Michael Sporn Animation – Splog

Varied Notes:
I was enthralled with the program of Emily Hubley’s work at MOMA last night. She has a unique voice in animation, and she takes it and runs with it as few animators are doing. Her presentation was designed to focus on collaborations but seemed to highlight music in animation. How thrilling to hear one piece to the music of Yo Lo Tengo, and the see the same piece reworked to music composed by Sue Garner and performed live against the film. The energy of the live music changed the film completely; it became more haunting and poignant – a very different film utilising the same imagery. Don Christensen has composed the music for a number of Emily’s films, and he adds enormous effect to all he’s done. It was a great show.

Attending a lot of animation events in NYC, one sees a varied mix of animation peoople at different events. Those who go to Emily’s films, generally aren’t the people who’d go to a Warners show, and Bill Plympton brings out a very different mix. It’s an entertainment in itself, watching the varied faces. Eventually, I’ll have to get a camera to add some photos. How pleasant to be ushered into the crowded MOMA lobby by Will Rosenthal and son, Max. Janet Benn and Thelma Schenkel were also among the early arrivals. Inside, I saw John Canemaker, Biljana Labovic and Candy Kugel. At the gathering, afterward, were Jeff Scher, Jeremiah Dickey and MOMA coordinator, Charles Silver.

A Christmas Card posting I missed turned out to be one of the most interesting for me. On Jen Lerew’s Blog, Blackwing Diaries, she posted two cards from the 50′s Disney: a 1955 Christmas card featuring the Mickey Mouse club and another from 1956 showing Mickey welcoming us into the magic of Disneyland.
Back in the mid-Fifties, I sent a fan letter to Joshua Meador. I had to have been 10 years old. What came back was a postcard, a largish postcard of Disney standing with an airbrushed Mickey on his Disneyland TV desk. It wasn’t the airbrush they do today trying to make everything look like real dolls, but it was an airbrush that just added highlights. I quickly learned that I could get more and different cards by sending more letters, and I did. I kept them for years, but somehow lost them in a move.
My favorite postcard was one with about fifty drawn picture frames. Within each was another Disney character. All of the images were tiny, but somehow Brer Fox stands out in my memory. He was coming out of his frame. I’d love to see that card again. Anyway, I did receive that very same Christmas card welcoming me into Disneyland, and I have to thank Jen for posting that card and bringing back some pleasant memories.

By the way, speaking of Blackwing Diaries, maybe if we all joined together we could get Eberhard Faber . . . er . . . Faber-Castell to produce Blackwing Pencils again. It’s amazing to learn that people other than animators swore by these pencils – including a lot of celebrities. The pencils sell for $250 a box on ebay.

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