Cartoon Brew

The Friz Freleng Blog-A-Thon

Brian of the Hell on Frisco Bay blog notes that August 21, 2006 marks the 100th anniversary of Friz Freleng's birth, and he's officially calling on the blogging community to make that day a Friz Freleng Blog-A-Thon. Here's Brian's rules:

I invite anyone, whether animation experts, enthusiasts or newbies, fans of Freleng or not, to watch or rewatch at least one of his cartoons between now and August 21. On that day, post something about Freleng or one or more of his films on your website, and send me the link. You may name the cartoon(s), character(s), or aspect(s) of Freleng's style you want to discuss in the comments section below, or leave it as a surprise for the rest of us.

Sounds like fun. We're in at Cartoon Brew...who else is in?

The Parade of Ignorance Continues

From Paul Johnson's invented history of the Disney strike to Mick LaSalle's broad dismissal of a hundred years of animation accomplishments, it's been a busy week for keeping track of misinformed animation commentary. Jaime Weinman has written a nice summary of what's been said and explores the root cause of such statements.

There's also a great thread going on at the CGTalk forums about Mick LaSalle's comments. In that thread, Pixar lighting artist Jeremy Birn points out a link to A.O. Scott's review of MONSTER HOUSE in the NY TIMES, where Scott pulls a "Mick LaSalle" and exhibits a similarly woeful lack of understanding about the animation medium. He writes:

Like Robert Zemeckis’s “Polar Express,” “Monster House” (for which Mr. Zemeckis served as an executive producer) uses the digitally captured movements of real actors rather than computer-generated algorithms as the basis for its animated images.

If Scott had any intention of writing with accuracy, he would have compared the digitally captured movements of real actors to the work of computer animators, not to "computer-generated algorithms" which implies that CG animation is an automated process created by a machine. To their credit, Mick LaSalle and A.O. Scott at least know they're watching computer animation, which is more than can be said for USA TODAY's Scott Bowles, who describes MONSTER HOUSE as "stop-motion animaton." How are we supposed to take the opinions of critics like A.O. Scott and Scott Bowles seriously when they can't even get their facts correct about how animated films are produced?

SUPERTHUNDERSTINGCAR

Classic bit of British comedy: Peter Cook and Dudley Moore spoof Gerry & Sylvia Anderson's F.A.B. 1960s Supermarionation TV shows.

(Thanks, Jim Engel)

MEDICAL TOONS

Rarely screened historic medical cartoons will be featured in a film series this fall at the National Academies in Washington DC. The Cartoon Medicine Show: Animated Cartoons from the Collection of the National Library of Medicine, curated by Michael Sappol of the National Library of Medicine (NLM), will feature a good sampling of rarely screened animated medical cartoons from the 1920s to the 1960s. The films will be presented in a two-day series, Oct. 25 - 26, at the National Academy of Sciences Auditorium, each night at 6pm. Films scheduled include Disney's silent-era Tommy Tucker’s Tooth (1922) and Clara Cleans Her Teeth (1926), Hugh Harman's Winky The Watchman (1945), Cleaning Mess Gear (1945, U.S. Navy) and Use Your Head (1945, U.S. Navy) and UPA's A Few Quick Facts: Fear (Private Snafu, 1945, Zack Schwartz), Swab Your Choppers (1946, U.S. Navy) and Man Alive (1952, American Cancer Society).

Also on the program are two Bell Science films: Hemo the Magnificent (1956, Shamus Culhane) and Gateway to the Mind (1958, Chuck Jones) and well as several Private Snafu cartoons: Gripes (1943, Friz Freleng), Private Snafu Versus Malaria Mike (1944, Chuck Jones), and It’s Murder She Says (1945, Chuck Jones). Other wartime films include Strictly Personal (1945, Army Signal Corps), The Inside Story (1944, Paramount Pictures for the U.S. Coast Guard), Criminal at Large (1943, Office of Malaria Control, United States Public Health Service). Post war films include: The Appraisal of Competency (1956, Nebraska Psychiatric Institute), Fluoridation Story (1951, Public Health Service, Division of Dental Public Health) and a set of TV spots (1955-1959) for the American Dental Association.

Animation historian Donald Crafton (Before Mickey) and medical historians Michael Sappol and David Cantor will provide commentary.

National Academy of Sciences
2100 C St., N.W., Auditorium
Washington, D.C.
Admission: free. Seating is limited. RSVP to arts@nas.edu or 202-334-2436

(Thanks, Karl Cohen)

Cartoon Brew Reader Survey

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It's the Wacky Squarebog Spongepants

Old but funny...

