Michael Sporn Animation – Splog

– Monsters Inc. will be screened at the Museum of Modern Art tomorrow, Sunday, July 2 at 2:00 and Monday, July 3 at 4:30.

It’ll give you a chance to compare this film full of bipedal creatures to the rubber-tired ones in Cars. Technically, Monsters Inc. introduced delicately flowing hair to computer animation; Cars introduced full-wheel traction (not to mention Larry the Cable Guy).

This is part of a program of preserved films from the Museum’s archives. The list of recent films to be screened is an impressive one. A good way to spend some of these rainy days in NYC. The Straight Story, The Man Who Laughs, and Avalon are among those to be presented over the next couple of weeks.

- Also a reminder that the end of July brings more screenings of their CalArts in Moving Picturesprogram. Keep your datebook handy. Films by Eric Darnell, Stephen Hillenburg, Doug Vitarelli and Craig McCracken can be seen on July 30th. Many other interesting films are also on the schedule including those by: Steve Subotnick, Joanna Priestly and Maureen Selwood. A lot of talent went through that school.

– Magazines are very important to me. The most treasured, unfortunately, do not publish anymore. There are these two that have given me such amazing information and insight that I will always treasure them.

- I have about half a dozen issues of Michael Barrier’s Funnyworld magazine, and I hoard them all preciously. The magazine was the first I’d found to value animation as a real art and give critical information about the films and the form.

Fortunately, Michael Barrier continues to post articles, reviews and invaluable information on his website. I can also reread Funnyworld articles. I value his writing and insight.

– Right in line with Funnyworld was the British publication Film Dope. This magazine printed an alphabetical listing of film makers, and people important to films. Actors, cinematographers, directors, costume designers, musicians and cartoonists all were blended together in alphabetical order, and one-by-one their careers were offered and analyzed. A formidable chronology of their work was detailed and a short critical commentary was printed.

Until 1996, the magazine was published on poor paper in a lackluster printing method, but the material was always spectacular. Wonderful scholarship and solid information was the norm. (Only once did I locate an error or oversight in their catalogue. Not that I’m the greatest arbiter.) Their opinions were often a bit ascerbic, but they usually had significant points to make, and I always enjoyed the writing style.

To give an indication of the magazine, I’m posting the entry for Ub Iwerks. About the only place to find back issues is on Ebay.

(Click on any image to enlarge and make it readable.)

The magazine was packed from inside cover to inside cover with such material. No ads.

Current magazines that I love are few, too. I have a hard time getting through a week without The New Yorker magazine. I also love Amid Amidi’s Animation Blast and wait patiently for each issue knowing there will be a payoff. Both thankfully still exist.

A Scanner Darkly opens on July 11. This is the animated film adapted by Richard Linklater from the Philip K. Dick story. It’s done in the same rotoscoped style (or whatever computer folk call it) used in Waking Life.

There’s an unusual side story to the opening of this film. I caught this article in Saturday’s NY Times: A Strange Loss of Face, More Than Embarrassing.

The “Face” in the headline is really the head of a robot designed by “computer whiz, David Hanson”. This was an android version of the late author, P.K. Dick. The robot would sit and answer questions in a presumably lifelike manner.

Hanson enroute to LA accidentally left the head on his plane in an American Tourister rollaway bag. When he called the airline, they’d located the head, put the bag in a box (so they said) and shipped it to the owner. Unfortunately, the head never arrived .

Gone was the interview between Letterman and the robot-P.K. Dick. Gone were the personal appearances. How did it affect the publicity plan for A Scanner Darkly? My favorite line in the article comes at the end. A studio exec said, “He was perfect for the film. Now he’s disappeared — and that’s perfect for the film too.”
(The robot-head.)

Real life.

- Mark Kennedy has been posting some beautiful thumbnails by Bill Peet on his blog, Temple of the Seven Golden Camels. These drawings from Sword In The Stone are an inspiration. By the way, if you don’t own Bill Peet’s autobiography, you’re missing out on one of the great books available.

As the disk jockey on the radio called it, “the absolutely horrendous weather,” continues.

Rain. Will it get heavy enough to flood again? (I doubt it) Will the Yankees be rained out? (they’re playing some great, entertaining games against Boston) Will I get past this annoyance?(probably)

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- On Wednesday, June 7, 6:30; repeated Saturday, June 24, 2:00 the Museum of Modern Art is presenting a program of student films by the PIXAR artists who went to CalArts.

As part of its program celebrating the works of CalArts, MOMA has com-
piled this program of early works by the likes of John Lasseter, Joe Ranft et. al.

(faked degree for John Lasseter)

School of Pixar

This program features rarely screened CalArts student films by a veritable who’s who of Pixar talent. Program includes:

Winter. 1988. Pete Doctor. 2 min.
Next Door. Pete Doctor. 1990. 3 min.
A Birthday. Brenda Chapman. 1987. 3 min.
A Jim Reardon Film. Jim Reardon. 1986. 4 min.
Tarzan. Mark Andrews. 1993. 3 min.
A Date with Suzie. Max Brace. 1995. 2 min.
Solitaire’s Sanctuary. Karen Kiser. 1985. 6 min.
Nitemare. John Lasseter. 1979. 4 min.
The Lady and the Lamp. John Lasseter. 1979. 4 min.
Good Humor. Joe Ranft. 1979. 3 min.
Man, Monkey, Marshmallow. Matt Majers and Jon Fancher. 1999. 2 min.
smoke…. Bobby Podesta. 1997. 4 min.
Blind Spot. Doug Sweetland. 1993. 3 min.
Legend of Shaolin. Mike Wu. 1994. 2 min.
Train Crazy. Daniel Holland. 2003. 3 min.
Extra Crispy. Mark Walsh. 1997. 4 min.
A Story. Andrew Stanton. 1987. 4 min.
Sis. Ken Bruce. 1986. 5 min.
For the Birds. Ralph Eggleston. 2000. 3 min.

