Commentary &Daily post 23 Oct 2013 08:02 am
“Animated Week”
This is a week for 2D animation. Last Sunday I watched the 1991 film ONLY YESTERDAY. That was a brilliant film, and it was so quiet and delicate and touchingly perfect. Directed by Miyazaki’s partner, Isao Takahata. What a gentle and near-perfect movie. It’s probably too quiet for most people, but I loved it. I have to thank Nat who left the comment on my blog about it.
Last night, there was John & Faith Hubley’s 1962 feature, OF STARS AND MEN. This was the first Hubley film I saw in a theater. I was only 17 at the time. It was a little bit of genius living around the corner from me. It’s a feature, a great one, without having all the low wit you’d usually see these days.
It was the first film by the Hubleys that I ever saw in a theater. Only 53 mins, it takes your breath away. It’s very much an adaptation of Dr. Harlowe Shapely’s book, “Of Stars and Men.” This is a pure and unadulterated look at the science as studied by Dr. Shapely. Every inch of glorious painting and remarkably strong animation layout is used with the 2D animation camera. As many as 10 passes through the camera are used for every frame.
John definitely went for the abstract, where he found a beauty that couldn’t have been replicated any other way – including in the pre-historic sequences of the original Fantasia. I’ll try in an upcoming blog post to post some of the frame grabs from this movie, gorgeous as it is in all its delicate motion.
1
Dr. Charles Liu, a scientist supporter of Dr. Harlow Shapely
2
Emily Hubley
3
John Canemaker
4
Dr. Charles Liu and Emily Hubley
5
Mark Hubley and nephew, Max Hubley
6
Mark, Max and Emily Hubley
7
Dr. Charles Liu, Emily Hubley, curator, Ron Magliozzi, and John Canemaker.
8
Will Rosenthal, Emily’s husband and Ira Kaplan Georgia’s husband were also there.
9
On screen flower
Also iin the audience were Candy Kugel, Jannet Benn, Joe Kennedy
Biljana Lobovic and Jeremiah Dickey.
10
Oscar and Jeff Scher, and Emily Hubley
11
Mark Hubley and me.
12
More of Mark and me.
At the end of the film, my wife, Heidi, asked where the credits were. She’d forgotten those were
at the film’s start. The entire crew amounted to 15 people.
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Cast (in credits order)
- Harlow Shapley Harlow Shapley
Mark Hubley Mark Hubley
Ray Hubley Ray Hubley
Produced by
- Faith Hubley producer
John Hubley producer
Cinematography by
- Jack Buehre
Film Editing by Faith Hubley (as Faith Elliott Hubley)
Animation Department
- Pat Byron … background artist (as Patricia Byron) / rendering artist (as Patricia Byron)
Nina Di Gangi … background artist / rendering artist
Faith Hubley … background artist / rendering artist
John Hubley … background artist / rendering artist
Bill Littlejohn animation director (as William Littlejohn)
Gary Mooney … animation director
Music Department
- Roy Friedman music recordist
Walter Trampler … musical director
THAT’S IT!
Thursday we see Miyazaki’s The Wind RIses, and on Sat & Sun we see all of the AMPAS entered animated shorts. Mine eyes hold up.
