Books | Cartoon Brew: Leading the Animation Conversation

editors

JERRY BECK (LA)

bio & contact | posts

AMID AMIDI (NY)

bio & contact | posts

HOME

MOVIES

SHORTS

MUSIC VIDS

CGI

SPOTS

TAG FOR

“Books”

Cartoon Brew's home for up-to-the-minute, unedited announcements and press releases direct from industry sources.

“The Art of Osamu Tezuka: God of Manga”

November 3, 2010 3:35 pm

The Art of Osamu Tezuka

Today is what would have been the 82nd birthday of Osamu Tezuka, the creator of Astro Boy and Kimba the White Lion. Fittingly, a book I’d ordered from Amazon just arrived in the mail: The Art of Osamu Tezuka: God of Manga by Helen McCarthy. The book is deeply discounted on Amazon right now—only $16.59—and includes a dvd with a rare 1985 Japanese documentary about the artist. It’s a classy looking package and the most comprehensive overview of Tezuka’s life I’ve seen in English. The book doesn’t appear to focus as much on his animation work as I would have liked, but that’s understandable given that it’s an overview of Tezuka’s entire career, the greater portion of which took place in the realm of comics.

6 Comments » posted in Anime, Books, Helen McCarthy, Osamu Tezuka

Share on Tumblr

Weekend Brew Review

October 16, 2010 9:00 am

For some unknown reason, people are always asking me for advice on pitching a series or getting a job in animation. If I knew how to do those things, I’d have a series on the air or a job in animation myself. Thankfully David B. Levy has written the two most important books on pitching, developing and working in animation production I’ve ever read: Your Career in Animation and Animation Development. They are not only great reads, they are must-reads. Dave has been there, done that and he tells the truth. His writing style is warm and comfortable. His texts always tell it like it is. His third book has just come out and its another essential volume. Directing Animation not only draws upon his own considerable experiences in the industry, but relates a lifetime of lessons learned by animation veterans, cartoon creators and independent animators from Levy’s extensive interviews. He explains the differences between directing TV series, commercials, independent shorts, webtoons and features, going over all the details and pitfalls, in ways anyone – even a network executive – will understand. Highly recommended — even if you already have a job and are successfully directing, this is a book you should have on your shelf.

I haven’t picked up any of the previous volumes in the Disney Archive Series, but the Disney Book Group graciously sent me a copy of their latest one, on Design, and its absolutely gorgeous. It’s 256 glossy oversized pages filled with select pieces of pre-production art from just about every Disney feature (from Snow White to Tangled), several 1930s shorts and even from the Disneyland TV show. It’s beautifully curated with choice examples from the greatest talents in the studio’s history: Tenggren, Mary Blair, Marc Davis, Eyvind Earle, Mel Shaw and on and on… These books can be enjoyed simply for the art collected within, but more importantly they serve as an invaluable inspiration for animation artists working today and for generations of artists to come. For that alone, Walt Disney Animation Studios, The Archive Series: Design is highly recommended.

7 Comments » posted in Books, reviews

Share on Tumblr

Weekend Brew Reviews

October 3, 2010 10:00 pm

While waiting for the ultimate video presentation of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast to come out this week on Blu-Ray, I’ve just caught up with Charles Solomon’s somewhat-recently released book Tale as Old as Time: The Art and Making of Beauty and The Beast. Solomon relates the entire fascinating behind-the-scenes story of how this landmark film got made, through its box-office and industry success, to its re-release in Imax (with additional footage) and right up to the forthcoming 3-D version. He begins with a history of the original 1757 story itself, and its subsequent film and TV adaptations. He then devotes a chapter to the 1980s Disney animation re-birth and the early Michael Eisner era. Through interviews with key personnel we get an insider look at how the pieces came together to create this modern Disney classic. Of course, being a Disney book, it is lavishly illustrated with pre-vis materials, cast and crew photos, and loads of production art. Definitely worth a spot on your bookshelf.

Insight Editions sent me a copy of their latest Dreamworks tie-in book, The Art of Megamind (by Richard von Busack). I haven’t seen Megamind yet, but the book and the production art herein is very cool. Say what you will about their films, you cannot deny the artists at Dreamworks Animation and PDI are some of the best in the field — and these “Art Of” books are a godsend to those of us who appreciate the hand drawn artistry that never makes it to screen. Sketches, paintings, boards and much more from names you should know like Tony Siruno, Craig Kellman, Andy Bialk, Kory Heinzen and Tim Lamb (and many others) fill the pages.

