keyleedaud (REAL ESTATE)

Let's see.  There's seven of these little guys.  Could it be?  Why yes!  It's the seven dwarfs.  Well, they're public domain, so anybody can use them, right?  What's that?  This is a Disney project?   DISNEY? Welcome to 7D , a new TV series for Disney Jr.   Quick!  Which one is Doc and which one is Happy?

According to Deadline Hollywood , distributors will no longer make movies on film available to theatres in North America by the end of 2013.  International theatres will be done with film by the end of 2015.  It's all going to be digital. I fully understand the economics behind this move.  Film prints are expensive to make, expensive to ship and easily damaged when projected.  They contain silver, a substance whose cost varies widely due to market forces.  Digital prints can be made faster, the drives that hold them are reusable and they shouldn't degrade over multiple showings.  They won't need splicing. Still, for anyone who has handled film, it's a sad moment.  There was something magical about being able to hold a ribbon of celluloid up to the light and see the images.  Seeing the squiggle of the optical soundtrack and knowing that the squiggle could be turned into an orchestra or an actor's voice was amazing.  Comparing the sides, one th...

The above model sheet is courtesy of Amid Amidi of Cartoon Brew , who wrote in the comments for The Autograph Hound , "In [animator Paul] Allen's defense, the Mickey Rooney design he was working from is one of the clunkiest and most poorly constructed Disney models of all time. I don't know what Joe Grant was thinking when he approved that one." I certainly have to agree with Amid.  The design is flat from both the front and side views. The only three quarter view on the model sheet doesn't work and is ugly to boot. As I mentioned earlier, caricature is difficult for a still, but even harder for animation where the likeness has to be able to turn.  Given this design, Paul Allen had a near impossible job.

It's been a while since I've done a mosiac.  When Hans Perk posted the animator draft for this cartoon, I knew I wanted to break it down visually. Donald Duck has never been a favorite animated character of mine.  Where there are certain of his cartoons I admire (such as Duck Pimples ), the admiration is based on things other than the character.  I know that many cartoon fans are not impressed with the Duck cartoons directed by Jack Hannah, but I actually like those the best overall, as I like Hannah's posing and timing as well as the work of animators like Al Coe. This cartoon is attractive to me because of the caricatures of Hollywood stars of the 1930s.  Caricature is difficult to do well with still illustrations.  When you start to move caricatures, the task of holding the likeness becomes even more difficult.  The success of the caricatures varies widely in this film. Paul Allen's Mickey Rooney is weak.  Looking at the animation single frame in o...

As I write this, there are 44 hours left in Michael Sporn's Indiegogo campaign to raise money for his proposed animated feature on the life and work of Edgar Allan Poe.  I don't want to repeat myself, but I support this project and the need for animation outside the Hollywood mainstream.  If you haven't yet taken a look at the project, please do.  And if you like what you see, please donate.

Adam Hines and Andrew Murray, two Sheridan grads who have been doing an animation-related podcast for more than a year, once again had me on as a guest.  Last time , the talk was about creator rights.  This time , it was more about animation schools and moving into the working world. Guys With Pencils has had many interesting guests, so take a look at their roster of shows.

I’ve long been aware that Walt Disney knew Spencer Tracy.   There’s a 1938 photo of them together with Tracy in polo togs and I knew that Disney also played polo.   Having read the excellent Spencer Tracy: ABiography by James Curtis, I learned that the relationship was longer and deeper than I knew. While the Tracys and Disneys knew each other from polo, the Tracys also entertained the Disneys at their home. Perhaps the greatest link was John Tracy, Spencer and Louise Tracy’s son, who was born deaf.   John had an interest in art and as a child started a newspaper.   The first issue sported a Mickey Mouse cover with an inscription by Disney which read, “Good Luck to Johnny Tracy.” Louise Tracy spent a great deal of her life establishing the John Tracy Clinic for families with deaf children.   Having struggled to understand the best way to educate her son, she wanted to provide the best medical advice to other parents in the same situation.   Disney dona...