1he MOl')' ,iluatiider~J a vC'Y ,erioo, hu,in¢~, ,\ PI: ~'" n,,,,,, "",ei>led jul rigln f"r that '1'<)1 in the ,to",' und for Jh>1 panic"i." char""t"- On" new "'a" wa, 'lilt1n,d at as r... t ,~~~ nl0 grim, " he uid. "So "'" \I", laughing_ I 1hooght. '\'u ncn,l direc· to:n ha\'e ,,"Ire fu n Ih"n thi, I' .. : \\",11 !C('!'" to !lie;' subj
and a stof)' sketch m.n who ,'parked each other. eitoor through slimulation (>r 'heer irrilation, When anyone \\'as tl1'in~ h' pro'-e Ihat hi$ idea waS the very beSt I"'''ihlc. he would \I'()rk harder to m.~e it ," interesi' ing snd definite und clear", he could. n,., smryman did the talking in the mecting>. which !!""c him a d~f,nite Jd'-anla~~ in prescntin~ hi> ,,\I'n idea,: but Ihe shtch m;1n could conlrollhe appearance or the board, hy <'Iagin~ nql su~ge'tic.'n~ less oards. bUI often a ~erlai!l t~ill<"" could I-.: di'Ccrncd as the storyman ~1ancd his prcocn· tation "'ith th~ offhand ""mar~. "The -,ketches ore,,'t vel')' g(>oJ , but_ When the men in the story unit !CIt Ih"t thc~' h;od ~otnethin~ to ,ho", . the )' ",~,Id <,;ol! f"r a mct1 ing M"r~ olicn. Wall would barg~ in ulla nllO\l'l\....,d to >cc ho" thin~ , we", ~"ing , Sirn:c h~ h~d a hahit of I'",wl· 3t night 10 S<:c wh~1 i<.k~' wcre ing through th~ bdng gen~r3ted. this type of \'isit u,,"uall}' meant thai he had sun the 5tol')'hoards and wanted ~omethin~ diffcr~nt_thOtlllh this wa, ""Hr nlellliQIlCd . He woold feign innocence wi1h. "Whateha got here. guys7" iU1d the "'guys" would be caught so unprepared that they could respond " 'ith neither a hard sell nor an alibi. So they listened. and learned . As Dick Huetner ~id, " Walt was his own beSt stol1·man." Jf Wal t fclt that some solid idns II'¢re beginning 1<> sh"" up, "r that lome fn:~h ideas wen: n«ded. he would ~"II ;n "tocr M..... ymen to gel rca,'tions. F,,, quit~ a ["'riod h~ had what he called his "shaping crew." "ho 1"II"wed him r"'111 1001111<, n""n ~i"ing thelf thou~hls and sugge'ti"n~. One di~~rut\t lcd ~I<,,,y. man "ho preferred 1<> wor~ ",''''pletel)' .Iune co",· pl~in,'{) al",ut thi, "~onventi"n " method of huildin~" S1<11')'. and wp S1<)I')'m~n Ted Sean, ,um",,~1 up the 'imation I",,,t "ilh this pungent remark. "Ttw,,··, lII~h· in~ w""c than '",neone "ho ,0n",'S in with a ffl"oh coc'" But OUI of this sy'tem C3!OC w"",krfut "lOric<, filled with r;"h jili,a' that g;l,"C tn., animal<.>n the ~redtC't kip in the IIorld One of thenl conmlent!'d in Im"r year; "hen he viewed ~n old film. " y"" ~ct the f,..,). in~ (hal C>'~r)' la,t frame of that thing ha~ httn worLcd ovcr un!il it's perf"t!"
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.·~n""fI , lit LIIC'" 1\ .... ould be al"""" ""I'".. iblt ;md v«y $OOfI h" MlMkms ~al;~<1 Ih,s . ' 00, .
tJl\f:!U!lI!Itnt e~pn:~Sl()n •• t)I'" of ""IOn. ~'well .. wllm~ I~ .101)' of ,,-haf , happ.:ning . Wnell )"0'" look
la>'OUIS !h31 1r>I Lo",td . hi. approach ~".,"Ii,"'>d a '1)'lt h" lhe piclure . ~'kl hi, ~rt:lJlgtn",n, ..1 the -ctnc. aod Ihdt slnfytc ll ing value ""~"I11~ a gunk ,,, the: c Ulli n~ an,! 1'r.:,emaliQn "r Ihe i"'n, .If n,aLinE c" CI)'t"ing " ',Ilk pod fil t"~e.hl:1 ~ ... I n"",'h ."'" s"",,· Ii"" 'Ill his I k tried ,.. he n,,~ ibk and k""" an ,' .... n min.!. "'·... ause II< L"",,- ,"'" In ,hi: " Of}' " ..:c, · h" idea~ " -nuld he 'lilly 'I'rin~huarJ, ~l "" .. and j1;1~3Icl 'nne";'..... h ..., difficuh 1<11 Ih.· >10.), ""-"I,' h IIIall ,,, mainlall' a f,,"' in~ of dcl;l<;hn",nl al Ih,,,,., "".Sklll •• silK'<' lit
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I, Captoi~ H""l lit" ropl",~d Tink~r B~II and is 1,)'in8 '0 make her d;I'U/II' 'ht P~d • Sff'" hiding plact, Pre,ending friendship, he plays"" ht. jt~IOI
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the firs! One to put up a drawing willt his bean ill it The ani.ls who followed would be: juSt as vu1 ........ ble. but he was lite lead_off man . Even though 1!Im were altempts 10 soften the blows ("we're no! criti· cizing you, it' sjusillte idea we don', like!" ), tbc: fll:l remained Iltallhe sketch man had believed in rhe draw. ing when he made it. Because their comribution lo!he whole picture was so grcal, only anist, who dre"' ...'~ a special appeal or a sensitive slyle were put in . lOr)' skelch, and lhe very sensitivilY thai made them VaR. able was whal made lhem so depressed when the .tory, board was changed. And il was always changW. ThlI is the point of a storyboard. Occasionall y a SIOry sketch man would become too personally involved in his work and lei hi s ego bliDII him 10 lhe needs of the over3 11 story _There was ati~ when one such harned aniSI could nol staDd the !Tell. men! his lovely dr3wings werc receiving , As a paniolJar favorile was being tenlatively fol
pvIkd!h;lt s;:ct,h and the next th= dear off the board, tearing tile comers where the pIIshpins had held them the ,ketch m~n waS unmistakable. :-;0 dia~oe i$ needed if pantomime Can lell it all. WC"bt> Smith wa, a great stor)·man wOO drew ;n the old cartoon ,tyle and became not only one of 'he beSI ,",m." bill ()Ile of the most innovativc prankstcrs. Om:c. he h
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selling Wah the ideas being presented . TOIaily unprepared for a Chicken in the middle of his .\tound the ~vrrn:r. ,;c;o. an..! he .tips o!llhis crJzy old rug here. ~nd then he crushe, into this lamp, and he·s getting m~dder. and then this chicken comes and he - uh - he goes an· - he cOmeS - he comes in here an· _ well. anyway, Donald c"()me, along here "'Jmewh<:re ...... The mood had ~n broken. Afterward the devastated storyman vowed revenge. but Webb had a wal of protlll:ting his u wn boards from intruder,. >0 the sketch ended up on 'I<)fflC toolly innocent man· .. board just hcfore hi~ tie,\! meeting. From then on. year after year. the great apprehen,ion of e ,·ery storyman was that the famed ,·hkkcn .,kcl<:h would appear on hi s tloard in the final tense m;nUle> before Walt came for a big meeting. llIe ,.;ketch. bc<:ame more crumpled and torn <1.'; it W;!S gr~bIx,,1 viol~ntly time after time and thmwn clear out (Of 1he mont. but somehow it .
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Ie, hi! imagina.ion ron free .... rho: di.<"Clor· . job I>.:~Jn ~;m the fJfOC'.''' of picking up .Ik- pi.:ces and .rying to mal. thc:m all fillogelho: •. Man)" diffcrt:nt men .... cre ,O«j .. ,his posirion. some cumin!: from .1\( r~"k> of rlIt 51"')'''''''' " '00 h.ad a ~'i31 ,ocnse of rh" ,,·IM ... pot. ru,c. :rnd tllhc:rs from rM ~"un~''''''' " '00 Il:od ~ tucl of ....orking " 'i,h )"oun,,-.:. al1is,". Loyou. n..,n "/"If tried. a"i •• an. dir~c",.,.,. and c,'en people " 'hn ~ ,0 nuat !>cl .... een dcp;lt'mcnl., wilhout ;'ny real t~
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for only OIl( pieture . Wah .....cr wanted to be told llIat he could not do 1GB"tIu",. ~pn""iaJly if 1M reason "'"lIS. tecltn icality or mcrictlon of production . Still. he " 'as realistic tfIOlI&h to know Ihc~ anno)"ance~ had to bc consid_ Md. IiO Ilt pul key men in the unen"iable flO"ition of 1u.'·ln, 10} w.y, ··No.·· when the i
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Wal t's ;ntCresl !ay. If something excited him. Ilt would be deeply involved. lelling everyone .... hallO do: ...·hile if he Were mon: inlell:sted in some other area. he left .urpnsingly big decisions to his direclln. often by
to "find" his characters before going other Story sequences or even the experiso the production unit began search~I as one of its first assignments. By this
::::~:~'~hethetypeprecise of character we wanted in voice that made him
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always a very demanding process. For
TEMPOl(Al(Y MODEL
GeppetlO we had wanted a gruff, crotchety old man, who had a heart of gold but was accustomed to having hi s own way sine<: hc-lived alone with only his pets and his dreams. On the storyboards this had ~med ideal. llIere was warmth revealed in his inner fox>lings and humor in his put-on crankiness. llIe perfect voice belonged to the character actor Spencer Charters . and
SHEE'1 OF GEPPETTO
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our flBl model drawinp ..~re inOucnced by lIisappearano;e. B",I • • fler nearly 100 feci of nperimental animalion 11I0Il bttn done. i. ~me .pp"rent tl",. lhe hidden nuances tllal sllould have &i~n the wamllh "'tCre not as evident here as lhey miglll have been in li~ ac1ion. The character seemed abrasi~ and 100 51l'0III in his manner. Wc had ~. KrlwS miSl2kc . With JUSt o ne sequence in work and only lhe nperiment.1 animation inyolved. it was still possible 10 back up .nd SIan o-;c,r . The KaKh now Wili fOf • melJo..wr .... n. more gullible. and with an old·world chann. TIlesc qualities were found in ChriSlian Rub . The characlcr Wili redesigned. the dialogue changed to fll this new , u itudc. the Kqucnce rebuih around. diffcrcnt per$OllalilY: e~n(ually lhere e merged .Iovable old woodcarver ,,·110 was both me"-,,ble and belieyable. For a long lime Wall considered reoonIing!he voke$ iii pan of the Wlfyman's responsibilities. since he had bttn deeply invol.-ed in ,.·riting!he dialogue and knew so welt what the: lines ,.·c", supposed 10 do fOf lhe sequence . In the fifties. Ihis idea was gnuJually aban· doned iii II10K value WIS found in "-ying the dirtttOl" and the ani .... tors on the r«Oniin, stage. II is Ycry importlnllhat the animators be able 10 "scc" lhe alli. tudes and npression s whcn lhey close Iheir eyes and liSlen 10 the: voice . Too oflcn grell voices Of ,,,,al actors prove disappointing in this "'gard: il is not • maLlCr of talcnt or upt"ricnce . The quality of the voio«
itself ei.her bring, piclurcs to lhe animator's m;;"~ does not . TIle anim.tors were liso found 10 be alcn 10 lhe linle sou nds. the g!\lnts. the yO<,:11 mannerisms tha. gave .he specific nttdcd to make .he (11100II dra"'inp li,·e. is ",waled IlOl so much i and ""'"' enleru.ining characters are lillie _nds ralher Ihan lhe actual dialog...,. h was abo disro~red lhal nuony times lhe who had broug.hl lhe sequence up to Ihis now drained of ideas: a fresh lalcnl Ulking ~ working wilh lhe a!;IQI$ eould :>dju'l more rudily lhe problems of lhe ~dinll . If (he voice liked ",neeted J slili'lly 0l'Il: plJllned. I~re hJd to be a in our was Importln. thillhis rlCw i for whal i. offered . 1ne", ofl~n would ~ enten.inment patenl;al in a y~ or chal I pt"rtOII wilh J pm:oncep!ion mig.hl miS$. PcIer !:khn teSled for the bunny 111.:11 was ."' • ""_ Thumper. the ",action of the ca~. ing direc:IOI" "(io:. IhJI kid 0111 of there-~ can't act!" Th;, ;" . . danger o f one man lI·ying to do it all himself. It i 10 bccornc so (klcrmined 10 gel ,.'lI.:It you Ihin); w~ntlhat you sighl "~, x,",,10,~, offered. The difflcul.y of making .his kind of j·'~'_"1 compounded by lhe " cin cu" lhat everyone getS 11111 liSlCns 10 lines being said oyer and o~r. Soon IhI
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aclimu. offeeling. Othe. actors became O>l'lSlimu latro and neglected subllelies of the character liley were Irying 10 portray. Usually nothing wu lost in h•.ving K lOrS record their lines sepanuely , because I Jood (l)l("h could bring out refinements in I perfOf1Tll/lCC poaibly missed in a group recordin,. Anot"', advan· tage to separale recordings surflC«l " 'lIen ei!her tile I/limaIor or the di=tor later decided to alter tile amount of time belween two lines-perhap$ to change . dw· K le.', fK ial expression. If both voices had been reoookd on one track. wilh natural ovcrl l ppln" it would have been imp<:>Ssible to open up the sou nd track. We always tried 10 I"(cord only a portion of our dialocue in the first SC$sion. On t... shorts il did no! matter too ~atly. si nce thel"( was never much dil. Ioaue in them anyway . Howe~r, on I'" fUtUl"(s. OUr conlracts usually cilled for five sessions over I period of It least tWO years. and occuionilly we had pr0blems in rind inllhe acl()r1 ..·... n needed 19ain. (~ calls 10 Ellrope. Japan. and New York "'"Ue ~iml ~
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_-tw is Willlted . Once again. tile team effort
fl_", !he I"(spons ibilities offel"(d Ihc be51 wlu1iIII. So !he director of tile sequence was askcd to _ the ~ing session. with most of his unil -.cIhim makiRj suggcslions, lislcning. discussing. ~. The recordin, Ihal was approved o n Ihal .,. woukI be around 10 lutunt tllem all for years 10 ___ ..., importanl thaI il be lhe besl everyone Vr:ry 5t1doln did Ihe K I()r1 record all lhe lintS wilh!hey look I page or '''-0 of lhe $C11p1lt I p>l' them I ch.ance to listen 10 ...~ they
l~~d':;:.=;,«:.~e~hance makelines 5o&lu, of the10$.lime we I"( ;:~:~ and !hey weI"( numbered Ind I"(femd 10 as One " or "Take Two " (or occasionally
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Ii . ssistlnt director: " T1Iere ' sa take in Take 3. so take Take 2 and CUI off the . .. " . .ok< ."1 third take and take it clear 10 the SeD ICIOfS _med ",·clllocether. giving I natural , _~"'. . quality Ind building t'" whole pie.:e 10
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Sdndy DU~~dn .....U ' " Vult in TIlt Fox and the HOIInd. ,,'i.n dITU'OFl AFt Su ..n. f/fft) d~d T~d
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one oily 10 locate Peter USlioov. who was working only' hal f_mile away a!!be NBC Sludios in Burbank.) We needed lime 10 develop our characlers and build SIns through thdr penonaJities. Jim Jordan. ooce famed as Fibber McGee. was hired 10 do the voice of our . llHolrou in TM RUCWfS . He ~ame alarmed when we oullined our e~tended limetable and snorted. " Huh! You beller get nldience whe", bel ievability is required . The straight voice will keep !he clunocter dull . and lbe phony voice willlO$C the audic:nce . A difflCull II"IOITIC'nt rornes when I lop wem ~Ii rIQt give a perfOlTnaJlCC wilh either life or entenainmen! in the first Kssion. Is this an off day? Is Ihe material at fault? Should we look fOf someone elK? We asked the very talented Sandy Ouncan 10 do the: voice for our lady fox in TM Fox dnd the Howrd because m her fresh. disanning manner and her abilily
10 give any line In unexpected charm . BUI thoop lief
performance was exceptional. lhe "'ading was di"l'" pointing. lacking the crispnen and definition we had anlicipated . ~periencc IQId us lhe trouble had 10 be;' our script. and ~ wOft would be needed 10 p¥t Miss Dunean I clear Cha"'ler and a strongtr sitatlion . We n:alized that we n:ally did I\()( know OIIr link fQX as well as we thoughl we did. Back al our desks. we looked (or business lhat p¥t change. of altilude. SQmelhinlllo bring OUI n:1l COl> cern, a ~ilualiQn lhat WQlIId $how Sandy-. CUte. u., side. and make usc: of the wonderful warmlh ~he 00IIId give \Q almost any material. We wrote and talked a!Id ",wrote. and when she time in agai n the Kriplgl>t her the CIJIPIIf1unilies she: nm:Ied. Her perfOl'lTllllCt wrpasscd QUr original hopes, giving the inttgrity, (\or surprises. the te~turcs, the appeal that we needed. This kind of building and adapting naturally made utensive changes in the sioryboards, and the s~ Willi e ither enthusiastic about the great new po$$ibililies that were IIOw opening up , or he Willi slightly jIdnI aboul all his careful work being aboned. Since l!o! new suggestions had rome under lhe di=tor"J CODItol. it was only natUrallhat he keep the boards lid ine~ the new ideas . Ilowe""r , the changts ..... IlOl al ..... ys wccessful Of easily made. IeldillJ _ Sloryman 10 pin a large silln over his doot Ihll IUI!, " II was funny when il len here!"
Assistant Director This indi\"i~ual is neither an assi~t:"n nor a director . Ik i! l uoobleshooter and ~cord·~eeper who has th.: jOOof.w.ing order out of the ,weeping ~ritidsms and mali .. e thr and the productio" unit. H. "'orks in area\ where Ihing., wnstantly c,on go WIIIn,. Fr."".." can b.!com. )o"t morc easil)" than c~t · lie on the r.nFe. and. ~' '''ith the ~ tral' dogie, a nliss· in5 frame mu,-/ be found_which i, incomprchcn:>iblc 10 li"NICli\ln edilon-. wh" me",ur~ Iheir film in arm lettgth" Every I.st frame of " canonn must Ix: c"n· !rolled if Itlcrc i. 10 b.! any' :'IIIC with th~ ""ice'. the musio;,th. '''''00 dfe,,". or e"cn t" match one track 10 1IIOlher. After a !"\!f, puning in t"" much in others, andocc;uiorolly for having cut in the wrong --take" It)mewbere el~. When the tra<;k i~ approved. it is written up on ~y sheets of paper marked with m~!I)' 1iDeJ, each one indicat ing a s ingle fra me of film on Ihe trICk. The Itan and ~nd of each take is OOtw as ""ell as \h:\otaJio!I of the words within the take. Any ch~nge io1bc tratb from then on will be made on the~ !trey s/Ietls, .,,,,sing "ut >-Ome frame l ine~< patching in "th. en, In tbis way. these "'S~Y~" hccome the li"in~ rami of the piClUte. re.:ording each shift. each chang~ , (lit, RplaCt'mt:nt. s wilch. addition--evcry whim of the diIector and animator, kfort lronl(. thc
whether ,ound or (lietore. w3,
Cutter The cartoon ,uller has none of the latitude of his Ii"e ' .wn cOIlntcrp;lr! to deternl;ne lengths of seenn or ~which ,b<~s shall be used, Hi, job is C
film. aO<1, ~,ond, wilh keeping lhe all·important sync. In order to have everythinj!. a" flexible as possible while the animmion is !>ringing out new ide;lS, tlte !.Ound should he kept ,m sel".rnt~ tracks. Even tltc
film ""I II h..·~ four !".eb : IWo of d'alo~"". """ uf sound dY~·h. ~ """ of onu,...,. 11Ic culte. n'U~1 10.1 ~nd ,;".., ~''''ry lake lhal has betn m~d.o: of (;,ell '·ute.., lalent: 1M sclen~<.Ila~C$ Ihal Wtre I"ed Ihe rceb. Ihe replaccnM:nlS and altcrnal~' Ihal ....,'" con~lderW, and. linall y, all llle Ihou,and" of I'ny scraps Ihal Were com. """,nds some an,malO' hkW bul could 001 find any plac( 10 u"'"' AI thor t nd of Iht pkl"",. lle w,lI be ",,~rchinl: desperalely for many of Ihe'o . The ,""e,m mUft I, ~e thai of a I,brari an Ih an I film ed'm•. e'l'eci~ll)' if lhe .""I~m di.eclor h~. dooc hi; job "'·ell. bUI. atlually. trn:rc ;~ moch crc:a· 1" ·IIY and dear Ih,nbn!; demanded of lhoe cutler . Mmplc~1
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The whole un;1 m.) be u,~r to l"le" tn a ... ~I) .ecorded lract. hul lho;- l;u:onlC cUller "'ake' (>'tT)'_ ,,'~ it unl,t ho;- has scrobed hb lakn ~nd put n~rlll"nt in tmkr , In :oddit;on, h~ """C , u." ,. hi. ",",I~' trJet flind A baldul C)...• ~rc.". the nu· beranl animalor who d~i"". ·· we Cal\ 1(11 in ~ minui( if it" " ~olng 10 wor t and lhen " ·e ,·"n put il t'~hl back the " 'Il" ,1 ".,,!'. Somcllll"·, n ",,'·e. '1u'l<' ~o." n,. back. and hoot., arc 1of"'n1lrpng 10 find OUt "h~ .
Charactcr Model Departmcnt In the mid·lh'rlM:'. ron modd ,hoxl o r the ChafXlei'S was official "nul" bon: the Sfil), "n Ihe design and "flpearance of ""ulr ewr)'thin, llul "",,·W un lhe scra:n. and hiS la>lt and jud~nl(nt "'ere larlel)· re· • pon.ihle for the plcas'n~ \Irk that identif,.,d lhe 1)i"lC), product ,juring Ihal period He wlle,led under h" ,,·ing. in Iht CharctCtcr MndclDepartmcnt. a 'trnng j/lOUp of ,"cry taknled ~rI;>b .. ho m;uJc ;nspif1"~ ~nd $UGG[Sltll
stimulJlln!; S~ctclll.'5 of all t.... """ ch~r...,t ...... bo,,'I: eo""dercd . Joo:., .In- wings were o.i supp!)' "r lo"ely sketch<.;. hi . podet. , >u~~c"in~" nkcr effect . a ~flc' look. I mo.e inler-.,ti n~ .ha~, and W.h a, ked r-.peale<.\l)".
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The Characler Model Department eventu, panded to include three SCUlplOrs who lransl' drawings into beautiful, liule day figures of eao; acter , 1bese ,'..ere cast, and a limited number 01 models, painted in the colors suggested by the Model girls," were dimibuted 10 the animators were no elusive smudges here but hard realit y i, and shapes magnificently do"", and lhey were aid to the whole animation department . Unfom lhey were so good that Wah started giving $OIT to VIP's as souvenirs, while others became per decorations in the offices of tOP personnel. 1 had a way of disappearing, especiall y as we 00: end of a picture.
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"WIIat ya gO! lhere, Joe?" Joe would caslla!1y revuJ his lillie masterpiece, causing Walt 10 exclaim. "Yeah .. yeah! Look 3tthis. guys. isn'lthat beuer" Why don't we draw it like that?" However. there was no wayan animator could duplicate in line what had been captured with a sl ighl snludge Qf chalk. Although stimulaled by an improved appearance for the charac· ter. we were completely frustraled by lhe lechnique.
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Layout The layout man has the Il'SpODsibility for the appear_ ance ofthc pkture, ~ne by scene, and.s ltota l film . If" special style has be<:n set for tM production. h.. adapIs this work 10 the breId·and-buuer ne.eds of the SttIlCS. He worb with the: direclOr on the: suging and dramatization. building on !he ideas of llle story sketch man. He designs the ~kgrounds. suggesto the; p;cilemcnl , .",spense. purpose. or j ust as easily make it a dull conglomeration of tedi0ll5, endlen scenes. 1),., sarrN: potential uius in the animated film. but _ must operate in ~versc ! We
have 10 make our de<.:iS1ons when the film exists only in our d~ams. II i~ far easier when the~ a~ tangible strips o f film thaI can be spliced t"lelher and ce>led and j udged . In theory. the layout man plarrs his seque~ e_ fully in rough s ketches. working back and forth to find the bes l way to IiO lve aU of the problems inhc~OI ill any film . Surpri singly. one of hi s biggest lM:adaches iI in keeping the di~tions clear and C(IfIsi§lent lIS dw: characters move "<'ross 11M: ~n:cn or uthangt: Ioob during dialogue. As long as tIM: ~er.es were prcsenttd as Ken by an audience watching. mge performanct. the~ had been linle problem. 8uI once: !hi: camen moved among the acun and throogh the sets. ~ bcame more difficult 10 keep 11M: audience oriented. Since (b, ~enes we~ planned 10 stage the bus iness ralher clariry the precise location o f 11M: c haracters.
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.;ewer; unles> a Ck;if directivn fmm one OIOC nf the I(lt(n 1o Ihe "ther had been e,labli,hed, The", ;, mo."" fun in drawing up Ihe b,~ pi,'tur;al Itt'"" thal_n of IhC fir-t four or fj," fcuia.;kgwund paint~r ~ ~"il,"g 10 "'p,,,inl\:nt W;lh I((hnique ' Md colors, lhtdire.:tor "ant, him to ",ake 'orne ,kel"""" to repair !be 110<)' ltolS. and, svmehow, the part he ha~ been dtinl:U\i aboul has !>fen revised before he even bad 3 ~~ to p~1 any thoughts down on pa!'C'r, Some men CIil adapl quickly 10 ~uch chang~., aying one ide1 Ifteuoother on the !po1, bUI mosl need lime 10 ~dju,!. As one Itm.lrked, "! can·~ do ske~,hes on my lap lik~
Ken AnderS011 . I have 10 tv back 10 my de,k and Ihink ab.,Ul il 3 litHe .. · Here is a 11<1 of .ome ()f tbe Ihi11~' Ihe layoul spe" duli,j> think "oout. l"k~n fr<.>rn Ihe .",rap~ of !"Iper pinned to ~hei, ks. They cOme primarily from Ken O"C,mn()r an their leacher<,
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I, One qui<:k l""k i. "II Ihe 3I1di"""c gels- keep il ~'mpl~. di ..,t, li l e a p"'ter; i1 must sell ;111 idea: 2_ btt9 rendering al u ]at" ,laiC cannot sa,'e 3 p"ur original c<'Cpiioll_ ,~ Alway' keep '~"-'en dir~liOl\' rI.."y. Thi< will he your bi~gesl head""he--don·1 ",-..I'M>t. il _ ~,,'cn by differenl lenses. gm"nd gl"ss. f'ltcr~, ~ek What Ihe "1>1kall'rinlcr ,,"n d" f"r you, 7 :>'1000 can h<: e~tahlished b)' Illning and "IOVC·
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Four Ways to Plan and Make the Layouts ~~~--'(:.,.
I. The Thoughtful Thumbn ail Devdoped by Ken Anderson and Wi lfred Jac:kson for Tile Seng of the Soulh . W ilh their knowledge of ~!a, ing. layout . and visual communK:3!ion. !hey worked from the s toryboards in s mallihumbnai l sketches . trying one way aflc r 3001hcr. When a conlinuity fin~lIy was found. [he animators were Cllkd in 10 cnlk il.e and StoWS! slill more iokas. Wilh Ken's IllW'ing abil· ity. !iketches were made as fa~1 IS the men •• Ike(! . ~ became lhe basis for the final layouls. cunin,. and SllIin,. and showed "'" :mirrullor where lIis KCM fil inlo the fult continuity.
2. Traditional More: though! is pU! inm visuali1.inlllhe aclual layout 110 III • • C~ryOM will know ulclly wlu.l is being planned and can judge if il will wOO; properly. ClaMP still (:an be made . bul !hey genenlly are confined 10 small !hines. such as extending the drawin, !IO I slil,hl 1"'" move un be u~. or moving a piett 0( fumiture 10 make Il1(lft room for the chafxlcr in the KCIIC . ",~ method works best if the t.)'OIII1tWl has had cnougll lime ~o plan ~he ~~~ging for the whole se:q~ncc .
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3. The Multiple Choice Also contributed by Ke n Anderson , the idea here is to stimul ate everyo ne to the poss ibilities in a situation and a locale, g iving the director , layout man, and animators a cha nce to choose the staging and layout each liked best. Ke n ins pired us with the possibilities in the visual presentatio n, going far beyond business and staging.
4. Long Shot or Establishing Shot For The Fox and the Hound, Don Griffith establ ished with this mas ter shot the houses o f the hunte r a nd the widow , the dista nce be twee n them , a nd the detail s in the terrain . For the w ho le pic ture, this layo ut the n became the guide fo r all business in thi s area .
A scene of a closer shot along the fe nce is planned, keeping all the spatial re latio nshi ps established in the long shot. No matte r what came ra ang le is chosen , e ve ryone in the unit knows what shou ld be shown in such a shot.
~, Experimental Animation
",1".
"t With the voices recorded and the lead story sequence " approved in the story reel, it becomes time to start the ' ,Jx(Jerimental animation, The term is misleading in some " ways, It means that' a supervising animator will now , take these ingredients along with the suggestions for the appearance of the main characters and, putting it all together, see if he can come up with a personality " that comes to life on the screen and is interesting enough i to hold the picture together, lfhe sequence that is chosen for the first story work :it involves the main characters coming together in an " interesting situation, For instance, the first sequence ~:' ~f Pinocchio was the one in which all the characters ;" are introduced in Geppetto' shouse, The action here is subdued enough so that everyone can observe the " appearance of these new figures, and there are enough
"7
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,1 ~VISED
personality traits apparent In what they 'do to show who they are and how they acL Some animators' prefer to start with the acting , revealing the personality of the new character through what he does and leaving the refinement of his appearance until they know him better, Others feel just as strongly that the appearance is primarily a drawing problem that must be conquered before any acting or movement is attempted, Animators, like artists and actors everywhere, are all different, and they each have to find their own approach to their work, Much of the strength of the studio actually has come from just these differences in the individual animators, which
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Our firM Pinocchio had wooden hands,
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ing cap, and a cocky personality. Wafl found this to be lOO brash and lacking in appeal, so
we slopped animating until a new design could be fOl/1Id, marching a !lew story concept of the character. Fred Moore 's drawings at upper right suggested more innocence and the proportions of a boy rallier than a puppet. Milt Kahl's drawings of the chubby, naive
little boy in the Tyro/ean hat became the filial model when we resumed animating six mOlllhs later.
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account for the variety of feelings and characters they can portray on the screen . The general appearance of the character can be almost any design that fits the story and the overall style of its presentation, but the specifics of how he is drawn depend entirely on what business he has to do , what attitudes he must show, and what expressions he will have . The voice will suggest many facets of his personality , but the needs of the story and his place in it are the major considerations. Once you know what you want him to do , you will know how to construct him so that he can do those things best. His job as an animated character is to communicate story ideas in the most entertaining way, and just being alive is not enough. We must study the design carefully, questioning the shape of his whole figure, his costume , his head , cheeks, mouth , eyes, hands, legs, arms-even the setting he is in and how he relates to it. Is the scale correct? Is it drawn to give the best advantage to the character? Does it support and fortify hi s personality so that he feels dominating or timid or clumsy or defiant, or whatever he is supposed to be? This is as much a part of the problem as the type of movements he has, the timing of them, and the acting in both body attitudes and facial expressions. However it is done , eventuall y there will be about 75 feet of film animated and projected fo r all to see and criticize. It is interesting that the react ion always follows the same pattern . If the characterization is weak for any reason , the drawing is criticized. If the business is weak, the characterization is criticized . For some reason, the original business , also being tested at this point, is assumed to be infallible, and only the new figure's appearance is tom apart . One young animator was quite shaken by the criticism of hi s scenes. "The best drawing in the world wouldn ' t have helped because it would still be empty; it was because of the emptiness in the business that they criticized the scenes." He went on to explain , " I can' t make a drawing until I know what I'm trying to draw. ,, 7
If the business is right and the animator made the right choices on hi s drawing and acting, everyone is elated . There may be tiny suggestions about details, appearance , or ways of doing something , or. more
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likely , a way to build to an even more entertainingl action, but the main reaction is one of enjoyment and excitement. ~ Walt seldom complimented anyone, letting us fee~ that sheer perfection was the standard he expected of everybody. Nevertheless , we will always remember his reactions to o ur experimental animation of BambI: and Thumper. He had been concerned over our ability, to make four-legged characters have enough personal, ity to sustai n a whole feature, but when he saw OUI first efforts he turned to us with tears in his eyes! " Thanks, fellows ," he said , "That stuff is pure gold!'~ It was one of the few times we can remember hif. coming right out with a sincere compliment. Les Clarki one of the earliest animators at the studio, remembered· its happening twice in 39 years , when Walt said JM:1 particularly liked the Mickeys Les drew; usually his appro val was indirect or buried in some other thought: He did not like to expose his feelings , and it was ', ~ impossible to thank him for anything. He would cough 'f and scowl and mutter, " Yeah, uh- well , say , we've,. got to get going on this thing, y'know ; it' s gonna get way out of hand if we don ' t pay attention here .... " "' if With the experimental animation approved, everY~ body could go back to work with a new idea of what this story is going to be and how it is going to be told, Once the characters have been seen as living and a,t~' ing and showing very definite, specific , and , especial· .
Iy, entertaining personalities, everyone knows how to handle them . The storyman can now start on the next sequences with more confidence; the layout man can ·work with more precision ; and , also, very important , !he " inspirational sketch" man can start exploring new
situations that will give these characters their best chance for great performances. The rest of the animators are brought on as suitable work is found for them, although it may be six months before everybody can be working full time on the work each does best.
The Handout The animator gets more than just a scene and a pat on the back when he picks up his work from the director. There is a tape or record of the sound track, along with an exposure sheet, which is not only an exact copy of the scene as it appears on the greys, but it also contains suggestions for accents to be caught or certain staging to be maintained . The animator will get a copy of the final storyboards so that he can see how hi s scene fits into the whole sequence , and he will have the layout showing the size of the characters. their suggested positions. the extent of their movements , and the area in which they are working. In addition , there is a full scene description which reminds him of why the scene is in the picture, what it is supposed to .actiieve, and what has been considered entertaining '3b'out it. When we were younger, the director and the anima.t~r acted out everything for each other, down to how 'Bluto would eat out of his dish . The handout of only a few scenes could take the whole day because the idea 'W'as to pack as much entertainment as possible into that continuity , and we knew it could be still better. no matter how good our last version sounded. Elsa Lanchester said of the business she had worked out for one of her scenes , "There's always a better way, you know . No matter how good it is, the re's always a better way , and you ha ve to keep trying, don ' t you?" Back in the thirties, we talked of how Chaplin would do the scene, or perhaps Buster Keaton, or one of the fellow s in the studio whom we both knew , and we climbed on the table and over the chairs and all over the room chasing imaginary cats or villains or whatever. One day Wil fred Jackson was di sturbed by violent sounds coming from Bert Gillett 's room directly above him . "I heard this terrific music going on with thumping and bumping- I tho ught they were moving furni ture or something ." Gi llett was the other director , and
Jackson was used to the sounds of a musician working o ut a pattern as Bert jumped from his table to the floor repeatedly, trying to capture the timing of fleas jumping off Pluto 's back, or even the " thump-clop , thump. clop-thump-c1op" as Peg Leg Pete ran after Mickey . But this sounded more sinister, and Jackson just had to go up to see what was going on . His eyes popped as he opened the door. "Here was Frank Churchill over at the piano with his cigarette hang ing down, with his eyes closed and his foot stomping away," while on the other side of the room, Bert had Fred Moore up against the wall and was swinging wildly with his fi sts. Fred was trying desperately to duck and break away , but was doing little to defend himself. Jackson stared in horror , wondering if he should call for help or try to stop the fracas by himself. Suddenly it all stopped, and the three men walked back to the big table and looked at the exposure sheet, marking down actions and timing . They were working on a scene from Ye Olden Days where a big horse has a fi ght with a donkey . There was always great value in this process of ac ting out a scene . The animator even had his assis· tant do it when back in his room , so he could see how the scene looked and determine the best angle for drawing it. This helped in deciding how best to use the time for putting over the business , as well as noting all the tiny details of the action. The handout is not finished when the animator takes his scenes and layouts and tracks and readings down to hi s room. He is sti ll turning things over in his mind. The director has told him that these particular scenes are the most important ones in the picture, with the best entertainment potential , that probahl y no other animator could do them as well, and that he really will make a name for himself on this picture . The animator listens to a record or tape of his sound track and won·
ders if they really picked the best take of the dialogue. He looks at the layout and wonders if this is the right way to stage the business. Is the character too small for the expression to read? Maybe it should be two scenes. He makes some thumbnail sketches, studies' the photocopy of the original storyboard, then storms back up to the director's room with a whole new idea. " Hey, wouldn't it be better if we did this in a close-up, facing the other direction and saying this second line of dialogue flfSt? Then we could add a gulp, and maybe a sigh, and then go into that other line . . . ." The layout man turns back to his desk muttering something that no one hears as he stans a new layout. The director must listen because he may get back a
scene without any life if the animator does only what J he is told to do. Perhaps he is not thinking about the scene in the same terms as the director, and that possibility, coupled with the likelihood of a mechanical performance otherwise, makes the director do some thinking. He has an opponunity, now , to get a scene that sounds different from what was planned, but one I that has enthusiasm behind it and a good chance to be just as entenaining; it is worth considering . I A compromise is reached , the track is shifted, the scene description changed, new layouts made, expo- I sure sheets and greys are corrected, and the enthusi~ tic animator returns to his drawing board . The handout is over.
Supervising Animator
:animator is training the r assigned 10
Inston, left, Ie discllss a
I animate in
ne Hound.
This title meant that the individual was responsible for the work done by the men under him. Ordinarily, he would be assigned anywhere from one to seven or eight animators of varying talents. If they were strong , experienced men, he had little to do. They would pick up their work from the director and do the scenes by themselves. The supervising animator would talk to them about the character they were doing, exchange
ideas on how to keep him consistent in appearance, suggest business that might fit into their section of thepicture, or discuss further ways they all might develop the character. He might also commiserate when things went wrong or try to defend his animators if they were unjustly criticized. When the animators were less experienced, the supervisor did whatever was necessary to help them get a satisfactory result. He was present at the handout, making suggestions and being sure that these menl understood just what was wanted. In some cases, be made the key poses for each scene and even shot them on film as a guide for how the scene should work. Afterward, both drawings and film were tumed over to the new animator, allowing him to concentrate on just the movement within the drawing rather than wOll'f about all the other aspects of doing a scene. This young anist still had the problem of making that movement convincing and entenaining with the quality of life we wanted; his energies could easily be dissipated if be were expected to do too much all at once. We estimated that it took a year and a half to learn the basic fundamentals of animation and another five or six years to be at all skillful. Even so, we never outgrew the concept of helping each other, exchanging drawings and sharing ideas. It was the basis of the team effon and enabled us all to do far better than we would have by ourselves.
