But I wanted it blue!

Sleeping Beauty
Released:  January 29, 1959
Worldwide Box Office:  $51,600,000

I have my first memory of watching Sleeping Beauty in Fairbanks while I was in college and renting a room from a classmates family.  My friend Nancy who was also attending the University of Alaska at the time, had pointed out the film to me for some reason while it was on the Disney Channel one weekend.  She knew I was interested in Disney animation and wanted to point out somethings in this film that she thought were interesting.   Her mother was there at the time and also remarked on the music in the film.  She was a big classical music fan and loved the score in the film.  So they piqued my interest and I sat down to watch.

As I got know the film better and as I learned about the artistry that went into the movie, it became increasingly apparent to me the quality of the workmanship that the Disney studio put into the film.  As mentioned on earlier posts, if you look closely you see the precision with the hand-inked lines in the cels to the wonderfully detailed backgrounds in practically ever seen.  One scene in particular was the sequence where the three good fairies, Flora, Fauna and Merryweather have sent Briar Rose out to the forest while they make the her 16th birthday cake and dress.  I love this sequence and think they story works really well.  The fairies are adorable and they were portrayed with such great character.  They add a magical element to the story that works really well in animation.  I have always loved Merryweather's practical personality and how she played against Flora's somewhat dominating lead. 

Today's post, I am sharing two different Art Corner setups.  First up is a great piece that really displays the attitude between Flora and Merryweather.  You can really hear Merryweather saying, "...but I wanted it blue!"

                              Original Production Cel Setup, gouache on trimmed celluloid

                              Acquired:  October 21, 2004

                              Cel Artist(s):  Unknown

Over the years of collecting animation I had always longed for a cel setup of the dress and the magic that brought it life during its making.  Unfortunately, in my nearly 30 years of collecting animation, I have had never seen a single cel come up in the market ....that is until recently!  Next up is Flora using her magic to make "a dress a princess can be proud of!"

                              Original Production Cel Setup, gouache on trimmed celluloid

                              Acquired:  April 15, 2012

                              Cel Artist(s):  Unknown

This is an amazing art corner setup.  The over piece is actually a four cel setup with Flora on the top level and the magic thread & spools on their own 2 levels and a separate level with the dress.  It is placed on a lithographic background as prepared for sale at the Art Corner in Disneyland.  If you look closely you will even see the blue sparkles post Merryweather's "make it blue" fight!    I wonder how many of these cel setups are still out there?

Summer is in full bloom!

Out in the Garden in July...thinking about trains that connect with Animation Art

Well summer has fully arrived in Alaska and I thought I would share some pieces that keep me inspired as I spend more time outside away from my collection.   July is one of the best times of the year to have fun in my own little Disneyland in the backyard.  The past couple of weeks, I have been busy working in the garden and in particular tending to my G scale train garden that takes up a prominent place in the backyard.  

This garden is my little oasis during the summer and I love to find plants in scale and create a real living world in miniature.  It is a lot of fun.

So how does this relate to animation?  Well I have a love a trains and it is always interesting to find my love of trains in animation.  In 2002, Disney released to theaters the film Return to Neverland and also sold at auction 11 unique backgrounds and numerous production drawings.   Shown below is one of the backgrounds that was sold and depicts a train station in London.  I did not purchase this at the original sale but years later at an animation auction.  This beautiful hand-painted production background is from an early sequence in the film which pans from left to right and shows Line 4 and cast of people awaiting to send the children of London off to the countryside during World War II.   The background displays a wonderful scene of a classic British steam engine loosely based on the famous Flying Scotsman, with an overlay of a brick wall on the left side.

                              Original Production background, gouache on board

                              Acquired:  September 8, 2008

                              Layout Artist:  Adrian Thatcher

                              Background Artist:  Barry Dean

                            

If you watch the final film you will notice that Disney manipulated the sky to include military blimps flying above.  This background is huge and measures just over 4 feet wide and a full 12 inches high.   This piece reminds me of the station that I built in the garden years before.  