Real Animation Acting

Thad Komorowski has posted three examples of animation acting—one each from Disney, WB and MGM—all created without the aid of rotoscoping or performance capture. The foolishness of commentaries by critics like Mick LaSalle and James Lipton becomes only more evident when they are presented with actual examples of the animation medium's expressive potential. LaSalle believes that the animated film has never "had the ability to show the human face. There was never any point to a close-up in an animated film -- there was never really anything to see." Really, Mr. LaSalle? I think Rod Scribner and Bob McKimson proved you wrong about sixty years ago, as evidenced in the clip from TORTOISE WINS BY A HARE. James Lipton thinks that Robert Downey rotoscoped is a better performance than anything an animator could create. Perhaps he should look at Ken Muse's anguished animation of Tom in HEAVENLY PUSS. We haven't even begun to examine all the stellar animation in feature films, but even in these short films, the inanity of LaSalle and Lipton's opinions are exposed.

Mick LaSalle on THE POLAR EXPRESS

I didn't think of doing this but somebody found Mick LaSalle's review of THE POLAR EXPRESS. An excerpt is below. If anything can be said to his credit, LaSalle is consistent...well, consistently blind.

It's also an enchanting, beautiful and brilliantly imagined film that constitutes a technological breakthrough. The one profound limitation of animation -- the rigid faces that don't allow for emotional nuance -- is overcome through a new process that allows actors to record their performances digitally onto a computer. These performances -- the gestures, the subtleties of facial expression -- are then used as the template for the computer-animation process.

It reminds me of Ward Jenkins's classic blog post about POLAR EXPRESS and how it could have been improved.

Film Critics, Part II

It looks like the SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE's Mick LaSalle isn't alone when it comes to film critics who make uninformed sweeping generalizations about the animation art form. Take for example this recent comment (found on Shannon Tindle's blog) by INSIDE THE ACTORS STUDIO host James Lipton regarding the use of rotoscope in A SCANNER DARKLY:

In theory, if you rotoscope a really good performance by a really good actor, it ought to be much more effective than an animated performance that's been drawn or computer generated to match a voice."

Lipton's comment reveals a very obvious bias: he believes that an animator is incapable of creating a performance that can compete with a live-action performance. Ironically, Lipton asserts that the only way to achieve a great performance in animation is to have it performed by a live-action actor and then rotoscoped, or in other words, remove the animator as the person who gives life to the character. Comments like Lipton's and LaSalle's only serve to illustrate the uphill battle that the art form still faces; with so many stellar examples of animation created over the years, there are still plenty of critics out there who maintain their petty prejudices about the art and remain largely oblivious to animation's unique and powerful qualities as a communication medium.

UPDATE: Animator Kevan Shorey offers his thoughts on Lipton's quote and the frustation of working in a medium that is so poorly understood by the mainstream.

James Jarvis in LA

Tomorrow evening, July 28, illustrator/toy designer James Jarvis will be having an art show/book signing at Meltdown Comics (7522 Sunset Blvd., LA, CA 90046) from 6-10pm. On display will be numerous pages of development and prepatory drawings (example below) from his recent book project VORTIGERN'S MACHINE AND THE GREAT SAGE OF WISDOM. Reportedly, there's interest right now in transferring Jarvis's work to animation. His drawings and toys definitely lend themselves to CG design, and I can imagine his stuff working well if it was animated properly. For more info about the show, visit MeltComics.com or call 323/851.7223.

1936 ARTICLE ON FLEISCHER 3-D SETS

One of my last-second purchases on Sunday, just before I left the San Diego Comic Con, was snagging this copy of the November 1936 issue (at right) of POPULAR SCIENCE magazine. I love old magazines. This one was in a stack of several PS issues, but it had an article that totally justified the $15 price tag: two pages describing the mechanics of Max Fleischer's patented three dimensional Stereo-Optical Process.

Fleischer Studios isn't even mentioned in the piece, albeit Max is refered to in the last sentence. But among the great graphics and interesting tidbits, the article reveals:

"Several sets can be prepared on the rotating table at the same time. As soon as the filming of one set is completed, the table can be swung to the next."

The level of detail in these sets has always amazed me. The shots usually last only several seconds - but always ignite gasps of awe from audiences, even today. In fact, there's nothing in computer graphics today that can compare to the magic in those Fleischer three dimensional sequences. I've scanned the article for you to read, below. Excuse the moray pattern which causes parallel lines to appear over the pictures. Click on each page for a larger image.