The Animator Stooy,layout, painting, styling-these are creative jobs , difficult and rewarding and interesting , but essentially concerned with solving problems in the most an is tic manner. Only animation is magical. This is its appeal. The creative artist can make something here that exists and breathes and thinks for itself, which gets back to our test of all great an: does it live? Techniques can be copied, mechanics can be duplicated. and even the drawings themselves traced, but the spark of life comes only from the animator. His taste , judgment, and ideas are unique with him and his animation. It is a highly individual effort. As a person , the animator may be shy or introvened, arrogant or domineering , quiet or pensive; it no longer mailers. Personality traits fade away as an artist enters the private world of the drawings on his board . Through the characters he creates, he can be adventurous, crafty. funny, evil. lovable , athletic; he can be a bird, a flower , a snowflake, a shaft of light. This is a very auractive prospect to most of us. At times his scenes appear to be controlled too much byo!bers; the design of the character, its personality , ~ layout, the amount of footage are all determined by soineone else. However, as a contributing member at Ibe group, the animator undoubtedly will receive I!lIlIt stimulation than restriction from this process . Wbile the layout man was thinking primarily of storytelling and design and mood when he suggested the locale and the props. he undoubtedly had strong ideas of how the character should act as well. Equally sllong ideas were held by the storyman, the director, and everyone else who had contributed to the scene up to this poin!. Now the animator must build on the work and the ideas of all these people , selecting and discarding carefully, sifting and judging, suggesting aad changing, until he has found a paUem of action that is just right for him . He must understand it and feel it; it must be his own, regardless of where the ideas came from . It is this personal thinking of the animator that makes the scene good. not the re liance oa others to tell him what to do . This does not mean that he is obliged to change the business or feel compelled to think of something completely new . First , he must listen and try to appreciate
the values of the scene as it stands . More than one top animator has ruined excellent story material by insisting on animating a scene when he does not understand the humor in the story situation or feel the action. The animator works back and fonh through his scene until he has made the drawings that control the movement . He might have to make a drawing for every frame of film , or his key drawing might occur only every foot , depending on the panicular action. The number of dra wings is immaterial, because as an anist he would be drawing day after day in any job he has taken. Here , his drawings happen to be in continuity and related in a very special way . He discards far more than he keeps in his attempt to capture on paper his feelings about the scene, so his concern is not how many drawings he has made , but how well they depict the vision in his mind.
The idea for this scene in The Fox and the Hound
Vance Gerry develops the situation ill his story sketch.
comes from GIl inspiration. al sketch by Mel ShalV oj the faxes meeting in a ro· malllic setting.
Rough layout oj the specific scene by Don Griffith shows the approximate po· sitions of the characters in a close· up of the setting.
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Assistant Animator Gradually we developed a professional class of " clean up men " who took pride in their work. It was their skill that made the pictures look so fi ne, ye t for a number of years they never got screen credit , nor even the salary they deserved . They sometimes were compared to a blocking back on a football team who clears the way for the star runner to make the yardage and the headlines, and it was true that they had to take their satisfaction from the success of the sequence on which they had worked. They studied line drawing, training on Holbein , Degas, Daumier, Da Vinci; they watched drapery in movement , noting the difference between filmy scarves, woolen skirts, f10wing capes, a nd even baggy pants; they learned the value of a sharp , crisp line against a large , soft shape; they knew how to keep a design in the free-f1owing changing shapes of ani mation rather than make a rigid copy . They always extended the arcs of the movement , squashed the charICier more , stretched him more-refining whi le emphasizing both the ac tio n and the drawings . They understood the business of the scene , what it was supto achieve, worked closely with the animator in :deciding which parts were developing well and which needed a little help , and the y could see the charstart to live as they " rolled" the drawings on pegs. This required a special kind of talent as well study-not every arti st cou ld master it. The best working pl an seemed to be the small unit only a few men who , with the animator, carried the responsibility of doing everything on their own . An ideal group would include an assistant aniwho was experienced enough to make simple IlnilnatilJn changes and corrections, a second assistant drew well but was just learning his job, a reliable limlkd()wn man, and an eager inbetweener who could as bookkeeper and handyman . Thi s las t cateincluded everything: threading the film on the taking a test over to the cutter, running up to Music Room for a corrected layout, or even prying
the reels away from a distraught assistant director "for just a couple of minutes ; we want to see how it looks c ut in the reel! " Together they budgeted their work and met their deadline. No other system retained as much quality or moved as much work without losing control of the way it was done . Assistant animators who had this much ability were seldom content to stay in this position for more than a few pictures. Some went o n into animation, but most went into other types of jobs where their interest in detail, 'efinement, and design was stressed. Undeniably, it had cost more to have a clean up man redraw the complete scene, but it was the o nl y way we could have produced the rich charac te rs of the first features. In later years, as costs continued to soar in all departme nts , a new procedure call ed " Touch-up" was instigated . It asked that the animator draw slowly and carefull y enough so that the assistant need on ly touchup the drawings he re and there to make them ready for the Ink and Paint Department. By this time all of our animators had become more ski llful and were able to adj ust to the new idea without noticeable damage to the product. Top quality clean up work is needed on only a handful of scenes in any sequence , and a great variety of shortcuts can be used on the balance to make them acceptable. Unfortunately , the assistant' s work over the years has been considered an area where money can be saved. The production manager watching the money will have been frustrated through the early days of production since there is no way for him to measure ideas or work in progress. But once drawings have been made, a smile envelops his face . Here is something that can be counted, checked , timed , and followed through the plant. The term " pencil mileage" is heard often as the number of artists plus the speed of output is balanced against " footage to be done." Between trying to please the animator who wants the best and the manager who . wants the quickest , the assistant must reach a compromise that still satisfies his own standards .
Pose Test The quickest way to see how a scene is going to pl ay is to shoot wha t we call a " pose test. · ' While the animator is sett ing up hi s sce ne , fig urin g the size . the movement. the ac ti ng. he is making ro ug h drawings that wi ll become the basis of the ac tual anim ation . No w , instead of refinin g those draw ings and re lating the m to each other , he se nds the m to camera j ust the way they arc . They are the key poses fo r the sce ne a nd show how the sce ne is be ing pl anned . By shooting the m at no less t~ a n 4 frames apiece and no more than 24. both the director and the animator can see if the action w ill be strong e nough . or too strong. and if the amo unt of ti me all owed fo r the sce ne is go in g to be ri ght. Whe n a series of pose tests are c ut together in a reel , the re is
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T he re is also a poss ibilit y that the scene may look funni er and more interesting in poses than it ever can in full animation . Fred Moore had a famous scene in Snow While that a lways worked far bette r in the pose test. The scene showed Dopey and Happy ve ry con· cemed a bout the mag ical powers of the ev il queen. Grumpy had just informed the m that she might be in the ir room " ri ght now! " Fred used abour ekven poses to show Dopey looking from side to side , then glanc. ing at Happy ' s beard, lifting it, se arc hing under iI. then rece iving a " bonk " on lhe head . When th is pose les t came bac k from came ra . it had a s urprising crisp· ness that gave excite ment and a fee ling of nervous appre he nsion . There was a big laugh the first ti me it was shown in sweat box . but that was the hest the scene ever looked . f rom the n on it we nt dow n hill. I Fred made new and be tter poses as he animated the I scene , hut the c rispness was gone . Afte r severa l uns uccessful tests. in desperation he went back to hi s orig inal poses and tried to work between them , hoping to recaptu re the spark le that was in his first pose test. T hat w as even worse. He never d id find the ri ght combinatio n of ti mi ng and spac ing and regre tted e ver having posed Ihe scene in the first pl ace. The sweatbox note shows Walt 'seffon 10 ge t more life in the sce ne: Scene 3 1
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Be closer at the Slart of this scene. and as you pan up. come back at the same time. The minute Dopey looks unde r the beard . have Happy tum right aro und and hit Dopey. takin g out the stall yo u now ha ve . Happy wo uld ta ke it j ust as the extreme was reached a nd turn right to hitting Dopey. Fred, you suggested that Dopey's head , fro m the bonk , would go down and pop up agai n . Walt okayed il. Despite some negati ve aspects, pose tests have a distinct value. as we d iscovered when working on Bambi. The sequence of the young deer on the ice with his friend Thumper was a bo ut to be c ut fro m the story as being ex traneous business . The animator who had hoped to work on this section was appalled " The
dialogue that had been recorded was excellent ; the story sketches showed clearl y what great enten ainment the re would be in the situation; it would be a wonderful seque nce to animate . A meeting was scheduled to make the final decision, and the animator was de termined that this material should get the best possible chance for approval. For three days and nights he worked , posing scenes. ro ughing out new sketc hes , making o ut ex posure sheets, shooting held drawings and story sketches. until he had a running reel on the main pan of the sequence . It was c rude, but it sold the idea. Without the pose tests sho wing the poss ibilities in timing and reaction, the sequence would ha ve been cut from the picture. As it was, the relationships were built into even more entertai ning actions until that section became a high po int in the who le picture .
The Work Reel When the animator has film on two or three o f his scenes. he wants to see how they play in contin ui ty . By themselves. the y may look just great, hav ing life and sparkle and clarity , or they may be a comple te disappointmenl. All of this can change completely whe n the scene is viewed as part o f an overall contin uity. After all , they ha ve been planned to work in sequence Sl!dthat is the way they should be seen . The dull scene may have just the subdued feeling needed for that spot. and the active one may be e ntirely too violent . The only way to be sure is to c ut them into the story reel, re placing the story ske tches that are occup ying
this spot in the pic ture . Here. the y will benefit from the suggestion o f ac ti vity and pe rsonality in the scenes just preceding, as well as the ones that follow. As each a nimator continues this prac tice . the story reel gradually becomes the work recl. or the ruff reel. since it contains all the scenes of rough animation. Coupled with the matc hing sound ree ls. they are constantl y chang ing with the latest revisions of footage and scene cutting. As each new test comes in , there is usually a request for the additi on of a sound or a slight shift in position fo r bette r sync. In this manner, the work reels , at all times, reflect the progress of the
sequence and show whether the anticipated entertainment is actually there. Everyone can learn something from them, even in this rough fonn. The layout man might discover the mood and design is not as evident as he had hoped, or the background man can find out how long a certain background will be on the screen and how much of it
will be covered by the figures. The director wants Ihe work reels for his sweatboxing, the animatur needs them to study his changes. and the assistant animator must check the scenes he is to clean up. Throughout the day, the assistant director will be trying to grab Ihe reels so he can make all the changes thai were requested yesterday. They are a popular and necessary item.
How Does it Look? We never made a picture starting at the beginning and working straight through to the end. We began with the section that gave the best opportunity to get hold of the characters, then moved on to a sequence that either had the greatest entertainment potential, or was needed most for the development of other phases of the picture. There was no possibility of establishing a now this way and very little chance of finding a balance of fast to slow, excitement to serenity, pathos to comedy. The individual sequences were not handled like a short, hut they were complete in themselves and high in interest. We were curious about how it would look all cut together. We knew it was fairly easy to make an interesting picture that would run only ten minutes. Most people will watch almost anything that is fresh or funny or surprising for that long. Twenty minutes is an ideal length for an animated film, and even a half-hour show offers few real difficulties. The audience can be kept dazzled or persuaded or laughing, mayhe even crying a little , in that amount of time. But beyond a half hour , troubles start mounting . A feature -length film requires very special considerations. It is important that it be seen in some kind of running form as soon as possible. Eventually, the day comes when this can happen. However, there may be blank film on the picture track with newly recorded dialogue carrying the intent, and there will be many areas with only still , inspirational sketches giving just the barest suggestion of what is to come. But between the story reels and the work reels , and the bits of completed animation, perhaps even some in color, the staff can follow the story, and for the first time see what their picture is going to be.
There was enormous excitement when that point was reached in the production of SilO II' White and a special evening showing was arranged out on the sound stage, the building then doubling as a theater. Every· one wanted to see the film, but there was only room for the key personnel in the four rows of seats at Ihe end of the stage. Getting ready at home, Walt was nervous, anxious. critical, tense , eager. He suddenly called to his wife. "Hurry up , Lilly , or we won't get a seat'" Lilly, who had a much more pragmatic view of life than her intense hushand , turned in dishelief. " Do you mean to tell me that in your own studio they won't even save you a seat?" Walt was nustered and tried to cover up , muttering about how late it was and wanting to get there early and you never could tell what might happen , and it lVas a very important occasion' We had saved them two seats right in the middle ; as a matter of fact, there were four seats there , since no one was sure he wanted to be sitting right next to Walt at such a crucial screening. Seeing the picture all together for the first time is always a startling experience. Somehow it has picked up a life of its own. In some ways it is like one of your children. It may not be what you expected or what you told your friends you would have, but there it is, and il is yours. Up until now you have been living on dreams, believing that the picture would be a certain way and would tell a certain story and have these wondcrfui characters that everyone would really love. Now your hopes and dreams are over; this is what you have, and this is what you have to continue molding and shaping on a very practical basis. The picture probably has some fairly good moments here and there, but it will never look just right all the way through. If it is sup·
Layout for the entertainin8 bed-huilding sequence iT. Snow White. The dwa~ wanted to make a special gift for their guest, but th, sequence slowed down lht movement of the story ana had to be cut out just a.s the animation was started.
to be exciting and is not , now you must do what to make it exciting. If it needs s uspense, put it . If it is too long, trim it , and if it is too short , IOQ.-Out add very judiciously. If it is redundant , or to make its points- whatever the problem-you work with these pieces of film until they become best picture you can make of them. Too often the money is all spent by this time and is screaming that the picture must be comin any form , "Just get it done!" But that is a decision. This is the very time when the most work must be done . Famed film director Blake said in an interview ,9 " It 's nothing to bring in on schedule or under budget. The hard part making a good picture- I don ' t care what your or budget is I " When making SI10W White, we thought that our main Menainnlent would be with the dwarfs and the funny they would do in trying to solve the problems
Walt quickly realized tha, the relationship betweet th e jealous Queen and rh, unsuspecting Snow Whil~ was the main thrust of tht story.
In The Rescuers. it was not th e conniving of [he wild, unpredictable Medusa that gripped [he audience but the poignant predicament of the lonely, little girl.
d dragon/lv Rescuers n incidental Jr role ill the ~he
brought abo ut in their li ves by an unexpected visitor. The queen and the girl were necessary parts of the story, but we would not dwell on the m. When we saw the whole picture in a very rough form that exc iting night , it was immediately evident that the tens ion between the vain quee n and the girl she was determined to kill was the main drive of the picture , and anything that interfered with this story progression seemed extraneo us. As a res ult , two whole sequences featuring the dwarfs were c ut out as well as a comic fight between Doc and Grumpy ; the sequences that carried our ma in story points were stre ngthened and made even more dramatic . Partly through luck , but dogs ill Ads· 'eoll arid Laso succesJjll1 ,equeflce Iha[
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largely through keeping our procedure flexible , we ended up with the best balance of story-charac tersequence re lations hip we ever ac hieved. While working on Th e Rescliers, we thought thai the greatest interest would be w ith the two mice and the ir overwhelming problem. We worked 10 make Ihem sma ll and inept , but de termined. Medu sa, we fell, would be a spectacular villain, slighll y mad, powerful, and a constant threat. The crocod il es wou ld be in· vinc ible , stupid , and ch illing. They would be the scary part of the film . The little gi rl would have to be done ve ry carefull y because she was presented as a real girl, not acaricalure, and since s he would be difficult to do we tried to keep to a minimum the scenes she was in . We believed our big entertainment would be in Medusa and Snoops trying to o uts mart each other in their attempts to get the diamond for themse lves, and in lhe mice trying to outsmart the crocod iles. Instead, when we sawall the pieces put together, the only thing anyo ne cared abo ut was the predicament of the little g irl. Medusa was a wonderful. flamboyant clown, Snoops a bumbling , ine ffecti ve partner, the croes onl y dim-witted louts, and the mice j ust cule little charac ters trying to do their best. But the girl! Your heart went out to the girl and the terrible situa· tion she was in. Ii was not the vi ll ai ns surrounding her. who built the anxiet y , but the predicament itself. So we strengthe ned the sequences that featured her, paying special attention to an ything that would create more pathos. We staged he r sce nes for the most impaci we could get , and used the sad and quiet moments fealur· ing her for a bal ance to the madcap activi ties of lhe rest of the cast. We used less of Medusa than we had planned , cutting o ut one whole sequence and trimming others, so that she would ha ve a brisk , crazy te mpo whe never she was on the screen. The crocs were cut down to relatively minor parts . The c limax was now centered on the situation down in the cave, wi th 'Ihe heroes facing the mindless force of nature rather Ihan any di rect confrontation with the bad guys. At the time, it seemed we would never be able to make Ihe film come off with the proper balance, spirit, texture, fun, heart , and tempo we needed , yet the public acceptance, once the film was released, proves that it was worth every headac he and extra dollar spent. Some directors stubbo rnl y ho ld onto their beliefs 01
:what the picture is saying and cannot detach themselves enough to see what they actually have up there on the screen. Woolie Reitherman has an amazing ability, as a director, to pull himself back and view the product impartially . He readily admits the weaknesses and the strengths of what he sees just as if he had nothing to do with the film up to that point. As he commented with a sigh , "You've got to find what's .working-not what you thought would work, and not what's in your heart, but what's up on the screen'" Among the things up on that screen that are working might be an incidental character who, because of an unusual voice or special animation or even sound effects, is starting to click with the audience. The farm dogs, Napoleon and Lafayette , in Arislocals and little Evinrude in The Rescuers are examples. We always tried to build on the scenes with such characters and even considered bringing them back into the picture in another sequence. Often we found that some clumsy Story point could be told in a fresh and interesting way simply by telling it through this new personality. Our best advice, at this point, is to develop and ;trengthen what is good; edit out and shift emphasis on what is nOi coming off; stay away from the commonplace and the hackneyed; constantly search for new things the audience has never seen before- but tell it all with the same old values and fundamentals of communication. No one can say that anyone of these steps in our way of making a film is more important than any other. They are all needed. The two most important procedures are certainly (I) to involve the whole staff in the production, and (2) to keep the picture growing and improving, constantly, right up to the moment of release. Many ideas that sounded great in those story meetings become sodden and lifeless when seen on the screen in relation to the rest of the business, and , the sooner these elements can be discovered the sooner I tliey can be corrected. Many other story ideas that i were only "touches" will come to life in animation , with so much entertainment that it is foolish not to get ~ the full value from them, even if it means adding .unsiderable footage. Someone outside the studio once stated that it probably was easy for us to make a film now that we had lIone so many: we must have found the fonnula. Woolie
retorted, "On every picture, you're in a learning process' It's not so much an application' of professional knowledge as constantly learning! " He went on to say, "It is always new, or it had better be. On each film, you start from scratch , make the mistakes, pick yourself up time and time again, yet never give up. You must keep your belief in the picture and your faith in yourself. For a picture to end up good, it must be treated like it was the very first one you ever made." Animating at Disney ' s was exciting, but it was also extremely difficult. We were under great pressure and had tight restrictions on time and money, although seldom were they both imposed at the same time , If an animator was doing excellent work, he was told not to worry about the budget, but "could he work overtime to get more of that kind of footage in the picture?" The demand for sheer perfection in execution , along with the constant search for top entertainment values, creates far greater pressure than the requirement to complete a job by a certain deadline. When an outstanding scene of animation was done, everyone somehow expected the animator to do that well from then on, and even thought, hopefully, that he would continue to improve, as well. A few weak scenes in a row and the animator could be considered to be "in a slump" or, worse, "slipping"! There was a cliched remark in Hollywood during the thirties about actors and directors: "You're only as good as your last picture." One of the top animators at that time adapted it to animation, claiming, "You're only as good as your last scene'" It was a joke with an uncomfortable twinge of truth in it, and we all felt a compUlsion to do our best constantly and try to keep moving that standard ever higher. Munro Leaf, who has written considerable fantasy and magic himself, wrote these words after he had seen Snow While. "If you come right down to it, there isn ' t a live thing in the picture. Technicians can tell you how it is all done with ink , paint , photographs· hooked one on to another and garnished up with sound effects. I'd hate to call a technician a liar, but somebody is going to have a tough time telling me that good, beautiful Snow White , her prince, the wicked queen (who is really wicked when she settled down to it), and all seven dwarfs, and the hundreds of birds and animals carne out of any ink or paint pots . ,,'0
Seven Steps in Animating a Scene When you picked up the scene fro m the d irector you we re given the story sketch , the layou t, the exposure sheet , the sound , and a full description o f the ac tion. Now, what do yo u do?
2. Thumbnails Work out your ideas in sma ll size before making a big. complicated draw ing. First. you will test:
A. THE STA G ING
1. Think Wh y is thi s scene in the picture? What is the e ntertainment pote ntial in the bus iness? What should I have the charac ter do? How can I best show it? " Don't start animating before the idea is worked out. Kno w exactl y what yo u are going to do before yo u start. "
Example I ARTIST.-
Marc Davis- Cinderella.
Cinderella is awakened in the mornillg by (/ friendly bird. Thi~' iJ the imroductiull of rhe heroillc. lind il is imporflln/ 10 Jhow what kiHd of girl she is . Slw 11/11S1 he appecllillg .l1ol merely p relly.
. ' UTI'ING AN D CO NTINUITY .... ill , -hole sequcna so you Be fami liar wllh the" fi . With the director . .. _ ••• """T know JUloIlOUw ,_~ scene Its In .
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A. t>ERSPEC'T1VI: Be sure to match !he perspec!i\'e~ of !he layou!. IF!he Fee! do no! fit on !he ba<:kllround. how can you !how how much they lifl up?
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4 . Solve Spec ial Drawin g Prohlems
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10. How
to Get It on the Screen
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SIatIy after Tlte Rueue.s was rekased in 1977. a tndmnarted ,"J love those characters ! I thin ~ Illey • probably the ,,,,ateM Dis,..,y h~s ever done ." U.... niably lhe animal ion of the characlers is what a n ... audience. but many othc:r elemelllS playa .... role in:o. ~ful picture: the colors. the bc:aul y. til: ,',su,al effects. the locale •• and the musk . The
_ o f ou. r.ntasy worlds tool: u much dW kalion .n.,..'Ied~
in !he ocherdepanmcnls as il did in tM _lOll, and il occupie
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'Ilia '-' ~ in those firsl mtttings looking at !he oob' !.ketches from the ~ylisl or IIIe inspira· . . anist. an image was fomling in hi , mind . a loul .ctptcl "'Nt this piel",,,, could b«0101 il would ma ke p'''''pl<;: feel. II . . I lJowly developing roncepl . but all the paru ....: m..1y related righ, from the Marl . lit btgao to 5tt a plate ~hal WaS real . inh~bited by
u rtoi,. dtjittirt /Ioillgs . Walt Dis""y
~haraclCrs
Ihal wen: I"<'al. whc~hcr lhey wen: dwarfs living in a land of magic. or a wooden puppet being ,h~ by a monstrous ...' h~le. or tiny fairies §pruding drops of dew at nigh!. In his imagination il was an 'oming 10 life-mythical. bul bcl;"vabk . Thi s was noI a dull. humdrum Iype ofn:alily bul one lhal t:.pr.Ing from drum" a land where one could fccl at home. yel whel"<' e~eT)'l hing ""as fresh and new ~1lIl diffel"<'nl. To achie~e this on lhe screen. greal auemion tw to be gi'-en to the locDle5--the si •.c of the fum'lure. the props . the Il"<'es. lhe animals. lhe shadows lhey cast. the air lhey bre~lhcd. the clouds tlt;u floaled o' '(rlllem. lhe rain- it all hoo 10 be right, juS! .. hat you would find in such a place . 'The: inspirational sketches often hoo .1M:rA-·n mIlCh of this. but they wt're only a handful of still drawin,s . u§ually done in a medium unsuited to production wort. One question always hoo \0 be faced. " How do yoo get il on the scrttn?" This major question broke OOv.'n inlo a myriad of fiufe ones: how can " -" gel !~I soft
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sh 3d<>",'~ ",ere ~ho",,, on ,II<' "'all •. :tdd,ng 10 lilt spooly drccl . bill Wah saw ""ore Ihan lhal. W",",n 1M d~..m were grouped lOI'CIhc:r there \... ~, no' a f1a! 10'" of ..,'-en c~noon cha
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OOW CJO lhal brilliaoc~ of 0010.- be anamed?; gCI Ihal elusive feeling of glowing lighl ev~r)""here'!: hnw C~n Ihal overall effeci be ~a[llured
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in our elUde medium?
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While 1M Nckground man thou,hl mainly of roIor :ond lhe la)"OOI m;tn of d",wing. Walt was all"."y, 1h'nk· mg of a d,fferent approach thaI mighl open up someIhing enlirely new, At {he .
studied 1he first drawings of IIIe dwarfs >ca ••'h;ng through 1hei. for ,.... UnkllO"" imruder. Greal
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charm or ~ couage that dwarf. ""ghl ha'l' "mh . ...,j now he h"d .0 mallY dntwlOll' of the s!"ir>, tile bed>. lhe ...·,OOOWS. the fireplace. 3.00 eYelllhe kItchen """ Ihal lhe "hole structure alnlO!.l cook! he \ls~tiud W~I! !-aoJ .. , So~ ..... ",Id probably b."k! a Il1OIII:I of Ih~1 house just from IIIeSC drn"·lOg. , y'lnow. IbI Il~>dcl we had of the aio ht-rc .. ,",en already Itikl been trn~fcm:d from antrDloon 10 layoot beea"",,, of h" archul'Ctur.1 k_ledct. and !II,W hb formal tllt'nin& would he flUl 10 fuJ1het us.: . Wal l a.ked him to build lite mo
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The work of the layoul men refkcted Ihis stimula1ion in eve' )"lhing fllMT1 the desig .. of the specirlC 5('e~ 10 the presentation of lhe whole sequel'!«. Man: effoetive camera angles. iOieresling aroupi ngs of lhe characlers. u~ or perspe"l i~e to live dimension . types of $Unes 10 build the mood--4l1 ,,-ere hIIndled SO sltillfully that the spe<:tatOl"$ neilher noticed nor wondered . They " 'en: romplelely ab-wd in " 'hal was happening on the SCreen.
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techniques. of lhe COItage " 'as far from " 'asled sil'!« uStd e'lonsi"'ely by both lhe . Iory skelch nlen la)'OUI men 10 determine whal they should .hen ~nling any piece of bu,iness. The Story bad the job of making lhe house Sttm n::;tl lICIivilies goinl on. and the la~"OO1 and hid the responsibility of mak _
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in a praclieal "'ay. They Ihat " 'oold th row ~ h3tlow~ on lhe the 1ight~ for a variely of ef(<<1S: p;c.u~ thal had a new authority. for this longe, a make-belie~e hou!iC-il "1lS there them;n a "cry rul Slate .
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The background painters " 'ere expe"mcnllnl;. 100. Il)'ing 10 capm,.., in ""ater 00101' or tempera' jnJediums easy to chang~ if necessary) Ihe .ame effr1 the ""t ion . That con"",, Ix:f"", an)'thing c l.e. His work may be dramalic .•ta"ling. 1'O"'·erful. or thrilling. hut il mUSt still be only a ~k ground for lhe.' "'lion. There shou ld be IIOIhing behind the animated figures Ih" dismtCts in any way . Too much
cha.,.",\Crs will be ",·orking. He i. told al>o 10 ~. handling "cl)' simple on the Itft s ,de.' b«.... a Itor!t will be: standing the",. IlOl mo~ing much but >till occ. pying the sp""". And the grass al Ihe IXlUon, (anOOl b< harsh or real istic ,,-i th indi"idual blades. becault drot will dra'" 3nention a""ay frum lhe.' aclOO.: nor ran tbr grass be: 100 soft and fU7.7.Y cither. or II ,,·,11 ~ppe.tIut thl: ch¥acICrs ~'" ,Iandmg in a cloud There mu>tb<, solid plane for their f«tto match. and il must be pm i>e<:ause il i.grass. but it cannot look likc gr~>sorb< 1 JNjor pan of lhe design . The areaS "'·ben.' Ihr pol8In can >how the Ita"es and br....che~ and the btaul) III Ihi s rQrnanlic s~ are along lhe 10j>. oo..·n the n,II side.'. and in a liny palCh O,'cr on the left bt ... th tb< horM"S helly_ It i. nOI easy. If lhe bac ~ground has been tk;,gne
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Thore may be a long shol a !)usy brock .'. bth,n<,I IIIe figu'l's or a .hdf full uf lOY'. and on • IIU. >«nc a clo..e·up of lhe characl~r. 'n.., pain.~r ....1. '''h' N"" I can ,hoY. all the lel1urc and lhe MId KTalchcs un lhesc ob)CC.~ .. There ,~ r~ally III nmilO k..,p .1Ie ~aTlle background on ,uch a CUI.
and .he paon.er .... ,11 ruin lhe SCCI>C ,f he 1TIes. A pll'n colored card would be far beller. or juS! 1he rainles' $IIu~stion of lhe 1hongs seen ,n .he long shot AClual· Iy. a li\"c·lI<,:lIQr1 «lmn:a mo"on, on Ih,s ""Y ~bly ",ould ha.-~ lhe background out of focus. and tim would be .he ns,e<1 §Olulion
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A >'<'ry dfect;ve SUite in Thr llt",'r 8001< showed the !WIther si uing on a 1= limb with only the luminous miSI of'hc!rOpical nigh, behind him . In ,he foreground .... as a small clu.stcr of leaves and • flower dnwn vcry crisply. b.1I with just enough ind ividuality 10 ,iVi: the scene realism. heamy. and c haracter. [\ look ~ars of upericnce 10 know tha, th is W(lUld be bc~l. bul, 1;leraliy, only minules 10 paint , Pointing backgrounds is a challenging and compl,ealed luignmem, bu, one lhal offers vast opporlun;. lies LO the artis!. Successfully done, the backgrotmds contribute m"..,h .o ~ audience's enjoyment and. like musk. can crUle a depth of fttl ing in the mood and e~ ,he dnm.nic quality of thc .... hole film. Wlh fdllhis was SO important that he asked [he background mo:n 10 uy se"enl difT~nt paintings of the key IlCeHCS .... ith • ".nety of colors and techniques 10 litimulate tlw:ir imagiNltions and help !hem find the best IIflIXOKh . These ....ere lhoI in color and judged from the film IiO the aniS! could find the most S\lCCeSsful handl ing befon: flOCing the restrictions of .upporting the animation. The background pain(er .... ort;. closely .... ith the layout
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- . from lilt cMly u~rimcnts thai dcvdop eM roIor ~ 11)'1.. 10 the doign of 11M: effects animation . . .ilI _ l i d the dlaractcr$ wilh all man~ of ~ fOlCtS. BUI adaplinlllIM: slyk ~nd thee rolor Of! t I'I1II poett or p;lper is only p,arl of tile: problem. There • IIiII Iht mallcr of gCll ing il 10 look rillhl in 11M: IitIII:Itd film on tIM: SCl"<:en .
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Effects Department no eff«li animator is a special kind of ani.1: he hit! a «Oity about tt.. way Ihings work. a feel for 11M: .....~. and uwally 5ttS gr<:al beauly in 1M p,at · _ r:lNtUrc . ~ df«u ani~IOI$ have b«n fas· c-.I,,1Ih pu~ realism and ha\li: tried doggroly to . . . . rt ..."hiIe otllers have treated spiril in thee _ 0( .."lUer and la'll. drama in fires and 'Ioons • .t1llOll,lohing Io\·clines~ in lhe handling of falling b>tI and _ . During tIM: making of Snow Whi't • • £n«u Animatioo ()epanmcnt ,",W to a lotal of itr-Rl IIItII and ""On"oeII. many prof"tcicnt in special all amazingly polknl I S tIM:y du:wcndle$s
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animators had done all of tile
dIrm ill Ihti' own scenes : rain. smoke. sh:otdow$ •
..... doud$. dur,! . speed li~vcn Ihrobbinglina IIIqmn1i pain and question marks 10 show confu·
_ hWah fell lhallhe$C all lacked style and asked ~ . . to be men ~ .... anl and 10 draw more accu · -it They ottst...."Cd. and as soon 1 5 someone noted .. dor ..... g! of a real object moving fu t is blurred
.fiIta. every lIIimator tried to find his o"·n way of ..... ab!umd image in eanoon terms. In attempt,,,, I I " (xl! other. these animators rn:aled shapes
.. btamt designs in thcms.elve$. dominating tIM:
the inkers ..·ere pIIl.~led as 10 whet .... , _ ooncoc1ions should be t,aced in ink. painted on tilt: «I. drybrushed. or done in different rolors . A fMnIr device for portny;ng an ann or a lei ..-.c 'If:tY fast was 10 dra'" a s.erics of afler i~le$ ...... alone. UnfOf1u~tcl y. this always looked _Ih$flllhttti uailin, eM limb than a tlW blurred
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Then wllh a sigh. "Now J -"'lI
we were Irying 10 find QUI how 10 do ii , II look a 101 of mi~akes before you found OUI whal you ~ould do:' This Iype pel'§On~1 exl'fl'ssion ~ame 10 an abrupt end when Wah evenlu~lIy set up lhe Effe.:ts IXpartIlIcnl 10 sI8ndardi'.e Ihe ~ures . unify Ihe appearance. and ronlrollhe quality . With new imponancc givcn 10 ",hat always had be<:n serondary anim~liun . the men selected for the new departmcnt ..,I/Iom could hold themsel"cs down to a support"'e role . E"en !hough they " 'cre awan: th.1 their work .hould be subordinate 10 lhe main action of lhe scene, lhe enlhusiasm Ihalled 10 lhe e~perimenting _b...w..pt away care and rnuc:h of lhelr Judgmem . Again. it was Jack Boyd who shook his head and laughed as he thoughl bac k on a !.Cene he had once dono:_ "1 hild just di!;l;Overed ,,·al.. r' I was a ~ar! You guys did a wonderful jOb on lhe ~flaracter animallOll. and I eame along with a splash and destroyed )'ou!"
or
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"iere anolhcr problem . These had beoI done in a "ery .implc " 'ay from the ea,lit\l "'" because they ancoo...d the figure to the ground out 50fm kind of contact with lhe background. characlers seemed 10 noal around. walk ing 1)11 au. maller how mu.:h "-eight had be<:n an"Nlled Into movements . J USI a cireular shape painted around feCI in an unoblrusi,-c j:rcy defined where lhey ~ s tanding. and as they walked about or jumptd ~ tinued 10 shov.' JUSI "here lhe)' wen: . Ikrng OJ*III: covered anything on the backgrOUnd Ihat II over. unless il had bttn carefully animated 10 f. shape it eneounten:d . Too often an e,"ler .§DIU!. . to ask the backgroond man ~imply 10 In,nl "'" offending objeci and luvc a barTen path in Oil ~ As the quality o f the P"~tures appro;oched "'- 0(. heuer book ,lIustration •. Ihis crude ~h:ldow " .. Itplaced by om: dQm: ....·lth a transparent paim I~IP" I much more realistic appeara~ . S,nce th" daBtleli the background ,,-i thout obllleralln& any of lilt drIIi the spoxlator rould now see every rock and pctott rightlhrough the shado .... and lhe background pauw became mu.:h happier. Unfortunately thIS """""'" dried very quickly. leaving .Ireah and pudJltstl varied in densily from celiO eel. c~u sing lilt ~ to i0oi:. quile agitaled on the scTttn as il "-luJod lit jiuered, When the painl "'as vcry cold il "'as .IOI1lt easier [0 uSoe. and if i, ,,'('re confined to ~II amo; llIe "'girls" could paint quickly and deftly., lory result could be oblained . So Ihe painters clo$c: to tile refrigeralor and moved fast. bul lilt was >lill only one ~h;>de ~nd the", was "" possible if a sli&ht variallon was de"",d. M"" that. it was impossible to palm large ~rus tHI ~ and kerl' any consistency 10 tile qualny . A far hener ",suIt canl\! fl"Qm palnllng tho: complelely black. but photographing il al tHll) upo$IIn: . This way . the", was complete o;orotroI _.hadow would be lighl "hen il " 'lIS ~ hot alllllll) cenl eXJXlSure or very dark when .hot at ..'till), p!I cenl. and helwern the 1"'0 almo!;! any shade C'OIIId obtained. ennchlOg the appearance of ttlt 5aI1 both design and color. ~i nce (he .h~dQ ... dark.ned
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layout it was an old pol . ruSty and p.ilf· ,,·ilh 500t from yurs of cookina . Cy fell lila. light from I~ fla~ ,,·ould he fdkc'ed c~nty o,·er I~ ,,·hoIe pol ; Ugo claimed that I~ lighl "'ould he only on I~ pple ,,·ere running aboul. and ucilCd prol~' " ·cn: now coming from far down.he hall . but $Iill lhe IwO In;matOfS fanned lhe flames earnestlyIhdr faces right down al lhe floor_ and slooied lhe curved bol1om of the shade. The llooleum had begun 10 curl on lhe floor before a brigade of Dixie cups could be organi1.ed 10 <.louse lhe flames and send the frustraled cff«IS animalors b,ac~ In ,heir desks-wilh lhe poinl still unpro~ed . Maybe il was inconsequen'ial any",·ay and hardly wOI1h coos;<.I· Milg. buI thaI intensit)" of feeling and the: driYlllg drsi.., fOf knowledge: "'en: Iypical of their IpplWCh to :u.sign· menl$. 8y 1935. new mell "'ere CQming in.o the Effects dra"·n 00
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Dtp.ilrtment a steady .",,"u.~ ~~ dn, full of ideas . 0... o f tMIoC ,.~ JOIoh Meador. comer ,.·ith an unusual CQrIlb,na'ion and ind;vitluatiSlic. Josh ,,·as painter. drsigner. and he ity as "..,ll. 8)· the eoo of laken over lhe depafln""nl. and for year lalcr. he had well over a hundred rnen lurning oullhe most imp I seen. One of lhe", !-aid ... live aclion arod upc:rimcnling ,,·;Ih lhe and smoke and a ll IIM:>5e Ihings . lie wa:; thorough ,,·;,h hi~ research ,,·ork. He <.lido·, down and an;male wa.er. he ... "'~"'~ .... w:aler. lhen too~ il home: a nd ~tu<.lied ". days yp l<:>sh .