A few years after I purchased the piece, I stumbled upon a blog by Adrian Thatcher.   He just happened to be the layout artist who worked on the train background for Disney in both Toronto, CA and in Sydney, Australia where the film was eventually animated.  As I struck up a conversation with him l learned a few additional hidden features about the piece.  Disney artists are known to add fun elements to their art and this production was no exception.  Adrian, who is an Emmy award winning artist in animation shared with me that the numbers he placed on the train had particular meaning.  The number on tender was Adrian's age when he drew the piece (also his son's birthday) and the sequence on the front of the engine including the Line No "4" on the wall represents his birthday in a different form.    If you start in the middle of the number sequence and read the year backwards you will discover that the piece was created in 2000.  Interestingly, studio rules at the time dictated that layout artists needed to complete 8 layouts per week, however this one was particularly difficult and took four days to finish.  You can click on his blog link (above) to see a more detailed view of his original layout.  Below is another image of the engine numbers on the front.

                                       Original Production background, closeup

What is also amazing is that this piece was designed in Toronto, painted in Sydney, Australia, shipped to Los Angeles for archiving, then sold to someone on the East Coast of the US, subsequently sold in New York City and now resides in Anchorage, Alaska.  This piece has traveled over 23,000 miles around the globe!  Animation is truly international!

So to round out the train theme....here are a few more shots of garden.  This is the best time of the year for it!  Enjoy!

Overall layout of the train garden

Passengers waiting at the station!

Steam Engine making the turn around the lake.

Making a turn on high mountain scape.

Dreams really do come true...if you just believe!

Cinderella 
Released:  February 15, 1950
Worldwide Box Office:  $85,000,000

Well this week is a special one as it is my mother's birthday this Saturday, July 12.   So a bonus post with a wonderful drawing from one of my mother's favorite animated films, Cinderella.  This film came at a much needed time for the Walt Disney Studios and went to help bolster the studios bank account and credibility.  The film received three Academy Award nominations and was critically acclaimed to be the best animated film since Snow White.

The key animator's drawing here is form the sequence where Cinderella has been transformed by her Fairy Godmother into a beautiful princess, one fit for a royal ball.  This sequence was animated by Marc Davis and his rough drawing below shows great expression, poise and beauty.  Marc Davis was a master draftsman and was known for his ability to draw Disney female characters.   His rough drawings are exquisitely done and are almost clean-ups themselves!  You can almost imagine the sparkling pixie dust that surrounds her in new ball gown in the drawing.  In this scene, Cinderella excitedly states to her Fairy Godmother and friends, "And look!  Glass slippers!......Why its like a dream!   A wonderful dream come true!"

                              Original Production Drawing, colored pencil and graphite 

                               on 16 field animation paper

                              Acquired:  May 6, 2012

                              Artist:  Marc Davis

                              Sequence 3, Scene 4.1

This drawing is just simply beautiful and so I thought I would include a closeup of the detail and expression that Marc Davis put into his rough drawing.  It doesn't get any better than this!

My mother, who grew up in the 50's is every bit the princess and as beautiful as this drawing represents!  Happy Birthday Mom!  Enjoy!

Coming back to Winnie the Pooh!

Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree

Released:  February 4, 1966

Well, I thought I would come back to a previous subject and to follow-up from my Sister's birthday last month.  If you remember my earlier post honoring one of Kim's favorite characters Winnie the Pooh, I have finally found some time to assemble a more respectable image of the production background and the production cels that I was able to find over the years.  

First up is a better view of the complete setup.  It measures out at 16 field and the cels were trimmed to outline of the characters and placed on a new cel.  It includes a number of production markings and also mentions, someone by the name of Mimi?  I wonder want  she played during the production of this featurette.  I was not able to find any film credits on her.  The background appears in the film in sequence 1 in scenes 540.1 and 550.  Below is how the new composited production setup looks. 