Program 63 min., plus one five-minute intermission.

- All the sandbags in front of our studio weren’t enough to hold back the torrential rains that came yesterday afternoon. Manhattan was hit with 3″ of rain in under an hour. Most of it came into my studio, apparently. Because we’ve gone through this before, all the necessary precautions were taken so that nothing would get ruined. The mess is finally cleared, but the sore body parts remain.

– Those in New York this Sunday can attend a world premiere. Xeth Feinberg‘s QUEER DUCK: THE MOVIE will be released as a DVD by Paramount Home Entertainment in July.

However, there’s a theatrical screening this coming Sunday, June 4th at the AMC Loew’s 34th Street as part of the 18th New York LGBT Film Festival. The film will show at 5:30 PM. Writer Mike Reiss will be there for a brief intro and Q & A.

The feature includes cameos by Tim Curry, Conan O’Brien, David Duchovny, Bruce Vilanch and Andy Dick and includes more than a dozen musical numbers. It was directed and animated by Xeth Feinberg.

There is an extensive interview with Xeth at Cold Hard Flash.
You can pre-purchase the DVD at Amazon in advance of its July release.

- On Saturday ABC will present a special program.

Per Leslie Iwerks: The recent project I wrote, directed and executive produced, Pixar’s 20th Anniversary Special, will be airing on the Wonderful World of Disney Saturday June 3rd from 8-11pm on ABC, along with the showing of Toy Story. It features John Ratzenberger as a traffic cop in hot pursuit of Lightning McQueen, the upcoming star of Pixar’s newest movie, CARS.
And please also keep an eye out for my upcoming Pixar feature documentary (The Pixar Story) that should be released before the end of the year.
(Click image to enlarge.)

- I’m sad to note that the brilliant film director Shohei Imamura has died. He was an inspiration to me for many years. I discovered his films at a retrospective at the Japan Society in NYC in 1979. Over the course of several weeks many double bills of his features were screened until they went through them all chronologically. It was one of the highlights of my filmgoing experiences.
Here is his NYTimes obituary. Black Rain, The Insect Woman and Vengeance Is Mine are singular masterpieces.

- Writer, J. Hoberman, in this week’s Village Voice has a short but good article about Richard Linklater’s thoughts in comparing his two current features, both of which premiered at Cannes. A Scanner Darkly, together with Fast Food Nation, represent a picture he has of today’s America.

In a separate mini-review, Hoberman wrote: “Richard Linklater took a hit for his insipid Fast Food Nation but recovered and then some with his animated A Scanner Darkly—not just the best Philip K. Dick adaptation since Total Recall but an adaptation that brings quite a bit to the original. This paranoid drug-opera will soon be coming to a theater near you, improving the summer movie season even more than it did Cannes’s American presence.”

The reception from other critics wasn’t as kind, often comparing it unfavorably to Waking Life. Perhaps Hoberman’s bent for more eccentric film making styles played more in tune with Linklater’s newer opus. I have to admit I’m curious to see whether the rotoscope style used in a more traditional, through story will help it.

- I love Lane Smith’s artwork. Consequently, I love Lane Smith‘s blog currently following the release of his newest book, John , Paul, George & Ben. Everything on it is done with a real sense of fun. Today’s post reprints negative reviews for his book, and his last post featured a mural drawn by him and Mo Willems. As a matter of fact, you can watch a short movie of them painting it.

There was a short time when Lane Smith was to direct an animated feature for Nickelodeon, and that project ultimately fell through. Too bad, it might’ve changed what we think about animated features. And like everything else he does it would have been family friendly, a lot of fun, and brilliantly daring. Not just Paramount’s loss, but ours as well.
(Images enlarge by clicking.)

- Today’s NY Times features yet another story about CARS. Charles Solomon writes this article, and the Dixney/Pixar machine is covering all the bases. How different than in past years when there was virtually no advertising for animated features.

There’s another AP article in Newsday about the premiere.

- However, not all is right in movieland. An other NY Times article reports about planned cost-cutting at Disney and Touchstone. Will the newly reconstructed animation division have more cuts?

- For those who haven’t read it, there’s a wonderful recap of life at “Moor Hall”. This is a short memoir by Bob Egby, who was a messenger on the premises of David Hand’s British studio for J. Arthur Rank’s Gaumant Productions. Names are named and jobs are detailed, including many who weren’t credited on the film. It’s a practically lost part of animation history.

There’s a bit more to be gathered from the David Hand website, which offers everything from books to original art to lecture notes & models.

- Coming Wednesday, May 24th, the Jacob Burns Film Center is presenting the films that were nominated for the Academy Award this past year.

These include:
THE MOON AND THE SON: AN IMAGINED CONVERSATION (winner),
BADGERED,
9,
ONE MAN BAND, and
THE MYSTERIOUS GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORATIONS OF JASPER MORELLO,

Gary Becker, who photographed the winning film, John Canemaker’s The Moon and The Sun: An Imagined Conversation, will be available to discuss the movie and its photography.

Go to the Jacob Burns Film Center’s website for travel instructions.

- David Levy, ASIFA East’s President, has a new animation book about to hit the stands, and it can be preordered on Amazon for a discounted rate.

Your Career in Animation: How to Survive And Thrive is described as “an insider’s guide to getting into that industry, staying there, and getting ahead.”

David interviewed a number of animation professionals including: Al Brodax, Teddy Newton, Linda Simensky, Steven Hillenberg and 100 others (myself included).

It promises to be a handy guide to staying alive in a precarious industry. You’ll have to check it out to see what I had to say.