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hard rain , h<:avy r"on, blo,qng r~in I:Iln, dr'I.1.1ing l1Ion' llIcsc .... ~.., pr,med 001< ..-111 papas, SO Illey oould I1c cOl11bmcd ,,"h Ilk ~,...n OS III:1:ded 10 I:e l any dfcci wanled Jml l1li bM lOkI, "Wilen I look al no;n. I don' l K'C • 100 fain,
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I don' ibt drop>. s.rcah Qf ligh!. and lill~ .. Tile animamr's d", wongs b gil'(e Ih •• illUSIOn, bu. by COomb'n,dIM, II was poss.ble I There waS drcary,
sad ~I""'ct In S""",lI'hu, "Ilen M ber death, Illerc "',IS Ille fury Oof driv_ III, lIOI'my , e,cllcd min ,honly before, as .he dwarf,
chas<:d Ihe witch up.he rockS; and alter ,he had blkn, . he >I~ad), drenching. Ilea,)' r~ln thai seemed 100 ,,'bIo Ille nil nlCmonc. "\I"y, A fe,,' )c." 1~lcr. a ... 1>011' >C<:Jucncc of <'ffeets an;mal;"" (Jericli n, a 'Ilmmcr >loml h,p.'point 01 cn'ertaonmenl on Bam'" 'n.. effect. had bcconlC an Imellnl pan of the film, ron'ooolm8 drama and excitcrnC'" ami !T)i)(X!. a, wd l as the, " 31 clemen. of makmg t"cf)th,ng so belle, able . Of all Ille n.,untl cle"",nb lhal hl;cally. II had 10 be rcpre·
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.. nted in a design Ihe audience could accept without ques1ion, As one animato, said, "You had to drJw some kind of effeci Ihal would give Ihe impression of ,,'alor withoul costing a fonune," yet what could any· one draw in line Ihat would look li ke waler' "You ,,'eren'l jusl drawing the creSt of a wave, you were moving the highlighls and shadows and an the color iooications that were so important \0 lhe animal ion ,... If it was a large body of water. the animator had to Ihink in temlS of the mass, the perspeclive. lhe depth, the movemenl of ii, all going back into space. And he had to be careful thai he did not have everylhing mov· ing Ihe sante amoont and at the same speed. which wO\Ild gi"e a t)'pe of rhythm 10 lhe aclion Ihal would kill any feeling of realism, Ed Aanlal was one of those "'ho had a special affinily for large water aClion, which he allribuled 10 his year spent on a fishing bol qualily was accepted. and although water was the mosl difficull effc<:llo do, and lhe moSI e~pen. sive. mOSI of the men in the depanment felt that the
audie"'" remembered impressive !'Cenes of good ~ltI animal ion longer Ihan any olher effect. It 1"'" nOi only a malier of repre .."ting MUICteach film had its own design concepl. and lhe (Im,"'I of the effects had to comply. Someone woold U)maI) different wayi of depicting whatever it might bewater. snlOke, frost. or sheen--searching fOl a "-3)-01 drawing Ihal was compatible with the Style but !iii allowed the necessary frttdom of movemenl. H. WOIIIiI Iry complicated groupings of colors and patche., niP. lights and sparkles, drybrush. airbrush. any effeellhl pictorially would be convincing and exciting. Donrc tile period Ihal Josh Meador was in charge of fie department. he was a wur«, of many sugg.-. si"", he had such a feel for design and fomt aOO em The experimental sketches were .ho"-n to !be delor and his crew> and decisions were made allo .. hidt design was best for this particular job, Often I Ito color leSIS were shot to be .ure of the results bdM embaning on the e~pcnse of animaling an elabont concOClion. Josh would brnk dow" the "I."",mol his sketch. figuring whal lhe animalors "wid do .•1tI should be added by the inkers and paintors. and.iIII would be done by Ihe cameraman with ex~1III spcciallcnses_ It was often difficult for the an,mau. visualize how his limited ponion could p<.>S5ttlly 1'1" duce the exciting drama that had be<:n de>eriixd Wall had SCI lhe siandard. and that way of ~ Ihings persists to this day: il muSt be lhe "el)" bell ~ can do; and, ,f properly prodded. you can al"~)1" far beller than you think you can. Duong lhe_ of Pinocchio, lhe animalors were experirnenunl'" various ways of handling bubbles, trying 10 gel_ thing on the !'Creen Ihat looked wet and shiny, 1\c) carefully animated the circular forms. keeping lin rubbery and fragile, wilh changing .shapes: bullllOlloi their effon went into the choice of inks, of culm. highlights, and lhe loxhniques thai woold milk. da circles look like real bubbles. The 3nimaloo f..... shot an assonment of e~perimenlS in coIol" and. them for Walt so he could choose ",hal he ""lrltOO III surprised Ihem all by commenting oot on the lines. colors. bulthc qualily of the animation_ "Ilikeda ---Ihe OIhers look tOO heavy. The bubbles shouldll full of air." Who else would even notice if .... mated bubble looked heavy?
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to give the proper ~alc. but how about :some sllading on the whale? One cont inuous lone over his entire bult will ~'·cr gi,.., (h, illus;on of volume: . WIIal will take i\ oul of the Ihin. flal world of the line drawing. and get it inlo the depth ~nd dimensions of the shaded df'~wjng and the painting? To gellhc WlIlCl)' effect . a panel of glau ,,'as ground wilh (he same Iy~ of ripple found in low-grade window glass. When Ihis panel " 'as placed over the "cels u!\de, [he camera ~nd pull~~ slowly th rough It.. scene. lhe images ilenealh it .... rithed and " ';lUIled jusl as ~IS do when rdlected in I lake or C$fJ"Ciall y when
secn uOOcr Water. Fo r 1m. tiny figures in long shots (fijures 100 small 10 be drawn XClIl'lue!y or painIW) . wlbholf n:lief cc:ls could be used since this permincd normal-size c haracters to he rrouced 10 very s""tli si7.c. or blown up large. as " 'ell as reposilioned or even made Inlo mul1i · pic prints . To ~llhe sllading on Momiro. sorroeone devised I "frosted" cellrealed 10 ereale a 100tli on lhe surface Ihal would la~c ""ncil. paslel. chal~ or crayon . wilh ~mearor s mudge orcareful shading . alICe lhe drawing was compkled in full cok>r-il was really ~ of I IUlured JliIinling- a special procedure cleared lho: cc:1 10 ils normal lransparency wilh lhe ani.!l·s origi nal work ready 10 go under Ihe Camera. Now artisls could wed: in lhe colors lhey wanted and lhe sllading lhey nttded 10 uplon: new dimensions in visual effects . 1llc men ... ho wI~ thesoe problems .... ere tho: skilled crnfUi men of diverse backgr/)\lnds who had \:Ittn thrown IOgether in the calChall deparlme nt. Special Effecls, W.lt aJ"'ays Iud bttn skeptical of theory and phi kJso. phy. preferring 10 have practical anisans around him who could get right down to work .... ith their ha,,,;IJ. For some reason. he had a dislrust of engineers lIS men ... ho designed primarily for thc~lvc$ without regard for the inlended U$C o r the product and he refused 10 have anyone on lhe: slaff wilh the lille. ··Engineer.·· There were unly three categories for a lechnician: c~m~"·". sou nd . or special effects. Bill McFadden had a degree in acronaulical engineering. which Ilad nuth· ing 10 do with e ither ( amen or sound. so obviously he
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lralnlng Of Iflo: 1••1JOb lhey nll ghl b.:: ask~d 10 find a way ~. Of build a "hole ... " camera. or. pm of lUre.. des,gn. tIl"khng. Of siring oc;Ws 00 bIld ItaB In lhe firma .... nl Few pt<>pr il fir SIOOIO knew" /10 lheoc n""n well' Of ,,'''''1 the)' ceoc. were. apptJll,, _ lhe 5Creen. As one employee saId. "You C",,'I ""In how m~ny prortlc II la~e. 10 do "'-'""I'lh,ng hk... Rill Gamy. an u!X'n 00 "'a.....-:ll krues .... rIill head of lhe lkpann""m. bul Will ,.."OItt!j •• nell man on an .nd",dual baSIS. ISklllgquWlOIIS _ Ihan as,ign. ng J"b~ . A~ one of Ilk:," s;lId. ··Tht '1ues1.ons Wall a s~cd nlO>l were. 'Can you do _,. III 'What can )"ou do here? '" "J'"hc:y ,,'e", calk
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{I> 11",/0 Iheir raj' imo the ocean ~'h.n MOIt.,'I' ,h. ...hal. ~ns his ""'WI/o 10 snu" . Th. SCt"t /a>l, bar"',. flJU' '<,<,ond, on t~ S,"m and .hows ,"" ,,,,,,,, _
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as ~he p,tCU of an ,dca stlned ~o come ~ogelher, \\" ah ,,'oold SIan calling in lhe men "ho m' ghl do lhe ,,-ork, CUT}"nl II \0 I mort ad,'anced sialic ,. He~. Ict" S gCI Joe In ~and "bo 's IMllmk fello .... ho bu,1t Ihal Itllns for us? You \( """,' , Iha! lur from camer;) ; gel him In he..." 100, An.d see ,f you can gel a mus;clan. 100: (hese liuy~ will havc to ,,'o.k logcther," Camer;) ' man. c~nltr, styllsl. colorist. (cchnictan , anist Ihey formed turn s n needed. " ';Ih no money for upenses, no lime 10 n:suKh. only ,he" o"n in\"tn· u"e mmds and Wall 's enlllUSlism 10 gUIde lhem Once the y ,,'e.e asked 10 buIld an amngernenl tlla! could hold $CpMlte la~'cn of an"'ork al "If)'1ng d,S' tanCes from a still camera. so Ihat the ensum, p/loIo· graph would h,,'e lhe appearance of dept h It " -as bUIll of " 'ood and glue and lape- lS BIll .\kFado;kn uld, " Yau couldn' l build anYlhmi Wllho ullape , y 'kno" , .. But 11 " 'o. ked and Wah lI ked the .esull and suddenl)' " '1\ talk,na about buildmg IIloche. one. larger Ind more complicaled , th .. mlilhl be used for shoollnil ,,,,malion TIus " 'as more of I problem and called for enlllleenni k""",'lcdlc, bul on lhe r«ords II " 'as buIlt b)' Specoal Effects: And SO lhe firsl muillplane camel"1l " '11 born . Foor years Ialer Ihe men " 'e.t 11111 " 'ortlnl ,,',(h lipe and glut , bUI no'" Ihey " 'c re creallng nquI slle, delicale scenes for Ihe films FaMuwcd. method of ",n«lIng the an"'OTk 01110 a p!«C of benl lin. much like lhe mlmm In a fun house It 11,'e an ee rie effecl. bU110 .vold OIher renecll ons tKh
fnme had 10 be a Ihree·mmute Ilme·nposure "ob'" room eompletel~ da.k Wllh 1M lime needN wMilt alllhe mQ\eS an.d dunges be(a« lhe ne\l fl"1llllt be ~. lhe men ba .... ~ could do 16 f"'lIlts an hoor ThaI " -as only one fOOl of filnl, and somt of!ht >CfIft " 'ere o'er ! O feel long' S'lilng Ihere In the dark . hour afte, hour, the) nOl keep from noddmg. but ~omeone In the Ihru'l!III c. e" a l" aI's manag..d 10 keep Ihlng' ~o,"g h) s.n, ... 001 Ihe hour or 1M fOOlagc Of the ne~t lnO'e to bf made One of them ...,membfred after an all·nlp.t ltlSlOIllhat he had heard, ··Th.« o'clock," and a bIiIr Ille., " Four o'cloc k ." ooe t~llhe ne~1 numb.! ... "S'x o'clock '" Whll had hapPened w fi'e u' No one kne,,· II first. bul j!rogg~ cOIIfe »1Qn\ rt,~aW Ihal all Ih",e men had fallen asleep II lhe !oamt I.and SlePI for nearly IWO hours befo •• 'Oint In .., aI.,. a,,'ake ned them Earl) In Ihls C1 hau!Un~ schedule the final pial "'eu maok for ShoollngtM la~1 \Ccne In lhe pIC1urt • ,,·.s the endln~ shol of lhe "A'e .\lMJ.I '" '<,..~ "h,ch had run 1010 st"cnl del,,~ s. PUIUIlI ~ fif ""I on lhe SChedule The.e had bun man) r.u~~" ... 1ar lhe content of th" ""CII! !o<: .. nc, rangIng from !WId a lass " lndows 10 lo ,,'cflng cloud fo.mallunl till S)'mboli~ed inner f«hnl~ of il"'lt magmu>c:d on a fantas) " OO'idl"
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Ik drt"ings. Maybl' the camera could move horizon· tally. but c,'en if il were put
'- for die picture. So Walt had ~ cllpCnten knock the seats out of k cud of the SOtInd $l.3.ge (which was at leIS{ 4.5 feet
_I, II!\It down the recordinl senioru, and he told 8m! 10 iO ahead! A couple of cameramen. 1"'0 or au (alPC'nttrs. twO inYenlOfS, and an an ist. and the pt.,:t "':as begun. A panilion was built across the end If .. $(J.IIU mge. and behind il stnnge things began DIjIpC_. A ~iaJ $l.3.nd mounted on rubber ""heels . . bui~ for the camera. and on the side, poinling f'cidIylOthe floor. wu. metal pointer. On I ""ODden tail naikd 10 lhe floor tiny numbers were marked in IIlIdt and red and blue pencil. I II cardully melsured
from one end of the 5!age to the OIher. Set astride !lie camera track and the marked rail were l~ stands holding IWlCS of glass with lUTpOsingly litlle color painted on ~m . Most of the dfect would be in the lighling and (he camera exposures . Tooay it woold be called a "Micke y Mouse" contrivance. but everything seemed 10 ""Qrk , to be sturdy, and 10 offer the necessary cootrol . TIle tape would certainly hold for one lime Ihn.>ugh: as ""ith """,t of the $Iudio se"I-ups. this .... as never e~pec~ed to be used again . W ith barely three we..ks len before the deadline and only days after (hose men had fallen as leep filming the spirits rising from the ground. Ihc: crew suoned to shoot this last S(:ene . With e"eryone can:fully checking and rechecking_ each man made his moves as the lead carn.en.man read from the dabonle e~posure sheet and the camen inehcd its ...·ay across the stage . The Crew who had built the set-up stayed on to do the shooting. eyen lhe carpenters . Since lhey knew how it was supposed to woO;. it was assumed that if tny!hini wem .... rong they could fi~ it morequickly than anyone. On thai crew "'·u a )"OUngand eager Bob BroughlOl'l. ""ho would contribu~ his talenl$lO the Special Eff«lS IXpan~nt for another 40 years . They §hoi; nights and they shot days. and the only time they had I break was the One night of the ...·eek Walt played badminton on the stage from 7:00 to 10:00 in lhe evening. It tool< JUSt over si~ days to t.hoot it In, and Ihc: men fell into bed ""hile the film was being processed at the lab. The next da,y I "ery anxious group assembled 10 s« how this won
FIIIIlSia
unfalhomablc vag~ric, of tho: human mind, $OIDWIlC had put tho: " -rong lens on the camera; $0 in addition 10 lhe magnifl«nt an,,·OO. lhe camera had recorded the Stano», the track. and c>"cn lho: busy ,,·Oftcn; running around during the w«k of ~hOOling! II had 10 be done over. The deadline waS now only days aw~y, Dul Ihi~ was 001 the deadline for Camera "'ork, or r~ the lab. Of fOf the ~nswer prinl , This was tho pn-miffl: sIIo"';ng of the picture ;n New York ! No pitlure c\'Cr had been premiered with lhe 1.,;\ 200 fcci mining. The filming had 10 be perfect this timc . The CftW shol for three days and nights. stopping ror a brief reSI during lhe badminton games-then back 10 the f'gufts On lhe floor and lhe carefullllQ'·c S. All was goilli " 'cll, (off« was k«ping lhe CIl'W awake. and a qu;"1 detem1ination had stilled OVCr lhe " 'hole process when suddenly. late in lhe e"ening ofthatlhird day, lhere ,,'U an canhquakc! Not a hig, shattering one, bul a rolling, shaking mOVC",.,1l1 Ihal fro,., Ihe mCn in lhei. l.ilCks. Rockinlcl and vibrating before lhem was the line of wooden Stands holding lhe glas, I"'nes! The mcn held their bn:alh. bul;1 was ovcr as :wdI.Icnly as il had begun . No glu5 "'as broken. ooth;ng was off ;IS marlt, lho: lrack sc-cmed intac1 and straighl. bul 110,,· could they be sure? If they ,,'enl ahead and compleled lhe scene and il lumed out to have ajump or ajerk o. a fal>e movc , it would be ruined and lho:re ",ould oot be enough time 10 reshoot it before opening ni,ht. If they 5Iartcd all ovcr a,ain. lhey Nll'ly would ha'''' lime 10 fin~ il before Ihat imponall1 date . What iflhell' ,,'Cre a t\clay for any reasoo? Was that CUlling it tOO Ihin? This was a big decision- for SOmeone d>e to mah. The Crew went hom", to bed . The next morning lile del"'rtrTlo!ll1 heads decided il would be bener 10 cha....,e aoother ~anhqllakc. fire, ~ flood and go for a lake lhey could be sore of; sounce Ipin lhe cre,,· rolled lhe camen. back to the slan;ng mart. checked the lens. pol in new film. and staned one la'll lime. Wah cancelled his badminton arid barred cvcryone from going on Ihal stagc_ Wilh only one day to spare. lile Crew finis hed shooting and rushed lhe film 10 lhe tab. n..re were 00 di_~ on the stag<: ~ al the lab. and the men had done I peffectjob. While lhey look a ,,'eek 's vacation, someone else jumped on a plane for New York with the precious film under hi s a.m . arriv ing in the afte.·
,,-ith a good four hours to ~ pare ! It lhe ",nd of lhe picllll'C and that is the ",n nighl afler ni,hl il lhe ,,'hole la" reeL ' Why did these men work SO cagerly? Why did all)' of us become >0 t. unquestioning, SO tlclem,inrd? young aOli lhal the " 'ork WaS it; menl sccmed impossible al lhe slart: let a "'TJ found 10 do ii , and to do il SO ,,'CI1I""t the was a,,'ed by the results . The I Ihrough barri~"lo new frontiers waS II10re than us could resi st. 0000
01110
Orville and Wilbur Wright ."~",""' ",~r•• Kilty Ih"k thai lhey ,,'CI'C be'ng eaten ali,.., by sand fleas, .mliled by lhe bIo:ra"'I Ihat got i t cold wiOll., t i ; 'to read thei' ureS wilh i!Ultlcqu31e r tin lhe . i SO exdlcd abou t what Ihey were doing. by the liny successes of each day lilal the)' fell kids again and could hartlly wail r~ the that ,,-uukl bring them it' ~vcry in\'entor has the cha"l'C' 10 lion, fOf o ften in spir~tillO end, up i • compromise and d",d,ery . Fortunate are those ha\'c known lhe e Xhiiaral ion o f the crcat; \·c prott>JWith tile bo:ginning of the s.:cond World w;sr. this camc 10 In cnd . Our highly lrained and mt'n " -cre dra,,-n i I skills were"",", urg",nlly nee<.k:d , Only younger nll:n relurned to the fabled Del"'nment, but the "'ork was different. was calling for experimentation. bul in efroc;"1II !I'dods rather than in nrw fidoJs. By Ihattimc: , Ub I"'crko had returned 'i , Iype of creali\'e ;n"emion. It had been barely I years si"l'C' he " 'as known U lhe ,reatesl anim;l1Q1Ihe "'orld, yet now he had given up drawing to centnll. on his in"entions, finding """" proc:cS!>cs, building new devices. crcating effects . Pan of his genius ,,-as his Ibilil)' 1 10 the hean of the problem when something ""Of king. Whe,.., others lried 10 fix the fai!ing pan. insl;nrlivdy went right to the thing causing lhe prte. le m . Where "'hers looked for a way to gCI lhe
Ikn:. Ub found a way 10 maxe il into ""mclhing bel'". II< underslood cameras, projeclors. lenses. cds. palM. and film, yel he al", undCn;loOO Ihe "nisI's difflCull;'s. the ing.rcdienlS of a qualily proc.lUCI. and. _ of all. Wall' s dreams . The Spedal Effects Department became more IOphllliralM. repiacin); hapha"ard laclics wilh orderly flOC
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unforeseen and enormou.< prohlen" of Disney1IId;md Walt Disney World drew lJb away from the film ~'orI;. and Eustace Lycell look over Ihe depart· ..... Eu>lace waS one of the " kids" from Ihe carliest ~l.;md together with Arl Cruickshank and the rest of am... coold handle any problem tossed 10 them . Sca1IIkd. e match . and lhe ~wld have to be ~-oordinal~-d by so",,, meehan· icaI IMllennind . They S"I around in a circle. di s· aMing, first. what lhey would have 10 have; second . .tIIItrpe of Ihing would do it; and. Ihird. how soch a til, coold be buill . Thi s approach was reminiscenl of m¥ing the homemade contraption for 1he lasl shOi in ' ot- which is ju\l what il is. allhough they prefer 10 call il a "C\lIIlfM.llcri1.td c. mer~ , " As long a< these men can ""'" up "'ilh answen; before we reali7-c 1here is a ~i()II . tlx- film, will continue 10 combine fantJSy .d believability in a "ery real way.
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Color Before 19J2. the only fuil color canoon, an)'""" had eyer se<:n were in the Sunday nc ....·spaper comics. SO it wa~ only natural that ..... hen Ihe first animated cortOlllS appeared at the lah •. the tcchnicians tried to II'\3tcb their harsh and gaudy and brilliant rolon . Wilen Ihe original an material waS sent over to show tile deliraIC gradations that had been SO urefully painted. the: ltx· tion was still. "Why do)'ou ..... antthat? This bas!OOlt punch and sock to it'" Gradually their .!litude: changtd. but somehow the film did n01. For yea .. Wal t battled wi th Technicolor 10 get them to give him tile elXl colors his anists had painted . until everyone boe~ 10 reali7.c that it ..... al the oolor system in the film i~ff that waS tOO erode to control 10 such a fine de~. It .....orked quite ....·dl for ail tile hues in a middle value. but once the colors s!lIned gelling 10 tile ligtwer shades they bleachee merely clean t>ecame SO chal ky tlleyflirly leaped out of the mouths. whites of eyes glartd likl headlights. soft foam on water looked like piles d popcorn And on the O1her side of the ""ale. an)w.. slightly dark weill almost black . To get. crc.m·colored dress or a soft bluebird .... nOl casy. and a black dog. li ke the StOlty in Lodj' aN Ih~ Trtcrtd II) the craftsman ..... ho want< to put his color theories (11 the screen. It is oft~n an annoying and ffU\trating gamble but il is wonh the effon if one is .1 all concerMd wilh the appearnnee of the produce T . Hee. brill. . caricaWris1. $lylist, and director. claims that. "Colo! i$ equally imponam to the drawing itseIL " It sUppMI lhe whole idea being presented. cenainly. aoo il_ troi s lhe mood completely. leading the auditnct a surely a. the mu sic tr~ek from one feeling tQ the .m. More lhan that. colors hav" lheir own vilali1 y. mat.. characters as weI! as si1uatiOfls exciting, restful.l\appy, Or ev"n funny.
1b. delil>C"lion of any personality almost stan. ,",';(h . C()Sluming has been an essential pan of the
slightly less understood impact and poIenli.l of lhe rolors them :;:::::~'i!~~~";~:;~: · Hee is more sensili,'. (han rl>OSl when he "On50meof llte caricatures.
. [would make
""" face ,'''''n. because of his character. . he '( look good in any OIher color. And olher make their fa~s completely red. and f",os "'ere no! red . Red is vibr~lions and il "ibrations and ~II Of;1 is elecl,ic and iI' s alive if you'"" around a pcrson for a linle while .
. he
or be does no1. Relative values can be learned. approach always will remain. making or sensa!ional. dark and mystic Of · realislie or abslracl. no maUCr how ....·ell he leams!O pOI colors togelher . This is a conSlanl onhodo~
:
:';:~"~ producer who wanlS a special feel to his
if he has a dozen color stylists and backpaimers. seldom will any be exactly right for , There must be conferences. critand to oblain a i ilit idea and graphic
will ha\'e the responsibility for IIQI only a cnlor ~ey for the whole picture. but of til.! characters in tbe various direetor aJ,,'.YS may have visualized in a pink gown. but if pin k does nOl fit the 1Ct.eme being suggest~-d, he had bener be pre_ change his concept. perhaps radically . The "Nutcrac ker Suite" or tbe quaint 1 tt '. house only can evolve as the "m together perfectly. The background man ... ill have complete authority in this area. since is fully .uccessful when one function has domt a balance is maintaiMd . the direc· layout man "',ork do",ly with tbe painter producer watches the results carefully. 1irtt~r oelp comes from the Color Model supervi-
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Ink and Paint Department well. ability to qualify for is easy to do and woat is difficult and time how much any prOCI'SS will
cme what colors are available. and even " 'hich ones are stable or cause problems_ In addition. she is 3 fine anist and has a good color sense, She knows how much tbe thickness of a cel wi!! darken a color and "'hat to mix to compensate for tl>e loss. To tbe un· initiated, the list seems endless. As one of the women put it. "You had to know e"ery other aspect of the business to do your own wor~ . and be creative about it. . . We're like a liai · son between all the departments,'" Finding a set of colors that will work with the gen· eral scheme. the specific bac kground. and the needs of the character is only the beginning of the problems tbe Color Model expert faces. All of the earlier work has been done on paper with a variety of techniques. and now a way mUSt be found to achieve an equivalem effect in flat shades of tempera paim within outlines on a cel. Handsome. appealing characters li ke Jiminy Cricket or Thumper look so right that the average person has great difficulty in imagining their being any other way. but tbey all took imagination. dedica· tion. and persi~tence. One small example is the expense that will be incurred in putting any character on the SCreen, To begin with. each color represents an expense in itself by the time it is mixed, put in small jars. dispensed to the painter. PUt in the exact area On the eel. and then allowed to dry. Each use of color adds an additional expense. so the Color Model advisor speaks up early when she sees a bit of questionable detail on the ani_ mator's drawings . That item will have to be drawn many times. have a color selected. be painted on hun_ dreds of eels. and. finally. chec ked carefully . We were told. "Each button COStS ten thousand dollars!" and ....1: became vcry selective in our decorative additions to the characters. The question is constantly asked. "Is it worth it?" "Do we really necd that exira but_ ton?" " How about the buckle on tbe belt--docs it really need three colors?" Jiminy Cricket had 27 colors in Pinocchio, but "'ben he appeared later in the Mid..y MouS<' Club films that number was CUt to nine, Almost any character will h.ve that many colors. no matter how simple he is. There are always lots of little places to paint> such u inside the mouth. the eyelids. the bonom of the feet: a person docs IIOt ordinarily think of these as having a
diff.",m color. )'1'1 il i~ needed for definition E'-cl)'oJ>e k llQw, if the character is a drab liule guy, • flamboyant extrovert. a deceitful villain. a SWeet IJIO(hcrly type. but the selection of the eHct colors !hal go logCtller 10 CrealI' this appearance is a mauerof ptrW1131 JIIl'ference. The beueT the I~SIC and judgmem rJ the c(llor ,noo.kl experts. the more handsome the \'lIarXlOr will be. These chalicnJ;es are compounded by ttlt fact thai <01()fS thaI appear right in a daylight lC!Iing become garish against a nighnime background. Olkn. different se1 of colon; will ha,'e to be chosen
r.:.!he night scene. or for some O1her unusual sequence II'iIh a ,peciallighling or mood. And the problem does 101 SlOp lhere . l! is DOl .oougll (0 choose colors for one character 111M IIIill wor~ Ihroughnullhe whole film. H is colors ibomusl be related to those of all the other characters lII¥aring with him in all the ""luc"""s; and. inevitably. "'"' sh.oo and hues Ihal seem perf«1 fur one firgurt cla:;h and Fighl wilh Ihe perfeci .;eleclions for ...
Iftt.: picture is designed to be reali back into his painting ur maintain UlKctssful color scheme for mood. Snow Wltile run.., through In.: woods in terror is a good example of colors thai ooapltd as well 10 tlte threalening foresl as tor had prtvioosly 10 Ihe sunny glade where she had . . ""~ ing nowers. MUied color.; and a moderale of hues give lhe painter far more lalitude in :
::::,,,,;:,:::.pictures on the screen. A characler will limit the badgrounds 10 about I'1S of oolors for the whole picture; any other . will be muddy. 100 light. 100 colorful,
Black is a complete absence uf lighl on lhe screen and Ihus becomes a hole ratber Ihan a color. While it may add Kcent and sparkle to a still <.Irawing. il has a lendency 10 suck Ihe life oul of the object when it is projected . In SlupinK Beaa/y. the bodice of Merry· wealher's peasant costume was black; and while il made a brisk pallem in lhe o,"crall design. there was an ama:>:ing los. of vilalily in the scenes in lite color print compared 10 the rough peneil animal ion . BIK k detail.' alo;o tend 10 blend intu lite darkcrareas of lite backgrounds. causing them 10 lose lheir identity. The marcelled wJves of Captain Hook' s hair io Pe/er Pan caused much consternation in the lnbet .....een Depanmenl because lite comour could 1101 be a straighl inbet ..... eeo oflhe lines. but had 10 be a complete draw· ing of lite hair in a new posil ion. Ho..... ever. his hair caused even more consternation in the final Film as il faded into lite dark shapes in lhe background in scene after see ... . We could have saved ourselves a 101 uf work and money if ..... e had known that tbe oolors behind him were going 10 be Ihal dark . As a rohn. Pitlocrhio is undoubledly tbe mosl gor· geousJy inlricate Ihal e,'C r will be done. f"uttJmi(J had more imp.ressive scenes and visual surprises. but for richness of handcr..fted detail. Pitlocchio will never be surpassed. Walt knew Ihal be wanted a picture wilh a greal f«ling uf atmosphere. with dimen
muo.:h thai lhe decision
'us
made
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mques. l! was imperative Ihal Ihi s work be startetl early so lhe~ would be lime to e~perimen1. This hltllthc added ad.-antage of keeping the ,,'hole e~w ucited as they saw new df«" being created for the piCIU~ e,'en though lheir o,,'n part of lhe production at that time migJIt have been minimal or rootinc. It also gave the animators I chance to make their OWn 5UggcSIions and enn to inoo'ponm, emergin, ideas imo their handling of the c1l.araclCT"S . When Walt Slaned Funt(u;u. many of ,he pictorial s uggeslions ,,'e~ so diFfcrcnl from the SUlndard appearance o f cartoon material Ihat a special crew of color uperu was combined " 'ilh the I«hni· ci.lJI~ and cameramen to~ what could be done in Ihis new direclion bef~ commining the " 'hole Studio to the projecl , Typical of the new men we~ eSlabli~hed paimerl soch as Lee 8 Iai • . Elmer Plummer. John lleneh. and painter· teachcT Phil Dike. who was put in c harge of all color. Everyone was encour~ged 10 experime nt in tech· niquet, ibign. and effects . As John Hench said. " ThIlI was one thing; if yoo wanted 10 do something Walt v,oold let you do it." John gill inlo back,roonds. ,,-hich soon led 10 a curios ity ahoul "'hat ha ppened in cam· Cf1I . He had done some photography, so he tried dif· fercnt I~ 105CC what df«IS hecould gd . This led to three yean; in the fabled Special Effecls Depanmenl doing everything. At one time he e""n did some effects animal;on. His sense of design led to work at WED , the " Imaginecrin," subsidiary company that c~ated Disneyland and Wall Disney World . tk later became one of WED ', ch ief uccutives . Walt tried these men he~ and I1e tried them lhere. IS he found out wh:tt they coold do best; and wilh hi s ;1ICe$SlJ\\ drive 10 pia« an iooividual for t"a~imum crcative output , he Maned them de"ciopinll his radical ideas for a roneen featu~ film , Li ke the styli ~ts. the y werc unhampe~d by past nperienccs on cartoons. and .... ell: free 10 uprns an idea in the medium W I heM ~uited !hem. without regard for how it evemually could be duplicated on cds . Alone meeting. Wall' ~ eye was caplivuted by a series of wft pastel sketches 01\ black paper soo,.·;ng a tiny fairy srnltlling dewdrops on the pllJItS at night. Wall panicularly liked the delicate handling aoo the
1;10.... that seemed IOSUITOOOO lhe fig<=5 . and he ..-wed boIh of those featurc. kept in the final furm. no IIWIa" how it w~s done, To lhe a.'scmbled l,rtists. liOlJleoid aoo some new, he said . " 1 $ay the~ arc possibilitlcs. those backgrouoos down the~ ... ~oo wi.h ourdt-fl" drop fairy lhere' s a cha~ for a differem trcaunm Get away from lhe vivid 001"... aoo get a night rokr for her. .. Our bIodgrounds should be done ,n I fantastic ,,'.y when rcndcring lhem: iii) l oa)'. kt'l open up and give us something thai hiu us. BOO.\I''' When lhe meeting was 0''''' the pu1.1.1cd t~hnlC" asked each other. "l-1ow Ihe dic kens arc we goinglO get this thing on the KreenT' The new anistS ..-... de~d. 100. Obviously. '''''"' painting " ' ;1.$ lOOt !lor ans,,·er. They ,,'oold ha,'c 10 uplorc all the lechrucal devices and ]If'OC('sses .ha. might help lhem . IS well . think up some new things to tl)' in evcry arca. Su.d)... the s ketches, lhey gradually f""nd ""nain c.. ~ that could be dra"'n. and others lhat "wid III ~Iy on what the camerl could do: the kn~, tile fi lters . the double and triple exposurcs, Still might be h:tndled wilh special work 01\ top oflhecm airbruSh. oils. 5mud~s. bknds_ They u ied a fim tesl and looked al " long and hard. "Oee-----it doeS,,'t look anythi"g li ke the ,","" " •• liked: what do we do now?" All the eXpenS,..1 ' thoc showin,s. o ffering SUJi\CSlion$ from limiled knowledge. and lhe materials werc for a second try. Finall y a way waS h:t,-.: taken lti many a> twctlly separale the camrra . or a mask LO block out light from neath. or. IiOft mul.iplane effect " 'ith slightly fOCtls edges; each SCene was diFfercnl. each inative e ~plomtion, II original sketch in every way . ll>osc ,I"""ed and $/Iimmercd. " 'ere feminine and worked in backgroooos of pure magic. The " 'hile ballerina blossom Ihat floated.lO fully down onto the placid , black water wa, i' ",,~," " 'hite oolline that matched the rolor of the pculs she g ill looked 100 hanh. too ch>llky. Th;.~_ shot again wi.h a slighl diffusion that helped. was not unl il separate exposures inlcnsifi"'] ItIt th31 she seellled to glow " 'ith a pristine bc:ltlty. and radiant . Elmer Plummer h.ad do" . . . "", • • knew ,,-hat he "'amed in values. and wort.,.]