                              Original Production Background Setup, watercolor on paper

                                gouache on trimmed celluloid

                              Acquired:  May 20, 2011

                              Artist:  Unknown

                              Sequence 1, Scene 540.1, 550; Sequence 2, scene 119

As mentioned earlier, the production cels have been trimmed to outlined and placed on a blank 16 field cel.  They really go well with the production background.

                              Original Production Cel Setup, gouache on trimmed celluloid 

                              Acquired:  December 20, 2009

                              Artist:  Unknown

                              Sequence 2, Scene 116

                           

Finally, here is more detail view of the production background.  It is painted in a soft palette of watercolor with ink highlights and even perhaps xerographic printed image of the background layout.  Unlike my other background from this piece does not have a Xerox overlay cel of the original layout drawing.  The colors are rich and subtle and I love the way they really make the characters come alive in the scene.

                              Original Production Background Setup, watercolor on paper

                              Acquired:  May 20, 2011

                              Artist:  Unknown

                              Sequence 1, Scene 540.1, 550

The background was clearly painted before April 27, 1965 as noted by the date for when the piece went under the camera.  A full year before I was even born!   The painting was done up on a thick type of paper similar to my other Winnie the Pooh master setup featured in an earlier blog.

So can anyone tell me who Mimi is?  What do you think?  

More on Maleficent!

Maleficent
Released:  January 29, 1959
Worldwide Box Office:  $599,000,000

Well, I had to post some more things about Maleficent.  I went last week to see the film and thoroughly enjoyed the spectacle of all.  As mentioned in last weeks posting, Maleficent is one of my favorite villains...or I say now hero as well?  

Disney's new twist on the story added depth and heart to her character in way that very  nicely changed my perspective on Maleficent, which was largely based on my interest in Disney's Sleeping Beauty.   It was really interesting to see how elements of the original story continued to make its familiar way into this newer story.  I particularly loved the scene where Maleficent states...."I too shall bestow a gift..."  I found myself "singing" along through this scene as I have watched that sequence many times in researching animation art over the years.

Another interesting twist was how they actually introduced the "dragon" into the story, which was much different from the original.  I don't wish to spoil any plot lines here, but considering how they changed the story, essentially no element was left out ...or as it related to Maleficent in my opinion.  Anyhow, I thought I would share a couple of layouts next that I picked awhile back that are great drawings in the development and staging of the original fight sequence with Maleficent.

                              Original Production drawings, graphite onouache on animation paper

                              Acquired:  May 20, 2011

                              Artist(s):  Unknown

                              

Both of these drawings worked up in graphite and stage the scene where Prince Philip fights Maleficent who has taken over King Stefan's castle.  Both drawings were done on very wide animation paper and show some great expression, not too mention action.  I particularly love the fiery effects against Philip shield.

So for a more climactic moment, next up is one of my ultimate favorite cel setups, the scene where Philip and Maleficent battle on the cliff in the end.  Cel setups from this scene are very rare and even more rare are complete images of her as the dragon, let alone getting on of Philip in scale.

                              Original Production Cels, gouache on celluloid

                              Acquired:  November 21, 2005

                              Artist(s):  Unknown

This setup have been trimmed down from the wide technirama celluloids typical used in Sleeping Beauty as it was filmed in 70mm cinemascope.  Philip is on a separate cel and Maleficent's cel overlays both placed on a hand-painted custom presentation background.  I usually don't care for presentation backgrounds unless they were created at the studio or were preliminary production pieces, but considering cels from this sequence are incredibly rare I fell in love with the piece.

A couple of the details with this piece that really are amazing include the hand-inked lines all throughout.  This was not one of the scenes that Disney employed the newer Xerographic technology.   Maleficent is outlined in three different colors - green, black and yellow and she includes transparent paint applied beautifully to her wings and gills.  Philip in comparison is hand-inked with hues of black, grey, brown and marroon.  I love the detail of his face and sword.  Some great work just creating the animation drawings on the original cels.  In a later post I promise to share more detail.

So, if you haven't seen Angelina Jolie bring Maleficent to life in real life on the screen....go!  You will thoroughly enjoy it.  It adds a new dimension to the early film, the art and the fantasy of it all.