Sunday, June 30, 2019

Jock by Ollie Johnston

This is rough animation by Ollie. The character of Jock is responding to Lady who is saddened because Jim Dear had called her "That Dog !"
Jock: ("Well, now, Lassie...I wouldna worry mah haid about that.)
Remember, they're only humans after all."

This is Scene 68 from sequence 2.0, and the length is 4-08 ft.

It is a little bit surprising that Ollie chose to animate the eye wink so early in the scene.
What happens during a scene's first few frames doesn't register much to viewers. Your eyes always need a moment to adjust to a new scene.

I love Ollie's simplicity. While Jock is talking, his scull is leading the forward head motion, while the muzzle follows through.
A little bit of animated gold!

Again, my thanks to Wil for letting me post these gorgeous rough drawings.



















Be sure to click on each image 2x, in order to enjoy each drawing large size.


Tuesday, June 25, 2019

More Rare Milt Kahl Drawings

These two beautiful clean up drawings from the short film Mickey's Circus, 1936, were likely drawn right on top of Milt Kahl's rough animation.
This might have been Milt's first production scene he ever animated. It is part of the film's opening sequence in which Mickey is introducing Captain Donald Duck and his seals.
Gorgeous animation - right from the start - and lovely clean up work. Solid and appealing.





This is probably a tossed animation rough, because it isn't numbered. The Llama from the 1943 short Lake Titicaca. One of Marc Davis' favorite Milt Kahl characters.



From 1945 a couple of Milt's roughs for Pablo, The Cold-blooded Penguin.
With all these items attached to Pablo, this would be a challenging scene to animate, and a very difficult scene to in-between. So much line mileage.




Rough drawings of the King in Cinderella.
Milt animated the Duke as well as the King. Reflecting on his work years later, he thought they weren't particularly interesting characters, but that they did their job ok for what the movie called for.
Go figure!
More on this character here in an earlier post:
https://andreasdeja.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-king-and-royal-lackey.html




Thanks yet again to Wil for the scans of these great drawings!


Thursday, June 20, 2019

Lounsbery Dogs

Lady & the Tramp is one of those films in which John Lounsbery's talents fired on all cylinders.
I would say that after his work on Fantasia (Ben Ali Gator) this is another high in his career.
Brilliant drawing and acting on Bull, with moving flesh, wrinkles and all. Beautifully timed to the voice of Bill Thompson.
Louns also animated all scenes with Tony and Joe at the Italian restaurant.

https://andreasdeja.blogspot.com/2013/10/tony-and-joe.html





This whole sequence at the zoo's entrance was also animated by Lounsbery.



A few years later he drew scenes with Danny, the great dane, voiced by George Pelling.




Thanks again to Wil for the scans of these terrific drawings.
Here is the link to my first post on John Lounsbery from 2011:

Sunday, June 16, 2019

Rare Milt Kahl Drawings




Milt Kahl did mostly clean up drawings on the Prince in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
This guy was even more difficult to draw than the film's title character. As soon as the team found out about Milt's power of subtle draughtsmanship... as Milt himself put it:
"I got stuck with the clean up job on the guy." Needless to say he didn't enjoy this assignment at all. But he knew his superb artistry was needed to pull this character off.

Next is a Pinocchio drawing he did for a Les Clark scene.




A great doodle sheet featuring Thumper. Let's call 422 and see who answers.



A great sketch of adolescent Bambi. Still, I am not 100% sure if the head turn works with this definition of the neck.



I loove this scene of a cow turning away from camera in the 1950 short film The Brave Engineer.
There is no way you can animate a scene like this one in a more entertaining way.
The weights shifting is what it's all about!
Earlier I posted a drawing from this scene here:
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2b3X98kGbAkyrFtpmWIKTj5EJydilTDmM3SXSkxy2GDaCCr3IGRrvxM2VXC0PUbwBK_-fjGdcRKl0aX0pc99jJMOny9DbCAdQh6h9Mp3iAside0830t_A1UcFen58sYDUfPORz4CGLnk/s1600/SD1.jpg






Milt's final model for Alice.
But who is this lucky Evangelina person ??

Ok, I just googled her, she was a famous Mexican actress:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evangelina_Elizondo



One of Milt's Peter Pan roughs, clearly based on live action footage.



This is a sketch Milt did for a Frank Thomas scene.
Look at the beautiful curvature of the dog's spine, supporting a roll over position.




My thanks again to Wil for providing hi/res scans of these stunning drawings.


Tuesday, June 11, 2019

Over 50% in Color



We recently hit a milestone on our production of MUSHKA. We have about 16 min. in final color, including effects, highlights, shadows etc. That's more than 1/2 of the 30 min. film. 
Color backgrounds with character colors are coming in fast and furious.
I just need to hold on to my recently hired talented BG painters. They both make a difference in speeding up production. 
Also, I am looking for a couple of local, seasoned character animators. My footage pay is not top, but nearly top. 
I need people who can help to take this project to the finish line. If I have worked with you in the past...great. Just leave your email in the comment section.
Richard Sherman loves our project, so does Kathryn Beaumont as wells as Robert Reitherman.

It's my post Disney statement, and it is very personal.
C'mon and join the MUSHKA Crew.


Saturday, June 8, 2019

Rare Marc Davis Drawings




Here are a few of Marc's drawings from three Disney feature films that haven't been circulated online.
A couple of his polished story sketches for Bambi show his thorough understanding of animal anatomy as well as a feeling for entertainment. I believe Marc spent a total of six years on the film. Most of them in story, then in animation (Flower, the skunk).




One of those mysterious doodle sheets. On the right of course is Flower, a motion study with structural accuracy. The other sketches look like telephone doodles to me.



Color designs for Cinderella's Fairy Godmother and the Prince.
The inscription is wrong, Cinderella already premiered in 1950.
It's interesting, the Fairy Godmother looks pretty much like Milt Kahl's final animation.



An animation drawing of Aurora which was later redrawn for the film with a stronger jawline.
Here she looks sixteen years old, in the movie more like twenty-six (still beautiful though).



Maleficent turns away from the King and Queen after finding out she had not been invited to the princess' Christening. "Well, in that event, I'd best be on my waY".
Marc underlines the ending of the word "way" to remind himself of the proper mouth shape.



Thanks to my friend Wil for providing scans of these beautiful drawings. 

I am recommending this book on Marc Davis' art:
MARC DAVIS: WALT DISNEY"S RENAISSANCE MAN

And the upcoming book on Marc's work as an imagineer:
MARC DAVIS IN HIS OWN WORDS: IMAGINEERING THE DISNEY THEME PARKS