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IIIMI In S"",ial Effecls unnl lhey g.... il: btll he $lil1 paUMW lhe bIockgroono.! himself 10 be su", Ihal il would look ju~ 1br way he " 'anted il . Elmtr explai .... d hi s posirion rhis ,,'ay : " I was a bo.a fdt uri". and h:ld picw",s hanging all o~er lhis roll/llry .... arercolors and oils. aoo ~II of a sudden I "-l1ll)'~lf dOIng. "01')1 ske"h in paslel. bul done: in IUCompromising
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insiSICIIC( On exacl values 300 relalionships 10 gel the .... weHecls he ,,'U ~.king on ,''' ~n . The cornmercial anisl who mighl say. " Th al' s good enough:' ~ would neVer h....e ,''' pc:l'$iSl.~~ or ,''' judgmenl 10 ~ kIlO"" the diHe"'~ , [1 ofren rook gn:~1 ]lCTliiSlence. One o f the m.osl imp"'ssive KC .... S in lhal k
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or buried under layers of pa"",r , The ar\JOII r>& tU311y was I:>n*en inlo th= !o«1IC~. "h"'h lNdt, ea.\ as lung 10 $IIott The . uc«ss of these glorlUu_ ""cnc:~ "')S dDt. large nlCdMlre to Phil Dike. the 'tUdl0'~ cob ~ nalor . lie had an mgeniou s ""lUi ,on 10 the prOOIt1o Ii gClling a ,alhfaclory re_,ull fmm Ihe clu""e,,~ lies of lhe film being u>ed . I k a,~NI Tcchniroklr 111 prim a KCIIC as far 10 the m! , iok a~ lhey wuld (• • lhey called " OUI of line "); then . gooually. on ~ so,'e prom • • he had them ..... ne ~k . onr ~ ill I lilllc . 10 normal. 110en he ordered Ihc same thlllll •• the blue . This " -ay he klli:w "hal he could tIp:tilt g o~c Wall "'hal ho ___ !OTOC OUl$ider came in wilh an lde~ of ubi!: over for a while. lhere n"tur~tty wa. SOIll" ronnicl MI one could c,'cr run IQ Wall and iI.,k him 10 ,tr:t,~. 0,,1 or Ikflne lines of aUlhorilY. So coch man hadlOW his own diplomat and do whal he C<>\lld to get Olhrn. coopc:nl1e . ThaI w,s the "'00-1 pan of 1'1111 Dok~ '~ l ie " 'lIS respecled and he was hked. bulhe IWIO cnll1dy Ihroogh other ","'Oplc and tho" de".._, " 'olh " 'ords as his only lools. lie ( oold not poII1Jl ~ .. them. or s hoot it for them. or c han~ a teltS for_ and sioce lie worked primarily with Oilier an,!-1. . . was no end of opinions on whal the color >hooldll and Ioow it could be oblaioc't! , But Phil w.s ''tT) ... Iomatic . always look the bl~nlC. :ond ~_ thai the mos1 beauliful scenes c,'Cr done In IIU ,,~'" ( 'plum! fore,..". on film .
aooIher"
filmy light provocativ~ly gleaminll behind this ..... t of veils, Never h"s an object on celluloid looked so diaphanous ~nd delicate. When Ihis effeci finally h~d been perfecled. il presenlcd an cnormOllsly ronlplicatNi job for thc camcl'lIman. but Ih~1 ·..,as OOIhing 10 the shuck he rttCh~ when the rompkted ~ne was broughl 10 him. lbe Slack of dl'llwinp was far n~ Ihan one man could carry-lhe scene was over 100 f«ttonll- and il luoI:ed like a ~ mall rnounlain. for il included nul only separale dr~wings for lhe fhh bul for all of tl>e 'par. kles. lhe effects. the shadinll on the tails and Ille fins . Each le~11I
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Ink and Pain t 'I\Im: ron>es a day " 'hen the animal ion dra wings h3\"e lien COOlplete
>troI!gIy, the I~yout Stlppotb hi~ actions. and tt.. of C05!Umes and props are all accounled for, 0. ~I ed the ledious VI'"",, of redra"'ing c"cry· II "'" JllClure for e>"cry si ngle fra""" Winsor ftll Ihal Ihis ronslanl lracing broughl a life 10 Ihe Iolal drawing Ihal was an form. bul few who fol lowed bll diligence and dedic~lion , He ri,hlfu ll y • com"",rdal lrade OUI of ,m, lit had tIt "eloped, l'..-.;r,'ro by Ihi, crilkism. lhe ",,,n in the ~ludiQ'i ~arch for easier and quicker " -ay, 10 gel II I , As long as 1m, backgrou nd lop of Ihe drJwings, lhe aCli on of lhe ..-a.\ ~Slri(lcd 10 lhe O('I'n arellS. and this limI)'pes of gag. I"''' could be u~. Then one ...-..dem:I "hy lhe figure5 could IlOl "" on the
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were drJwn on lhe paper I Inslead of being done as simple ink dnw· both "'" ch(ir locales could bc ;.., . all the sh~ of grey as " 'ell as black and AS long n II>( pai", u~ "'n ~ue. lhe •
":~:::::~"'; lhe eel would bloc k OUI Ihe parIS of tl he wal co>"ering. while lhe dur cd httIt dfect on . i else in lhe Kelle . Earl 'i dilCO\'~ry.or in\'enl ion. and btcn 00 essential change in Ihe procedure in
t~::!hing lO!>lIy 1....1 lhe drawings " 'ere lraced cdluloid. bul quile another 10 do iI, Anyone . ,.. " . '. ,' o w on glass wilh a pen will m:all
Ihal nothing mighl come OUt of lhe pen al aU. except a long. fine scralch , You draw ~Iowly. you draw fa~I, ),ou make link mOkes . ),ou usc sweeping lines. lhen suddenly. for no reason, Ggrbloob! a hug<' $pl.ner of ink "}ln~s oul all al once , ll>c same is true of tracing / ' onlO a eel. It seems II>( ink mUSI be ··floaled " 00 ralher Ihan elched in 10 bc ~ ucccs,fu1. In New York, il Will' fell that only men could master Ihis diffICult an; in Ho llywood Walt assigned IWO ,,'Ornen 10 lhe job. and " 'hen he could not p.ay lhem he married one and made the other head of 1m, Ink and Painl Depanment , The IWO ladie.' in qUeslion ne"er denied lhe slOry. although tl>(y exhibiled knowing smiles as they listened 10 W~It' Ii relelling of ;1 O'~ lhe years ," Mary Tebb remembers !he day s Ihal followed be· ~a"SC she in ked all of Th~ SkrltlOIt f)wrct by llersc:lf. riM . .... ulls. and ,~nebrae_ She ask! het'selfnow. " lIow did I do it? I don' l know. J wa. young, J sec il now and I'm amazed!" HUI it was si mpler then with a heavy. untapered line ~rQund e>"erylh ing and none of lhe refine"",nlS Ihuch a "'ark of an in only a few ""'"' )~ars . II WiU Walt. as in aillhe otl>(r functions. ,,'00 gradually raised the qualilY; he asked in a way Ih al ~howed he e~pec!ed (he girls lobe able 10 do ;!. In Mary's ""ords. " That's " 'h( brought out from ... ""'"' than " -e lhoughl " 'e had ,' · I'ai nling is not ~s difficult as lhe inking. but il s!ill lakes palience. OfJ!~nizal ion. and considerable skill. Mary u plained lhe job this " -'y. ·· You .... ,..,!O learn how to do it right first: leam how 10 mi~ your rolors • read yo-ur model. put the righ! painl on Ihe righl Ihinll- how 10 dry it- and be su", yo-u don't do il "" the frool side of lhe eel inslead of II>( back , It 50Undi easy. 001 it'. amll1.ing how nlany people can 'I do i!!" On drawing after drawing lhere an: linle areu Ihal could be anylhing: pan of Ihe flowing hair. lhe skill, a tail. a ribbon. or even a hand behind II>( b;ock in II>( middle of an K lion . Looling at the: drawinll by il~lf. lhere is 00 ""'y o f lelling what il mighl be. or ..·hal color Ihould be pul On i\. SOnlelimes a check of !he dra"'ing5 in sequence will rtoveal II>( idenlily. but oflen a fuJi confe",1lCC must be called , ·· Wh
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little OOIes on his dr~wing~ c ~ pla,nins any m)"5IIIrious forms erealed by the "",'-eme"t . The ""OItl(n "'00 had "'-orked up to the "lOll: impo.-· ")Ob:s cootinu.lly were looking for ....·ay. to "':Ike fir mdi,-idual cds 10m; '1"IOfC appealing . They did no! .10 St'O crudt. barren "'00 going .hrough .he planl. ~ though the)' l """, thai pnlbably. in ac.i"". these ...."IISS " 'OlIld do tlocjob. Still. if the dr4""'ings could lor NIk to i0oi; b,mer . ' 0 have a bil of _hading. or a -'go:. Of one "IQI'C color. or a bil of detail tlla, _101 ..ally male the wort Sp.1rU", . they would sug-
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looI;ing al • eel of Sn"w White. some "f the w"men
lilt thiot tile bI;oo.:k hair looked unnatur~1 and han.h . S() *r tntd adding a .....'Sf' of drybru.h on a lighle, Grey tlMlfltn the cdge of her hair. II helped immensely. SO *r procteded to add ;. 10 e,'el)' cd all ,hroullh . l1c ~.
"l1h no indkation. (o,m the animator... and IlCIIi n, to Kuide tl\o!m but ll1cir ""-n sens.c of ,,'hat IIattd right . This had to be do"" on .op of lile cds. _ tho: OIIly ...... y to he sUre the effe<.·' was worling tom 001' to Ille ""XI W:lS by ml'pin~ tho: whole s he..,t ""I/uloid. heavy ....·ith paint . It "'as tiring and ri _ked ~ lile pain!. butlhere "'as no OIher ....·ay . No 001' quile reml: "'ixrs wllQ first .~uggeslcd the IIa of ,nking tho: outline of an a,..,~ ....·ith lhe SlIme ... IIw ,,-ookl bc u~d to fiJI in lhe area. but it MUlklnilCd lho: aprcarance of til.: char""tcrs . Each ~ mal,s . srpar4.e c"lor must ha"e an outli"" --.I it (!elining it from the area ""AI 10 it . 1l>e hat is lho: hair aoolrn,r. Ill.: face still .nother. and ... Wlot .. lhtst' ootli"", arc done in black ink. there thea,)'. crude: loot Ih.1 is tine for PCN Leg PelC but . .""",. for more oclicatc charac~crs . CoIoretI inks tried 011 tlot first color films and "-nt= an imPfO'~• but "Iotn a !oot of quality and careful shading nttd«!. 11ot)" were still 100 strong. So sonle<'ne up . ·,th tlot Klta o f inking " 'i,h the ~~ p3im be put on the back o ( the cel. Thi s pa lot tIlinned do""n to the corosisteJ'IC )" of ink and made dM:Ur '" ma"h the ~)"ing effec~ of the thickof the eel on lhe color beneath il. Now there was CM!m.!Nt "as scareely noticed on the screen . The .... op:n for SClft color chang~ 011 ~ny form. the Ih.ldes aOld su bdued "aloes Ihat l>3"e the beauly ~ been s«king .
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This t)·po: of 'l'ftne"'ent was particularl)" needed on femini"", fac~ " 'helhc, thl:y " -ere human or ani ...... ls. A strong outline around any p3rts of lhe ""ad changed the feeling. as indicated by Ihi_, nme f",,,, a I'j~O<"(hio directive ; " When Pinocchio is a puppet. before COITIeS 10 life. "'e are going 10 have the black line ....·here his neck joins because it looks "lC<:hanical. but " 'hen he comes 10 life. il spoils the cu te""ss .o have those li""$ in blact SO We just ink this in the SlIme culor as his ne~ k SO you don'l gct any hanl edge ho:re_" Hefon: lung. the chane.c", had "lOll: colored lines on lhem than the ble na~ a«epled for the col· ored Ii"" be<.:anw a ""self· ink line."' and even afler lht inkers "ere replaced ....';{h duplicaling proce:»n. lhere wa~ still the r.eed in crilleal arcas f"r this kind of fines.., . Stili l))o(R refinemrnts " -ere ,uggested--many mon:. 01le that was quite impor1ant fot a few )'urs ....·IS called lhe ··blend."· a ....·a.y liltle crayon tlult came in "anous colors and cook! be rubbed o n top of 11M: ""I to ~Iightly duken the c"lor un
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cu"erW by the blend so thai it bt:camc invisible. Wah was as amv.ed as anyone . "This is very effective! I think we a~ cenainly on the righl track: ' Then. ..,membering hi. continuous financial problem. he cautioned. "But let's be very sparing Wilh Ihis blend and tholil: lhings . That i~ "hal wHI hold up the works: aU that bknd will s low it up." Later he commented a~ain. "\ say \'.aleh this bklld business. and not de) a 101 of unlll'l:essary work . It is tOO upcnsivc. 100. We
muS! keep from going bmc on Ihis pkture.··
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Most of these inoo\'alioos had been worked 00\ by the Ink and Paint ,",pc:rvi:;ors and the Color Model advisors since lhe rest of the depaMment was too busy
producing the eels
do any experimenting. Wah asked, "Can'l ",e do wn>elhing "",., . . . ?" and the women thought back 10 their an school days. or their to
childhoods. for any materials !1Ia! mi,h! gi.'~ a rIC'" effect A~ !he: demand ,re'" for !hi~ clabon>!e d<:<.:ora·
lion . a ... hok liule d<:panmcn! e."()I~c,J. (()II~~'nIGf peoplc ... "" wcre WpI al lhoir O"'n special tff«lS, When thaI mammoth scene of tho: fish from It.. "Ar~bian Daocc" am"ed at Ink and Paint . il "'M!!Iis group who pul IIv lra~m palnl on IIv fill5. !lor drybru~h on tho lips of the tails. tho sp;lItlcs In !lor water. the highlightS . I.lho visual s!imulalion Ihat came frum this patltrn.t c~re and \ kill addcd a touch thaI could not be Ilupl> caled by anyone else . Actuall y. thore was more in,·ul.'ed here IIwt JIll anislic endeavor . llIc !ransparenl pa;nllhat ,.,. . . the appealing filmy dfecl on the screen "'as IIII4r from the bile of an Asian ox. alld "'as smelly MIl unpleasant!u usc . When this paint was emplo)'«! kr
i. was imperative lh~1 00 oulline be: ~n. Seing . The aSSISlan's and inbe'''''ccners in.he animllion bUIldIng h:.! wen care in p<"IClically l
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iS1S no longer could be hdd !Ogclher. Whon pox< rClUmed four years laiN , Ihe mnecnlralion " .,. 00 bener way.~ 10 achie"c Ihe ,''''''e re, ,,1i Ihal "1'1('( h.Id eml SO much in lime and effon . Since no rI.,<:ord~,,~", kepi in Ihal era when procedures chanj;e! a few years Imer. i1 waS lhro,..n OUi OC'C3Use the ,"1m;! was in new procedures. The primm)' concern waS (0 free the ink.rs fromlk
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,101 wpy Ihese dr,;wings accuralely enough 10 a"oid lhe jilitTli and wobbles Ihal always manaJ;ed 10 creep in . Since lhe mO~cS were so , 01,11 ,nd no knowledge of animalion principles wa>; in~olved. the Ink and Painl artiSis sugges lcd Ihal Ihey do Ihe inoclwecning on lhe eels, ciiminaling Ihe e ~lra drJwings Ihal were causing lhe Irouble . There were many days during (he making {)flne piclUre Ihallhey regrell~'
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1tIl't OIIlbc pan of the animal"'" al lhe!>llme lime 10 faI_ ""Y 10 duplIcate accuralely theIr own crisp. !III-& drawlnl" on thl: eels. The: " 'O"",n " 'ere good. vay goJOd. but I""i. won: ""'" . 1111 a tratlng. and _inKs never h:av<: thl: villllily of thl: orillll1al. In lhe
'* rofnn. Ub Iwerk. adapled the Xerox proce." to
0111 IIII(th. creatIng a great machine that copied the ,nVlIIIgS OIl an ch,elric~lty charged plate . Th"re was 'WY hnlt \ltl...,...,y in the ",.ult. and a light hne was ",10", OIIt cnhrely. bot the ~nimator's drawing "111 do:rc. ~ronll and Irrevocable: In the !>Iacke" of "'In flC!. thIS heavy. black line put uS right back _ tilt 1921),. hefon: the rdinemenu of inking had
....
Other oolon Ihat the Xerox CorpocallOfl rould offer dark were no belle •• so we allem~ed to mate outhne man: acceptable by .ISlng II as the "ylc of the woole ptClure. backgrounds and all 1010..1"",· ,;".... wa. IhI: result. spearheaded by the mulmal"nted Ken Ano.lc:rson; the linear qualily of the anwort gave a crisp. handsome: look. especially for a fIlm about !>lack and while dogs , Th" animators were very pltased. bul Wah leh it hleked lhe delic~cy the ca.e that the old picture. had achieved. Many in the IlKhencc relt "'" same way. saying thaI they m~ the elegance of"'" prewar films . It was not unlll we h.ad perfected a &",y Ii"" for TM Ru€"~rs that we able: 10 lose the harsh OIIt""" and regain a soft IooIt ThaI simple change brought rave. from c.i, ia wOO claimed we had developed a wholt new Slyle for this picture .
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Many s~ori~s ~m 10 call for a final shoe of the main charxlCcr .... alking a""ar inlo the di~t~occ: .... hile the ca~n pull. back ~lo""I y-usually up imo the sky for ~ picwre of the SU""" or the m<)()f1 or a ti,l., llial says. "The End." This was always almost impofoSiblc 10 animale. because: of the dual problem of making tile figure juSt the righl amount smaller .... ith neh SICp ",-hile keeping tile same s pirit throughout . The camen u~ually pulls up intc) the sky beca use the c h~ractcr looks SO [uTibl., thaI he is ruining tile wllole cooccpl : and, even though the see"" needs 10 continue for al khl nine feel. it ....ould he impossible to keep him Q1l the screen any longer. Out will\ the Xcro~ machine. all that h"" changed .
We ~ 10 animate only one complelC SlCp cl chanw:tcr ..-alking away from us. and it tan bo size con"cnient for us to draw . Once the action c~ked and approved. the dra"'ings arc stili 10 '" Xcro~ DepMlmcnt where theyall' bl"",'n """1110 61: correct s ile ror the SCene. More than that. tht drP ings ~rc repe~tw o,"cr ~nd over. s nl:lller each ti ..... tru.1 theon:licaliy OOr character can keep ",.I~ing b· ever. From a pr.tI'tical stan.dpoinl , the painters c~ paint him after he reaches a tiny Si7.e. but uswlly'" point is no! ",ached until the ~s o r lhe !CellI: lint !Je<,n well n"'l . 1loe ooc problem thai ","'ains 10 be sot'"W is brouaIl about by lhe "cry procwu", that sa~es 50 much eff
fiwGlrom Th< Rc,""ucrs. TMn I"nd//ines ,md" medi"m ill ,M Xerox I.",~hin' finally ~~,., uS 1M '''fl ."....,...... "',u mort. Colo,m line. "dded Ii! a cd of this t"1 ,_,
WrrropI""d thf df/icdcy " ... hod mjoYfd " 'ith the inHn~. (}lol""';"" IIf t~f ,'0.
..... y lmall. insignificant, hanlly ooliceable error in lilt ..-.:l,'cmenl is magnified by repel ilion. A slighl limp.
,gimpy ,,'alk .• n unnalUr~1 TOil to Ihc OOJy. a fool _picks up 100 high. a leg lhal pushes into lhe ground. lilly lillic Ihing Ihal would nC,'cr be nmiced in one step 1I1I1 ordinary scene. becomes amplified wilh each ~al Unlil Ihe characler looks as if somelhing is ItIIit>ly "rong wilh him: and as the camera soars up l1li0 the sky. mo" of lhe audience is .....ondering if I(Jn'Ir(lIle silould not go help the poor fellow before it is 100
1>1~.
~re continucs 10 be a need for good inking. bUI it is In Imall areas "'here a self_ink linc i, u~cd or where some imtreMing eff':':l is desired, The long hours of
endless copying ha"c givcn way 10 special work thai re
/
//
II.
The Disney Sounds
"llhml' " ~,,()(I muir ,if ",,,,I<' IIYIII/d },.. i"di" "'~"j,,lJIr w Ih~ "";'''/11''''1-;( rea/i:mi,," "" /hrir pan'" how mUlI,- i,I. h",,' 11111"""/ it is far ,,,'uple 1<1 ',.,,,,1 10 /I" 10 ""'S;<'-
"'''''''1'
Music ~
"'as ~iII be ing d'me on the laS! segmenl . of r _ ", ,"'hen I"" Bambi "'C'" on(wed ;010 rull pro. " ".1IIId W~II .... 3S kepi hoppins from one prujoe<: • ... room to lhe: nc:xt to kttp up " 'jl" lhe red . as Ihc:y ~. 0... day he ,,·~s called inlo a met'linS un fir knll n~ ~q l>C nce in Hambi JUS! ~s he fi ni.wml S)"I11 ,.,.y. The Il~",bi pictu~ ~c l was on ly half «.>mple.III. '- die inI/:". "'' as clear and (he music-ian. Ed l'Iu",b . QI ~ 10 ~n. hi, Kkas on the §CQI"C he was WIIIIIII H3If"'ay Ihrough IIj~ (JTcscnl a, jon. Wa ll ~ h,m alld asked the projccllo nisl if !1Ic f "a"II/';" IIIriI " ( (t sfill up in Ihe bOll(h. The y weI" flo: ... lIN: storm mus ic from lhe PU5wm/ Sym· ,.,., nln in .ync ""ilh lhe flllll,bi red _ w e wnc - . I by lhe ro"-Cf of lhe mus ic and lhe ucilcm,," 1 • ptt 10 the dnowing~. " 1IS o"~r . Wah lumcd and said . ·'There. iI. that'l ", hal I wa n!. Somelhing big! Sce lhe diffN .
"11m "
.,.-1"
1,:1".i00i; " -a.p:I" .hoc k. p:ln disbelief. and part ....... "'Bou, Wal!-Ih::u 's n ""loo"en!"' . 'II! 1tipOIldtd. " Yu h . , , ?. and wailffl 10 he~. _ ~ ...·hy Ed roukl 001 " ·. il,, lhe sam<' SOI1 of ... II ""S 1\0 rnor.: Ihan " 'h;ll he as ked of his whok lit! O:Iy . fl"r day. Mm.iI: it ulldoublcd ly the 1110.1 importanl addilion ..,..111 bo ~ 10 lhe piclure . II can do more 10 • pnlduction 10 lif", 10 ,in il inlegrily . ~I)"k , ~:?' mnnin~. and unily lhan an)" other ~'ngk ;
. Willi lhe s urge of a full on:hes lra . lhere
" 'ill be bigness and majesl)" and soarill~ spirits; " 'ith I nermus, flullcring n",lod)" line on a single in§uurrK'III • or pulsaling drumheals. lhere will be agilalioo. appoe· hension . suspicion. Music Can build Icn.lion in com· mo npl ace >« nc~ or ea"" il in noc s Ihal have btton", visua ll y lno frighlening. At times lhere is nl ... in playing counler 10 "'hal is being ..,.,n , C haplin "'rile~ o f hos troubles in getli"l arrangers 10 realize Ihal Ihc musk hehind his {ramp charneler . Ilould 001 w"mpllO be funny. bul should Slri v" for an e mol ional dimension . " 1 wanled II>e music 10 be a cou nlerpoinl of grocc and cham. 10 e~ pre.!s s.e nlimelll. ,,'illloul ,,'IIieh . as Hu lon say •. a work of an is inc""'plel" , "" Slill other limes require lhe music 10 express :Ill allilodc: 11131 cannoo: be .100..'11 mooll y in "",,'inll dr.ow·
connotalion~
ing, . Feel inp of isol~tion. rejec1ion. an awarenes~ 0 1 beauty. ~ se n!;C of growing .trengtll. of lIope. of dc~otion-theS<' are ~II inner emot ion; tllat are diffi . (lilt to show. FonurI3tely. this i~ the area of greatest strengtll for music. ~nd the mu.ician " '1\0 feels the mood in your fi lm can make it all intensely moving . Since mu~ic is IiO dosely assodalW with nlOSl of the major even lS in our lives-nursery .K~ the CI11<>lions of I""lt e xperience. and through associations W~ Can be made 10 feel empathy nen fOf proples uf di~· tant cultures . This b«mnes a "ital elemenl in makmg fanta>y ....orlds belicv~ble-notjust as ~ plact obse ...·~ from lhe comfort of OUr lhealer scats. bul a "'gion ...·c aclually inhabit f{)l" the duration of the film. " dare lhe days of ,;<)\lnd. it .... a~ the organ;,ts and piano players in theatefli ""rms the wuntry .... ho used lhe magic of muSK" 10 trnnsl""1 audlcnces 10 other lands and other times. In a pnnmi\"e ~nd "ery di""';l ",,,y.these muslciam comm unic~tcd w;lh lhe vic"·"fli. leading them from one emotion!O another as the slory in tho film unfolcs. In fol k songs. popular soogs. sentlnlCnlll ballads. Ihey found m(lodie. "'ith strong
thaI crealed an immensc emotll)ll.ll Itsponsc. ~'Ioy'" theater mu.oc,ans Ilad a lfItC,al fffiill for JUSt lho righl music 10 fit any silualion. t~ bP:. ground 10 r~"eall lunes from cverywhere. and I~ abi~ ily 10 improvise constMlly. adapting new i! i.DtM for "Dcr Fuehrers Face ... The,.. nrn were jOlla ~ Albef1 Malotte. who achieved nlOR! fame as lhta:e poser of"TIle lord's Pra)'cr.·· and the h'ghl)' ~ I'aul Smith. fresh out of uni"ersity and full ofmlWCll ideas . His adaptalion uf canO<\f1lCChniques in !he 5CIl'!$ f{)l".he Trul' Uf, Ad",nlur,s ..,,'cral years liIICf III.kW immeasur.obly 10 tllal SoeflCIO of live action films IJUtio Bakrl' al ... comribu.NI to botllli •.., aclion and ~~, shn-..ing «jual facili,y in ~)"mphonic sunes Of ~ ( hoscs. Each of the." , men had a greal SCIIS<' of melody'a unique abllny 10 orcho.. r4le ,'cry lfItCW f... II~. CI" them all. F",nt Churcll,1I probably h3d ,he feel for.he an ,mal(:d film. a~ hi. !CO«: for S"",,· \I·/itr showw '" well. The buhbhng qualily and fri<-tdy spirit o f lhe "",clion in which the ~nimals UtI;( Iht pi 10 ,he dwarfs' oottagc ..-a~ especially apprahtIJ. _ ".., as ~cd F..d Plumb "hat gin lhe mus",!IuI u. somwnng Ed squinled hiS eyes. " Y·know. 1\.,,_ or;"w eyery oote in thai orchemation and I >I,ll ~.~ figurc OUl what dnes i, .. · Aflcr Fr.nk ChurchiWs dealh. hi. room ..-as Ollie Wallace . 011", was ptPl""ry . 5pr\I(\J . .al~y . had a Iwin~lc in hi. eye .... "hon ~clauDeil that Frank '~ spirn " -as re"pons,hle (Of the: grUI ....,.
.0
~
t"- to.lIinlK"d to come f ....." that room w~ IIQIkkd _ htad~ and ~miled . Sut one d~y he was SCI",·"ng II1II prof~ gn: .. anno)"lIocc ··That Churchill ha'"·t _ntltn a d«ent note in lhe la.t Ihr« days!·· In 1928. 00 00.: knew how tile llrawings of Ille ~V\OOI1 ~nd the limes of the musk enuld be plJIlIw:d ~r It "'a, easy enough 10 improvis.e a..::OI"I.' 10 ~ oornpklt\l filn •. bullo figure out ahead of limc ,,·hell: it bexs ...wld Ottur on Ille drawings " ·as ~)·ond ....,~ Wall in,;sled I~ mu,1 he a way lhe IWO \Wid be "urted logether and he eon lrolled and built IfIOIIlnd changed . What kind of graph or ch~rI or kOIt roIIld t>c de,·ised Ihal w
:~:~';':"i~';'OC;'~':': "~'": :OC~':,"~;:;":':"::~~d~:'!~: :Ihcse.".t""
.
first rIC"· langua,e hoo been disco\"crW . hctITI$l.implc C1IOUglI nov..• bul Dave Hand reponed
:~~~.~:~;": :N;';:W~ baffled and tried )'car ,Y;:ork .nd a were half before figuring out
acrenlS would occur" hile tile drawings. Jackson·s s)"Slem " ·as calii ly
:
~~~;~~~!':'_~ '~ionS in .empo and 0100 lime Ille .ong adhemllo a s.ricl he ",rillen OUI from b"ginning 10 end . the dilttlor kne'" ",h:,t pari of Ihe song "'1JU1d be any action he planned. anll the musici~n " -ell: being planned 10 go "'Ih animator knc"· that if he had hi~ cha.· from nlly in Me"sur'\' 54 .0 I~ middk of I~r'\' wooid be dlher a slid(, "'hi.\lk or an glissando (0 back him up On Ille final
Tht musician and the director wo.ked closely lOtile $.I"~ room. planning .he ~ntir'\' pic.ure: anImator bej!an a scerIC . Wil fred Jack~ in an inte.view: ··Fir51lhe mus;· ~\lU1d IUUeSI lune_ , for .he various ~Iions of la
' :~';:;I'O gel Ihe mood Of general.l)'pc of action II . lie "ould palientl y play Ille Sam..' phras.e
o"er and o"cr again ,,·hile Ihe animal ion di=IOf visualized and timed (he aclion in his mind. WorkinK back and forth . lhe musician ,,"OUld """"'ti""'5 ~h:ongr: el"menl~ in the ~ore 10 enhance ~rlain "",lions. Of the dirw()I" ,,·ould modify SOnIC: piece of husiness.w Ihay il worked beller musically When bOlh "'ere !HIlisfied. (he director " -ould mark the aclion do,,·n on lhe .dope sheet" [Bar Sheell ,,'hik hi s panner ~kelChed OUI lhal pan of lhe music SCofc. TIM:n lhey would move on 10 lhe rIC~t link pie« of action .·· This dose cooperalion became the Siandard pnx-edure as other mu~icians "'ere added to the staff. It was a long and tetlious process for mu sicia ns more a like adding an exira ~Iep on u"", fOOl in a mareh; insl~:ul of ··Lefl, righe lefl. righl:· il b«all1". ··Left. righl. righl.left. righl'-· When an animator "itb a lI1usir:~1 background asked hov.. Ihi, " ·as possible. he ~impl)" """lIS lold. ··Oh. Churchill knt"'·~ 00"· 10 do it!·· W.1t used to claim lhal Frank Churchill always ~kpt Ihrough lhe ;,Iory lI1"eling~ alld rIC'·er li~lened 10 his firsl instructions. bot Frank hardly can ~ blamed . lIe
'."IM:
knew that no maner ,,'hat kkas w~re tossed out. and maner how cnt hu~i3sticall)' they might be receivw. that wook! h~ve linle bearing On the mu~ic he eVentu· ally "wid .... ite . Il y the time: footage " -as addW. ~ ~pealw. K<1ion§ CUI 001. and c"C1')'lhing plasICmI together ,,-ith an assonme:nl of )· 12 me:asll~'. all)' original plan " 'ou k! be SO but,he=! lhe~ " 'ould be link of illeft. Ue figu~d . COI'TCCtly. Ihat he ""OIlld do benefto wail unlil lhe decisions had been made and lhe foouge, SCI . and then he could write ~ ..:orc ,,'ith integrily and no w. "'gardles' of " 'hal had happo.:ocd 10 lhe soo,alk.... SlnK IU~ , He would 5il al hi ' piano pen· ci lin g in hi' melodies and mUliering. "Thi, ltOIe is for lhe dill'uQI". and Ihi., is for lhe producer. while this link note oo"'n hell' is for the animator. and Ihi. i$ for the di. ecto' s Aunl Tilda. and Ih is is j us t fQl" me!" It ..-as 001 an ca,y prucWll~ for an)'OIlC. bul 1""1 c""" rollabor.u ion " 'lIS the "ny Ihing that prodU«d lhe 1lC'" art fonn . From lhe ad"enl of sound to lhe laIC Ihin ie•. music and animalion had been 0IlC. Wil f=! J.,bon C~(lI\'»Cd Ihe: general feeling: " 1 do 001 believe thell' ..-as m..eh Iht)ughl given to the I1m,ic as ono: thing and thl: animation as another. I be lieve we con· ceived of tl><:m as dw>cnls which ....-e " 'c,-" trying 10 fusc into a ,,'1><.>11: IICW Ihing Ihal ....·ould be more lhan si mply mo"emcnl plu.< sound ." Jerome Kern rccoK · nized the artistry in Ihi s process ~nd claimW thai a di.ltioct ne ... music.1 fonn had been crealw. He termW it "the use of music as language·' and credited Walt "'ith mak ing an oOl,tanding cootribulion to the m~ic of his timc-po$Sibly lhe only ",al contribulion o f tlw: I ..-.:micth <.TIltu,),!J lbc dfecl of absolutely c'-':I)·thing being related to the musical beat bttamc SO ..·,,11 do.-.:1opW thaI. in lhe musical ..-orld. " Mickc)"mous. ing"· lJcc,~mc: lhe name for mllsle thaI accented QI" echoed e.·,,1)' oclion on lhe ..,,....n. As a " 'ay of>\COring. it " -OS IlOl limiled 10 ca'lOons. but also was used wi lh good effect in suc h picturcs a. Kj,'g Kong. matching the huge ape's aSC(!<>I of lhe Em pire Stale Building "'i\h dr.lm.lic progression in the orchestratio n. If Ihi. close integral iun u f music and aclion had been a heao.h><.:he lu lhe music ians. il was e qually dcm;mding for lhe animators. forcing lhem 10 beconle more crisp in the ir Ihin"ing and bener Ql"gani7.w in thei. ,5UICment... The:y al"'a)"5 had been rtqui=! to Bel iIoCTOSS the ~tUf)' poinls on lhe leaSI amounl o f lime:. bul 00
It.." y had never faced the discipline of "''''king IOthr rigid pal1ern of a beat. Where ,,,.d,na .. I)' they ,,'oW!I h,a.·c la""n an e.IrIc. l><.:tion. stage a pose. QI" reg"tcr a look. the InUIIl moo.: them ""arch for the: absolule essence 0( .... Klca-lhal and ~hing more . No fnlls. 00 "'I~: pi right 10 thc point. It is doubtful If lhey ncr .. ,.,.... ha,'" "",hie,·w Ihis con.ci§c dislillation ,,';(Il0011''' ('I-. stanl [IIl:S>u", thai do"' ....... d lhe r r,nd a .... y. 1.001:,. back On it now. we Can sec thai it "'as "aluable ad necessary Iraining . Unlimiled footage nc~rly al"'11I lulls Ihe ani mator inlO a ~l ipshod I'crfuflilance While II><: shons fealuring M ic~cy and acl,on lIP .... re giving lhe ",u, kians such prohl",,,;. the S,u, Symphonics Were pushing illto ~ new relalioMlt,p /I music and ani",alion. He",. the ;lItegnty oflhe was mure imponant. and the action had 10 do :odaptillg. When a Ihc,,1C from used. il bail 10 be used imacl or Ihc " 'hoi. cffet!
"""*
Bar Sheets The exposure sheets were ,I~," and only enough footage for Ihree ur four beals 10 Wilfred Jackson wanted to see lilt OUt before him like SMoel music. so he "bar sheel ." This oflen " 'as calkd lhe" sil"lCC ;1 ,,"cnlually CQfIlaincd all lhe dope mus;,,-- and the aclions. bul ;" "'",. ;,,' '"',... lay OUI the bars of mus;,,-- in long boxes tM
Vie"~';:;:::;::,<::::::::;:::';~;;::~,:
songs. ~ ' \1 cach beat. and a notation of lilt §Ian of which par1 was "erse and " 'hich chonos. (hal mighl De used. and whe~ tilt 'nu,K:
into3~co nd
song, Evel).thinll;;':ir.:,;~~: (Veil the location of sound dialogue. Along wil h Ihis was .... riltcn ii" "~,,,;~ .. scenes. lhe stans and cuts ~nd tDe pal1em b
"':':::~;;:::
Wilh alilhe information in ooe how any changc on one pan lhe otlw:r parts. and corrttlion~ could be ~impl)'-OO paper. Disaster follo...ed ,,'hCQ forBOI 10 correct the animator's cxpowrt ootif)' the cutlcr. or mado. aJI~ 'i e"~I)'one concerned. bul Ihat son
Ii«
Iplikl!
Tlw:r~ "'~ re
00 3-12 measures here, aJ>d conlIdmbIy mort work ,,'as requ,red 10 fiJ>d a<:.ions lha. Ii Ihc: mus>c . IOId the >l0f)' . and >I,ll buih a penooali., II mo.n~ ih31 " 'as righl. ,·isually. ,••t)U1d ",Idom ...rn.t-.: sound on the U1lCk a. Iha. poin•. and lhe ~ had '0 11«0"'" mon: like c hoaographcTli, 1)'uI~ 10 1lI"ld ~ un,riCCOre. The visual male!III roukl JIOl be choppy or f..... gnlC:med; it had tQ ha" c ., "~ unily Ill' I"" mllsic. 1.1ho:v fil'S! bttn s im_ , Meps and runs Ihal easil y could 10 ful !Q,1,· lhe Ileal of.he '''USH:. 8uI wilh 1II111l<:nee on humor and pcf'll(lnal'IY . the films qu, c ~ ly inlo Slories Ihal (iC"'llnded 'he acling
.'.
::~~~:":,:m!po.
:
100. This rcached a pea k ,n 1935 C,mur/, which comb'ned ,,·c ll · koown strong perwnalilH:S and a .i.llalion playtd
enlirely in pantomime. It was a rarc combinalion. reOeel,n, slill another use of music as language. As One pnxiuc<:r sa'd. " Who else ...-oold lake a bandcon· CCTt out of Walt·, boyhood. mi~ in ' William Tell" and 'Turkey in ,he Siraw' and a Ka nsas cyclone. and come OU I w'lh a performance Ihal would enchant ToscaninP'" (Typical of Wah . he did 001 Slop I"'", bm began Ihinking of an eVen bigger lise of lhe sa me principle . He called Ihal one f"IIIIIU1;(I,) In addi tion 10 lhe siories Iha, ca lled for . piriled musH:. Ihl:re " 'ere ""'lIC~S Ihal ulkd for a mood 10 be eSlablished by a spcc iallhernc . In many in!.WlCe:§. lhe feeling of Ihis score ..."t)Uld inO""nee lily furthtr
A bar is Ihll$ 24X loog_
'C"
. . ., ". .. . I.; : I
Now we added lbe """ne
. .,.~ and ,he ~aff lines. ka";ng Ih i.. ... hich bors. or ,,,,,,a' lIres. of the son~,
.r:r:-:--l. Ne~1
Call 1l: Ihe aClion. , imc
,. . . . No- !.heel. ...~
dclcmllncd the ,cmpo t aw us lhe number of fran .... . lOs. 16s .... halevcr . The .lrUClure lhe number of beiliS 10 ,h~ bar.
h~c 'h" In ,h,s ;~ :::;~:::".·.:',:':'":':".:':'~bcal. 12 f",me> '0 each bar.
Lalcr. dialogue was added, sho ...·i n' ...·here lhe 'ake Maned and ended . Localion of wund effecls were OOIed . 100. (There is s. ill 00 music sllggeMed. just lhe bealS . )
•
Timing, Spac ing, and the Metronome " 'ilh me, Ooc . .. , .• bttn ..... Ikin' ()n 13.. .. Wilh lhe m,:ln,IlOn .. 1"IIn · ning, I~ mo" C> " 'cre Ic'" N ; how long dotll~ ch ... ·
The: IoCt;O" ,n • sccne wI. pl.nr.td by IN: .niml_ tor and , .... .1'=1<)< ., ,h
aclCr ..7Jk. bow ...... y SlC'pS
uxt Of • tempo seI by the "",.ician ,hal could be
dotl he cale ...· ~n doe>. ~ "op, how lonE;' ~ ~kP II w:as.1I n.ocN ()n c~ . ~ . pos"re . heel. <<>rr<
m.l"'cd on the
c~ poiu"
. bee!. When . mcl('{)r'l()sc
.... rin.n b.." btt.mc ludi bit. , iVIR, • ,oad indkation of ,"" lfnOUnl of Ii ..... f.,. lIN: oct_ of the =~ . If m.n, " 'as "" sound 10 ..sf as I , .. ide. ,he m<:tro"""'" ,"'lltM only "" Y t" dele.n,ine the length "r Iny of , .... "" lion . A Stlti", of 12, (N'icc. strond) "" n ,,_lIy "sed . ... hiell mcam thai. bel' came ~ 12 rl'lll'O. This ju.r hlJlP(ns 10 be 'M tempo of III mw:hc:$. al'ld ofr.... ,ood ol'ornl,i,·. ",'hen no me' ",nome i. ~y, W",,'le ""}' ..-cll · k""""n marc h until the rb)1hm il well e5llblio/led in )'00' mInd. tap )'011' f_ ane! t\Io,.., • r...,nd "",n' II>< "P' aI you ac, out >Unt. You ,,',111101 be mon: til.., . (!'IIme " rr. M ill Kahl CHl
rouOld . II ",·oscalkd. " " iOldin, lhe quid .... "-'y I() do lhe 1nO$1."
T" roncci,-c "r a Inies or ""c;"". Ihal would pUl ""cr I~ siorypoinl, kccp I~ per.o,.. lily o r Ihc char_ 00 he ;n"glnol,,·. cnouglc l<) he Ctllcnaining .... . . bit ... i",menl To do il all " ';Ihin lhe IIm'1> of the alloctttl rOOl."" " 'Ich I r~linK of ICC<:nC. I() malch I~ heal and geM"rei Ih l ' g.,·e ~y n< .nd mych",. 100/; more Ihon "" "" d"'''-inX abilily . A vis,tor .'a1k,,,,Ihroo,h the hall. " 'oold hea. the ",.u.red licks .nd cocb (omin, from "".",1 to()n" II lhe ...... lin .. , I. III< ,,,,imol"" Ii"cncd and acl.d. conoidered and limed . Thai metronome
""it" ..
,h.
l~nlc,.•• ""....
""",._
10'11 I
th,n, ""","" ...i.h ''''m~''
of ("f)ft'tK'
,!O , ,0 -'J
EXAMPl.ti fll , n~
-Ktltt ..·,,11
_
_ NI
,rod for a , ..iilt, Soc ... d
playin g; fo > in waler; lIoun friend . TempO' Stc mC"lrot><>mc ()n 12 beac .
" OOloge : Undele.mlned, bUI keep bri,k .nd l>II.y .
Slo,,~,
,/w,
J ~88~S'M
,lrrsunt.
