Stop Motion

Meet Tobias Stretch And His Life-Size Stop Motion Creatures

There are many ways to create animation, and most of them are tedious and life draining. It's pretty common to find animators incorporating some combination of chair and desk as a prison of their practice, where they trudge through their work while simultaneously wasting away. Tobias Stretch has no appetite for that lifestyle, and uses the world as his stop motion playground.

Untold Tales

‘Mouse in Transition’: Larry Clemmons (Chapter 2)

Disney's head animation writer in 1977 was cartoon veteran Larry Clemmons, who had first been hired at the studio in 1930. At the time of his hiring, he was a Yale graduate with a degree in architecture, but an Ivy League education was of little value in 1930 when the economy was collapsing...and few buildings were being erected.

motion capture

‘Lord of the Rings’ Animation Supervisor Randall William Cook Speaks Out On Andy Serkis

Our post on Andy Serkis's inflammatory rhetoric about the limited role of animators on his motion capture performances generated a robust, often heated, discussion in the comments. By far, the most informative comment was provided by 3-time Oscar winner Randall William Cook, who was the animation supervisor and designer at WETA on the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy that was released between 2001 and 2003.

Cartoon Brew Pick

‘To Spring’ Is The Weirdest Cartoon Ever Made About Springtime

Among the most frustrating aspects of spring—if you don't live in southern California—is the fluctuating weather. One moment it's T-shirt weather, the next, heavy overcoat. The 1936 MGM cartoon "To Spring" explains the scientific reason for why this occurs: the elves who live underground aren't working hard enough.

Cartoon Brew Pick

“Wind” by Robert Loebel

"Wind" is an animated short about the daily life of people living in a windy area who seem helplessly exposed to the weather. However, the inhabitants have learned to deal with their difficult living conditions. The wind creates a natural system for living.

Award Season Focus

“Croods” Directors Kirk DeMicco and Chris Sanders on Making An Ensemble Film

When the server enters the drawing room of the Crosby Hotel, Kirk DeMicco’s eyes begin to dance, “Mini desserts are coming! Many, many mini desserts!” Both DeMicco ("Racing Stripes," "Space Chimps") and Chris Sanders ("Lilo & Stitch," "How to Train Your Dragon") are in New York to take part in a presentation on the making of "The Croods," the animated film that they directed for Dreamworks earlier this year, which went on to gross nearly $600 million worldwide.

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