Milt Kahl used those words when he tried to explain his process for starting a new scene.
Most of you know that Milt and many other Disney animators produced a number of thumbnail sketches in preparation for the actual animation. This research can center around finding certain expressions, an acting pattern or -like in this case- a simple pose.
In this scene Robin is stirring the soup while daydreaming about Maid Marian.
The image above is a frame from that scene, but check out how much work Milt put into finding this one pose. He came up with a ton of variations, until he sold himself on one position that looked natural to him.
I think that Milt actually struggled a little to get to a satisfying result. But remember what he said one time: “I actually don’t draw that well, I have to work like hell to make a drawing look good!” (At the same time he thought that he drew better than anybody else at the studio.)
It’s fascinating to see his mind in action, exploring the possibilities.