In Ihi, "".... fron. TIo,F.,. aNI ,10,- /f",,"". ,here: had 10 he ,he j.pInlcd r~l · ,nK of 1" 0 kid. In lhe old
' '' ''''""n,
hole . The
.ni·
maUM" dccKkd '0 .,;on lhe occ ... .. "h ,hi: alone '" III< wote•. 'hen bring lho
I'Cl,,,ld in on the nimh r..",,, L"tcnlnK 10 ,he rRC,m-
...,.... , "'" d
,t>t "'" >h<>uld fUn for II) f.--s hef"", hi: Jumped For.t>t di~ •. It>t I"'P """'Id
h.,·c • bi, leap wi,h • 11,,,,_
,.. '~/,,~
.... . . ... ~
It"m /H , of f ru ....
It'~" j" ~m
""1
cP·
.t
'""It '(Jnd'n ~ and iw"'l"ng l'
0,
'0
Tlo,-y
AI·,n ini;
f",
", 'vi
txpos"" JA",
-,",,,,."'i~i2:~~;~ ,~
{)ft/y ~ MYI/o'Io,- , . ""nd_
TIo,- bo
by Mrl
'!em . "n",knlln,
l:askmasltt ...... ic "10. ,..,_ """",iblc for F*ki"3 """'" cnlena inmenl inlo s",all .mounts or fOOll,e Ihln ~ny oohe. prooNUrc ,
WI lt S'"l'IChfidd immedi_ ~Iydn:w I.ke«:hof. man at I~ oo.:lor', off,ce ")'in" "Som
Th~ ;~spirm;OI"'1 ,k~1C1I
fra_ ......" ".. ...,"'.... {)ft,M of a rMrI, liu ,/oj• .
' It 'lo,- f -
Ch
I,
,II,.
aN,,,,,
Th~
(lnim"'",
m(!k~.
"
r""" ,hrno';"JI "'~r'r 1M P"P's hh>J ..,/I bot "" .....,~
of Ilrr d.."wing' i"
rlrr Tun
,mJ jump .
)
•
"".... :!4 frame>, ~In! ,he t..sI. Thi, W1$ chancd on """jlo)$U~~. ,..~h the I fnme>bbnk .,Ihe >Ian. co,ng 16 f..",., (0' Ihc spIaI/I. >nil """' ...... 8 f"",.." ...... (111;1 ... ..., ,lie pioclu~ drenched. bul boighi",. The whol< ow,.. '-10 ~ fttt 8
or "" ro.
,.....
'''mon.OI'
Thr I.you, ,,'.,
.""'"PI
..... " ',",IT ..-", _lor Ih< pop 10 run [Of
16 f...,..,j from (he field booIo, 1<1 the rdllC o f ,he _wr. ...... ""''''inp ...re .... o(lho oil'" dog >lid hi, Illiludo .hroughoul "" at100II. Ali re · - . d ..... to dc:lCfminc .hI: .pacing. 00101 far he _Id """.. 00 .""" dn ... _ "-n' . imple: ....... of .. kin, .he di.- . from ,.... fiBl dnl""
.i,..
,h.,
."II1II,,,,.
. . 10 lhe >pol " .""",, he ~,anddi"idlng j,
into
16 <'
,he.., became It\< !">Silio"
of ,he pup ', head ., he ~ '"' hi. run . To
k..,p 'hi' nm 'i,..,'y .• n S (",me galk>p was c~". ,"'hie .. P'" the pup. happy. bouncinB """, or 0 ployful pup in • mi",hievou. mooJ. W1>tep by i tep th is "'ay. i. ~n" Ilk. an im 'ol.'tt! and tntiou. pm.:0•. bu. ""tually i. to~ .. only a mall .. of min"t .... 1lw; bi, ••hanl"", i. thai it ~i'"UlItc",,_a~
10 think about his ""nco pl.y " 'ith tho idoe •• . and , ..... it all ","'ff in hi. mind ber"", be i, co.mnil1cd to •
-
'pa; ifio artion. 1lw; >lcpo that ..,.,nd .., """,h... ",.1 in ""';tin.,,, ill oll .. imulal. hi, imagination . and in. on:'~ lxlth the fu" of doin, the ocellC ond Ute prtlbobil. ity that it .. ill comcOUI on tho so"",,, just ,he .... y II< has .·i .....li«hot or til< ac· tion of ,II< (ox and hound pI.yin, in Ute " '''ff. Wi,h
no
$Olid
,un..,.,
",,"Ulh
tlliling the k",,1 or .he "'ater. A IIrld is dra"'n .0 n:mind .Ite animato< or the d"' ...·;ng n: .. ric. ion. as he bob!; the cha ..... te ... "P and do... " t() l ive Ute fttli~ of ""inl in ..-at..... T1tc timing ()r the acti"",. "hkh . n: matched to .hi. pcOl{l«.ivc. i. til< only .... y of _;"~in, thi, ill".ion .
• T~ r~ptJ. u'r Uofft ~'jdo.~ 0<1i<>
jump.
rmd,~ spl~sh .
......'.... . .,.,.
,
•"-'-"Ii" ., :''"''\". ':-> ,. ~''''' ~ \o . 'F''''' .' , ,'.
:/( . " . ...",, .
~
- .'
# '
:""..t;
,
. .>"<-
,.<...'
" ',')
•
,
I'
,'.
.;""
.'
EXAMPLE ,1'2 .
"'" and co.mlle. lhe bIg ~km/;n'~ of 1roe Set·
WOT~in, '0 mu.i~ in dn n/nl>ilJh"/In.,po.
,in&th<' ,nclWOOmc'ma 14 I>o.!. ",'e u')' 10 vin ,hal ....'ill "" bc:~1 for 'h" ",wo{ion. We "'"'" 10 S« .be pig \.11\11" gle ntllnUy .nd . kid on [he romo .... he :..,empt< ' 0 n;ach 'he door. (TIl .. aud~ • ch2ncc to .han: hI> .",""""" •. and ,he mU'tel.n an opponun;ty
.,c."".
Sec"" de"criplioo : Fi..., h.· tie P;I runs iftlO his
$'''''''
houH. slams doof Wel-
come mal I • • n fron, of door. He ope ... door. pull ~ in "... ,I.m~ door .pun. TtmpO: ,woJ 14~. 0.-7 f'"mes
pcr
""'!.
First. we de,ermi"" tbc
nuun
acccnt~
~alt h ,"
,.-t ,.-ant lO
,he 0<11011 . "They
-1. Gotn"broughtlocdoor. , 2. Sllmm,n, the door. 1. OrOfagain. S~c<,"d. ""C "udy the uposure >heel In
,'>'do.he
'" .uppor1 ,roc lC!ion.) The bel' :>I'ccn, musically for h,m '0 da~h in,o ,he house would be on Mca'Su,. 155. w"h ,he door .Iam roming 7 f",rntS !a,« on ,be up· ~.
The nc .. bI& accen'. for ,he "I"'n,n& of .he doxw. cornu on MC&lu,.., 151>. jUl, 21 f.amu af,Of 'he d<><>r slam . The d<><>r muM be clo>cd 10011 enough '0 the of lhe house w"h ,he ",ekomr ma, .,
g., pic''''''
,tt<: do<>rs,cr. bu, nOl "., long ,h., 'he 'empo " ,poilcd. A, 'he door i. ope .....'\!. ,he pig ~n'idpale, f, .. . n"'''ie. 7 f,,,me•. divtS for ,tie .... ,. and gnbs " "" ,he ... ~t be.t. ''''''' pull> "
f...
in very The .....,,"' door ~I.rn rould rome- "" d.. do.....bnL of Menure In A.lln,.ll of 'hI< OU, 10 ,he II.h of lhe ""', .... oornc
.how. ,h., 'h" pa'_
'em is jlUssible. II i, f.st. bul .Ho"",, Ii".., "'..,. ..ery· Ih,n&-,heudted f:>l'c.'he ",och . orIl""" <>f"'" lillie "'. throw,,,,,,,, the ac:ti<>n help; 10 prove OU' ,he pl"""'"g ll>e ;1(1)00 ,,",II be brhk. bUI "'hen " " chaned on lhe ul"""'" '''''''' il i< all cleat or in'ere,""& ' II ,. 1>me '" "an .n"nallng
Tho: ..'hole §Klion of S,,,,,,, \vhi,.. th~t ,howed t~ Moo"" lying on her bier while her friend. mourned _
planll
~
I""",......,d
Ofg~n
lrack
t h~1
SCI the
¥
and lbe mood of an)·thing that would be dllnc riIoullly , No one ~ame 0111 of Ihe lhea ler " 'hislling that ..,. bill it was ~ ~at pi«e of mus ie ~nd did more to dIotr \II' I~ sprclalOlS Ihan is generally ",alized. TIM: IIIIlbtr of scenes was c~",fully pl~ntlCd as well ~s ..... rootltnl. 50 Ihat then: " 'ould be 00 busy scenc!i • ... fl)( mo ...... nothing Ihal " 'ould conlr.odict the feel· ill in the music . Tho: ... i.... I<)I' had to play Ihis lrack O~er and O'o'cr to ..uta'" lhe righl feding in hi s dr~w ing., and hi s oc· _ .j It "'as ncccs'j.3l)' lhal he s,ilturatc himself wilh as5plm 10 caplun: a similar mood in the animal ion . l/IfO!lu ... {~ly. nc~t door. Fred Speoc~r wlS Irying to _ as much life and "italily as he coo]d into the tInrf,1S they ... ng and danced for Snow While in lhe Earui""",nl s.cq,,",oce . A~ lhe d",ary org~n t~s o f • mournin~ §Ktioo seeped through {1M: wall s . Fred IIIDNI"P lbe "oluOle on his recorti of lhe yodelin, and ~. This quiekly cnli.'cncd the funeral ne~t door. ~"ng hours of gelung ,nto JUSt 11M: righ' mood . Tk!t ..'~. poundi"g 01\ the wall from b<>th silks ~nd fitrot lohooots of. "CUI OUt lhal sad Sluff!" an''''cred .,. "Swp thai d~neing in lbere!! "
Prcscoring
".,po"
I. f""kU"' . n""" of lhe m.. ,IC " '"," " frft -.I dol ~ ,0 • "rIC' he.,. ,,~och t .."a,cd .... k· .-vd conJui"", fHr ,he use of ,he b;tf ,heelS , Wnh ,"'" Iror bt"" 42 frame.' al>d. ,he ,ra@:'" 'rae .... _m'"I!1It Il0l>1101>. "" ,he ,,~..,,)' • . " M,",ure "umbel> ""crc ...-ri"cn "" the >11«1>. alon ~ .... ~ acrmh and iUl)' OIhor place"",n!> ,he difn-· ... or ""~h! """d. Ac{"", OOIe. " 'ere .. fIl'en t» til< P<)', bt,id< ,he mu,,,, .."ad,", In Ihl> CiISC . tr...
*"
mllsie . The Silly S)'mphooics had laughl lhe starr tho "alue of 1~Il;ng musi" speak its mcssa~e uninletTUpl' cd. SO the ~nimnlOlS ,,'en: well · pn:p.arcd for an (X. lOrne ""l""r>ee$, al>'cries and r""lingl: " £~en in !hose earLy cumedics I SIn»'C (or a mood; IIsually music c realed it An old ~ng ca lled Mrs. Grulld), crealed lhe mood (or 1'ht Immi,ra"', The tunc had • wislful tenderness Ihal suggesled IW(l lonely d"relicls gelling married on a doleful. rain)' <,\;iy . ,,~
Wah had a si milar kind of rcaction 10 lhe emotion s uggested by music . and " 'hile he did not P""ICI>
SC'tj"""".
,,'ood.
.'''''y
!la,..,
f",,/Jjw, ond ",any exira Story ",,,etings were heLd 10
music In ptctll"': " RighI""'" you 100 much sharpness ar.d 'boom·boom- of the piano , When one o f 1M guys gels an idea . 11M: key!ohould chan", . WlM:n he lifts up the nmsie g,,",i " ';Ih him. al>
Iitd!ht tat ~ivlIOC'l' to ~hov.' d .... ing all pa"S of lhe
dow • .
.""""(01
..., ,,-=
l"'f'l """" .' a fttOId ,han a " ... l,n!
proct
Tho "]"....1. on ,,-orkonll 10
~ ~>con:d lrac~
,,'as
Music Not Prcscored
Surprise Accents
MOSI all"""';"'" on Iht ft.",,,,~ ,•• as noI dont ' 0 a pr=omJ ItXk . and will> .he tmpl\as,~ on actillg alld mood.he S«nt~ ...'e,., belltr ~uppon«l by a fl'« 'tmpu .ype: of mu sic 'han by tbe rigid beat . 10 tbo$ cnts. .he mu,i,,, ... would a>t fOf • dummy ~ .0 he ...up ,""",,'i.., him ""~' he had ." mllch alld "'here 'hings happe:lICd , A mu,ic cll<:d "'a, mac. or he ( wid do II .11 to • free be.,_
_,ion
Jim Macdonald dcvb.ed an in..,.,.,in! "'")' of n.apm:;..,@uidcfOf ol"mII>..::;"' ''''ilh.h is problem. On a 1'«1 of blank film. he I"'""hed (KII hoi., ,h., would make clkh.1Id pop5 ... hoen ,he film ...'.s run '"' .he soulld head . "T'heJo: sound, " -ere tilllCd nactl y the acl"", '"' .hc film . .., ,he m",ician rould hear wlocrt .he« ""C."t~ c.me while: wrilillil a SCOf'c to
'II!'
'0
maleh.
lbt I"'bloc conllnued 10 enJOY .... in' clnoon cbor· acl." 1110"" in close rtlation 10 ,"",ic ; there "" as ..,,,... .hin, f"""n,'in,aboot il alld 1lOnICthing tha, felt ri,11l 10 Ihtm. 1I_'c,.." . iI had to he dont "",,'ully . ...·,th alld . urpri.., ••• arefully avoiding the choppi"" .. alld "ricky_tick" ..... 1Id of the u,ly Cat-
"""" n"" . .,,.,
,~ .
lbt audic""" f« l. romfonable ,,'Ioc ... ltd 10 btl"". thai • .". in Ih,ng< w,lI happ'''' aOO.n fac, they .... , Thr Clta"""" ..·.Ik' in rhy,hm wilb ,II<: musk ; he IoCctlll$ his mo'·e ...... "l> 00 the b..,; i. f«l. ",hI. TIw: oppJUi< "",>I be lrue of the ""fJ'flse ,IK .• he un~_ dIo ",.nling . n..", accent> . too..ld ron .. 00 ,'''' off bt•. .11<: up be.,. ""n,.""","", in In.. middl~ of ,"" ........... " 'he,,, they are lea>! upc-cL«l. "floc auditoc. OJ. led 10 anllClp;1l. 0fIC thing. and the COOllnuctl aettn'i on the "",,'nbea. fonify IhIS >o(n
Walt also ~\l g.ge~ted tloc", might be feelings of diwnaroce in .he harmony. for the sak~ of comedy. and 10 5h<>w that tbc", was 1>0 a ~reemcnl in Ihis group, Without jus. the right feel ing In the ",usic. he l/lc)ughi tltt: .... hole idea of doc sequcrocc: " "1$ onlinary IIId ~ ..tdi doing_ He ro""'lenled a. the end ur lhe m«ting. "lt~ imponanl that ..'e work OIl' a good musical pattern {It! .his or else " 'e had bener give up .he idea and IrY 10 W()rk i1 0111 in some othe, .... ay .·· The seqllC'lICf wally was ~ut OUt of the piCIU"" Wah was JUIl as Crilical of the songs that 10m !ug.gcsted for !he characler! '<1 ~ing . One ~ ",poned that Wah could get his ideas acrnsi almost wit houl usini words. because his c riticism Wl$ "WI)"! ill terms
.'"Q-
_ _ ordinary ~nd drag h~< picture do"·n. The wng IlIII '" ~,·c a fr~slllless and a Yitality and something IID1 brlotl' he ,,'OO1d ac«pt it . If it did not rnUe him ftrI tho .... y he ...·anted the audience to feel. he " "QUId .. tho romposcr 10 Iry again. As he Malted work on ,..""1<151',,. he was very honest . . . his lock of musical kno,,·ledge. and it did not -rr h,m in the "'ast 1h.3! his r.:octions wer.: those: of • I11III In the suut. l.copold Stot.owski ...·as im . _ If helpful and s!",nl some tinlC' e:>;plaining the c.lNCtion of a musi,,0.1 number and the relation of • form to the reaction of the Ii.llreSSl:5 On any SCtjuence __ KleIS pop up. aoo surpri.ult could be usc<.l f.... pnJdoction-i f desiml . 1I
.on
"."JS
_the
-.bt,,,,
wrole it is Sl~nding by to help <.Iecidc juS! whattOOse c hanges should be and ""heK in (he score they should C<>lnC'. l ie i~ not beat~n dolO'n by whal stems li~c ,Jaily trivia. but is av.i lable when help is needed; and !lav. ing made hi, initial statenlC'nt of how he helievq the mus ic soould be, he exens {l1I}1"C inf1l>C~ than when he tried to tkl instant con'jIOSing in the 100m with lbe director . n.: best mllsic was achie'"ed " 'hen it could 'Pring· board from the hours of thought and refinemem that had gone into lhe story dcvclopnlC'nt and arting. If. ""quencc is. well balanced. builds properly. has life . gotxl lc xtun:S. and a flow . lhe musician has a much beuer chance o f " 'riling a wperior M:0Ie than if the picture is dull . lifeless. and spotty . e ",n the grandt$I score w ill stem unimpressivc under those rontIitioos. With a ~nl;llk. crew and n tcnded schedule!; for tho: pictures in the sixties and seventies. it WIS no longer jIOSsible to keep a musicia n on full time. so we shared one with the live action units. (K:orgc Bruns "vrkw equ all y wel l in ei ther med ium. ""iting "Davy Crockett" f.... the I;ve T V show at lhe same time he W2S adaptin, Tchai kovsky 's ~lIet !'COle for S'UJII~S 8~"wry to our animated "en;ion of Illat classic fairy laic. George .... as big and easy-going. but he wortw very hard and produced a """"'ingly e ndless string of fresh melodies and haunting SCore5 . H~ d id Icmp tracks. prescored .some selections . orchestrated sonp. jun,pW o,·c. to lhe live artion shows. lhen back to consult on the best mUliical {reMment for the ""xt §C
In"ariably !here ""ere loan)' .urpn!ieS and ell;on~e. from lhose fim UCI!ed plans. 'n., d,,«!or lias gooe !hroo~h lhe =Is wilh lhe nlUskian hour after hour. di~u"mg, planning. changing. humming: bU I he ;, IlCver ,ure that It.. musician understands " ha! is '.'anted. and lhe musiciao lias an c.-en Jl"IOI"l: difr",ull lime ~e!!ln, h" Own ideas ""r()SS si nce !t.. langWlge of m,,'1C I. IlOl IiOme!hing lhe direCI()f unde ... !~nds . SomC!UIIC. the music will lac k Ihe magic an!ic llxllcd. and "hole .....> !;"ns of the film " 'ill seem 10 fall ,har! of "h~! lhe) might haw been: bul just as often. e"ery""" ",II be startled by how nluch n~ po.....erful and Inlcn>t !he ",,!ions ha,·c bttome "hen fon,ficd ",Ih!he mu,1C We had worked hard on T/", Rescuas. Irying to make the mice seem "ery .mall a"d inadequale 10!he lask racing them. but the con fidence and sp,rn In the v~s KCnlallo dispel an) CCulely and " ... ~c muSIC that immcdi"lely made lhelr IU,k "nOnnuu'. "hlle somehow kee ping lhem vinually helpl6' When lhey tried 10 mo,'c lhe huge d,amond from ilS hIding place. !he score added a good 0..., hundred p
10 make!he mlCc .!r~ln and hea'·. ;~.,::;;,';'::~ the,r strength .. hen lhe) pu>hcd agalA" I hUI !h's--Ih" exhau_l, IlIC"" S""h efkel. ~rc no! e,,,lelll"''' plall. Th"" unfoou ...... t"Cnl)·· (jvC ",u'Iem", ,uung un the .'!age uNruc"on, h","," :on wK;t>mfonable ~f1ccl on a lur' S judlln>en! of rc""on~ "tlCn !he fiflll ":~:~ ..,,·cah a d,fferent f....,hnll III the "'..,,.; than '" antlClp:lled.
"'"1
All !he: Olht'-r funcllon, '" the m.~,"~ of ::~:~l NlIlllhruugh COlls!ant !e,lIng a"d cotr«lIn8 ing dlC be" rciall"",hlp!" the "h"Ic .• nd In I non, ",u
"""""""I}' II
one II. I>cl"" ,c Ihallhcre ,ull
"IIWI) """" "'a». cXCllon~ "'ap, 10 meld "111>1" and [lOClUn: 1U~~ll>cr
on>[l""'~
wa)"
I" a ~rickcl ",II>" gt:nllc pen.onahl)' a, " 'cll a. sening a mood f,M' lhe ,,"'hole piclure 10 follow . '!'be .......1"""I. .. Liulc Woudcn Ilead.·· captun.'Oden I"'ptlCl in his lifelcss .'13Ie . Wilhoollhal wilh lhe n.. lod~ Ih" ""..,,,11.'<.1 10 iii an olc gencr-~I ideas 10 II ..... mood and mcasu ..... of lhe- music. Of ... ue.u~ chan~ lhal mighl help bulh pictu", and ""'g_ Wilh only a ""'nlO lrack. chan~s "",Id be tried and lhe structure ofthe- mu,ic altcred 10 fillhe gfO\\'ing lhe vocal " 'ou ld needs of lhe ,Ioryboard. In rCII",in. h\JI if il has bec" r«:urded on a §cplmue track. changcs in the resl of the mu,ic " 'oold ha'-e no df«t on il an)'''·a)' . Now. when lhe- booIrd looks promising. aoo lhe Icnglh of lhe- song fcds ri,hl. the ~letchc:.ciUI be shoi and:.dded 10 the story . ketch red. Once more lhe~ art" changed and shirl~'
""'I:
Illtre "we >OI'~' in a picl ure in :"lU,uon 10 . . .",col >COre, II.. ) were" rlilen and reconk:d "el')' arI).!iU 11>c)' "",Id "" 'nlc~r~k'C<:Ipf1W the flo,,· of lhe ."()f~ " 'h ,le ,;on", ,in~er *"",",Ir:lled hi, prowc". ,,,,d he illsi,led 11);11 Ihe Wnrn
:~):::~:,:~:g "il 'O.: !U piel up II>.: le",p<' of in a",~l>cr wa)'. "hile a,kllng 10
I
I comen! of I].., ":
-~ Om • ""'g had
:
oc~n
,""eepled fro", the co"'p<,,,,,'r,
~::'::'«~'.;;',i":":' """Ie.."1.""proximali,,)! Ihc lenglh '· ... n,i.kr 'I'll.: "(leal mighl be On Illal cou ld be used in lhe finall . ....oolol be far beller on a lemp IrdCL, ""h lho.:
or >ln~1I group Ihal :::::::::~:.:"~::.;'; bier "he:n all finat Ik"'''i, .... , I>",'c oc"<:n t;'<;lIIld
tn III< «l i, . ~"''''. the >'M ' g ilsctf a,,
""' """'<'_In ~ film. II>c _,It"",tun: mO>l be
by II>c na.'oCr '" 110 " 'anted 10 conlrol lhe: pr<:of hI> n",loo),: " You ' re benef off " tilinG to I I in II", piclure. bec:[U,c )'''ur ,on): "ilie",i n~""" "ni~uc . h'>lca,1 of ,,'ri ling "hOi )'W and a,ling f,M' 1"'-' pIClure 10 ad:.pt to il . 1""1 I"'" carlOt)fl malenal has been ,.'urked O\~r. II ha, more lhoughl .
"""~."'" n>lill "III h",·c g"'''1 value_ A..., I"'" OIlchc:, lhe e~act II .... '" of lho! '""I""!lCC n In I f.-.:;.h ~nd "k!"IOr~blc ""a} "In tIo (or 1"'-' l'U"'p<>SCf. Ino . I.cLgh and Ned I""cl), "When V'III ; 'I dUI)'. introducing us
,
>01," ,'3""'.
Sound Effec ts Funny suund' ~I""a)', ha,-c been ~n imegral pan of cart"""s . II " alnlO>-l impo»iblc 10 thinl of lhe cnl)' films " ,Ihoullhe ,Iide whi~tk:, ratchet. flOP"gun. A)'Jo. phone .• nd bell-. Tb".., had all bl~n wrincn in a~ pan of lhe score ~lId were"", r«orded until c"c'~lhing 011 lilt: pi<:lote ,"'", co"'pleled . The animal ion had been done 10 ~ ,p«i (", be:'l. II>c aclions "~re all marked "" lhc .,,,,'" "",IF. and fou, or fi"e pefCu"ion "'en ""ere no,.' broughl '" ""ilh lhe orcb(~r. 10 record lhe "'hoIe piclU'" in 0'", long. cnmplelC talc of C"cl)'lhin, Ih~1 would be on Ilk: sound m.c k . As lechnica l ~no"'ledgc advKoccd. il became POSSIhie 10 do Ihe differenl pan_ of Ihc .'<>1100 separ~lcly and
combine them omo one track at a later date . No ..... if wmeone hit a wrong gong or scraped his s..ndpaper block once too often. the whole seven-minute take did nOi have to be done over. But a larger advantagc was that now the way waS open 10 experimem. The music could be recorded in separate takes called ··cues.·· the voices could be done oVer and over umil JUSt lhe right inncction waS captured. and the SOIInd effecls could be recorded individually. speeded up. run backward. Of built out of 1.....0 or thT\.""I! separate pans. For Thru Lilllf' W"I,·es . in 1936. the sound effects men had to get the juicy impacl ofa ripe tomato hining the big. bad ..·olf in lhe face. A ..... et ..... ashcloth had tOO much inlpact. a spoonful of grease waS \00 "·et. and a cup of water had too much splaner. The "",und finally was achieved by comhining the three best sounds OVer the blatant wund of the . ·razlberry ..• the impeninent noisemaker made of two loose pieces of rubber. No"," by itself sounded anything like a tomato. but togcther they had the feeling needed to match the action . As Jim Macdonald says. ··The "",und man must think about what the sound is going to do for the picture-ooljuSt how it ought to sound.'· Jim was the most creative and dedicated of all the sound mcn. staying at the studio for SOme forty-two years. then continuing to come in for "",und effects sessions after that well into his sevcntics. Originally brought in as a drummer to handle some of the sounds for those early canoons. he was offered a steady job because of his imaginat ion and
tracks as a good track inspired beller business .... hod!. in tum. built an even beller track . No departm
pan"
J.
do..,.
us a."~ buill our conlinuily and bu,ines_, 10 ilS cli max. ""Ilhe n we called upon Jim. Aflcr lookiog m lhe film r.. .-.eommended Ih~1 be do il all in one lake as be ulchOO the film on (he s.:recn. ralher Ih~ n in separate pieces as he ",ually did. He brought oul a big (ub. filitd i( with waler. and Ihen wilh the mi~c in place Mid his chin half ,ubmerged. fi .,~-d his eye, on the scm:n and gave Ihe order 10 rol l Ihe ti 1m l ie not only matched lhe ""lion preci,"]y. bUI inhaled JI le"'1 a, much w'aler as Ihe cal in Ihe pielure. and ended up just >bool as rlCarly dro"-ncd. Jim had • "'oodworking 'hop in his garage and .""kl spend hours buildin~ ~ad~et ' Ihal mighl make !OI.lods for 'pecial ",cl ions of lhe piclure._ When work • :asboginning nn Thr Old Mill he ~aw (hal lhere would be a ~ for many differem kinds of creak< as old. roning pans of Ihe SlroClurc would lum . He corn:cived Ii "" . labornlC commpl ion of drum head,;. siring and bIInons and suppon,. and a wheel for lighlening il all . f".ring thai ",ilh a bi l of ro,;in and a bo w he , hould be able 10 gel w me exceplional groon,. Whal he gOl wa,; I porfcel foghorn! So he recorded Ihal. which is slill the on< used luday. and returned 10 his shop 10 Sian a ne~' idea, II is "cry imponanl (hal (he effecls man hal't enough limc !O Ihink and play "round wilh ideas if the soond is to be al al l unu sual. or jU_'1 righl for the poclure. Man)" l;'l>CS il is necessary 10 run Ihe recorded I!Xk Ihroogh SOmC of Ihc sound ~"
berale il . or take oul Ihe lows. or , peelles. footsteps. creaks. and foghorns. and Ihcse are widel y used 10 build Ihe leSI (racks. bUI when the pkwre is finally all PUI IOgelher. Ihere i, al"'ays a long list of needed sounds (hal should be dooc a link differenlly for I h i~ panicular piCI Ure . If lhe sound is (!ounds he can find. and. also. 10 dedde juS! how many he should PUI in . Too few can make lhe film sound spot· Iy. 100 many can make il sound ridiculoos. AI Ihe Slal1 of lhe war in 1941. Ward Kimball and Fred Moore were animaling a long. involvee
nr suggeslion
was made that the scene "'ould gel t in ils rough state if it had a few .ound , Ward lind Fr«J cautioned the lIMistant th~t if • effeclS "'Cn: lOll n:al lhe scene would be dull, . . . if me,y 'o'en: !OOUOIie il ,,·o.lId b«ome si lly and its ~~nglh. But the right IOlmds. carefully choD. . oold li,'C • sprightly character to the " 'hole hour$later IIIe !)earning assislanl returned with t it on the MoviQla wi th the.ound I"",k beside it. On the open ing frame of , then: was a ratchet sou nd as the soldier' S in I sa lule. fo llowed by a " ping!" from .s lhe fing¢f$ touched the forehead . This "sproings:' wheezes. tllOOs. claj1!i. (llher. ac«nting every la.'lt linle the animated churacter made . Fn:d and Ward back to lhelaugh_ film. into convulsi''C ::':~: : : ~::~:'~::'::::~.::,::.:;.
They fell 10 the Iloor and could no longer sec the bill me, p.:nde of unlikely sounds continued on • popping .00 bleeping. li ke someilling gone Tho: kIIlger il ,,'enl, the funnier it goI. and once and Ward had sta l1ed to laugh . t he~ wlS no
assistan!"s bu ming look of anli ,ipatioll had . . .,. " """",,,.,, mo«: defiant anitude. then 10 a 1(1 of determination . lie sta~d doggedly at lhe through the Moviola , intenl on see ing 10 lhe end 00 matter what. off lhe machi"", look o ff the lhe room with his track under his 'The gales o f laughlCr had allrac:1ed everyone cI~ in Ihal wing of the and now ('Urious heads "''C'" thru'>!ing into ."",1,., lhe WOfCe of lhe humor. lhey paSt lhem. and Ihal very
~~;:::,~;::::::::~ .:';=:';:'"ma n is asked 10 come ,
• SOlInd for somet hing tllat cannot pos.ibly iOUnd of ils uwn: fur instance. the sound uf a "'eb shimmering witll de w. Wah insisted that should be • 5pe<;ial sound. and though he could llescribc it uactly he gave lhe impression lhal knew "hat it should be . Jim Macdonald 1,,'Cn tho ,,"ign_1II al that point and lurned it
",''''r
over in hi~ mind fur scverJI days. It s!lould be like_ " ';nd chime. he l!lought. soft and delH.:ale, withoullhe impact of glass hilling glllM: it had to be something else . Jim found his an~"'Cr in ~ ~ of duraluminum 1((1 over frum a """. panel inMalied in the sound de~"mcnl. He CUt the material into s.... 11 piccn and suspended them from a plywood frame . and ""hen he shoOIl' elusive. bul untlcniably beller. ideu , and especially ideas that never would have been t!louglll of in the beginning . One of Jim's gll'aleSt accomplish ments Wl5 the sound for a gianl magnet. This actually was inttndrd for I r10k at Wah Disney World. but Man: Davis. ",'110 had helped develop the ride. k""w from hi$ )'e2l$ of animalion training that the key factor in mating me, whole idea won: was 10 have ju~tthe ri,hl sound. He called Jim OUt of ~ti",ment to find it . The fascinaling thing is tha.t Jim "'enl righl 10 objects Ihal make no .ound! Thai is, no sound the human ear can £kl~t . A heavy-du ty soldering iro n operating on 60 cycle~ held close 10 the microphone gave off a very low. rhythm;'; hu m . A de·magnetizer u~d for laking sMic elttlrit:ity out of Kissors bef,,", CUlling lape gave oIT another sound that barely could be recorded. and, finally. Jim lUi a large cymbiol and gently brushed a liny piece of COlton against the edge. No sound could be detected on the "~e, but lhe tape machi"" "':as pickinl up ~trange vibrations. These tIu-cc ooullib well' taken to the dubbing panel in the thealer. whell' lhe t"",ks " 'tf'C mi~ed and s wilched and altered. and raised in volume until the sound could be heard by human CaB. II was a sluw. pulsing. indefinable sound. and il started to make everyone lhere sick . As they bolted fur lhe door, lhe ~nnoyed lCchnician! yelled back al Jim. "You can't pul that in Disney World! " RUI Jim CQntinucd to play wilh his sounds. r~ling like a mad inventor, until he had lhem at the provoca· tive " age ju'>! short of producing ill",," and ju'>! pa'>I n:eognition o f it as wond al all . It was mtII'C of • feeling, and il fcll like a magnet should souoo!
71rt- ",."KIP!.. cf IIw ",~/,, · pia," """"ro " .Irot.n IH ,Irt-... ""'/oIk~,,,. IIrt- " ....
"'cf' * '"
r/~ m .. ",n' hm .. 1M
rlrt-/ar",/row) ..
III
Ih .. dr.
"ur
of uri
WI!,t
12. The
Follow-up Functions
"No (1/1( f't'WII CUll /akr cud;rfo, rhr Juct'rlS of" mor;on pirmrt . I,'s strklly" tram ,!forI. From thr iiiitt' I~ SIC!')' is ... ,ilun 10 rhr limr rhr finui ul~uu prim cornu off thr ",inuT. hlmdrrds of fW"l'if (trr ;n,'()h'r~(Jrh (It!<' tloing " job-""'h job ("omribll(ing 10 rhr fi"I'/l'roduo. ,. Wal! Disney
'-"1Ih lilt ...·riling of the mllsic. the 1$ ' Nly creali"" funclion has been completed . Some membcn; of the lUff tlrudy ha,.., new a.signmenl$ and are excitedly f~pIoring the rlCXI rrojeCI. bul the.., ~!i1J 8«' &Cvcral crucial;oos 10 be done and deci.ions 10 be m;,de Ihm
""'11)' .ffecl the final appnflmcc of the picture. UlUllly an rile money budgeted for the film has been
IJI
100 many oompromiKs al Ihis stage
could desuoy much o f [he ... alue of rile work already door. FonuILlIldy. there are still dedicated propIe kfl who ... ill 5« lhal this doc:. 1101 happen . ~ncS muSt be chec ked OVer and Ovcr 10 be MIlt thaI all paIlS worl ro~!ly. The ~nwork must be
n.:
phoI~raphe<.l
by lhe Camera
Dt:panl1~nl.
alilhe dif·
Imll! _nd tracks must be combined onto one: track. -.I then !be lab must face lhe impossible lask of gel· . . the colors on tho: film !O look !he same as tho:y -m painted. While these jobs are noI glamorous. !ky are "i!al in a~ing tho: seemingly endless string r;I. one process or anolocr always going WTOni . Fran!i · all)" b)'ing !O control these proccs~s and keep the pic!Urt movin~ i$ the Production Munager . Someone has to assume!he responsibili!y for seeing _!htre are no boctleneds. that ~ne:s move through • OfJlIlizalion smoothly. !1Ia! dire.:!ives are being caned 0lIl. that COSIS are held 10 a minimum. andliul • prod~r understands why the projec! is I'lOl be:ing wopktal on schedule . II does I'lOl have to fall to one ..tividual. It tan be: shared by a small group of over· .m.cd artists with a special loyally to the whole pro-durtiQn. However. it is the one person wi!h!he official til:k Produclion Manager " '00 can be: blallM:d. criti-
dud. qunlioncd. and senl to lake care of mings. IIis job was easy when the picture slo .... ly ,,·u!alt· ing shape in the Story DepartllM:nl. the dirtCtOr was Ics!ing vokes. and lhe experimental aninlation was being done. Not much money was being spen t. bu!!he crealive pnxcss is impossible 10 coo!roI anyway. How· ever. ~ the "'ork h",~ been p;tssnl by lhe animalOn 10 their assiSlanlS. dra" 'ings Can be counted. deadlines impo:sed. $("hedul~ arnngcd. and ",ork organiud . "The: pic!ull' ill in full produclion at this point. and .'iUddenly e"erything i. going a! 001'( and in all dire<:· lions . Theil' is I'lOl enough !illM: in any dlIy 10 check even half of il . especia!!y if lhe CrtW is behind sched· ule and working oveni me to meet I deadlinc-whi<:h. somehow. nearly always happens . NOIhing seems to be wming OUt quite lhe way it was planned. and 1>0 one: really knows ,,·hy. Everylhinll conceivable for keeping prodUCI;"'" moving has been trio:
Checking One of lhe beSt ways 10 keep "oR flowinll smoothly i~ to have each $("CDC checked c_fully befOK it IDOVeS
on 10 the ne: ~1 dcpanment Once!he animation is com· pletcd. il should be: chec ked for tcchni<:al problems . l1Ie d ...... ings may ha,l' worked well in te~1 camera • but sumrene has to adapt them 10 ~heir fin~1 fonn on the cels . Are the c haracter. on!he right le,'cls to ma!<:h the other $("Cne:s in the SC(juen<.:c? Should ~ of the
Icvels be comhined? will 1he pan moves and lrocks woO; Sn1OOIhly? 15 the aclion ,onlplclCd 001 10 1he r~1d bonkrs? Will il worl under the camel'll? Befon: we had cheelers il was up 10 the cameraman 10 lttp a close ...·aleh 00 lhe drawings on hi. stand as he was shooting, bul1hal usua lly wl,IOO laiC. Typical of lhis situalion was an incidenl on Mkkty's Kanga· roo. After shooting nearly ha lf thc .
....
AOOIher call; Ihis lime 10 the layout man . ...·ho can'" with all his dn winp \Q prove lhat the dish always had been in the same place. Now lhe ~nin'~lor joined the as5Cmbled group. and after mon: di.
m~ke W~ cv~rything
was on tho.: eels .nd follow,.. through perfeclly _ Some of lhe arna7.ingly cornpIin"" Kenes from f'
'0
pletely dedicated and above penona] ;";:"::::~ S"" h ind ividuals scarcely can be blamed ing. ·· ah.H AA.:aa .a.~tl!·· .... hen they d iscover a . i ll lake. but 1 pcrwn who made the error. No onc ~s on purpose. and somehow a diSlll:ssing .ir ination 'lttm. to bon, arouoo I visit to lhe Cheda'l roolll . For IiOIIloC reilSOlt. the feeling ;s "'";"""~ ,. being called 10 the principal's ofrlCC .