A Monster of a Review

A prominent Pixar animator emailed me last night with the subject header "This is real" and a link to this must-read-to-believe SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE review of MONSTER HOUSE. I don't know anything about the reviewer, Mick LaSalle, except that I'll never be able to take another word this guy writes seriously. It's one thing to have a subjective view of a film—it's another to be so glaringly ignorant of the art form you're discussing to completely dismiss one hundred years of accomplishments and proclaim something so obviously inferior as a technological advance. Here is the most egregious part of LaSalle's review:

Animated films always had the advantage of being able to go anywhere and show anything, to defy the laws of physics and follow the imagination as far as it could go. But they never had the ability to show the human face. There was never any point to a close-up in an animated film -- there was never really anything to see. But with the motion-capture process, real actors give their performances with computer sensors attached to their face and body, and that recorded information becomes the template for the computer animation. If an actor is bug-eyed, the character will look bug-eyed. Moreover, if the actor is thinking or is full of doubt, the technology will be able to render subtle qualities of pensiveness or doubt in the animation.

Imagine what Disney might have done with this in the creation of the Seven Dwarfs. Imagine all the things that will be done with this in the future. "Monster House" looks like the ground floor of something important.

So the only question that remains is, Who's going to break the news to Ollie Johnston, the last of the Nine Old Men, that all those classic Disney features he animated on were a waste of time because he never had the ability to show an emotive human face? Poor guy, if he'd only had motion-capture to help him animate.

UPDATE: Storyboard artist Jenny Lerew weighs in with an eloquent response to Mick LaSalle's less-than-eloquent review.

NEW BOOK ON STOP MOTION

Who says Stop-Motion is dead? I just got Ken Priebe's great new book The Art of Stop-Motion Animation, and it pretty much details, step by step, everything you need to know to move clay, cut-outs, puppets and inanimate objects frame-by-frame in front of a camera. Over 300 color pages, loaded with great research (including a thorough overview of the history of stop motion shorts and features). Mike Johnson (co-director of Corpse Bride) wrote the Foreword, and a CD-Rom is included with helpful examples of stop-mo reference. If you are interested in making films, this book has a lot to offer.

COMIC CON RECAP #2: BECK INTROS SMIGEL

One of the highlights of the San Diego Comic Con this year was my chance to play straight man for comic genius Robert Smigel. That's me ("the nerdiest of the nerds") on the right in the photo above (look close you'll see my Oswald Rabbit and Hornswiggle buttons). To see a video of me and Triumph (the Insult Comic Dog) at the Con, go to http://www.nbc.com.

(Thanks, Earl Kress)

UNDERDOG CREATOR IN PERSON

Buck Biggers, co-creator of Underdog, Tennessee Tuxedo, King Leonardo and the Go-Go Gophers, will appear in-person at the monthly Los Angeles Comic Book and Science Fiction Convention on September 10th. He'll be selling and signing copies of his book How Underdog Was Born. And if you are lucky, he'll sing the Underdog theme song - he wrote that too.

John K. Saves San Francisco!

The cult of John K. comes to the Bay Area.

The Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco is hosting a presentation by John Kricfalusi this weekend. A retrospective of Kricaflusi's work, entitled John K. Saves San Francisco!, will also be screened at the Castro Theatre on Friday and Saturday, with separate kiddie-show and adult-skewed cartoon screenings.

The presentation at the Cartoon Art Museum will allow Kricfalusi's fans to hear about his twisted animation experiences and meet the man himself in a unique meet-and-greet event, and give attendees a chance to ask questions or have their DVDs signed by this off-the-wall and talented artist. Visitors will also have the opportunity to win free screening tickets for the showing at the Castro Theatre that evening. Kricfalusi will also be donating a piece of his original art to the Cartoon Art Museum's permanent collection. This event is free and open to the public, and co-presented by The Castro Theatre.

John K. will do live introductions for each cartoon Friday night at 8pm and Saturday night at 7pm. For more information on the Castro Theatre screenings and admission prices, contact 415-621-5288 or visit www.castrotheatre.com.

Music Video by Louis-Philippe Eno

"Montreal -40°C" is a recent music video directed by Louis-Philippe Eno for the Montreal band Malajube. It doesn't break much new ground, but it creates a nice mood within a sparse setting and the integration of live-action and animated elements is well executed.

(via Feed)

Amid's San Diego Report

I could write about everything that happened in San Diego during my two-day Con visit, but nothing could possibly say as much as this photo of my new Comic-Con buddies and I. Click on it for its full-size glory. Thanks to Gabe for the photo.

