The development of Sleeping Beauty’s animals followed a certain path, from one artist to another. Character stylist Tom Oreb started out by defining these characters with definite, clear shapes.
As you can see in these rabbit drawings, the triangle seems to be the one shape that dominates the designs. Beautiful modern graphics that have very little to do with the round, chubby look of Thumper from Bambi.
Milt Kahl maintained Oreb’s shape language and translated the rabbits into a linear design, that could be animated. The sharp edges of these shapes remind me of sophisticated paper cut outs.
John Lounsbery animated most scenes that involved the rabbits. He was able to follow the strict design style, but he also added a personal touch of charm to his drawings.
Here one of the rabbits performs a perspective jump into one of Prince Philipp’s boots.
