Major Post 6 – The Walt Disney Studio

Posted on by Julia Reymundo

For the sixth class, we learned about The Walt Disney Studio. The company was founded by the brothers Walt and Roy Disney. The did create different studios that would create their different animation. Walt was known to be a part of the “Kansas City Film Ad Company,” tbe “Laugh-O-Grams Studio” (1921), “Disney Brother’s Studio” with Roy Disney, and “Iwerks-Disney Commercial Artist with Ub Iwerks.

Ub Iwerks was Walt’s best friend and he did all the animation early on in the company. He also was a part of the creation process with Walt Disney to design the character Mickey Mouse. Iwerks was known for Steamboat Willie (1928), this was known as the first Disney cartoon to feature sound. Silly Symphonies started a few years after and one of them which was “Flowers and Trees” was the first animation to use the three-color Technicolor method. This was also known as “The Technicolor Process 4 camera.” This would conatin color filters, a beam splitter that would partially reflect the surface inside a split-cube prism, and three seperate rolls of black-and-white film. It would be in Red, Green, and Blue and negatives strip would be their complimentary color which was Cyan, Magenta, and Yellow respectively. Walt Disney was able to negotiate an exclusive contract to use the process until September 1935. The multiplane camera was also used during these times to create depth.

One of the videos we watched which was “Reason and Emotion” (1943) by Bill Robert, had reminded me of another animation with a similar story telling style. This was “The Story of Menstruation” (1946) which was produced by Walt Disney. This would inform girls all about menstruation at the time.

Major Post 5 – Mystical Visions

Posted on by Julia Reymundo

For the fifth day of class, it focused on abstract animation. It is also known as Visual Music. One notable animator was Oskar Fischinger, who built the foundation of this. Most of the animations that were produced followed all sorts of musical tracks. A wax-cutting machine would be used to create effects for these different films. Oskar Fischinger would be influenced by the abstract paintings of Wassily Kandinsky.

Not only was he an animator, he was also an engineer. With his knowledge, he created the “Wax Slicing Machine” (1922). This invention would synchronize with a vertical slicer with a movie camera’s shutter. It would produce some work that I could never believe was made at that time. It looked very intricate and the timing for each sound was precise. It’s very incredible. Fischinger would then proceed to experiment with the technique and create various studies. A few of these would be quite popular in theatres.

One of my favorites from him was his experiments. They were really interesting to watch.

https://vimeo.com/54587174

Julia Reymundo

Project 2 – WIP 2 – Pre-Production

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LeAnn and I have revised our creature concept. We thought that the original concept would be easy to manipulate and pose, however, we underestimated the size of the paper binders (pegs) that we used. Because of the size of the pegs, this limited the maximum movement of the puppet. The pegs would collide and it would cause it to get stuck together. As well as lack of resources we couldn’t gather because of unforeseen occurrences. So that it would be easier to animate, we revised the design.

So for the final design of our character, we chose to have it to be worm-like. It would be easier to rig and would have enough space for each peg to move – thus it will have a more fluid movement. This creature haunts and roams the depths of the ocean. The creature’s purpose is unknown but we have yet to see what’s to come.

Aside from the creature, we also have foreground and background elements that will move throughout the animation. We’re currently still working on the animation. Here is a behind the scenes look at LeAnn creating more elements for the animation.

Julia Reymundo & LeAnn Schmitt

Major Post 4 – Paper cutouts

Posted on by Julia Reymundo

We were able to learn about animating with cutouts for this class. Quirino Christiani was believed to have made the first feature-length animated feature. However, this was a lost film called El Apostol (1917) and Peludopolis (1983), which made use of cutouts. This was another fascinating way to animate and create films back then. It made use of different kinds of camera effects and it really helped create the atmosphere for the story.

One of the more interesting films we watched in class was, The Adventures of Prince Achmed (1926) by Lotte Reiniger. The art style of the cutouts really intrigued me. Despite using the same color for each character, you can still tell them apart because of each character’s unique silhouette. While watching the film, I did get reminded of the style from a Japanese animated TV show. Here are some of the stills from the anime, Yuri!!! On Ice (2016), which tells the story of the main character’s interpretation of a song. This is animated in a similar fashion since there are limited movements. Not only does it makes use of color and detail, it also shows a clear difference in the silhouette that helps tell the two characters apart.

