I was about 11 years old when I first saw what Disney animation drawings looked like. My parents had bought me a little Super 8 film box set with a clip from Lady and the Tramp. It also included a little brochure on Disney Animation. And this photo of a young Ward Kimball caught my eye in a big way. These sketches of the rooster Panchito completely mesmerized me for a long time. At the time they were the most beautiful drawings I had ever seen. So lively, so appealing, I kept studying them.
I don't think these are Kimball's actual animation roughs though. It looks like he used a grease pencil here, and he drew them for the photographer. Still...to this day, absolutely masterful!! And the fact that Ward had the time of his life working on Saludos Amigos comes through in his spirited line work. Pure joy!
Here is a series of his animation drawings from the deleted Soup Eating sequence in Snow White, drawn a few years earlier. Ward took what Fred Moore had introduced in terms of character styling as well as squash and stretch, and he made it his own. These are his roughs, not the clean ups used in the pencil test sequence most of us have seen. Stupendous work at such a young age.
PS There are key drawings missing from this scene. There is no way #6 follows #5 directly.
Kimballs' drawings and his animation was Loaded with appeal! He could take a simple scene and fill it with interesting and fun business. I always loved his work and was truly inspired by just about every thing he did! Brian Mitchell
ReplyDeleteDanke fürs Teilen Ihrer Kindheitserinnerung, Mr Deja! 😚
ReplyDeleteDas Anprobieren der ersten Fussballschuhe, die erste eigene akustische Gitarre, die man in Händen hält und so lange spielt bis man mit dieser im Bett einschläft oder die Grundschullehrerin, die ihren Schülern was vorliest und mit ihnen einen Ausflug in die Bücherei unternimmt....Ich liebe Storys, die erzählen, wie und wodurch ein jeder inspiriert wurde! 😍
Ich mag Figurenkonstellationen wie die drei Caballeros! Diese bilden in ihrer optischen und charakterlichen Unterschiedlichkeit eine perfekte Einheit! 👍😀
Diese durch weitere Figuren zu erweitern ohne diese Einheit aufzuweichen, das finde ich schwierig 🤔
Wenn ich die Key Drawings sehe.....Verdammt noch mal, es wird endlich Zeit für eine Cut Off Dokureihe bei Disney Plus! Zu erklären, warum diese oder jene Szene es nicht in den Animationsfilm geschafft hat ist für mich ein Akt des Respekts für die Arbeit der Disney Mitarbeiter! 😊