Had a chance this weekend to finally check out the 5th box set of The Animation Show of Shows and had a wonderful time doing so. This set (previous sets reviewed here and here) contains 18 award winning shorts, on six separate DVDs, Volumes 25-30 (3 shorts per disc). All completely different (in tone, technique and subject matter), in perfect presentations, the best possible way to preserve these contemporary classics. The CG stop-mo Madame Tutli-Putli (Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski), clay-animated Oscar winner Harvie Crumpet (Adam Elliot), and hand drawn Your Face (Bill Plympton) exemplify the wide range of material offered here. Recommended for your video library. For complete contents and ordering information, visit filmporium.com.

Rhode Montijo, a co-creator of Happy Tree Friends, has gone on in recent years to a successful career as a children’s book writer and illustrator. He sent me two of his books and they are an absolute joy. Cloud Boy, which came out in 2006, is a gentle minimalist classic about a lonely cloud with a big imagination. His latest book has just come out, The Halloween Kid, about a heroic masked avenger who protects kids candy on Halloween eve. If this were ever animated it would become a Halloween classic — as it is, its a perfect storybook for the little ones to read after a night of candy gathering… and beautiful to look at for anyone, of any age.

6 Comments » posted in Books, DVD

Share on Tumblr

Saturday Book Review

September 11, 2010 7:00 pm

If you ever wished one of the creators of a cartoon series on Nickelodeon or Cartoon Network would just explain everything about how they sold their shows – and what happens step-by-step during the production process – your wish has been granted. Joe Murray (Rocko’s Modern Life and Camp Lazlo) has written one of the best books on the subject – and a perfect companion to David Levy’s essential volumes. Murray’s new book, Creating Animated Cartoons with Character, explains it all, in rich detail, using his experiences in pitching and producing Rocko and Lazlo, illustrating every part with storyboards, model sheets, photographs, internal charts and graphs. He gives in-depth behind-the-scenes information about his two series, and makes it easy to see how this info can apply to your, or anyones, project. On top of that, Murray corrals his colleagues Steve Hillenberg (Spongebob), Everret Peck (Duckman), Tom Warburton (Codename: Kids Next Door), Craig McCracken (Powerpuff Girls), art director Sue Mondt, voice actor Tom Kenny, sound designer Jeff Hutchins and others for informative sidebar Q&A’s. Linda Simensky provides a great introduction to set the scene. This is a must-have if you are interested in creating TV animation, pitching a show or producing a series – or simply interested, historically, on how Joe himself did it. Highly recommended.

When experienced animators turn to creating comics or illustrating children’s books, I usually find the results successful and quite satisfying. That’s certainly the case with animator Mitch Schauer (Angry Beavers) and his first graphic novel, RIP M.D. (from Fantagraphics). It’s about a little boy who discovers that all the monsters (zombies, wolfmen, ghosts and blobs) we’ve always heard about are actually real – and in desperate need of his special help. The storytelling is very clever and the art (with inks by Mike Vosburg) is lush and appropriately horrific. This is the first project to publicly emerge from Lincoln Butterfield, a small indie animation studio in Burbank. RIP M.D. would make an amazing 2D animated feature – if Hollywood were still making those. For now, graphic novels such as this are a great outlet for ambitious creators with ample imaginations. Check it out.

And finally, animation character and background designer Eric Gonzales has created and self-published an excellent “Day of the Dead” themed children’s book, Rosita y Conchita. The text is presented in both English and Spanish, and it includes a section on how to make a Sugar Skull. The recipe, like the artwork in the book, is mouth watering!

18 Comments » posted in Books, Joe Murray, Mitch Schauer

Share on Tumblr

Saturday Book Review

August 28, 2010 1:00 pm

Here’s a roundup of few new books that several publishers and authors were kind enough to send my way:

ANIMATED PERFORMANCE (Ava Publishing) by Nancy Beiman is an instant classic. There have been many many “how-to” books written by current and past animation masters in recent years, many of them quite good (Richard Williams and Eric Goldberg’s books come to mind first). Beiman’s new book concentrates solely on character animation and she knocks it out of the park. It is a thorough, step by step examination of the art, aimed at the advanced student or professional animator who already knows the basics. The principles she discusses can apply to any technique (CG, Flash, stop motion, etc.) and she has packed the book with ample examples of her own animation, as well as classic comic strips, commercial art and movie stills to illustrate her points. She’s also peppered the book with inspiring quotes (such as this neat one from Kaj Pindal: “Animation begins where live action gives up.”). What’s most important is the book is a joy to read – even a non-animator such as myself can get a lot out of it. It’s 232 oversized pages, loaded with solid information based on a lifetime of professional experience. I highly recommend this book to anyone doing, or attempting to do, character animation on any level.