Julia Reymundo

Major Post 3 – Early Character Animation & Cab Calloway

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For the third class, I was happy that we learned about the creation of the character, Felix the Cat. I used to watch the modern adaptations of Felix the Cat as a child. It is really interesting to see how character animation was from the early years and looking at it now. Especially with the discussion’s focus with the works of Fleischer studios. It also showed the start of using rotoscope as another technique for animating. In fact the use of rotoscoping really added to the films Max and Dave Fleischer were creating. They mainly made use of this technique for their character “Koko the Clown.” Which was showcased in the animation, The Tantalizing Fly (1919).

My favorite use of this technique was for Betty Boop: Snow White (1933), because of the scene where Koko the Clown sings “St. James Infirmary Blues.” This song was performed by Cab Calloway, who was a singer, dancer and a bandleader. The rotoscope was used for the dance segment Koko the Clown performed. Cab Calloway was known, not only for his music, but also for his unique dance moves. These were rotoscoped in the film and were really captivating to watch both in real life and in animation.

Julia Reymundo

Major Post 2 – The Haunted Hotel

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One of the films that intrigued me from the second class was, “The Haunted House” by John Stuart Blackton. This is why me and my partner for the first project drew inspiration from it. It was one of the first forms of stop motion, so of course it was interesting to see how it was done during that time. The world of stop motion has evolved into many things. Particularly, most people would know the film works of Laika and Aardman Animations. That wasn’t the only thing that first got me interested in stop motion animation. I remember watching this short film on YouTube by the creator, PES. I wanted to share this guy’s work because I think it is phenomenal and it displays how stopmotion can blur the lines between reality and animation. This stop motion animation short in particular was an Academy Award Nominee for Best Animated Short Film.

Julia Reymundo

Project 1-WIP 2-Production

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Once LeAnn Schmitt and I finished shooting the stopmotion sequence, I started editing it on Adobe Premier Pro 2019. This is where we focused on placing sound effects for the actions show in the stop motion. From the previous post, our concept is about making a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich. Due to the simplicity of the concept itself, we agreed on using a lot of different sound effects but not too much of it.

The sound effects that were used both came from online and done in person. Although, it was quite difficult to do it in person since using a phone microphone captures all of the surrounding audio. I did however try to lessen the noise once I added it onto the video editing program. Finding online sources, was easy if you know how to find them properly. I was able to find a website that sourced free mp3s that had a good search engine. The sounds I used may have come from the literal object, however, I did also use sounds that came from random sources. (ex. mac and cheese). Once it was done, I double checked the video for any mistakes and exported it.

Julia Reymundo and LeAnn Schmitt

Major Post 1 – David O’Reilly

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On the first day of class, one of the animations that caught my interest were the works of David O’Reilly. He creates really interesting concepts for his animations. Particularly, “Please Say Something” was visually compelling and had little easter eggs or hints that add to the storytelling. The art style had reminded me of something that I’ve seen before. He uses a low poly style that I can really appreciate and could vibe with. The low poly style is one of my favorites in 3D.

However, the works presented in class weren’t my first exposure to his works. My first experience with his work was when he worked on an episode for the Cartoon Network show, “Adventure Time.” He wrote, directed and animated the episode “A Glitch is a Glitch.” It has the same animation style and his iconic glitch effects. The concept, while still being very ‘David O’Reilly’, for this episode really fits the world of Adventure Time.

Here is a scene in the episode:

Julia Reymundo

Pre-Quarter Assignment

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My favorite animator is Hayao Miyazaki, who is well-known for his works as the animation director in Studio Ghibli. His works have inspired me to pursue 2D animation. When he started out as an animator, it was from the 1960s till the 80s and the animations he produced were amazing for the time. After observing his works, his animations had character within the movement of each frame. It was simple yet very complex. To show these movements during this time was really phenomenal. The most notable movies he animated on were Lupin the Third (1972), Doubutsu Takarajima (1971), Soratobu Yuureisen (1969), Nagagutsu wo Haita Neko (1966) and many more. Here is a video featuring his animated works.

Regarding his illustrations, there is something whimsical about it. There are so many intricate details when looking at the world building concept illustrations. One notable thing about his art is his use of ink and watercolor.  Through the medium of ink he is able to use hatching to show dimension clearly. In addition, he is very skilled with watercolor which he uses to not only color but show even more demension. Each illustration tells a story, with how the way the setting feels and its composition. There are illustrations that feel melancholic, exhibit curiosity, or even nostalgic. The worlds he creates are full of life. These are seen frequently in his concept art for his Studio Ghibli films such as, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984), Castle in the Sky (1986), My Neighbor Totoro (1988), Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989), Spirited Away (2001), and The Wind Rises (2013). These are the films that were directed by Hayao Miyazaki. His films are very well known among different generations of people and have left an impact on them.

Julia Reymundo