COMIC CON RECAP #1

Here's the first of several posts on a few of the experiences I had, and some of the stuff I got, at the San Diego Comic Con 2006. Above is a postcard found on the freebie table touting the release of POPEYE on DVD next year. Interestingly, the postcard was provided by King Features, not Warner Home Video. Glad to see such a teaser at this year's event, but I'm hoping WHV pulls out the stops to promote Fleischer Popeye at next year's Comic Con.

I still collect promotional buttons, and the two best items I got this year were handed to me for free. At the HOT WHEELS booth on Sunday, Mattel Toys handed out these nifty "Matty Mattel" buttons (below left). Does anyone under the age of 45 even know who Matty Mattel is? Meanwhile, a few days earlier, fellow Random Cartoons creator Andrew Dickman (Ivan The Unbearable) was spotted wearing this promotional Disney Oswald button (below right). When I asked Andrew who was handing those buttons out, he generously gave his button to me (without me having to beg!). They weren't given out at the con, but only at the Disney Studio, to Disney employees, the day Oswald was traded back several months ago. Needless to say, I was a very happy camper and wore it proudly all weekend.

(Super-Thanks to Jon Reeves and Andrew Dickman)

COMIC CON: WORST CARTOONS EVER

I want to thank everyone who showed up last Friday night at the Comic Con for my annual WORST CARTOONS EVER screening. You haven't lived until you hear a crowd of over 500 people singing the MIGHTY MR. TITAN theme song. If you couldn't make the show, I have this year's all-new program on DVD-R and will gladly sell you a copy for $15. (post paid). Ordering information and a list of the contents are on my Garage Sale webpage.

Animation History Gone Awry

Mark Mayerson rips apart the new book CREATORS: FROM CHAUCER AND DURER TO PICASSO AND DISNEY by British historian and journalist Paul Johnson. According to Mark, the book is riddled with errors about the animated art form, such as:

Winsor McCay is misspelled. Max Fleischer is erroneously credited for Felix the Cat. The Three Little Pigs was released in 1933, not 1932. Alice in Wonderland was released in 1951, not 1957. Carl Stalling was a composer, not an animator. It's Carl Eduarde, not Edwards. It's Grim, not Jim, Natwick. It's Tytla, not Tytler. It's Ted Sears, not Wears.

What's particularly disgusting about Johnson's text is not only the factual inaccuracies, but that he may have deliberately falsified history to promote his personal agendas. For example, his description of how the Disney strike happened is a complete fabrication, but it makes sense that he would write something like that after reading this Wikipedia article about Johnson, that says, "In his Enemies of Society (1977), following a series of articles in the British press, he vehemently attacked the trade union movement for what he saw as its violence and intolerance, terming them as 'red fascists.' He also at this time started to inveigh against liberal and left-wing causes."

Check out Mark's blog for more of his thoughts on Johnson's book.

Ottawa Selections Announced

The Ottawa International Animation Festival is right around the corner and the selections for its 2006 edition were announced last week. The full list of films in competition and showcase screenings can be found HERE. My immediate thoughts are that (a.) the selections look really solid and (b.) I'm glad that there's far fewer films being screened in Ottawa than at Annecy. The Ottawa festival takes place September 20-24.

MONDAY MORNING INSPIRATION: Sam Cobean

Chuck Jones once said in an interview that when he wanted to draw believable human characters, he would pattern his drawing after Sam Cobean's because his "characters always looked to me more like life than life itself." Prior to becoming a NEW YORKER cartoonist, Sam Cobean had worked in the animation industry at Disney and Columbia. One of Cobean's earliest print assignments—a WWII-era US military training pamphlet—has now been posted on-line HERE. Subject matter aside, I think Cobean's drawings are absolutely amazing: funny, direct and super-appealing. If I'd seen any comic book in San Diego with drawings of this caliber, you can bet I'd be raving about it right now.

(via MetaFilter)

RUFUS RESTORED!

This is the biggest animation history find since fragments of Elmo Aardvark began appearing in the 1990s! Two copies of the long lost, early sound RUFUS cartoons (1929) have been discovered and restored by the Deleo Animation Trust.

In reality, RUFUS is the brainchild of Dutch illustrator-animator Raoul Deleo. The first Rufus restoration, "Bouncin' Buddy" was screened in competition at Annecy 2006. For other examples of Deleo's work, click here.

(Thanks, Karl Cohen)