Blue Sketch New procedu~s wcre .uggested con,lantly .." ... . make thl:: checker's job simple' and eliminale $OInt of the npensc treated by needless cffi)f"$. The " 8. Sketch" ""1$ one of the mosl praclical . One lime a backgrouoo painler was given a Laylllll showing an ominous evening s.k.y with the vquc ~ of tree branches i ilhouelled againSI the clouds. nc color key that styled this sequence ~ho ...'ed a grctlOlllt sky with an ev il louk . "The bac kground man was .. trigucd . Here was a good· louking de~ign. i dramalie. and an impressive painting could be lhis. l ie ca.dull y worlcd 001 lhe la.cy I branches. the contra.uing dl~""" and colors. tie shading in the clouds . The whole thing and would make anyone: look I.... ice . The I was thlt .he background paintcr had not "'" what action touk pla.cc: in the a do!'C· up of a large and formidable character blotted out ali lhe lrees and 11I05t of lhe I of painting around the edges showed . d iu-ppointmcnt for the painter as ,,"til as a ,,__
...... and time. Something had!O be done: 10 keep Ihis
from Igppening Jg:.oin_ n..ol WIOS when 5O'''0:0'''e (hough( ofJJlJking a "bloc .~kc( c h" of (he so,.'coc , Wlltn lhe xlion of (he rtlugb animalioo has been IpprOYtd I".- h.a( we called " OKed for Ckan Up"), the 1«.. il picketl op by the t.ay()U1 Dcp'II1menl Jnd checked for all lhe U(remCi of movemcnl , A c"",pos. .. lnI:in~ iJ nJade in colomJ I"'ocils (predorninarllly bkltl lhal. ~i (he size of the characlcr, how mucb of him is showing. how hig h he goes on the paper, hi . Jo.,.'e:!.I point. his maximom move 10 the k:ft or righi , MY conl
E ven so. lhe clemen! of buman CIT()f will not be shol out. TIle", was a Kenc in Th .. 1Iml(It Hook Ih.1 is s lill a myslery 10 all involved , The boy, Mowgli. was 10 be w"'n running through the j ungk: af."" he thought he had been double...,ros~ by B.loo , "The feeling needed 10 be one of dcspcf:lliun, wilh more ahandon and dering (ban speed . The animator who Wa!!O do lhe 5Ccnc: ren ~mbcred a pic« of live aclion film showing a boy pusb asitle some ""'oche, IlJi he I11n inlo • {hkket. II sccn~d li ke a good aClion Iha. would r,( both Mo wgli 's allilude and lhe: silualion, 50 the film was broughl op and.he anim,"or ~tudicd . made nokS, and ~kCIChcd unlil he cou ld adaJII lhe acliun 10 lhe .",Irkl iono of hi s $CCI>C , The boy threw op a prOlCC1ive arm, ducked his head, \wislC:d his body , then 1cantcl back . ~II givin, him more thrust .. hen lhe branches were pushed u illc and he hurst Ihrough. C
no....
,
, , , , , ,
,, • •
••,
•
•
This type of aclion would t10I show up on the blue sketcll, and """" of the peoplc who " 'Of ked on the ~nc toot OOIe of anything special about it, The effens animator ..'ho did the final drawin, on the branches ....,-m as dose as he could to lhe action the animator had defined, bul he fell the leavcs needed to he bigger 10 malclllhe new model and evcn:sddc:d a few more to increase lhe overall masS. l1te layou l Illan , thinking more aboul dense jungle thall the boy's problem. also incre~sed the s izt and number of lhe luvtS . Finally , the backlfOOnd man. looting at the la)'oot and the cff"" u animation . addc:d a bit of lush g"",·th of hi. OVo'n that was .ppropriate to the jungle. bol by then the Xlion " 1IS co",pleted covered! 1'he boy s imply JaJ1 behind """ W: de""" boshe~ and canw: ntll on the OIher side: •• till running . Mon~y and tim" and "fforl hall !I"'I!! into ~hOO1;n!l the live action, animating Ihc $<;cI\C. cleaning il up and inbetwffnin; it , making the 1~)'QlIt. and painting the bacqround . Al Ihi. poinl in the production. whkll ani5t should change what he Ilad done? A confc..,ncc " 'as he ld and the decision was haloed on c~pedieney: 1e.,'C it lhe way it is: the audicOC'C w ill ",,"cr know ..'lull lhey a.., ",i~.illg . The beSt pl"OttdUIl'S always have I way of bll'aking down. and on ly dose contact betwff n the individual artisu can keep cveryone working toward a common goal.
Camera The first animat ion camera was , uspc""'" f.... wooden frllme so it " 'ould poim SlrlIight 00..'0 111
a:;':'~b:':;.:Th<~~":':'~U~ ::~i:~::~~~
and most on filmmakers boilt drllwings ;ngs had to he I in lhe ,\.lI me place. various nW:llIods Were tried. oole. punched in lhe papcr Ihat matched little pegs boecominll the most successful. ings absQluttly nat whi le photOj:rlIpilinC. a I of heavy ,lass. c alled a pI~tcn . placed Thi$ waS c,'cn more imporlant ...'hen Ccli '"'(ft voh~. sincc they IIad a tcnde...:y to Nrl and lighl bac k up into the eamerll knl. lIefo!'e lhe hullon is pushetl to shoot J ,i ngk of film , the woolc se l-u p of atld mU~1 be cheded visua lly to see I ~'Ontple'd y f"", of foreign matter. A speck curious fly can ruin ~n expens ive k cM, is kept handy to blow off anyth ing thai
"';I;li
thc~ .
In lhe t ..'cmies. t,,·o CamerlllllC1l "'Cre . . . . shoot • K'C"" s ince the Clmcrll had be t hand . One man stayed up on lop and carefu lly tilt (!'link one lum. trying 10 keep. consistent and m ythm throughout: the OIher lmlngod ings o n lhe pegs. At Disney ·s. i, was lhe
'0
Ub I ...'erks who rigged up an :::::~;'~'::'::': thin, could be done by ooc man lable , As fi lmmaker'S' ideas upandc:d, to move I"" camera up and do .... n so in closer on l sec"" or pull action . A calib!'llted post repl.,.;cd lhe A short !inw: later, lhey wanted to the cither to ooc side Of the OIher .•nd then
,f"W.
needed
as
to twist !he camera "m:OC~:h~~::~::,:: for special shots. and 10 lIlO'Ie , right a",l~ to their oonnal "",ition. This "erl Kal pan even lhough t"" an " 'M foxily flat . The pegs at both top and placed on bars Ihat cou ld slide, we!'e intrOOuced. and then a contrafllion thlll IItOve lhe: pegs in any dir«t;on . AttOfding to Bill Cottrell. "ho • . •" '" . : :
II
i ilit . li is ideas <
r,I"J'UI'l', Ind different material , until a very effeel Wli achieved) or hi.ve un enlerprisinl: artist draw it ~II by hand . Sometimes lhen: was sioo:: !he cffC'Cl could be obtained only by 1OUIt, but oow and lhen an enthusiastic and cameraman cwld tal k the producer into lhan really wa~ necessary . Tkrt ...... a in the mid-th inies when every the cn:ative fields had tn wort. in the six weeks to learn how the pic· pIIllOj;C!her physic:aJ ly. It $OUnded like a .sea because il educaled everyone in the major would be using in pulling lheir ideas on tile I in truth it was a fiasco, The need for an eye and complete concentration , com· a l _ unlimited polenlial for error
~
~:~~:~more
than mOSI anislie lemperaments . E>:JIC'nIiCS soared and the produclivity itself dropped to an all'lime low . idea ~ abandoned, but for yean camcran~ n IOCI~ a baleful eye at any animalOr who eal11e . It was unfortunate, because animators must _ Itthnk_1 knowledg<' just to animate ,,'(11 ...... ',oo"" "t assi~ance the camera Can live in achkving their n:sults . lied inevitably 10 the huge. shiny, m)'Steri· hidden behind signs saying, Admittance" " the multiplane Solidlyenginccn:d, it was built 10 withstnnd
.,",d ,r;""""'~'''t . bul il was a"'k"'ard 10 ~I
around and unbe lievably hea"}' . The li&ht · ~ight met · als ....~ hanlly known at that lime, and foor strong men were needed just 10 lift the frame (hat held I single animalion level. As many as ei,hl .'iOO Will bulbs ...~ in a bank of light~ for one level, and when all levels "'ere lit the helt wu oppressive . Somehow this Camera Captu~ the im~ginations of both anisls and the public , either because of its over· whelming s in or its imJ)C'netrable workings or the possibilities of what it could do. The prirociple its operal ion is simple and easy to uplain. but maki", it work is quile another matter. The COllIplieations an: suggested by lhe (act that less than IWO years aller its initial use. a manual had 10 he pI'l'p3rcd that began: "The Multiplanc Planning Board is I body headed by the Direction Unit and CanJCr.l CoordinllO' and. representative of the Enginccring Departrnent. lltc fullC' tion of this bo.1rd is 10 work nUl the ways and means of accomplishing Multiplanc shots ..• ," Baskally, the multiplanc aPJlllratus makes Woe of several layers of glass . each with some jUnk malerial on il and placed at a varying dislance from the camera. For an average shot . !he background itself would be eight f« t away , the fin! level ~ix f«t.the IiCcond live feet. then another al rwr feel . and maybe a founh level at only two-and·a-half feet . As many as si~ levelS have b«n used and 5hot from a distance of 14 (<
or
lessly: (irsl. rdleclions Ihal bounce off lhe ,;hiny «Is imo ~ eamen klli . and . KCOnd. lighl from a Io"~r level lhal occasionall y shows Ihrough lhe ~inl on lhe back of lhe «Is. 'The refleclions look all kinds of ingenuilY 10 conquer. from adding neu lllli densily gla",,, undet lhe talTlCl'lI lens al a fan y-five degree angle (10 " reflecI ~ refleclion away") 10 leaving the offending level darlt for one diooIing. lhen ligNing il by ilsel f for a second run·lhrough . E:.pcnsive and ledious. bon as lhe crew uid, " We ~re shooting ~I of III<: .Ituff wilh mul liple exposure anyway ." Conquering lhe lighllcaks was nsi<:r-for the cam· I.'r.llTlCn . This involvoo scnding all III<: «Is in lilal kvel back to !he painters for another coal of~inl. Ihis lime in heavy black . (Laler " 'h;te painl was used for this
backing.) The p;linlers " 'ere annoyed al !Ia"in, kI do this utra ",ork . because ooly ooe fl3ffiC had 11l1li leak . and a pic« ofblack paper ~I id underneath Iht cd would have Stopped Ihal in a hurry . Aft~ }"zs(lf protest from the paimers il finall y was agreed Ihll IluI waS a good idea . Won: in U ITlC .... completely Stopped while 11'c paIIII' ers fumed and ~imcd the: back o f every last ttl .. that kvel. ~n......n resumed late. that day . .... l1li). evcn lhe neXI . lhe camera c re .... started \)'o'Cf 1pUI» male sure everything "'001(1 work smoothly "'Ith dMt new correction , They could 001 check cvery frame (If I scene bul did have 10 run do,,'o to all die crilicalpoUIIl. checki ng lhe umera moves . lhe appc ..... nce of !iii SCcne al thaI poinl in the camera findt. , ~ Ii&hl; Ink! on ocher k,ds, and IIw: ro
of Ilr mosl ca",ful planning . ...,nlClinlC~ lhe~ ,,'ould find thai lhe~ were o"crshooling a painl«l ."'. or _ing I Ie,..-I ""f~ all o f ilS pans were 001 of lhe QIIImI forld. A! !he tamtfll WlIS Io".-erw closer to lhe al1"'oo. ..... problems Ippuml b«ause of lhe chan~ of angle r..... camera 10 lighlS. Alleralions Ihal COlTttIW a rondoIoon alone poim . Iway~ ..,."med 10 'rl:ale a second probItm al arlOlhe:r. So hour after hour Ihe canlCTa m" Nck«l up. cbanged lhe: equipnlClu . ~la"W for· .ad. bided up. ~ over. chllnged iOmClhing elsc. .;[_11 pIIl1S or lhe scene " -ere working Oawlessly. nos literally lOOIt daY" . eVl:n with a full Crl:w of ro'"C or !-lIlIItn. bul evenlually lhey wcre ready 10 ~hooIlhe
-.
II is u .sy 1<:1..,." why of'CMing lhe muhiplane Cam·
era was SO upcn~i"c and why il WlIi used Ie" in laltT years . Just 10 SCI up for a held p
many motIlhs . One cameraman .a id •.. [ wor1
and lhen you'd do anocher. Ihen a distonion: )'cMid do a diffu sion . you'd do mist; if you'd make one mislake afler you SIan . ." He shook his head al tho painful memory . "You had IU absolutely duplbil: every move Wilh four or five guys-yoo've gOl a guy Ihere. arKl a guy lhere-and a- yw'd never make Ilia film looay. I guess. ' " Few invenlions ha"e made such a difference in tho appearance of lhe prodUCI as lhe old mulliplanc CUI> era. When il was firsl used il was very special. aoothr public heard enough aboul il 10 know Ihal il ...... qualily in produclion and vi~ual e~c ilcmenl. II ..... good publicily. a grea l adveni sing ilem. and the NIDI appeared prominenlly in our ads. We well: amazal one day lu sa an ad fur a Warner Bros. liv.-ac~ fealure, laid in lhe wooded hills of magniflCenllllOllalain<. Ihal claimed the woole piclure had ~n s/IOI wilh the "Glorious Mulliplane Cameu!" A goodpobIicisl cannOC sum 10 pass up anYlhing Ihal is hoi al thr lime! [n laler years. when lhe mosl oflen heard quwx. is. " How can we gellhe same effecl for less ..;~,ff· ' layoul men increasingly have gone 10 lhe optical
Asson;"~':O:";:d:"~";::~~:~;~~,?:
for answers. Ihislheir device: among them of film Ihal in many ways duplicales I anliqualed muhiplane camera. long si""" priced exislence. In Ihis process, called bi -pac k. lhe ler is shol o n o ne piece of film and lhe background ' shot on anocher. In lhe primer. I,~",,,pi'";"f'" are combined-somclimes revealing a i rim-ligh1ing. buc usually producing a , ",,,,i,i,,. ,r. ing of dep1h 10 lhe scene. For a charolCler racing lOward lhe camera. Of going away, Of for lhe 10 pan wilh Ihe character Ihrough ce nain r ,,od",,,, bi-pack gives Ihe besl illusion .
Themeni~:::f::::;:;:~::':'~;::~::~;::::~:
and il is nul over wilhoul asking questions. Don Griffilh wenl Over 10 ask aboul the beSI plan a scene he had for bi _pack. he was lold. you wanl bi-pack? Why don'l you use Iwo-slripr' Don asked. " What" s Iwo-slrip?"
·"·m".
He is nul sun: Ihal h:i:;~:7;,:::~r~,:~::;:;: he says , "The main Ihing is Ihal masICr peg Ihal used 10 slip and cause lhe
The Mu ltiplane Camera
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rim. lighting has been eliminated. and thrre a nd foor wips can be wmbined silTMJltaneously. mel a soft focus cln be achie~ on one level (as in the old multiplane). mel ev~n a see · through effect for an overlay is possible . While Don Griffith is udtw a!xxll these accom_ plishments. An Cruicksh~nk. v~teran of the Special Effect:;; Departn~nt since the thin;~s, $Iill likes the multipla ne camcrJ best. He wishes it could be used again. because I>OIhing can tate its place in achieving ~a1 effects . " 1lle bi-pack is okay for I C'1)lIpk of Ie~b. moving in .nd around, but for a full . six-level scene. it can't do the san~ thing al all." Sc:v~r31 uceedingly alert minds around the world ha,-c come: up with a OlIUPUleriud mulliplarM: camera thai make:;; all the moVes of lhe separale level, aUIO' ,natically. ~nd Ihi ~ eliminalC~ loooe four or five I«h · nidans who stood around wailing 10 make I sma ll move on t"'ir level hanlly often enough to ~member if lhey had done it in (he fi~ place . NQW . when !hey aulomate lhe: position of lhe: l ighl~. their relalion 10 lhe c.n~ .. and to lhe ee ls. and figure how instanlly to effect changes in the cels lhemselv~s as n«euary. it rn.>y be economically possible to $Iart planning those: in voh'cd SttrM:S again. l1w:rc lfC n"my wlys today to make the old device less cumbersome: fot in'tance. the use of sorullier lighls thai throw out as much actual CantlkpoWCf as lhe old bank of 500 wan bul~ but wilh vinually no heat . More likely. how-cver. new U",iii will be found for the aslonishing eleclronic invenlions that berome a'·ail· able to lhe imaginatiV<' prod~r and director almoM daily . 1ben. the venerable old liant thai stimulated 50 nuony ~rful concept:;; and made w many visual d~ams cOme lrue. can be retired 10 Ihe mu",um. 11 p
Dubbing This is the: original name for lhe process of combining all lhe: sou nd tracts onto a si ngle track that wilt be prinled on lhe film along with the picture . Some:ho.... the dialogue. sound e ff«ts. and music all have to he dubbed togelher without losing any of the ~peciat val -
ues that each has brought 10 the pieture . Proper hoianee bet"'een these .ounds Can giyc lhe film more life and sparkle. while a lesser job will leave il muddy'" undistinguished . Since the process actually call s ror~,:::,::~:.::~ thing a second time. it al,;o has been c; or ··re·re. '· This presents 31\01her octa~ion for onacy and compromi",. The wond ",,,.~" ". h;~~. dards for what corn.lilute:;; good sound. and he;' awan: of whal other sound men will »y about " ·on(. Most potential conflict here comes from sound man' S very best effOrt 10 gel clear. pu~ on lhe tr..cks " 'hen Ihal mighl 1>01 he the &OiI1 of dir«1or . He may he after lhe reality of voices "';:::: in a cro,,·d. lhe confu~ion of noi~ in ~rong ao lhe impact on I'" liSlener if he were the re ! The man want., to hear every JOUnd clearly ~nd the direclor " 'anIS emotion and invo lvement. There are 00 ab'iOIutcS in sound ; it is all .,•••• ships . You c~ n havc more highs. or 1llOIl: lows. this. or a touch of thai. or a bit of ~,·crb. It is plex. and it is all conlrolled by a sy~lem regUlators and buttons that only the " miAt, " t<".lOCh. Through this system go alilhe ~,"",""', lhe same time . and there probably witl be as
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tracts as there are sound he:ads on ,,'hich to;~:::: even whenlhe music has been re·rcc-onkd mel is now on one: track . If the music track
,
,
lhe dialogue Cln~ he heard . If the dialogue is up. lhe music can~ be "'anI. And i;r "", ~,.'! you 011 your seat. 11 iii a Ii 'il s ion of whal shou ld be done . Very rarely ill any agreemenl . 1lle assistant directors and tbe cutters spend hours pre-puing for dubbing sessions. because:all trach must he in order. with no din old duplicales from the work tracks mUSI be Th is is lhe tin~ they discov~r lhat the piece of film lhey thoughl had been 1 ally 10M' This is also a tin~ of hope thai the Conlaining the bar ,11«1, has been ac<:uralety 10 date. because this is the supreme aUlhority stalus of !xxh the picture and the sound uxb. (I()W on lhe", .wo " 'ilI be " 'orl::cd on scpar3lely.
II hipJy advisable mat they fit together perfectly ...·hen "'"'tuaJly they an: printed silk by sid<
Answer Print
r...
Anyone ...·ho has shot color pictures of a vacation trip knows WIthe slides or print$ ne""r corne bad looking e~actl y the w.y the scene I PPU..w 10 the eye . The pictu~$ all' a little bluer , or maybe redder, or in 5O
Oflen, additional rcds containing the sound will be -.Ie up jUlt for the dubbing scuion so that one take 01 dialogue can be moved off the reel that contains pWMeS too close together or too different in \l()lume . Thm must be enough time for • dubber or mixer to Ir1I his dials when he blliances everything . A low ~ cannot be righl next tQ • yell lled better. After the s.ound has been checked MII.shihed . nd mea5ured and repl..:ed , cue sheets all' ~ up tIIat show the sound men just ...·hat is on each ntt, ho;tw long it runs , and what come s up ,",Xl. 'Ibrse become the guide as reheal"SlLls bring out sug· . ~. . . aai notations of what to uy on the neAt rull . tile mUiic down jUi t a bit and bring up that "~'.'kI'~W' in there ."' TheIC ~Iic:e runs can take .11 day on a compli· and in lhe carly days there was no a mistake . Whatever happened, the to the end, then be taken off, wound i on t!'le sound heads. ()flIC , With ten =1 •• and a CQIlfused s.ound I spewy projectiQlIL st CQIlld not make up . One assistant diRCt1l1' says h is bl""kest !hose rehearsals, for afteT the proper had been detennined for all the in tile whole rcc:1 the diRCI01" would be called . . _'"." for the first lime. While he frowned with appnisal. the film might roll by for 700 feet perfect balan<:e; then , for no . pparent reason , • woold not be heard . or. sound be . 1'hc diRClOr's comment woold when you've got the bugs worked out: ' woold return to his room while the rttls ...-ere re· threaded, . nd nwJe ready 10 Sian Over ,.., lrom tile beginning . ""' cqII;pm.llt and inventions have greatly simpli· "'hole procedure now. but there an: still deci· be made:, 10m film. pal'1 S that sound thin no dials an: lurned . heavy . tubby sound! be made: IQ match. f~t ic trips b¥t to the shift or replace a tiny piece of sound . over again . . . .
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Foreign Versions Ordinarily one does not th ink of the special problems of making . foreign version of a film until after Lhc: initial release. when the box oWl« rc<;eipu indicate whether the venture is j ustified 111' not . At Disney 's Lhc: foreign man.ct always has made up a large percentage: of OUr revenue , stal'1ing wilh that first =ordinl of Snow Whir.. in another langu.ge .
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$i.:t!he shorts were Da$ed on sight gqs. the sound Iud bttn mainly sound effects and ITMJsic. llIe "H i. Minnie!" and "Yoo-hoo!" were enough t(> he translated in to Freoch. Ii Spanish. and Ponuguese , But wilh of !be fUlures. new considc:radons had 10 man Wah cho5r: for this diplomatic and _ .. ,., was lack Culling. who had staned as an lIIilIked hi s way up to animalor. then swilChe
k~~~~~m;,"~':ic and sound effects: all of the Scan· ~
""ere reprncnled. as "'-ere the Mid·
w. lapan. Korea. Thailand. and even India in I
version of Bambi . If . piclure WaS popular in II popular around Ihe world.
" II time in that country.
As animators we WOI'Idcr about this popularity of our work in Olher lands , When we have ~ so hard 10 gel good syno--the very best acting 10 maleh lhe voice lrack and to convince audiences IIIlI the voice is ",.Uy coming OUI of thi5 cartoon ch.aracler-we are puzzled that lhe figure still CUi corne alive when hi$ voice is chan~. Do we worry 100 much about making lhe li~ and the moulh and the whole fltt speak the lines. or is il this very concern thai mnes lhe character convincing even wilh another voice11s II lhe care lhal Jack Cuning used in choosi ng a ptl'$OlUll. ity!hal would match what we already ha"" animated. or ;s !here more magic in this medium than we llave su~pected7 However ;t happens , il ;s extremely graI;' fyinglo know Ihat our lIIork and our vicws on enter· tainmenl are bringing h.ppi~ss to peoples of all races all around the world .
That's My Character! Everyone who has wo rked on a picture will feel thaI he made the personal contribution Ihal caused the car· loon cllaneler \0 come alive on the !Creen. The SIOr)" man ... uraJly will feel that the charaCIc:r is his. because. after all. it was lhe Slory work thaI determine4 wbat kind of an individual this figure would be: and the story sketch man smiles because he dre ... the new character. made the CIprr:Mions. showtd how he would look: and lhe director knows that il was he who pulled all these lalents logether and kept insisting llIal the figure lOCI a cenain way: and all the time lIIe actor who did lhe voice is $.I,yi ng. "Well. I know he's my char· aclt r because he ', me; I did him!" And the animator nods knowingly. because 00 one can deny that he 5C1 the final nKXkl and broughl him 10 life . and lhe _islanl knows Ihal wilhoul hi s work lhe chanocler would never have relOChcd the """",n, llIe person who sekctcd lhe colors. IllcoK lllho pilinled the eels. even those who carefully checked 10 ..,. if Ih;s d ....lOCte\' had .11 his bul1on5; the cameraman wOO she!; the scenes; the _nd miler who gave the spec ial sound 10 the yoice--(o all of them . he is/hei, cl>aracler! This is as it should be. Unless everyone feels thi s closeness 10 the end prod. uct. the dedication will not be there and the nrttSSary care will not be laken 10 inwre lhal lhe end ruuh will be the finesl anyone can do.
HOW MANY DRAWINGS DOES IT TAKE? T_y·four frames of film ... projected every-'. .,111 ",vnaj d rawin" 011 each fra"", .
The LaYOUI mandoes abouI halflhat many: Ibm: Layouc men: 22.SOO drawillp.
Then: i•• he background drawi", .hroughoul. plus .. _y '" four 1e...,ls of drawing' laid over il. For ,MWICe:
one Ioc keep'. bu! Ioc does ooly aboul • founh of lhe:
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and feci ( ...·hich cIo 001 ........ c).
A.
Midcy·o
B.
Mick.y· , head I nd body ( ..·hich do """v.) .
C.
Plu,o .
D. Plu"'·'lli l (,,·hich ....,' i.terminen.ly). 1'roNblc: ...raK' of 4 d"''''inl'' por frame lim.. 24 fl"lOn01 96 drawio, •.
--
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!16 draw,"IS I seawl Ii ...... 60 - '760 d ra ..·inp I Tho: pietu .. i, 80 minu,,,, long.
The animalor makes .. Ita$! fi ve drawinp for cYC"f)' atlUal
Thc inl:>c:."·ee ..... do .1oc 34S.6OO leA in .I:>c: ~ ..... QlK"e in ruff. <>n« in (:QrI«'iooo. and aKlin in flnal: pornops 1.036.800.
The clean.up men mj,aw all.1IO animo.on· d",win, •. keepin, ""ly aboo. 0fIC of e~ery .hm: .hO! lIIc:y draw . 11~.200 'i ..... 3 - 343.600 . o..."" np by all per>OMCl of gap. carieM"'", .... of how 10 ,.. 10 _ _ ., hou~. capLan •• ion. I .... suW'-'ions for new >lagi,,« would c.,.ly IOUI 2000 d ra .....
n".
Then:..., 460.Il00 1OIa1 drawin" for film. Bu! thoH are;"~ .i>e finished dra ... io,. (which will be pu. 00'0 ""II and pain,ed. for .noll,ct 460.IIOO!) .
I. be,1O ... i,h .he: inspira'ionll . kcloh mu. Ik u. · (\Oo,j t.l.dly did 1000 d",wio,o. coon.ing , ke.che •. do<>d~ . ....,In:h. Ind fi nll. No •••• he <101)' , k.teh "",n . Each man doc ••, Ie... 2(] drawings IdlY. 100 • ,,·eek. SOOO. year. IS.OOO dwi", .he .hm: y.at$ i •• ake. make the pO<:.u ... . five ... n WOUld .asily do 7'.!XXl d",winp on cath fc""", f,lm.
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This mokes.he follo wing va |
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S'orr Iokc«:h uY{)U· Anint ....... In])e,w...... A"i$lanlS !-'ni.hed «I.
,"000 75.000
22.000 576.000
1.036.800 34S.600 460,80(1
1.517.200 MiKeU.....,... . ke ...... T",al drawinp
2,000 2.S I9.200
WHY DOES IT TAKE SO LONG?
Ion,.
A f........ film ""' ,. be nne hou, •• n minu.cs min,mum . A. nine. y f.... of film proj«.ed .very minUIt. Ibt:.. are 6300 fee •• 0 be animo'cd. Ilowev.r. ..,., OJ .... y filOl' " ..... obou' .en minu.e. longer. 'Olilini 7200 f« •. Ten fee. a ,,·eek was .he avcrag. OUlf>ll1 of an lOin,."", 00 ,hi •• ypo or OClion: 5Q01O did more. $Ome ku . ..". ....'" usually had 'cn men ..·110 coold do ,hil. Ten men do;na ten fee •• ,,·ee k " ..,.,]d 'ake 12 ..
100al. The ....'" .i . moo .... of ~""h bef~.he film ,nc5 iOlo pnxhlC.ion . The ... i. 0fIC year of WO
""'Y.
Uses of Live Action in Drawing Humans and Animals
13. The
"Tllis i, " I'ery impo,wm IhinK. Thue (,r~ so In""), I"'''I'/e 5Wrling in "" Ihis . ,,,,d Ihey mig/" go hay· .... ire
if''''Y don-, kilO'"
hoI<' I this Ii". aerioll in anima/illg,"
Our ((rm "Ii,'t: ;I<:(ion" refers here to (he filming of animals) performing scenes planned for car-
ICI\lI) for
toon charoclcn. before animal ion begin" ., comparcd to "re&ular animalion, .. which develop, emirely rm",
III 3Iti~fs imagination. The direct usc of li"e anion mmhas b«n of the ani,,,.lion inJu'I'), for yc.~ >i ." .id 10 animation. a companion to animal ion. anJ (,"cn as a replace",,,,,t for animation. From lime to lime. almos, ~,'cry ,(udiu has fa llen back on a ,(rip of li.'t fi lm 10 pcrfecl a specific aClion animalors wen: t;)[ able 10 carlon;. AI the Dj,ncy studio. filmed "",ion \lfh.mans and ~nimals was u,ed in many ways (0 do
P""
Walt Disney
many job" and i( led to !lome imp<>11ant di,coveries. Livc adion could dominalc lhe animalor. or il could (each him . It could ,tine imagination, Of in'pire gr<:al 'ICW ide~s. It ali depended on how Ihe li\'c aClion waS concei"cd and ,hoI and used. In Ihe early 1930s, animalors drew from ltoe "mel regularly. bul a, the necessily grew for more intricate movement and conv;n<:ing acl;on ;n our film" lhis type of ,talic study quickly became inadequate . We had 10 know more, and we had to draw bettcr 10 3cromplish whal Wall Disney wanlcd. SonIC IICw wayl\ad 10 be found for an ani,t to sludy form, in movemcnt, ~nd
o.
C .....II.......
oc·
for this to be useful it had to n:late (0 the ";Ofl:. on OUr drawing boards . Running film at half·speed in OUr action :malysis classes wa~ helpful fur ~ gencr.11 under· !>landing of ..... igh. and thmslS and coun.n thrus.s. bu. Ihe principles wen: not difttlly applicable to anima· tion . Our instructor Don GrJham had chosen c~ nain fitm ~gnw:nlS as dear. isolatn! examples of move· ments he could U.
was a gold mine. Fn:ddie
M~
had the i 1 Ii ran the Collins film over an
o f a chanK:ter. 1lM:n he sal down ;. ~:.:~ and animatn! a couple o f s«nes that fairly with frnh ideas. Wail I Urned 10 the men gIIhtmt the s ...·ea'b
CCIlttpt
ImlMdia.ely other comics ...·en: "".!"i.~" , ainers from vaudeville. men "'00 had done voira lhe OIher dwarfs; all .... ere put before lhe: roulines were filmed. jusl i II expressions that mighl help doh""ale a o ...·n storynw:n who had 3 spec Ial I <.Iragged tu ttoe sound stage. I grJIphed each Olhcr. As Bill COll...,1l .uill ~ellfS .. .. all _nl> 50 am~'curi~h _ b u t ;t ""as r... ' "'
"m,.of
itkas 10 enrich .... r Sttnes. We ;:~~~"r;:;~ there wen: 1WO distin<.:tly different" be used. As resoun:e material. It gave" ~n overall' or a chanc.er . .... ith gcslUre~ and an itudos. an
ooald be Cariooluml. Ai a I1l
~ars .
'-'1I;III1II'y, Wall changed that s ituation in a hurT)' . II< had lbe fil m processing lab .... ork OUt a ~yslem of ,n.tins f
I
* same
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our
dr~wing
papu. l1Ic"" 'ih«IS.
~~~::~:~~::~':~",:'~"~;' :h<~n punched 10 fit
animalor could the :.cllon by flipping "frames of mm " IIdward anoJ f.,.,..-ard. just as he did his dra"-ings . Hrtt ooukl be ~n c'"CT)' tiny deuil o f changing sha~, -.I reiatioonships in the muvcmems. Al last. lhe anicwld $tudy a ll of tM n'ystencs th~t had inthem so Ionl .
:
;~:,;'~'=~:<:d:.;';what we saw . The human form far tnOfI! o~~nJl ""ti,·ity th.an II was not jusl the chest work_ agairu.l hips. or tM backbone bending around. it ~ bulk of the body pulli ng in . puShing out • . Here ""Cre Hving eumples of . principles th~t only had Ixc:n And he~ WlIS the ·· follow throogh ·· i action:· tM Changing shapes. theCOOntef tcMioos. the ,.·cight sho,.·n ··timing:· and the '"exaggeratiun· · -unbelic v.
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:::::-:'::;; Wc thought had IKen urawing • but heu= "·c~ examples surpassing anywe h.d done . Our eyes simply are no1 quick
~~ ;,::""~ " 'hoIe aamut o f mo\'CrtlCnt in the
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tlte ' it tumW. [he changina the slight s" ",,n ina of a cheek in a
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Somt lClioos wcU= so cumplicau:d they ,.'ere impos· subtle to capture ~:~~,::~::~::r';:';:~:too ny of the: mcwes that
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t\a:lins smile . 1M raisi ng of a ~kler as the body IIIntd fo.....n -thc.'sc wen: the precious elements of 1m ~~lICd by 11M: camera. But .... her.eve. we SIK)"'d 100 ~ 105C 10 tile pllQlOS la lS. 1)1 directly copied even a liny piece of human action. IIr InIIIIS looted vcry mange . TIle lTIO\'es appe~ InI enough. 001 tM figufT lost the i llu~ion of life . Wti a cenain authority in lhe movement and a
:~~;:;become: :::~~: wholei"'-ol'lC'd action. but it waS cmoIionaJly wilh this
:
creature who was
IlCVff
a l1:al inhabi-
flnUlSy world . No! until we r.!al i~.ed Ihat photOgr-dphs mu St be in Inimitable SMp."S (our pro.-cn loois of Ii "'en: ...·c able 10 lransfer Ihl ~ kno,,·I· animation. II was not the photographed ao actor 's swelling clM:e k Ihm mancred . il !be animated c""," k in oor drawings thai had IQ
-::::=;;:.~ .~:~~::::~ to m. kl' (he canoon figu..., ~
SlIme nlO"cmc: nlS U tile li,-., 3oC'''f. wilh WIlt timing and the 1HImc: stag ing. bul. because , hapes calle.J for a diffcre oce in proporthe figu", and ils modd could not do Ihinp in !be Nlme ... ~y . 1lIc actor's mo~emen t~ had to
••.~~, • •,.'" in lhe ...·orld of ourdesigM and
.h~""s
As long as ,,-e remembered to use the phoIoslals
as
I
",fnell« in making our o,,'n Slate"",m of be in the Sttl"le. oor animation " 'as ne,'er Our drawi ng ability had 10 inlprove. of anatomy and ao.: t;og had to iocrease. had 10 de,,,,lop. but ..... ith an aWret Di§.l1Cy .... ~tcf1ing e"el)' line .... e made. ...·as IUlomatic-difficull, bul expecled . Our
:~~.~~~~::::::; a force. a richness andand analys is and befon: . This look study
:
. but
0I'Itt
a
mo"co~nt
" 'as undcrMood it
('QUid be i!lC'Ol"Jl'O<"ated into cartoon tern's . We
break with rOloscope . ~ure ...·hy a peociltracing of a live should look so stiff and unnalurnl on the ~i",ply is no realily in a ropy . 111e ~ learned this in art classes, bu t . .
that is there . with an impartial lao.:k of emplLal;is_ On lhe other hand . an artist sho .... s ...·hat he sees is there , especially thaI .... hich might n<)l be percei ved byothers . His dr-dwings can be closer to the true realism of an object because he can be 50Clectiye and personal in wlLal hc c ltooosC's to sho.... . From the phoIo5uu, the animator chooses only those actions that relate 10 the flQint o f hi s particular scene: then he strengthens t~ until the y become the dominant action. with everything else either eliminated or subordinated . Whit a~ars on the Kreen is a simple , strong, dir«t ! 1aICmen t that has clarity and vitality . TIle spirit and life ha ve be..n g.i ned by adapt ing the human form to an art is!"s own designs, thc shapes and fonns that be ~s in reaching an audience . This is no m«< than ,,-hat art ists al ways have done . M ichel~ngelo 's magnifICent statue of David . for all of its power and beauty. has soch liistoncd normal proportions that Dayid would be a strange looking apparition ,,'cn: he to be met .... a1kin' down the greet. 1lIe COi:lebnted Venus de Milo could not even fil into modem clothes, and most of the other classic be~utic s of art, who have enthralled men for ~enlUrics. would_tInCt only SlUQ of ama«:ment at_ social fuoction . 1lIe point is: a woe"\; o f art is never a copy; for ill0 hJ.ve meaning to people of many generations and numerous c ultu res. it must be the personal s tate ment of an artist. 1lIc firsl li~e,ac:t ion films " -e had ~ ,,"'re for ",fe",occ only. and il was pure chance that 500lCthing fit ei the r Our story continuit y or Our sound tracks. /lut il was n<)l long before one of uS had pic~ed 00\ an action be liked on a piece of film . synced it up with his sound track . made a couple o f adjuSlment~ in liming • ~n" then incorpora ted thaI action imo his ~ nimat ion . Soon " 'e were s hooting film for sp«ir~ ~CIICS or iipecial actions. so that an animator would not ~~e 10 spend too much time searching for "'lennt material . A~ a dirtttor shot more and more of his cartoon continuity in sequcrn:e .... ith live acton . he began to "'31;,.( that this was a ...·ondcrful opportunity 10 check planned busint$s and staging befon: it ,,'as animated. This was alw an c ~ccllcnt way of cSlabl i~h ing catly communication .... ith tm: anim ator himself. for bere was something tangible to diKU~S . l11c Klion was on filn •. and thc director and animalor could build from tm:re , adding or cun ing, doing more or doing less.
,
snn,thrn ing or modifying: but . ~l lust. lho:y \" cn: 1IIrIlllJ: from 1M ~ poinl. All of Ibft demanded Il"IOR' 0In: in tho: pbnnin~ and lIoooI,,'1 of li~f ""lion film . If the Ima~e on tho: film _'1\ righl. a "~ak animal"'" tou lll ,~l by '""ilh it and;l
it evell belter. Howe"cr. if
\'
Ih"c
"",ion
,,-as poorly plan... d, or staged in
trouble for
:~::':':lII:Inntf.
