Michael Sporn Animation – Splog

- Mike Barrier posted a letter on his site. Kevin Hogan questions Mike’s ability to enjoy an animated film now that his taste has been formed by a lot of information learned over a lifetime of study. Mr. Hogan gives as an example the Chip n’ Dale cartoon Two Chips and a Miss. He loved this short as a child and found himself not enjoying it quite as much seeing it as an adult. He suggests that Mike’s knowledge might get in the way of the “innocence” he had as a child in enjoying some of these films. It’s an honest question, and it opened into a full discussion with Thad Komorowski and Milt Gray among others discussing the theory. Mike talks about enjoying the Three Stooges in his younger days but not quite enjoying them as much in recent days. His knowledge of film and this thoughts on the filmmaking process inform his judgment (thank god).

I probably would have gone to Alfred Hitchcock. Here’s someone who made films that can and should be appreciated on so many levels. They’re done for the public, and the manipulation Hitchcock maneuvers to create his films gets that audience by the throat, and Hitchcock enjoys doing so. Yet that same manipulation becomes obvious to the informed film student. However, for that same knowledgeable filmgoer, it doesn’t lessen the value of the film knowing how and what is coming. It makes it more fun because Hitchcock was a Master.

- As a 14 year old child, I was blown away by 101 Dalmatians. Those first ten minutes were heaven to me. I loved the design and the animation of Cruella de Ville, Pongo & Perdita, and even some of the pups. I was not as enthralled by the middle action-adventure section (immediately following the “Twilight Bark”). I had a lot of respect for what was being done, but I preferred the London portion of the film. I did know a lot about animation when I first saw it, but I know a lot more now. I also, now, know quite a bit about 101 Dalmatians, itself. The odd thing is that my opinion hasn’t changed a bit since that first screening. Today, I am in awe of the beautiful walk cycles Blaine Gibson animated at the beginning of the film as Pongo eyes potential mates. Throughout the film, I can see all the cuts, cel shadows, interesting effects and mistakes within them, and, yet, I still love the movie. Everything has changed within me, but nothing has changed within the movie that I first saw. It’s still excellent.

- Jeffrey Pepper’s excellent website 2719 Hyperion has featured the odd Disney short, Donald and the Wheel, in a fine analysis. The article was originally posted on the site in 2009, but this is the first time I’ve caught up with it.

I initially saw this short when it was originally released in 1961. It played locally in New York on a bill with a non-Disney live-action feature (which I can’t remember.) I have to say that I wasn’t in tune with this short, but I enjoyed the surprise of seeing it in the theater back then.

An even greater delight for me was seeing Symposium of Popular Song with the film, P.T. 109 in 1963. Also on that bill was the Disney animated short, The Saga of Windwagon Smith. I don’t remember that much about the feature (other than an image of Cliff Robertson as JFK), but I do remember the two shorts which I’ve seen many times. I absolutely love Windwagon Smith and have studied it backwards and forwards. I also bought a couple of drawings when I saw them available on ebay. Symposium of Popular Song took the TV creation, Ludwig Von Drake and introduced him to theaters in this Bill Justice/Xavier Attencio short that was primarily stop-motion cut out animation. What a double bill! And I’m talking about the shorts, not the feature.

I had seen Donald in Mathmagicland many times prior to ever seeing this newer film. I can’t say I have the same love for Donald and the Wheel. I had a very hard time accepting the two narrators: the Spirits of Progress, Sr., and Progress, Jr. They’re silhouettes done using the Sodium Process invented by Ub Iwerks and used in Hitchcock’s The Birds and Disney’s Mary Poppins. The halo around the characters is all we see of them, and they’re boring, and their song was worse. (I remember spending a lot of time back then trying to figure out how they were done.) As 2719 Hyperion points out Donald and the Wheel did some experimenting with the Xerographic process preparing the way for features like 101 Dalmatians and Sword In The Stone.

But I do pine for the time when a feature – not even a Disney feature – would be accompanied by two such animated shorts. Seeing a Pixar short attached to a Pixar long is not the same thing, believe me. 1963 was also a time beyond the Saturday morning kids matinees in theaters when 10 “Color Cartoons” were featured with a Francis the Talking Mule film. No, it was just part of the filmgoing process to be able to see an animated short on a big screen.

- This week I received an email from Louai Abuosba. Along with a number of others, he’s come up with a “meetup.com group aimed at providing a structure for student and professional NYC area. Animators to teach each other skills they don’t have or want to sharpen.” They met this past week in Dumbo and have plans for future meetings. If anyone is interested, you can sign up using Facebook or just go to the site and send Louai a note. (Sorry I didn’t get this out in time for the Sept. 1st meeting, their first, but I got the information too late to get it on the Splog.)

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