THE ADVANCED ART OF ANIMATION (Course Technology) by Ken A. Priebe is a sequel to Preibe’s 2006 book, The Art of Stop Motion Animation. This time Preibe takes a closer look at some the techniques touched upon in his earlier volume, as well as covering advances in the techniques during the last five years. The book contains a more thorough history of the stop-mo technique, extensive interviews with visual effects supervisor Pete Kozachik, clay animator Marc Spess, Screen Novelties’ Mark Caballero & Seamus Walsh, as well as expanded chapters on building puppets, character animation and visual effects. There are several books out there on stop motion, off hand I’d say Priebe’s new book is possibly the best.

SID THE SQUID (Immedium) by David Derrick is part of the trend of animators writing and illustrating children’s books. Derrick is a story artist at Dreamworks, and this charming book reads like a classic animated feature that never was. Sid leaves the ocean, and with the help of a little girl, he searches the city in hopes of finding the right job for his particular talents. Fun, and with an inspiring message. Perfect for kids of all ages.

Last but not least, CHRISTMAS WISHES (Stackpole Books) by Tim Hollis (co-author of Mouse Tracks, The Story of Walt Disney Records) is one to pick up for purely inspirational purposes. It’s Tim’s nostalgic recollections of Christmas past, lavishly illustrated with images of vintage toys, comic books, records, TV specials, sheet music, toy catalogs and advertisements from the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Cool stuff, nicely compiled, and fun to browse.

8 Comments » posted in Books, David G. Derrick, Ken Preibe, Nancy Beiman, Tim Hollis

Share on Tumblr

Teddy Newton on Day & Night

August 24, 2010 12:05 am

Here’s a nice little viral video/slide-show of Pixar’s Teddy Newton discussing his new Chronicle book based on his short Day & Night.

35 Comments » posted in Books, Pixar, Teddy Newton

Share on Tumblr

Day & Night: The Book

August 20, 2010 12:00 pm

I’m not hiding my enthusiasm for Teddy Newton’s short Day & Night, and neither is Pixar. Instead of releasing a Little Golden Book based on the short, as they had for several previous shorts, the studio contracted with Chronicle Books to produce a handsome little hardback edition. Teddy wrote and drew this adaptation and its a wonderful souvenir of the film — a cartoon sure to be nominated for this year’s Best Animated Short. I took these snaps with my iPhone above and below (click thumbnails below to enlarge). The book just came out and is listed on Amazon now for ten bucks ($10.19 to be exact)! 36 glossy pages, beautifully rendered and a must-have.

P.S. Next week we’ll have a surprise contest for an autographed copy of the book.

11 Comments » posted in Books, Pixar, Short, Teddy Newton

Share on Tumblr

Craig Yoe’s FELIX THE CAT book

August 17, 2010 12:30 pm

Craig Yoe’s latest book is a beautiful love letter to the comic book legacy of Otto Messmer/Joe Oriolo’s Felix The Cat. As usual, Yoe has produced an art book that is unto itself a thing of art, a 226 page celebration of Felix’s four-color career. Previously John Canemaker covered the animated films and David Gerstein collected selected Sunday newspaper strips. Here, Yoe focuses on the Dell/Toby/Harvey periodicals created by animators Messmer, Oriolo and Jim Tyer. The book itself is lavishly produced (which is standard for Yoe’s publications) starting with the classy black and white cover – a clever contrast to rainbow-hued Messmer end papers and content to come. It begins with a 35-page introductory text, liberally illustrated with original Messmer/Oriolo art, rare photographs and odd-ball historical material (my favorite is a 1925 Photoplay magazine spread featuring a Ziegfeld Girl teaching Felix the latest dance craze, The Black Bottom). And then the real fun begins: twelve choice Felix stories, originally created between 1946 and 1954.

The Felix comic stories were always quite “trippy” (to use the 60s expression), usually starting off normally then drifting into worlds of giants, oversized talking vegetables, robots, magic carpets and trips into space. The artwork is always imaginative and very cartoony. This is a wonderful tribute to a cartoon super-star’s most neglected – but still significant – work. As far as I’m concerned, Yoe’s Felix The Cat: The Great Comic Book Tails is another must-have.

20 Comments » posted in Books, Comics, Felix the Cat, Otto Messmer