"" 'cal what is I\;af>Pl!ning. or il i~ lighled so Ih31 " '1Ia1 you " 'lim 10 _ i) in sh3dov." (}tt..,iorAlI), lilt fOOUlJ(' " 'iII ~ho,,' o nl y ronllnuil)' of an actor lt1QVing from one pl ace 10 allOlhc:r. or jl,lSI ...ai,ing. til' gelling ;nlo posl' lion 10 do sOIll"lhing ime"" , ing lal~f on . Tnc aclion muSI be "at:cd wilh enough delin;ti"" and emphasis 10
~
il wQUk! ~au~ (\'(1)" dir«1Or ,,-oold do bene. \0 lhro,,· the film "'If and.un .frel'h with tho: ... im'".... and hi. )turr' 11•••1. Es!oCnlially. the film .hoold be considered a ilCp in 1m, v;syal
I
di=tor . bould late. is pbnninllO shooc and ask ::~ ::~"=.gc.lhc
h;InJ look him~1r:
b llIis m.lcri~l really r(lIdy 10 go inlo animation? ~
lilt t..Jli",,~s fi t It.,, , tory'! The Char.lClcr'.' Is it
""" rOf the mood. the tempo. the 01".,,,,11 idea'! Is ~ fIIltNininl~ I, it jllSt SQmd:>od)' ""ying _ ~ d~Ioj;\Ie. or is 1(101, ch~~
'0 build
it I s ituation thaI gj"e> tl!(,
and C(m lribu le?
TM ..'look pt'tI'dwriM """ "'",. p
of lnKiaJ anioN, /11
,,,., '4'. Itl,_, .....,.
"",r1,,,,,,,.
Ji ,""'" f :,", I ..""", n'";"" $ ,,,., sc'ipt ~,ltil~ pro. J""rioto
.~~ .... ~
Un h:ipptn to lie! Some: funn), action...- "" ... bu,i"ill;1 rot? Can thi~ be I,IS/:d casi l)' and cff« · bdi! Oats ;t animate as it is? Will it m:I~e: a good _ ? WOlild I Ix" ucitw if I had 10 animale it"! ml.
110.1 """dr. IN «r-o, ,'''', Nu
""~II
plallMd.
Am I ~tping the ani mator by ~ho<)ling Ihi ~. or will i: be l(lUih 10 handle once: ;1 is on his boo,d '~ on the ,.,age .... ith tbe ....;en.: and lilt X t...- ...:::od). be ,lIould n·"",mb... , film director Stank)' Kuhrlc l ' , t,nal " Is anything happ.:n"'~ .... >nh put1in~ un
..
":::,;.',:;::::~'~e" ~plion:Iny i,.., _or an ~n'ma· ~,
a,k the man" ho ultimalely "ill tbt 1«nes to belp plan lbe on the AI"""" aJ",,)'S " 'hen >ou1«>IK: eI", ~> fitm . . ."maIQf lhe ~amc"''' ;1 I"" far back . ur I"" . ..., I~ a.;tion is s iaged al the ...· fon~ an~ k Itl
00""""
" ~_IIOIUC-Wpurfr"",Copf. IIO
Dt>tr BoI"C"'y rI'~s"'",,, ;-tl_i.~ pr~ 00,. ~"DI;n,,,~ ",Ii"" ,'''', .. _Id"" diJfint/l to Q~;' mUl, ronl'ir/Ci"gly, K·hilr an ""iJ,n,if/rd rhlltl tJ<:IQI' pl"1' 'N .'okallttd,·,," /Hi1f(',,' TiV' UI)' .
(
Human
M ulremely dear. but neither over.t<:ted nor so sublle
roecessarily make il right for that place in the piocIu~
il f. ils to communicate. On:at can: in the IDoocing prodU«d :K"enes on film 11111 W~n: iO lUttiOC1. $0 rich. and $0 ... ell ~Iaged lh~ 1 lbey could be CUI illlo lhe cominuil),..,.,1 almOSI like a rlRl rough leit of animation . U"",·c '·er. they ...-en: nor lbe W"li",t pieces of Kling onc might u~t in a li~ action film, b«ause Ihese imaginalive scenes had been c&n:fully planned for lhc medium of ,,"';';awn: . Usual l)' we use.:! attors whose talents included comedy. inventivcne~$, and e,""aliv;ty--as wdl II-!l CQIlsid.:rable ,hoatrica l nperience . As the ",suit of building scenes wilh ~uch people, incorporating TlC'W ideas. searching for a way tha, communicates be,rc. or offers n>OIl: en' er_ tainmenl. lhe live action film gave the animator a springboard '0 go beyond ",hat ho could II.3ve imagined himself. helpWe photographed anything that might ful .• nd soon we disc...,..,,,,,,, thai the limin, of a clever actor could make I mild gag hiluioos. tllltt an e"perieneed siage comedian ...·oold offer SlI'" ways of 5talinl ' 5C"CTIe's business. th
is very difr",uh to jud~ "~::~::,:,:~~;~':::: doing something is wonh the e~ lra il Can b( shortened in ao;",atioo w;thoul Io!.i"l value. Conw;:dy roul ines and pr.:r~rit)'-""ildift, lake tilTlC': they clnnor be IUshcd . 'n.e animalor mliSt decide ...·lIt:ther I tant devdopment with t i or just ,t",' ching oot the Usually we did IlOl USl' 11 ocling and the charactcr"~ voice 011 lilt: sour>d
111.31
p/tlrGlralt(!. au pu.,toI,J
".. rAlq IIUUI "..
r~I}"l",d
10,,0 IMaM' ;0 IAil IUM uf
·.,IIU wi/rA";,,, iam .
pro''''
8,(Jl~.q"' dt· .d 1M slap,rid oJ " ..i"';OI'I llot" 1«ON!·
OCiIble . Many times a performer ..."OUld devise a piece of business $0 funny. so unusual and appealing, lllat (~ry. one ..."OUld b( sold on il immWialely---tllindni 10 the faet that iu length would ~Iow down the pact: of lhc itOI)'. Just beeaU5C some: business is funny dou nor
since we found thaI actors had a ICndcllCy :~;~: Ume interpretation '0 both performances. .... ant(d w~s somrone who coord add to the performance . come up ...·ith a new dimension .•
of doing itli1lU no one else had s ugges ted. T~::::: ....e needed an ;nventi v( :.tClOr fl"Csh 10 lhe ...· .... ith no precoocqMions 10 limit his imaginal .....
11Ie sound track was 00 a record. ,,·hich. ~:::~ played OVer and OVer while the ac,or wlS n and trying out ideas for timing and clw"acler. when the scene: actually ...·as shot. a recot"dUlJ mad<: of lIN: sound as heard on tilt: stage" ,,,;~ After a "tak(" .... as ,hosen ",'..,1111 days latet. ",cording waS replaced by tOO original track. m',,"' in sync .... hat had been r~ded on ,"" stage . I actions had been devised that r((juin:d mort I b(t .....,.,n lines of dialog"". the", was no "","_ ing the lrack al that point: ,;0. the needle ..-as I from the m:ord and the scene .... as shot ··",ild.·· the film carne. back from lhe lab. the animalor juUIed the pktu,"" and the sound and forth unl;1 lhe y had lhe b(St sync athie~. Sometimes a new ;nlerpreutioo
Have Been Successfull y Animated
... ne«:5Sit~ted doing the ..1i~I<>g"" over with a differ· COl or e~pn:S5ion; tlLlII se
bdic,.,,~_
Of roursc. 1M", is alw.y~ I !.il: problem in making "rul" or "straighl" charoclel'li in our pictures -;,::!~ :~:rwn~lilY In carry Ih.!ir pan of IIkl sto~
dirttlor Woolie Rcilhemliln has »id. a'! of aniJIIJlioo lends ilself least 10 reil people. _
:
10
.-:oric3lures and illusioos o f a pc,,-."
: ::.:": is misintcrpreled by many 10 mean ",·Ito h.." 10 be represented as real bo: ~(1 oul of fealure r'hns. lhal lhe Morics broad ~ h~r.lclers who ca n be han.
.....,,'"'w,'"
died more easi ly. This would be a mislake. for sp«l.a· lors ""rd It) ha~e .... meone or somelhing lhey un belie,'c in . 01' lhe piclure faUs apans . In TM RrKWrI. lhe )'OUn~ lirl Prnny "'"as .... rrounded by a ""hok (.lSi of broad characlers; bul .... hile lhey enriclled the MOf)'. they did noI carry it As W"olie s~ld afterward. ·· N,w. the liulc gid was !ii' behev~hle ! Alilhose things ~nlUnd her wen: gKal. bul you ""edcd Ihal si ncerily .·· n.: s,ncerity in lhat case came from careful planning 0( lhe Ke""" to make use 0( Ihc most appealing ~ of Ihis lillie characlCf. Some miSttllanoous scenes had been mmed o( lwodifferenl fivc· ynr-old girl s . .... lh.1 lhe animator could slUdy Itow a child of that agc mo>'ed. bUI lhere was '''' alternpl 10 ",cord special mOVelj or aclual SCeneS after lhal. Inslead. ,he effort had gone into findinl lhe righl Ihings for her 10 do and lhe bc$I. for IlcT to do lhen, . II is .~iom~l it lhat boy or girl characlers can be done more easi ly in live IClion Ihan in cartoon. and Ih.l One ,~hou ld no! do lhings in • ~an(Jf)n beue. done in live acl ion, I~owever. if Ihat philosophy had been (ollowc4 O,'er lhe years. the", ...-oold have been no S......• Whitr. roo Cindrrrila. no PtlU Pan . nor most of lhe f(.al"'rcs lhal Ihc Disney studio produced . To make a ",Inighl" Chancier con· vincing and inleresling ""Iuircs llreal c"'3live effon . h may lake imallinalion and a kn<, ... ledgc of Mh "Of)' and animal ion. but lhere is ~Iway, a way- if lhe sl~ff is sman enough 10 find il and willing 10 WOf~ hard enough to accomplish il.
"''''y
hu~?"
~ prioc~
or a hero or a sympafrom lhe audicnu >lory ..."Oft. . It..:n It..: chl""'ler mU>I be f but noc necessarily in a re~tricted In 101 Dalm(llians. Roger and Anita had to trt~o:d ... ~al people because o f tt..: genuine ron· their pets: yel they _re drawn w ilh lhan tho: pri nu in either Sow'" Wltif~ ... design o f the " 'hoIe piClure .• ~ well as ~lory. pennincd the: .nimalor more in ~prc"'ntation . ~ Badu ns ~nd Cruella ~ broa!I.r roles and cou ld be drawn wilh more them more inter>lronger. In • the lillie girl had ~he wa~ the hean of tile alld Snoop~ L"UU ld be wild . romic fig _ they w~re no! sinister. "bmevcr t,,'O or more ani maled characters arc in SttIlC:. illlemlat ing in ...·ay. lhat ~'" lrue to
:
If il is
~~~~~~:;'i:':i :':':'i~:• iltionis difficult st~ging caton be paranil11al~
>hannl a space. moving them aboul thtir Mtpping QIl eaeh ~her. " 'hiie kttping a
~;~j:[~~:~~~~~~~~~j
if some crit ical ""ling is scrnc the sceneinislhe: s hot "'ith. IIle actors mOve around in a "'~y Ihat 110 the animalors. e' ·cry..... will be""fit. C1art W2S li~n the Stt"" to animale o f lhe
.::,~~:~~::~ " 'ilh Snow Whilc-l he: on ly long ~
dimensions of Ihe dwarfs' room char~ctel"l' Ihrough their moveAnimating the decrease in the lirr s size as she
tilt \Cate of the
~
the matchingby,,·or\;perspec;:~~::'''~'':'~'':'''~:•'''butwasronlrollcd Lcs animated from imaginat ion scene amazin gly convincing and added crethe "hole sequence . dancing ~nes in I slOry should he . hot e arly
'~:~ :_:ghoul the: musical number. ",iller pi«cmeal ...·hen an animator nttds • . Obviously lhe chorwgraphy will be richer if a it all. inslead o f leavi ng it up to the ,~, o f some SlOf)·man. In the !iCtne there waS a special problem w ith Snow hand positions. Ju~t how high can a dwarf
.. f,,,,"
re""h up comfor1abl~ 10 danu ",ith a young gil l? The heighl of each dwarf had 10 he planned. not in relation to lhe girl doing lhe Ii,.., action bul to her canoon propor1ion~. derived from the photoslats of her dancing . For the scene to be eff~tivc. il ",as important Ihal lhe dwarfs should no! str~ in or he awkward as they reached to take her hand . Fortunatcty. with Ham Lu, kc shooo:ing the li~ action. a ll such details were c"", fully covered It is not worth the trouble of filming simply 10=001 a change in ,i1.t as a c haracler co"",. d()!;Cr (0 lhe camera. but if a nlajar pan o f lhe design o r a sec"" i. ~ on Sianling perspccli"e or the "'Ialionship of several character,; working in penpecli"". then ~ g~at deal of Ihe unimalor 's time may be saved by first proving out the effecli veness of lhe: scene on (,1m . The same ~I Megy applies to the action o f the inaninl~le objects lhal might be in ~ scene . Ro ll ing bamls. falling trees. avalanehe:s. maving car.; . wagons. and tllin. are all tirtle o(on,umi"g and tc<.lious for an ani_ malor 10 maSlcr. and Ihey are ques ti onable c ' penses In the ani"",tion IJudget " 'hen traci ng sue h things from photOStats will gi~ jusl as good result,. if not hellel . In l'i1lo«h;o. Siromboli locked lhe: linie fellow in a large bird cage made of ben! Stick s. which boonc-ed and swung as his wagon bumped along Ihe cobblestone streel s. The cage e>"cn had a s mall peICh insi
"",ion
Tior mool'l ofCra,l/a', en, wm;"",nud ...il h b/arl< /in" ,hal malil' i, look Uk, a duc.d
"" ,b, PM/OJ'UII. TIw'" aS' "'0' c ui oWl and p;ustd on a e.l. Ib,,, r"Pi,d Xuru 1"0""" /il, ".,
"'!itt
'/"'''';ng, O'IC' il ""'p
ed in filii color•. IU ..... ber•. illook.d J"" liuw Qlher ....1' in ,he PIC'''''
••
"101 Dalma· 'aeolli
>lingllor sa", ",,/tn'ars "'~ f, I">",,,' man , Do"iJQvil("h, j
/If"."
nw(M "",ker
tff",.
yel paid for ilself. Fm''''.,illlo"ked a, if il Wal' a!~1)1 10 be in lhe red. Bambi . Wall's favorlle pK:tu",ofall, was slil1l1l)/ ill lhe de"r. The solUlion 10 IIw studio', financial bind se('lncd 10 be al>Olher carlOOO ftal .... along It., lin~s o( the successful S"" ..' whi,e-1>IIhet lhan anYlhing cxP<'rimcnial. Ahhoogh "padage roc· lures." like Mi,,,. MUJ'i,'. did not h.,"~ lhe f"'" duel ion difficuhies of 3 "ol)'lclling cartoon feOlUlt, lhey had nol been ,"ery profilah!c eilher. A '"'w..... expensive way 10 make the pmjcclc;l Clndfl~/lu lSi full · ncxiglxi animallxi (ealure had 10 be found. R1 "OK for cleanup" wilhoot (~ He IIlmed to live ac1ion 10 solV<' h, s problem. All of Cinder.lla was Shol very carefully "'11tt lilt actOr<. leSling lhe CUlling. the conlinuil)'. IIw >lagmr. tile charac1cri1.aliuns, and the play between lhe ctt:n". lers. Only the animals were le(I as drJwings. and It
Mi"",·
0'
ell')' aNi, <:dCooI:. Sw:h J ,ak, howrsw 'hi' Idnd
w..,
Tl'(I("in~1
fr"'" pharoslats of I~ bird ("ag' Ihol i"'l"iJOI1ed
P,fW("chio go,... Ihe uali>Ik aClion Ibal ''''IS nenled K'hile ....",ing Ihe time Ihol ...ould b"," />een " 'quj,.,lro on,muu
swcb a difficult assignmenl. E"'n more ,im, "'.", , ,,,',d b)' droK'ing Ihe back <>flh. cog, on Gne and Ih, fronl on a"",h., 10 Ihal Pinoahio ,,,,,,Id I>e ,andK'khed "' ...."Nn Ibe .....0 K·ilhou, In/,,,,,, r.giS!roti"" to ,b, bars "" dro"'in 8.
I.;,,,
""'T)'
~c
Ih¢ tllmin~
.... ~n thou~h we had done "',," "t (\ur
f""rri<;~.
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fell
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r~'lri,l"cI .
"~'. undeniahty.
a",,) "r d
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By the time w" were stanin g l'<"Ie' ".~ had inn",d to get further away frum "n)" actual usc of the ;octi<>n ,""en",. r"'taging them ~n~r >ecing w~ak· !ll:S!its. "'ing the tilm as a 'tarling point from which to "' ild.oJ inv.nt ;ln,1 eori~h . We hat! been ,h,,""n the ~..)·to go. hul we had [(> do the ··going·· r, alway, h;ld lhe feeling Ih~y were ""ikd 10 thr flOOf "h"n their whole 'I!'lucn"e, w~re shnt ahead o[til1l" in li\"~ ~~ti[J1) . E'·eryone·~ imaginali"n 1I ro!tow ~ ,,",c no might be ~laged was limitetl hy lh~ ~nl of the camera. for once a SCene had he~n I!Iot ~ was very hard to s ..... itch to a "h<)le !le .... poinl of ,·Ir-<.·--
h,·,
In"""
Animals If .. animal in a f' iln is ,,"~"r;n g any kind of costume. hr(ln oc hand led with human allrihmcs and the .udi . tIC. ",·ill ""c.rt him . In '· of ii , a"imal txxly The ~hara~t~r can have hit""" hall
Srldi,,, Th<~,
M,IS/"', acr., hi!. cl Ii<
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$rOM that called for special ded~ion~ , The young A"hur had ~n rumed imo a $Quirrel by Merlin, the magician, so that the boy cou ld gain a bener underst.iUldillj of the world of natu~ , While in this guise, Anhur met IiO!I"Ie ~al $Quirrels who ac<:cpted him all one of !heir kind, even though he could IlOl speak their language , The probkm was to animate !he boy so that he would he believable both to the audience and 10 the squirrels , If he Well' just .. boy running around in a squirrel suit the audience would have no trutlble =<>gni .. ing him, btl! wou ld people believe that real squirrels could be fooled SO easily? If the ooy were animaled as ~ genuine $Quirrel, it would be impossible 10 p""serve his characler--
mise was to have the boy limited in his ~""" I squirrel's body and appearana: . yet retaining bi$ "'" rhoughu and mannerisms. lic IIad to move like a 5qIW' rd. but .. rather ine~perienccd one. When we Soay " real. " "-': mean only whIt tho ...... enee ac<:epts as being re~l. for obviously a real anillllll can1lQl aCt or emote as hmadly ~ s animators I'eljUII'C, The more an animator goes toward cariealuring the ~nimal, lhe I1'IOR: he SCems to be eapluring tho es!nCI of that animal, and !he I1'IOR: he is creating poss.ibiliul:l for leling . For e~amplc. if we IIad drawn real c, .... hen there is movcment in ~ll parts of the body . In Olller more realistically animal s an: drawn. the I will appear on the SCreen . T he ~nimals in Sno ... Whitt Were c rudely compared to those in Bambi. YCt they all r..ha,'Cd w~y they should to work with lhe girt in And sume people e"en thought the animals Since it cenainty ....as 1101 the d ....... ing creatures so convincing. it must ha,-.: been in the animatiCKI . When learning to draw anything. it ;',•::~: ': the aniSt go to the source . Afte ..... ard he can usc: of his lrno"'lcdge tllat he choo6es. but in tho ning he muSt Study u.., real object. whether It zcbrula or an aardvart . If Di sney ani~ .~, . . . aninllile I fOK. they ....ould try 10 aet a rell fox and phoIograph. and. ifpossiOle, f(el. N:~~~::: the learning that comes fTOOl feelinK In and mUKlcs and joinlS. 10 discover how together and how far they tan move in any d:::~ is always surpris ing . The llI1ists ....ould Bet ill of fox s keletons to help in understanding ... hy looks like. fox . How is he different from .... . mals? Then !hey would get film of foxes ill
fwlt'lild' , UIII~ birdfrin"b ""~ J.r,p'i\'tIHimpl~. Th,,' ,."...IIMIIIow. of srwJ.· Q..n Q full ",w"na",I"., of .~
".
DIr ....... 11'00/"
R",huma~
Juul" pt. fM ,1••11 ".~ ("fflll.i QJ >owl "',.. ..a"'~1 (HI TIw::
...... ,...,.".......-""II>. "'" -.I lilt Hound .
.
-'!·lhti:
1IIO\·~nlC'nts
,
I fox~
.-w
and their lim ing . What make. Whal all,ludcs or aclioru; are unique
'
film was a'·ailable on ,,"uall)" any . ~ ofllie sludK)". greal hve·acl,OOl sene,. r",l.ij. "',A.nmr~s. The an;malOf> dre,,' from 'h" CQadQffbtlH.facuon and tim'n~ !o~ludy. 1I.no XIIOI1S m soe«,,",'e dra"mg,. and Ihen wcnl Iod '" ..c!.dy some ""'"". "fhc: y f ....nd !hal !he am.]~y ~"")"s.
"iw
mg phocographs made by l-.:adweard MuybrMlrc ' nearly • hulldretl run ago were good for ren"nd,ng lhem of .... ha' ,he animal doc~. bu, his callie,.,.,. did OOI.lwars calch lhe e\l",mes or Ikla,ls of ",Iall\" IInU"g. Ind ,lie p,cture' could be m"leadmg ,f the anllna't)I"\ .... ere unfamilar .... 'It. ,lie animal oc- IIie :KIlOO Smce 1\ 'i al" a)'$ hard 10 figure 0111 lhe bun,p' and ,haVC', ,n 1>1,11 phOlograph~. I;\'e aClion fi lm i, "'
......... s...riuh,o. Wltol -.ttl
.....
..... nul"',.,
""'
fa """"'"
b\llgc coming
much It1OIl:
~p.
or a JOInl
mo"in~ ~mk:r
11M: , kin
tlc~rly .
Many ~ ~I 11M: idea Ih.aI produclion $lopped for wx or (C"cn " 'ttks " 'hile C'"Cf)'I)M learned 10 draw I ne ... CIlarxICr. ThaI ...-ould Iu,·c b«n I 100'c!Y " 'ay 10 lain kno .... ledgc. bul il ....u
II(lI
e<.:Qnomkally feasi-
bit . OtlM:r Ihan a special cla.~ Ihal mighl .Iart 314:.10 ... and go ~nt il 6:00 (one hour of OUr lime a!IInSl I half hour of Wah·s ). atl of tho. Il:>can;h ""as doD: .... hile kttpn, up our footage on lhe CUnni! ~ aflcrlloun ....ttkcnoh. noon houn . "'hcne'"Cf"'f ~ sqU«1e in somo: exira lime: . 80th man "'"lImed 10 do
and when he saw OIlIers draw ing bener he qldly tried to learn what they knew . _~.
the hilld end comes up fiDl . Tben I put OUt his front kgs . . . . I think that's right. but what hal'l"'''SIQ ~ he~d at Ihal poin"!" Garbutt would prrch on tho: edge of the table. ~ like a bird than a draftsman (he neVff sceme<110 sit in a chair). and Slal1 nptain;ng. ~nd white he 1~lked his pencil wou ld ••art making a thin line Ihal _med to
Thil .haring of koo ... lcdgc speeded up the whole
ming process and kept a st imulating almosphc:A.' "'c. If one of U~ Slarted to fall bdlind. Walt migtM !If. "We can do bener than lhal!" as if lhe individual - . JIOI as important 8" the whole lc~n1 efron. How1Mf. lie' was more apt to :Illy ... Why
meander aimJc:5>'ly across the p;1per. We would lum OUr heads first one way. then the OIlM:r . trying to see what he was drawing, bullhe fe2nll,led a tangled cobweb as much a.~ anylhing else . Then . suddenly, ~ saw a deer in the precise phase of the mo~rnenl we had \k:;crib<:d; only GarbuU was drawing il upside down so it faced us. While"", wen:: blinking and trying to a.bsi.:dI thai combination of rc:ndition and cxplarulion. be would continue: "Now wilh a camel. he'll put Ihi. leg OUI first and keep hLt head down .. ," When he had finished dra"";ng a camel getling up, he ",wid go on 10 the buffalo. juM "" _ would ha~ a tlKwough
Ii"".
~:d~:~~;~:,Y.'~ &0 look al them: Marc might . And Mon: would. and so would
..
• and any of the sketCh ,"",n working of the animau,.,.,
""m, ''I've
,01 Ihis dcer gcu ing up. and I know ,
,
"
,
\, '
'j'J
f,
I ", I ,J \ 1/
"'"\ ,
,
"' , V '~
,
-I' ~. ,.
"- 'J, L ,J ,
I
/
t""
undeManding of whal was unique abou t decr in Ihi. par1 icul ar action. In ten minutes we had a whole
,I
,I
I
~
, ,
'q
/
/
,/
,,
\
/ ..... i '
,
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course in comparalive analomy. iliumalcd v,ilh ¥cmle li!!lc conlour drawing~ Ihal had no bohJno:ss or Vi¥OT. jom surprising accuracy . We IIad alIOIller unique laknl in Rena Scot!. lIIe rlfS! ...·oman a. our slIMiio 10 ha,-c an ;merest in ammation. She had an aslOllnding abilily 10 draw powCrfli1. virile animals from almoSl any perspe<:li,'c and in any action . Alone poim in Bambi. '.ie nttded $Om<' convincing and (righlening hounds 10 cha§( our heroine F.line. bill none of. he anima.ors ,,-as advanced enough in his UndcrsllJl(\mS of hound. to !.:Kkk the i1.
Another imaginati," bil of prubknH'olving for in Bambi was lhe drawing of lhe majtS1C
anlic rs. To follow Ihrough the perspec.;'-c ;;,~:~:=: prong as the head O"IU"w _buul was just I, caled (or ,,'-en the and the fif'Sl filn>ed tests of the revealed robbery. ofmajesly; glory . So. a miniature plasler model was maok staB's head v,ilh the fun complen ... n. of anden and
Ihis
was placed bclICath
"~"~'.;':':'b:':~::::'::~
scope machi,IC. Up un the d
had the first drJwing of & scene with juS! the head of the stag carefully drawn in . He slowly turned and tilte,·emcnts of the legs and the back and the head as Rico turned Ihe txxly roun<.i and round. lesling Ihe aniculalion of each join!. He was enrap1ured wilh his model: we were a bil moTC TCsc ...·e
,ha,
Th, fa ..·n had bUn1h. mod.! fIN So man)" i"'pi"'· tional skneh •• had sr""·"
up
1>, ,h. lim, ,M oni"",·
",,, "Orlro On
,h. pie,.r,.
H.,.. Rico ILbeun SM"" Frank Tho",,,, how ,h, htad fi's om" ,h, n.d. Also ...arrMng art Rma S~o" and Boo YOltngt{uiJl. 1M"" In f"NgrOltNI i, *«p. n fIN ,b. de".) Th, dur slom.oro mort in· ,,,,,, in Olli. JoJu,."o,,· s draM·ing ,luIn In h" job of fh'.ing for ,b, dass . In backg round. Mil, Kahl. I'fl. alU! Bill Shull.
AN""A7'/)It D(m Lust-
Bombi. Drawing
peol>l~ms
,h.wu.
mt)l". of a ,heM' '0 ma· j.srk SlOK in Bombi 'han
,M bullns of ,h. hunufj. No on. rou/d draw ,h. im· (X)sing anll." So 'hat ,h. colum. and pu.pu,'w ...,.,. ~onsron' from. draw· ing ,,, drawi"g. Th. ac· eurary sun hut ~am' from 'rodng a plasru mod.1 ~ould
,ha,
bt ,umro in on>" di· r'~"o" '0 "",'eh ,h. ani· """ors dro"·'"g .
339
tt" motkl''''''*''1 N/II -
""ltdGjgi"uJ...-~"
Tails and Ears Are Important Too
,/w~,"•
• JI<"UI6 J." "" ....... ...,wIIJ" .... . B" ...
• "" BMnIIi.
J ""
'" tnn...., .I",...",•. 7)lIIi.ot~(t}ffmly.
"' ....".., 1M IOn.
1:."<". ""
(I! ,/II impo""n' pari of./w w./.ud. ,,~ any
""Imm .
(2) H ,,;' .... n bt- " t , y ,,, ~""mality. "",I ""'"Y.jmu " 'iII ......... II" ... " ,/wroc",
/uls , S,ruU/' /Wlr ,i...., "" wM,''''pl. Irri.ub/. Iaot. S-lItmJ '/"./"" j. soft WIll /m.;";", .
(1) Tail, ...." rJD ", ....11 '0
, ........./w - ' "
of "" (I"j.
mm. TIorJ ...." ,,,... ,, fNdy
/.,11"". '" Jtow" *'jH.lott . '" uf/«rw...
Tlrq ."""Id IlOl "II 'HI .11, ~ro,,1Id "'j,lI· "", a ' nmlll, 1'h,y,"".l I lIa.', lif' ,"'-'. Wm, 1I ou'/'"
"d",,"- WI/i. ($) R,m.mbrr . i. mu. JqWl.Jlt WIll s/r.ull ,'~ """....
--.
/~I T/w ...... t is if"" (>'U" ,.I "" .... "'/w" ptUf. of ,/w ..""""'" ,Irm ""'" IwIp Jtow" "" ""'".,". It "'" /It' ..rrlINI'" /It'1Ii~· ~"II«. ,I0000' alrrMn• • /It'
«IO """""t
CD<"ly " •• 11
dk"tt
ell,., ""'. or j lt·
,mt'"
...... ~.......
'",~~1,~,
I
~111O\'ed the ~k in---50 w~ CQUld ~xamine tl>< musel~~ and the le ndon ~ and the remarkable engineering principles n:vealed in thi. w<>n<.k. of n.atu~ . Unfonun.atety. uth ti mo: hi: contracted or extended l ny pan of tbe cadaver a rich aroma wa. pumped into thl: air. He called to us. ·· Hey. fdlu.gel in hen: dose. ""hen:)'QU ~.n sec what this Ihing i. doing ." We answered warmly. " Oh . ~ un ~~ juSt fine from back hen:!" In spile of this uniq"" opportunity to gain vast kno ...·lcdge. ~lIendance al thos<: evening cias5CS began to fall off. Ilowe,'c" Rico's enmusiasm sa:me!I 10 i llC~JS<: in dirttl proportion to the odor ..... hich no k>nger could be described as moeI'd ), pungenl . Our noses finally lurned us all away. but not his. He su yed wim his prize until it was only OOIlCS . In the end, Rico furnished us with a ....o"""rful 5Ct of dr~wing~ that ...·c studied ...·ith consitkrably more rcli. h , WI;i\c il is extremety hl:lpfulto understand the anal · omy o f an animal. its movement and timing and bal11K" and rh)-' mm an: just as imporumt from an aninution standpoinl. and probably Il>< y all should be learn.d together. This is ~ comfoning lhoughl if the subject is ~ lion. or liger . or rhi....,.,rtl5 . or any large. wild crca·
Ex"" ...,;... '''I(1f'('/t "'M aI''''' a~ilft(l/(N, ~·
rNu-lNln. Stnrlt ..., dir«tly from ,,,,. Jil... of· «1'
,...~ (1 """ 't~
,hi.
Sm'(" k,,,1 M lllp ;s>Ma,~ D;m·._
!Ure. We had link de~ire to probe: with our fingers the inncr .... orking~ of the orangutan while animating King Lou~ for Tht Junglt 8oo1e . A few th~rts of comp"r· ati"e analOmy and some rttl! of film told us as moch as ...-e .... anted to know . Long before Our artists encountered Rico'~ fawn cadaver. lhey had been ~tudying the JlcnUBI behavior of real dec, at close range . "The sWdio had been sent a pair of fa .... n~ from Mame that ...·ere kept in an arc.a alongside the animal ion building. and the arti~ts had only to glance out the ...·indow for stimulat ion and ref~reRf;"e 10 the real thing . Despite the great vaJ~ to the artist in dirtttly observing an animal in iu daily activities ..... hen • story called for a rare or unfamiliar action from a deer it was still a major problem for lhe animator . In lhe first sequence of 811mbi ...·c needed 10 portray thoso: initial fcw minutes in a fawn' S exist~ncc. " 'hen it is ..."Obbly and "ulnerablc and plI17.lcd by the world. and dependent on ils mother . I-loweve •. nature endows fawns with a sirength and ,,)ordination that develops ~ quicldy that " 'ilhin only a couple of hours they all: "ery different n~atures . Wb<:n the San Dkgo Zoo phom:d 10 say they had a doc ready to foal any day. the sludio s hipped a film Cre ...· down lhere inllne · diatdy . l1Io:y sct up their C
'."":1 .•
had liven .11 signs uf being ready In deliver. night 's "igil produced nothing . Nor the nUl either . "The " 'elf}' crew prepared for tile second under the ...·atchful gn.c o f laT~e. doe C)"CS. '' ' ' ' ' Ca rne and the prospect ive mother ...'as calm ml _'II:rvcd . The crew .... as ex hau't~d . When ..... hing happened during the sign~. no indications of any kind. lhe cn:w g~t IIOme ~Icel' and corne bock aboul been a~. urcd by the ,-"okeeper thaI "'OSI during the small hoof'll of the morning . gone for barely fi>'c hours and n:turned and be .... ildered from too lillie slccl'. 001
.iI""
e,'en more bewildered 10 ga~e Ul"'"";': :::,:~~~ five·hoor·old fawn I'r~"cing aboul It ere .......·ent back tl) bed .
::~~;':":i~:::'~~~:;~;
animal action 10 seldom In contrast th'e can be sphced i helpful continuil Y. Then: mighl be l shon action !roe 8ett ing to it~ fttt .... ith a Ii mUloCles, Of a spirited, uciled
';"~:~";"~"j:':'':':;:'""~;':::
run-all I1K1VCI1\CnIS thi s. IhI: animator can that place .. Ii
j
""IV, TOft
lIuXh F''''N_
'['he Adventure" or Mr.
T"". TM ..w",rl MJ" ""'~ body, "sIn/Ilk,. ''1'1'~''m''c~, Imd il"""'""J 10 W >NUJ.ywoJ "p 10 ",,~, A s 0 " ' ' ' ' ' _ dl/lnxftr. "..
M'"'''''''i'''''
"'''''ing hoo.llu",_
w"...m",.. of feeling, and wilh a little adjust· """' ilIId there
r
(to improve the sync and m:llch
il .
. scenes were shot of a dog and luming, coming down . Mraining on a leash-a ll of which were lids in liming scenes for lhe piclure and ......'"• • ~ 10 achie"" nDmrar' appearinll K lion . ~~IIC'S Ihal broughl Ihe charaClers 10 life were
lhe one ~ imagined by lhe animalor. showing whal lhe dog c<.>\lld have dollC'. in ways lhe dog would havc done il . In addilion 10 mo'~mcnts nttdcoo closely lhey SID)'ed together, with their ....ds almost inler,wined. We had Upecletl lhe roll of lhe body as .hey paddled abou. c lumsily , bul the way lhe two geese wor\;ed logelher "'a~ Slal1linll. AI once a kind of charDCter emerged for .he 1"'0 . which ,,'enl heyon
designed dra"'ings of geese lhal ,,'e had seen on lhe SlorybQards we~ ~uddenly lWO vel)' ~al perwnalilies ooMling about with lheir O\O'n poi"ate dignity-/"laugmy. appnising . critical. and funny . "They were ~al gttse. with all the mo,'emenls of rcal OOt they IIad ~"ealed lhe pe""",alit;"$ lhal could be understood and shared by all humans . Finding emenainmem in a per$Ofllllity does not mean making a clown 0111 of Illal e haracter . h means o nl y lhal one is ~la1ing 10 qualilies common 10 all individual s. and lhere is no loss of dignily inherent in thaI process. The personality lrails can be heroic. allruislic. or noble; il is the uSC made of them in the Story sil ualion lhal delermines whelher lhey ~rc comic. or cute . or stu pid . or mean . Therc Irt many "'ay~ of being tnlenaining . and the ch:.olkng.: is It> lile slOl"}'man 10 erealC s ieual ions where these individual lrail~ can be brougllt OUI in an emen .ining way . Many animals h" 'e !heir attribules al~ady defined by the legends and sU}lies o r various culeurcs . " coyOle is. cunning and wisc hero tu the American Indian. and I villainous predator 10 the Sheepm. n. To mosl people. a rabbil is nervous and almosl completely helpless: I wolf is all villain. whether he i, slavering or deceilful: and the beaver is liard-workinG with no sense o f hu mor. When casling a pic ture with "I\ood guys" and " bad guys:' llleSC are imponanl consideralions. "The "good guys"lIavc 10 be small . ineffectual. CUle. and associated with OOIlviolcnce . II doesn'l maner if !he rcal animal is thaI .... y or not . You are playing off images in lhe vie,,"CT$' subconscious. and if people
aeesc.
Ktn Ilndu'(NI_
"ood
~"TtMII·
~;;;.;'".;
""/"''1 SlnpI"1
grew up thinking a ecru in " 'ay that is where you IlII.III SIan . To hl\'e a mean and cruel kinen tcrrorizi", I family of nervous . nigilly bear.; is an uphill fight (0:.e ' "CI)"body . Still. lhere IS considerable room for van.llons. I. Robin Hood. some: of u i thougllllile Shmff of~· lingllam " 'oold be nlOll' inlc~~l ing if lie "'m: I ~ As the story wu structured . lhere ,,'a, no oem fo:.-'to be ~ crafty villain: he " .• ~ only slUpid. bossy. and u!\Concerned wilh the peuple he mlghl be hurti", A goal Wilh a lh,c k skull ,ould do lhi.' milch and gi,'c lilt animalors ~ neW animal to dr~ w lhal could open op fresh idt~s . The director of [hal film fc!l jU~1 as Mrongly !hit tbr Sheriff shoold be a wol f. becaUK tile I lile " 'olf 10 be • villain . The facl lhal ~ shown him 10 be • good famIly =n and I fellow " 'ill do louie to cllang.: ideas lhal ~ . " , _ old . In aojdiloon. lile goal has no established 10k legend. and .. e ,,"OOld lIa"e the burden of,~;. . . he " 'as good or bad or indifferent . De"clopin, image coold w~~le precious footage lhat mighl be bIl· ler used to .how entertai nment in lhe .pecifoc kind villain he was. The mUSI provocalive discussiuns come when tbr story calls for a mythical crealure. or one """ •• 'd appurcd in tale or legend . A dragOll is kOO\lll ill-tempered and s ullen . so Ihal is not too much
m.
~m. BUI OIher picture, ~:.:,:~.:"~~~~~ no connotations . When Wool", mating lile dillO$3l1l"S in F,mt"siIJ . Walt
~wa",
of an)' human personalit y tr..il$, " 000', m3k~ tllem cUle animal personaliti"" They ' "c gOI small bnoins, y' koow ; make them ",al!" II was a disanning m:juest .i nce ther~ was little ",sc~fCh pos~ihl~ on "'hal a real dioosaur mighl hase bc:t'n like , but WooIlC "'3li 1\01 bothered. He dipped inlO his imaginal ion, com· bincty's magnificent S<;OfC. Ihey crealed , togelher. a Slirring flhn . ha. ne'~r can be forgotten
""",."""
w""u~
H,,,~,,,,,, ~ _
" RII,o{Sp"ng," hnta...
W/wi k_'. ""'" ~ ,1"'O5<'~'
"·,,Il,d ",ill,,,,,, '1 'Y'
II,,,,, Th,nJrT«,nJ, ''''''",,'''' ,Iu~'.
"8"'"
lHfou tm,"t ,hi.
' ..n""5
" 16 pound bo,,'Ii~g bo/J i$ rolling da....n Ihr a/Jry. II ha$ a snu>olh , ron1;~uaus, ~venly sp
-o-. -e ••-•••
.- ... .,.
••••• • •••••••• e.
c
II,h, obj«1 is 0 eHoraclrr. les i$ pu, OI
(J
ma .....
In 1928. Mkkqhadcharm bullIO w~iJlht as m IUrned a romer wilh""l regardlor 'I
:-'----.;c
This spirlud "id by au)'on' in thr .ar/y lkirtin. II "'as 01"·o)" don. 10 II mu.kol btal. g;";ns a happ)' .•nu_ gtlie luling 10 Iht aclion and ojounryolliludrlor Ih. eN".,uttr, Combin<'
The Rhythm Walk
key's I""mwlily. (U6) Mickry .111"$ ailOr_ mal ."'p. lilting hi_< ",,,1..high. (USl ln Ih, miMI. of Ihr sr'I', h' dips do,,·n. ( I j I) Then "P ,,~uin '" " high pmition an h,ad WId 1>0<1.'"_ (/54J n""I/I', the 10"'. ",q""sh'" /Wsilio" ," hr "'acrs his fOO( to romplerr Ih' st,p.
iii
/ THE IMPORTANCE OF WEIGHT Wall.
~1I"ay,
have becomc lrouhle""ne and O)tn -
.nim"I~ .
~
The >ell"n Can o..X·<>Il'"
0.1'
,n -
:~:'il::~";.:"':'~'hl Ihal di,lribulion and balance ami ,"",c ncr)' 'ingle dr~"' in~ heCOlnc,
in everyday a.cl,,"lIles. Once lhe character ,,-ent into ""lion. il was lhe U me old business of moving lhe body ,,-here lhe animalor ",ante.! il 10 he. lhen adding legs al\d feCi undernealh moving up and do",n .
lbey can do >( of lhe anilnlllor ·.
:
::~:;~::::;;~.:;:'?' aclOrs;,fcd Ihallbe in gcuing hold of aMany char.K"ler 10 3",l y1.e ,I I I . Even the nlO,1 c:,wa l study uf pe"a b\J~y . lreel ,,·ill "" 'ca l dr;11""li,· diff.rence, in lhey achieve §i mplc locomOlion: long ,Irilk,_ Ii I bouncin~. minelng. ,;""Iing: lhere i~ no end 10 lhe ,·ar..,I)·. IJi the cady can()(}n~ sound c."", along . wm few attem pts lu makc walking anYlhing Ihln a means of mO"inli Ihe "bara'I.' 10 a ne w on lhe: .ck and
bcfo,""
l-
<.l'
~
/
._ / /
-
~A >
~1rid,"g
be ... r""ghl back . bul no lritd 10 O:lahl i"h characler by lhe " '3)' lhe Wilh lbe ,",roduclion of sound lhe", " rhYlhm walk." ",ilh il s C.
"'. ""oJ. OJ"
as
-
"-
-,-
.;;:,~~;':~~:~;::~ off.....1 io SOITO'" or despair.
'F
,
.
- ./
A ....".~i~, ""~ • >lwJq> 9t1'
......t~
IItU",,,".
~i~,
1("'.
'Ill i/N
~ will widt. anlllt"ni,., i.1O 1M I() kttp hi, btJJa/Oa .
'" 1.3
JJippi,.,_,
Walks ANI"ATOII, Frank Th(Jntas-
Robin Hood, Rabin Hood rwns ;n 10 pick up Ih~ lasl sack of gold. H~ placu h;sjOOI "'~II i~fronr of his body and tlidu ;nl() p<>Silirm, "ll;ltg th~ olh~T Itg and planting il I() help Supporl Ih~ ...~ighl of Ihr ,Iold'1$ ... rll at I() Sian his chang. of direction.
"''-I''.r()// F,,,,,k
THE IMPORTANCE OF WEIGHT
h was the realization that the canoon figure could nOi be believable without convincing ..... eighl Ihat really changed tbe animalors' thinking. Tbe principles of squash and Slf<'tch were beginning to be understood and provided lbe procedUf<'S and thc tools for display· ing lbe "",W discoverie s. Basically Ihe principle waS that a moving body could not be shifted in direction wilhout encountering resistance from ""mething in its pf<'SCn l path of movement. causing il to tum
TIIr ,",,", of ~I
ing thr/XIgh Ih, Moose lIu", .
Th(Jntas-
T1It Re""uers. Luk., Ih. m~.kral. is Tun· ning with his j~~ "'Mn h.
roUts a crocoojk nwku a ...ild. s<:rambling tak•• TtI'"SU diTUli
,
1
~~(j ,'2~~
(I J Obj«lJ/J7ma'~rial"M'
.....iSh
n' amoun'S.
diff~r..
~~., ,
Moid Maria,,' , .mrfbi"",. in 'N brt,,:t in Rooin Hood.
,
""'''.roo Fud Moort'Plum· , Judgment Day. E""1t in mnoo"laM, Plu,a ... dSIlS as mud. 011 a bowl· i"S ball. H.. ,,, h" skids "NUM ,h.. car"", umil 'N fore .. of his ori,inal dirt'(:· 'irm has bun ilbJorlHd aM a ....... di,,,,,,/rm is lisW.
."ab·
3<,
)olm_ LOL DfJnwOano_
A............ Olli~
•
12J Tn, '/,mm/Hon l,.pu . ,"", IA. f"/i~1 of ...,I,M.
A.•., .......
F-rd Sptwn,
o -/d i.
Iryj~1 M
Mo.-jill! o.oy
pI "fi.A
buoo~
off /til
,ro, Iw 1)"ln,
'~J"''''''''' a'tHlull "rid allacA,nl 'h, 01"', ,nd 10 a P'«' off~'nilw'• . H", h, i , ,unninl and ,lippmg as h. '~",:M.
1M fw/llfmi""
ROV' ,,/til AnilO..fr_ LOI DalmariAns. io<"~f,,/I", 1111(} Ih~ pond. n~ " 'Dln hal mod. all aj Ih,i, dOlh., 1oH", and Ii..." aM ""Ii",.
n~
...,j,N of I~ ,,,,jn~ i,
sloDw.·n DIll ' l ids '0 a IIOf'.
of Ihr rooJp,"i", _",,,riIY;'l/o Ih. ,,/, h~lps Ih~
""" 1M odthd WlK"h
'If'''',
of Ih.
,".'~nd.".
A/o"MAm. F"d MoorrSIIOW W hile .
Dopry ,ips Ift'o 1M ,Uftr 1Iop1"I/lJr " l«oM i lll /,.,.,. S_· WIII,r. I" ordrr 10 I:Hp A..... lit bo/
".n_
,«ow,.,.
,>"/>r"li"" "" ,lIr Tills ro,iro''''r "/0 "''' . ~ /w."i("{J1
10;"""",
s.op addtld 'M,r. "';,/ro", d,,/,oy.
Ing lh, .....;ghl or brU,,'nlH/.
lry ~ /h' dklraclrr.
1V""~lIt i. ,,,,'ralrd b,' hOM' Ju,rd " ch
(JI
10 push", ""II "guin., "n obj'ct.
,,-"/MAm. FrankT"'-TIlt Sword in ! .... SI<"'• .
Thr ITrat M'i,,,,d M"li" ha. cJu,"Krd himsrlf inlO 0 .qu;" ,,/ OM mn a /at aM '"1''''roy/"""'/r. SN i._II 'ITo1ll " ,h
4/'"''
.... Mill Kalrl_
:llio
." ,,,ugh., .f l'i~'K"' appily ,i.i(>pi"! of} 10 Ih. mnDIilll of lIS. Illar i. p'm;b/,
\p"".,
I"':''mllnr oJ ".," ~
.. boy.
Walk s
FO UR-FOOT ED FRIENDS
By tM time "'e had finished our .... ork 1)1'1 Pi/Wt'('hio in 1939. lhe animalors h~d done skip.s and fUns. clsual ilroli§. walks wilh emhusiasm. " 'ilh liud f« l , " 'ilh appuhension. and ...·ilh he~v)·. f~w rage , In one ",,"ene . Jiminy Cricket e'"en dusscd himself " 'hile fUo' ning full s peed; and in anQIher. Pinooxh io •• ~ a I"'P" ~t, waf made 10 simulate a " 'Il k " 'ith minliS. Tllcn Wah Disney decided 10 make 8ambi. This WII 10 br: a picln'" of buuly and mood. of philowphy and poelry. contraslinllthe inlimacy of I dewdrop on a bl~de of grass wilh Ihe excilement o f young bucb leaping aboul o n a meaoo",. 8<1mbi had Ius Slory. by flf. Ihan Ihe OIher fUlures . being olOre like lhe: picloriai Silly Symphooies. bul il had SlronS charac~r ",Ia_ lionships. neitM.cartoon n:1~lionships 00f caricalU~. bUI ",aI . believable ulalionshi~. Was Ihis askinlllOO much of personal ily animalion? Wah ...·u not sun: wc " 'en: up;lbk of aniltlillng Ihis fi lm quile yct. SO " 'hile lhe: "'51 of lhe: slaff rtIO"w
p.zf
on 10 F"IO/M/", IWO unimalors: wen: a,signed 10 zle o,'er Ille n>o,'emem$ and dra"'inll pn>blem, of ~ and rabbits, anoJ to I><'an:h for a ".. ay of i"",OfJ"nI" our lenelS of cOll\munk~lIon il>to tlll".\.C forei~n ~ We kne,,· ...·e cook! make Ihem n:al--th31 i<. look lilt ",aI deer-bul ....e .'so bll"" Ihal without ~bI~ perwrulity " 'e could ne'w m~~ ... Ih~1 Iyl'" of 11m ~ aJTy ~ ,,·ho~ feallll\' . We >tOOied film of deer. looted at pictures. taIted to the: sketch men who had been drawing ~r for ""* of 3 yur (while tM Slory h3d b«n shaped arid &vtIoped), arod w~lched deer at the loo. The t,,"O f."1\1 kepi at tM sludio had long since grown up arid dtl*\i cd. so we gOl 00 Ilelp from lhe:on. bul we did ha.t film taken ",'hilt they ..'C~ )'oong arod frisky . Howevct. no"'""u cou k! " 'c ~ the leg !; a big )'a,,·n . 00 bud~' bulged or MmCbMt *'( " 'en: a/l1"IO)'il>gly IiI"" ynd :iUpplc and Slrong and_ cullf. What ""en: "~aning 10 draw. animatc .
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IlJt >lttIh,~. "4{,.M",. "' m~,,·..d .... '~JI' hun"" ~()"'''''I! .."'. I.
g
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.p/"","
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"'"' _ _ .. _",lid /rt>,'" ...""",. I••" if " ... " ~ ...II Md IooJ "~".,"al /,j_ " p... .,..Ira .., rMrt " . .... 1Iw< all Mimi III! In • ........ />vJ, J,'""Pf't""ru
... "I"" ,"'''''' .V ....· ......., IN """".... cr·
"'*" ""., "
.'hilt ,h"I'" .., ~ ..d ,ud/,vll." <>n
tri?-rflltr/ilm Each ....... <)Ith /i ... I .......... . . • lri/r "" d,,<,<:/,,,,, .of·
....,,"",_~""
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,,,,,,,ruU.", In.
milt. ar/i"" rr ·
It wa. in the t,acing of the film th"t we found our anS ..... cr, W~ did nO! have photostat, on this footage. and the images ..... ere small and difficuh to SCe. bUI once we discovered Ihe se>:ret of the animar~ con· struction ali lhe pieces fell into place. There waS actu· ally more squash and stretch than " 'c could use. but it was not occurring "'here we had been look ing . In,{ead
,-
f?~ '\.-.:::-> .. ,,- ,.. .. ...... -_._-
-- .-
,-
•
TIw"",s• ,lid the 1I",,1Id.
• I'I'(1Jf1:
rn'on
of being oUl in th,' open, a"'ay from In. bod)'. the acti\";!y w ~s a! both end, of the Ie);,. In the sllouJdm and haunchc,. and. again. in Ihe tinge" and 100 Il ere the action ..... as as hroad "' any cartoon dra" iog. with greal nc xibilily and ,pring in the tips. alld fl'W. si"e swelling and IhrusHng up in tk bod~'. h took WOlle time to understand Ihc dcers an.lom).
...-:. ... -
• .,.. &
' - ' .... ..., 8~si,'
'mimal ~'"Ik on /Qs, an" P"I'P), b~co"s~
sho~'n
il is "",'i" '" su M'hm i,
happening in his loou "nd
~
..."..-
-.r.
}/"I'I'.'" (I"ion. The wind· pl~s "" Ih~ ."me ~'h",e"'r 1M anim"l, Animals ult/"m walt '·~r."
fa,;n II" ,,,,,,,. 11(111 TM,· sP<'rd "". slm" ,10k'!!,
I''''''
II,~ le~ /,,""',,", m,,;II'Y ("(m' <'~nlral"'~ on ~'herr Ihel'
10 rnlin Ihal (he ~houldel'!; an: ne~rly in front of lhe
iii ~ and ihal lhe n:ar end is pl'aClically all leg and 1IIImclI. ""I ~ Ihis " -as under$lood OUr
lilt ammals btgl/l 10 have lhe fluid. loose fuling. rombllled ..'uh mUieular power. Ihal w.s so Iypical of dm, Qnc, day "'e "'ere Si udying a Strip of film show> iq; an adull dur bounding across a smal! ravine . A~
lhe from legs look up lhe "c'llhl of lhe body and guided il inlo alum. lhe clbov.' Klually pushed up abo.-, {he line of lhe bac:k . After Ihal. ,,~ bool;",'w an)'lhing " l i pos.iblc . Our o.hcr big ,urpri~ came in lhe amount of mo"e· men! in 'he deer' s spine and pel .. i~, The ,wiSIS and lills and lurns ~nd ne~ibilily wen: II"O(lfT Ihan " -c knew how
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Sr'''/gh,
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1M lilt rira,U<"u, of 1M
o~'_I.
N''''II(II
Ihln;,,_
Sr"'ln
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.... .,u
".t:~~
..-
Squosh
T."dwono/ "w,h on Q
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aJ
Ihr ~'sQn~/jr)' ,'om '0 Ih. ~''',* : J~'''gg'', p'~na. ""'''/''''. M'orf)' , £ofljid.nrr.
rlu hMd ""'1 M ""d ~illh .
n .
,n'lu, ",ay d'''11-
rlumgu "r Rlr/lud. lind li",ing "'ill rhans. In. rha,·
r
orl..
""Itt ....,Il .
$,,"J,' Ih. all;"",I_ _ ,h<' ("(lTlQ()ft
lo,mula,
""·I,W,"''' OIli.Jm.n"tm_ The Fox."" {he 1100"". Cyrlt ..,.,;""
of iMlwll dOli 'Imning ""
9• .
,4 _'U(~"'P"'fMCO''t''
"'W" ,...,,, ,,.,,,, I() /<>11 /,.. JlMJ of .""1" ",lIop or" "ad (dnOOll '.", 1M a"i·
"""01' (tJ~8hl ....".", of"
,h~ IIU\""";
,fill _ u ,
ohw, but (hey helpnl us Un<\ersland how fBwn~
~~~~'Ibc III
frolicking look ",he" playing. Thb also lurn the ba$ic p;!llem$ of all four·legged In .... alh. troiS. gallops. and TUns. II cmffc. for example. has 10 move his from fOOl !he ...·1)· of the back fOOl. IS il swi ngs fOf'o"aro long legs ,,,ver so much di~tan<:e in a
the illusinn of bolt. f«1 moving on and in a :;ense they du fur a few :::;:;~;::~QlK:e. . 8ul. os""ntially • all animals mo"( their legs in
....·,".TOII Mill Kahl_
The Jungle Book
,.w ","""' '" right fore followed by left rear. We
TA~ '''i~~ ,,~ ,A, li,~ • . "'hie/! ordi/Ul.;ly WQlt
doll'" 00 oor lland. and knees and t";"d it our-
,iNw"''''"SI.MiJo,dNomIiM.
:
~~::, immo:Jialely disco>"ci'W th., it wlS the
way to progress and stay in balaIKe. To lep in any other panem ,ives an i"'kward _,,.;, and a poor base for lIny kind or stability. is pussiblc [0 lrain IIorses and some circus gaits. these are b.uically unnatural of 100000molion. By studying the I"<'al animal iii ."'rting o'~r a cartOOn formula . we had Ihrough 10 • new level of understanding thaI
oIher SIOrits .boU! ··..,al .. Inimals possible for than that. OOC\' the ptoy~ka! rdalion~hara<,:ter of any animal are understood. the altitudes: belligerent. ~od')' . • rw:rvOll$. worried. or timid . And if thert: is a I (Of a hick of coordination. 1M anima10 break the: animal' s natural rhythm of . 10 mix up the: leg pattern . Il is dw.r1lClCr
..y,r ..w IInr ,,, d~rnil>t IIut!u,m ofSIut,~ Klwlt. Brro~sr of JPrlt'
,.ro,.
anilfJl1lor "'Ill ohlr '0 do Ihil hrlp{rotIt
scr,...
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Ii..., <><:/iM /il....
""1
Walks
ACfING AND AlTITUDES
Once the walks of the Canoon chardCters began 10 look ~at. the animators CO\lld experiment with charac· terization and atlitudes . While pure inyemiveness and imagination were still ,"eating funny scrambles and
"8ill Tyrla'bi~. '~i"
lri., 10 K;"~
"fJdrling tits as .for ""ri ,
UOSStl
lit, so/'. his way
mforr~r o~
--. ~
!,Erk CI""""I>81< Book.
It WI2$ animsJltd as ,/w drtlwing. i",iniJIt~d
WO' ....
in siu
II", so l/w ~1~pIumJ "",,,It tIw persp«' l/w 10Y'J"1 as ht
..".
se mi·dog actions for Pluto. acting and emolioos capturing audiences in a new ..... ay . As the watched Grumpy pull oUi of Snow White's and Stomp away defiantly. they were more with hi s feelings than they we", " 'ith his walk, Figaro. thc cat in Pi1lOcchio. "'a5
,,,,,, I, "pl"'~lm~~' he w~l~ ed aero" t h~ !>cd. 'inking d«p ,"h) the hut II w~, I,,, ~"n";.an,·~ .i,n Ine ,",',,
."n c'''''''''.
lOJ,· dun if fie ".~, i",t m"\' in~ from \lnc place to anothe r, There wa, nnthing t<1 caricature when nothing wa, h"ppenin~; !h(1\: shoulJ be »ml<: 1\:",,->n why ttlc "hara{·ter is walking . and that i, .... hal )'0\1 animal~_ The ~"!ing pussibihlics in an 3",ion enable the "nimator to go beyond a mechanical perfonnance .
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TO. Rr>1CU<".
Aft"
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btl"
P~n"yandIM
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M , hi", oj 'M /cI'iu~ wi
a"d
i",p' ""
.'",un~
{MOP/'
pm. Ir ""-' j' "",ch /Of ,~;, rlw film_
"""I"ATO* W.. ,d Klmboll--Cinderella. l"",gi~~II ... ~J~pl,,'ion 0{ "/"" ..... ~ll>y" ......""""" .."/00 IIDJ obunnl ....,...,.J ~""Id ~"rirolU'~ Iitt" .. " i-
Iud" .
, K~" ANkr_ $l,IC~ tI,·
pIwUoI$ "" " /rip
It>
Ajri€...
_i.. g wrMof'~~t>(:. /i" ... 0{ olh~r ".,,,.M,, of ~is ",'".
lOW"
K... ·sl:no ..1rJg' 8"'" auof a
th.nliciry 10 his ideo
/
p
Book.
Tw ..."",;0. of per_aliry lInd allilud, Id ", S(.MS wil~ 8"a/ ~c'ing DppD"un,·lie$ .
... ,.... It'II. Fr~M.
T/JoIIuu-
The Rescue .. II"
-
8~rll(JtJ Iri~. '0 be It(»tCM.
r .... ,...
"R'H~_
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I~II' a.1ot relfffJI,frcm ,lot
C"M,,,, '" I~e /n"",·h"', . TIt<: 1Kt;"" .....
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i" Ih~1s U> ...udI IN Ju.Io,_ ,e1llUt. U> ,he _"'" 0/ Itis 1UpI.
""",Iot
The fiNd Jr.....,.,. sJtow
pItuuIi,.,
" - """"I IW scIwd flv "",,,,,,IDt'. "'"
i..,
probI~lIU .
Walks that Show Character Personality
:1, Kahl-
,
""'''Am.,Milt Kahl-
ng in Ihis ..'all
IN pnson~liry 'us SMdf! af A. modd shu, ,,"lhrSctn~m
' ~'lJlkcauldM
_It/w p;r,uff.
"P,cas Bill," Melody Ti .....
Thi •• a"y walk wilh Ike , winging hips has I>ool 11>< animalion ir.dusuy. II was C""led origin.lly ror SluerOQl Sue, lhe ,itt who cap
olin LounsMry-
,/w H""rs."
'" r/rona for a "ra",,~ for B~n ,,,<>/th~alliga .
:hl.
litrl~
co-ciry
,dIG rMk~him
'om
Ih~
olhus.
""I"~_ ~!Cr
Erk LorSortar.d lhe Wolr.
Many dud "'
rig'" for (/ ""... chartJC/~r. marching boIh Ih, peTSOIIaUry and 'h~ d~si8n.
Group Movement When rnon: than OM animal is walking or running in a sane. there is alwa),s a temptation to animate the U~ action for each figure . Once all the problems have been solved and lep an in the righl placc. the idea of doing a ~ SCI o f dnwinp onl)' slightl),
different J«m~ like needless .... ork . SI special opporIunil)' in the handling of '" make scenes of greal impact . Then: is cltilicil), 1$ OM figure pulh; away from cI<*s in again. or passes_ up ... lhal livu the charm and feding of life
(
........... 1':-" 1_ _" 0tt« U_"
Wi~urti_
...
Melody 111M. ~ Lm_
uiJ. ' TM ptU'~'1t af "",....-Itl yoor ,n "'" af "Iw
IU
uP'
utU'Clri", 1M ,"", fI- "ltd frudom ,/sar IlIr It,.",." llIiw. TM _ 1o
_ _ Bill TylIa-
SOlOW While .
F"", of 1M dk"aif, ",,,,.
,I, IU IMy ",i, a l u,/OII, G",'"PJ' "....., "' III, '~b 1<> IH WOIMd aM «,wblmJ. Bill T)"I/"', """h, , Ira ... lIis IlIilllilt, (}It Ihl, IUII'It. "...1\1 oM
iri'luli", of/row
1M ,'''''''' and MI ...... of ON! dkvuf "II 1M ",M,. . H, ""
"""",d
~M .
_lOtI
"ro
Snow While An)"
J"'''P •
J"""ldlw>~c ,iwm 10 IIrr
all;,,,d,,. ,
mo,', 10,,,11.
1Ul11y. "mll mDd, rItrttt i,
pl,IU;It,.
..." ... _
f'ro~k
'TItomtu-
Robin llood. TIIi$ *YN e{hJs roi~,_ .1000< .10, ....... bo>w tMd ON e{ .1tntI1otoJ
a"_."" .0
r~ui.yJ
.-a,""'.
..... a
/tom .....
S"'("~ .10, HqW
'mmnlit,,~1y FlUr/'IIl IotoJ
e'IMd "" a wry 'l"~'
.r".,"" /IotJl
'" starr .hrl I~,,'i/)ft "'i,h a Imrsl of lawghur tJnd mk.k and rUn"inx I.,r/. cami"t 0 .... a hill. Th~ a~i"""or
,tI.""
r/r ..... a "'/llt a IITr" comIng "raithl IIu.............. TArn 10, """"""",,a ,impl. ~¥i''''0II. '" _~A IN tpim 10, "'o"uJ Lok' lit ...~~, bod Dlld dru,.
in,,,
mi...-d .. J'id'JHI" ~/Iot
lOIIWbodv·. arm aM ....... ale,. "'DNad. auitt. or a ,ibl>r>n lIftu,/o, ini.U1i ~..... " 'QJ ",,,,. I/o, (",.",. a(:I." 1IJ.,ntr/
,,..in, Ih. aw,/;u(", a
("/oanu {" lu fflt"h
of IN'"
jndil"idktll/y .
...,.,.... ,"" Frank T"'-'_ Snow While 'n S....... Whlle,/o, rJ....t/, SN
'N"
rl/a"""", .........
Slop '''t"h ... '"uit '0.
",N •. '" ,hty "-rr. ani. maud 01 /)ft. la". ""'IS d"in8 lit, a(I00ll . ~"
.v",.
,hisshapt ..,ubrok," do ...n .n'o rnd,,·ld.. ai dll""t/I. trrprn, all pam ... "lrin 'M _omwl ....". shop'
.It,
E,·,,. ./oott,1r D«
....'1M ,/0, I.ad. Iv ...., "" mor, 'mponD.n',""" illiTe{ .M ",,,,,$. TN o..JiAt:t ..... lMlri,wJ ","",yn_"
,ftJ('I,", ,Ir_1t ,"1/ "",illl /n hi, ","'n -.. QJ OM ....
..·"hu.
,A, pol"'"
/
Story c/""rI,. in
his .."'n mimi /WW f"~f)' pi~c~ of bU"intss in " Story .... iII lH put "'-.. ....."')' <'« Klio". H.. sm,..ld 11<" fur OMYl)' f rom /tis SIQt')' 10 l(1k.. /.I sUon " ... 10 JU wMIMr 1M,.. is lin)' drod phtlst' . . . /0 srt " 'MIlt" 1M /HrSl)NJluits ou goi"l 10 IN ~,,"",
""''''lilt
For Animalion
~
~~~~~~;I" glUI filmma ker wrOle i:ooo.J U~ to as k "",hal characters. good g~g,.
Unfoounarely. there IS no closely nor any slm~ ans ..-er. Qlhcr tl'lan judg. . ~nd taknl. It
~gin~.
Qr course. with
KIn for the whole pklUre. One .(oryman COUn·
. " Film. to me. i, no diffcrcnl from crear ing a ...., . paiMing. !>Illig, play, or whalcver. If you posit;'·c Malcmcm 10
;:,~::"::P~;:'''~/p
)..... should
M"""
Of pencil , '" than. mUSt have enough Importance to cummunkating- lo t>c ..... orth lhe ,,'ork and thaI ,,-,II be ~u,re
I
~'onh
ma ~e.
I
be a story . And. ~f(:l'lIbly. ,Ilohould be a llooo.l one. One artisl 5umlTOl:d il up. ··A ,ood Slory ~anOO1 be ruined by JXXH" animal ion. bul neither can a JXXH" story be s.a~cd by lbe very beSl animation ..• , lie could ~ve gone 00 to say lhal a JOOd Story ,,150 ean be ruined by poor de"doplTOl:nl in the S.ory Department. JuSt bcc:;ouse lhe Slory is g~"I. lhe~ 's 00 a5sura""" thaI il ..... ilI ~main &~al aner il has ~n worked over and over on lhe Sloryboard s. Nothing is automat ic ;n lhe ,n;mltion busincu ucepl the negati'l'dc""RtS . 110.... good a picture can bc<:omc is much kiiS certain . First. the~ muSl be the big. simple idea : the story you can tell in two iiCnlences . As you ..... ork On a pictu~ il seems so compl icated thaI even two paragraphs ,,-ill 001 tell i. a ll . but if it started OUt as" good Idea.
,~hQ..
Lady'nd 'beT.....
and you have been fl ilhfullO that COIIttpt, one: day '1 will end up very s imple Ipin . Alfred Hitchcock ha$ recommended I similar approach .
I always ful comfonab le aboul
~
proje<:t when I can ~ II the 5101)' in a very simple way ..• . I likelo imagine a )'OIIng WORWI who ha$ been 10 S« liM: movie and gon home very P lisroW wilh what she
hu_. Her mother asks hcr. " What wu it ahout1" And the girl replies. ·· We ll . it was aboU I a yU\lng wom.n who so lUll! so ;ond SUo • . . " I fccl that befon: ullde"aking to shoot • movie. OIW! J huuld be able to do jLl$! that. to S.II isfy oneself that it can be namtiW ju~t as clearly. the whok cycle . ~
We have fou nd Ihal the siory idea for an film must be e ven 111011: direct
~nimate(!
Jealousy leads a vain queen 10 tbrealen the life of a young pri0ce5S. who nU5 into the woods where she is befrknded by seven dwark When lhe queen. in disguise, tncts her into eating a poison<:d apple . the girl is thought dead and preserved in a glass w ffin until a prince awakens her with love's rUlt kiss. A b.obyelephanl iJ C'OOsidered a freat because of his enormoos cars. unlil an enterprising moose discov· ers I wJy to tum Ihi' liability into a sta"ling asset. An orphan girl is held captive by an «centric: WOUlan who i, using the chi ld 10 retrieve a large: diamond held in I lIeacherous cave . Two mice from the Res· cue Aid Sodety help the girl find the diamond ; liM:n, with liM: aid of some local animals. effcc. iM:r e$Cape . Such a synopsis givC$ none of tiM: navor o f the pKtUre or the rich c~rers that motivate it . but it dou renccl the basic drives that hold the piclure together and make it ""00. If your idea is complicated in the beginning. there sllQuld be much more thought and discussion before cven sta"ing the picture . There arc many ~mptalions to overdevelop wond<:rful c har.
acters and pu. in lovable KqlM:0ce5 and eIua . . know will be gn:at . but • hodgccpodgc can lUll! unless the~ has been ~ clcat. Slrong dri,,~ to tilt JIOI)' from the v~ry sta",
)'(III
Sequences Our featu~ films always sccmcd to ~nd up ""itll'" 14 KqutnCc$. No m.1tt~r how ~ach JUne(! OIlt ....1tnIft wilh high advenlt>re or C'OO,pl i<:a.~d slories, by • lim. we devcluped and NlftllCCd and SI",amlintd 1IId edited we eooed w ith li ll ie more thnn a dozen. Allcatt twoKquencn would ha"c~n cul ool.f"'r .... suna:I production , and something else would have yow~ III $¢(j1lO:1ICC !cnlth and been insc"ed e,'Cn la!C1" . SIlII. • roever had more than 15 nor f....·.r rhan IOKqIltlKU This facl becomes quite in!portan! .... hen I .,;c.. mjuiring many incidentS in diff.","t locaks is brtIt oonsidert'd . Constant ac1ion s;w arions give no dwa for lhe quiet Kquences lO'iM:re audiences can fall. 10" ..... ith lhe c""'""lCTli . In our experiotncc. a pK\III that allempied COIlIinoous excilement and dronaroc lISsion Mver held rhe attention o f the andicncc . It sm.II
'0 dull their senses. "There could be a '~::".~:: I ing tilemc. the Slory had to be told wilh bUI
of rempos and
f~lh
ideas .
L
lntnxluction; Quun
2.
White orders in Queen i . White and Huntsman . Panic in lhe woods ; SOOVo' Whi", animals; they tak. her to d ....arfs· and help clean housc .
3.
••
,.
':;:i::,:~::~'~~;::~~
$Onlething in .heir house, Discover Snow White; .gree ro .... Slay .
6. 7.
•• 9.
Queen turns Dwarh ente"ain for them; dwarfs give Witch prepares poisoned cottage .
J)"a.h lu'·( 10' ""'k. 31kr "Ilminj: Sno,,· Whil( . I I. &:. 12. BOlh ~u~ru;~~ d'opl'<'d. I). Sn,,,,· While making ri~.,: "lid, arm·~> 3nd cnl~ " h,,,,se. Animab ""am dwarf<: Ilk)· r~lnm 1O~' I:ot~: Snow Wh;l~ f'I"""O<'d: "i1<·h fall, "n cl iff. l~ . (),,·arf> cry a1 Sno"· \\"hil(·' bicr. 16 . G lass rofr.n: I'lintt rol1"\eS; SrIO" While awakened "nil gOl:' J",a), " ·;tll Prine",. ](I.
Boule found with call for help: KellCutc A.d Socict~ ...,nds I) ianca and Btmani. 2. ), Iict learn aboul !'cnn~ rrom old C.l aI o'1'h~nag( . ). At P<'wn shop. lhey learn wocre she b be· ing held ; Meduu Ioea,·el.; mice left behind. 4. D, opped. 3. Albalross Air Ser,:itt: mice lake ofr'. fly Ihrough clouds. 3.2 Dc"il·~ Bayou: P~nn)" lri~. 10 escape. caugh! b~ crocodi les: mice lIrrivc. m~c l Swamp Volun1eers. ride .... ilh E,·i nrude. 6. Medusa and S!tOOJ:IS plotting: mice chased by cnx.:! inlO organ. s1loi 81 by),ledosa. 7. Medu l-iI "Ih 10 Penny; sad ."",,: mitt lIrrh·e: escape pl.n. 8. F.,·;muOfkl. I.
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E,·innodc eludes bats: ~wJ.mp animal) 10 the resc"". TI", c~ape: diamond , ,,,,overed: I'~ rln)" rescucd ,,·ilh aid of fire"·orh. HaPi'~· endil1i : mICe s<:nt on 0<'''' mis;;on.
Our goal muS! be 10 k«p the audience pl~ascd . hul lbo e.,cil~-d. ''''''''m.-d. ~",.r. c,p.x-ial1y. "·\J!lIlerin~ wh~1 i, soing 10 happen nCXI . "'hi~ ".. ill takc pla..·c on l) if tM ~udienec i, involve,1 "illl In.- dlaf~C I~' ,\ and ..... hal IOCY are dOing . In addilion 10 an (~ci1ing ,· i.u~1
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i. aimOSI ~~ ,mportant Ihal Iht:) ,1Ot).'fi ahe:ad 0( )"l1li. Tho:) c~n k.sc inl~rC.1 in e,,,,n .'"'Klt 11.:", d""~. 'rnl e'·~f)·ooc L""w. ,,·hat 10 ':"[,«1. or. """'""'. if ltullp just seem 10 happen" ;thoul re~ard (
The bineS! ""takncss is Ihal lhe~ is no ""I'ffl '
audic~ can relate 10 lhe characler,;. We 00..·1 how Ih~ owl feel s aboul the fo.' . really. ~"M is Irying [0 do--or why . Is ~~ Ihe SIImt .. ,,·idow? And we don·1 ~e enough of!~ .. io.i;.. f«l in,> 10 ju>li f~· lhe lenglh of a ... Itok: where ~he Iums the fo~ I"""" in the ............ ~inl of Ihc picture .eems slowbttaule "'.., oK involved . More footage ~.'plair\ing lhe", thinC" just mak e Ihe pitturc eH iI , lower.
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O n ~n e~rl~ sOOwing..,f SlupmX 8,..",,)' " f a re"""on lhal rid,s OUtlhe , anN" I>pt ot .. abN 0\11 pf'C"•...-nIUI "In·
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de\'doped The "ud,(!K't "b 1lC'-er .n\'oh-..l, 1lle characler< lallaJ aboul Ibo'>l
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1IIg(. "hl(h bungs up one of the mOre dtffkult ehal-
Itn,el ,n the woo lc proce.s of making Ihe fillll , Whal !h:Jol~ be dor.e al Ihl< point. reganlle" of "hal wa. tho §Crlpl. 10 ma~e Ih'" p.clure COnIC 10 hfe '? "\M ",II male the >!Iualions """" belle,ablc '? And. _ ''''f'O"ant, hoJ,. can we make lhe: '101)' ~m 10 ..... from "~I llIe eharaclers do~ \'rf}' oflen a fe'" \lmple change, ",II bf,ng d"4.-.: rtlulh AflC'f 0f\C of lhe sequenc"" ,n Thr Fo" ad lilt 111iI"" had been reworked. " )'<)u"g a,,,,,,,,lor comment "All righi' Nov. you f.:.: l thal Ihe \!ll!j'I;'OI!If:! 0,11 of III<: p.""'nalll,.~_n i~ not a riO! :K":Ift Ir)'"g 10 (lU>h lhe character< mil) n ~sn'l .... fttl hle a SIOI)' II's jusl o;onlClhong II\;lI happen,
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SomotnllC~ ,I "(01)' a mailer of a f,," IIC:" >celles: • nubh"',n! >bot 10 clarify the locallOfl or lhe cond,. Id\ ",rroundm8 the characler>. or • ne'" way of ~lnl til< or'~mal idea Ml Ihat il h., more "reng,II , Iltt ocn,l()fI;jll y lho Slaff has 10 con.., up ""h :I "hole Ro rompronu>e. or e'.n a complcl" lie" ...:
S<:.n.bmes cullln~ OUI pans Ihal ~''t' b«n o'-crblllli Gf bm>rnt ronfu~",g (e"en lhuu£h Ihe)' n"ghl he
enlcrtammg) ",II ~lInplif)' lhe ~1Qf)' and make u deam, 0r,en. (Ile cn(hu>!a,m for a "~n: b't of en(eru,nnw:nl ",II h~'-c blond<:d ('''')Ion. to Ille nttd for cOlftful "'Ofl; in ~ .IOf) Of layoul ber...., (1M: ~nes 0Ift p,..sed on 10 Ille an,malor. Somel,mes lhe ~nmulor him~lf can be l r>OI wall for an) more prcparll' (ory " 'OI'k before lie begin._ Th, s 1x,".nlC ~ rut pr0blem on Ihe lale Ihirtic~ ,,·hen II j;cllcrall), WaS felt (hal jusl aboul an)lhing ,'oold be anlmalcd . Veleran .!Or)man LeQ Sal k' n. >peak,ng or ltom.. d;l)'. (01)' work " -as much more e~dli ng and SI,n,ulallng ., 11M: :tmm~lorS ,mprowd ,n their ab,hue' 10 handle an)' l ind of :telm,. ROIl Ikn Sharp.I«n fell llul """ and lhen lhe SlOf}'n'.n lefl h,s o"'n "ork 001) half done, 1·lc ..-rOlC, " I ~m ",clined 10 thmk Ihal 100 oflen people grew lScruSIO",ed 10 M""e IIr Ille ~rc"t p"rformanee, Ihal :,nimalors ga¥c, and IIle) were conlinuall) rel)"n~ nn lhem ,n """,I iring IIIe makmll of a picture. of rcall!.'Rg Ihal. f",. «1100 of /)untbo lhaI5OOvo-S Tm~h)' MUll,., Mortling dronl The elo,,-ns h.'-e b«n celebrallng and droppc
