Howard Beckerman - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 24, Iss. 7, (Feb 18, 1983): 28.

While animation demands the patience and technical efficiency of a brain surgeon, more often animators are asked to perform as obedient, robots. Most people can't tell doctors where to set a broken arm, but we are forever telling the various mechanical geniuses who keep our twentieth century habitats in order, where to do this or that repair or construction. So it is with animation. There are detailed storyboards that spell out almost every bit of information that is to be communicated to the viewer. The real problem arises between the storyboard frames. It is important for animators to know how something occurs, just as much as they need to know when it happens. It's not that animators are sterile. They are extremely creative, but when solving problems for paying clients, their solutions may not be the ones that work for the spot. For instance, a storyboard might show a man standing in a box (A) and then in the next frame reveal the man outside of the box (B). How did the man get out of the box? An animator can solve that in many ways, but the "right" way may be only in the mind of the person who devised the storyboard. 

Here are some of the ways that the man can be removed from the box: 

1) Dissolve from a shot of the man in the box to a shot of the man outside the box. 

2) The man climbs out of the box. 

3) The man pushes the box over, crawls out as the box springs back to its original position. 

4) Dissolve the box away from its position to another position leaving the man standing alongside it. 

5) There is a door in the back of the box which the man opens and shuts behind him as he walks out. 

6) The man jumps out of the box. 

7) He flies out of the box. 

8) He digs a hole through the bottom of the box and comes up alongside of the box.

9) He walks through the box like a ghost. 

10) He opens a zipper in the back of the box and then zips it up as he walks out. 11) He tears the box to shreds. It then reassembles as he remains standing outside of it. 

12) He kneels, picks up a ladder, places it against the side of the box and climbs out. He replaces the ladder on the bottom of the box. 

13) The box flattens out, the man walks to the side and the box animates back to its original shape. 

14) The bottom of the box rises up and ejects the little man. The bottom goes back to its original position. 

15) The man disintegrates and reassembles alongside of the box. 

16) Cut or zoom to a closeup of the man's face. He blinks, the camera pulls back and to and behold he is out of the box.

And so on and so forth.... 

Animation is the most creative way to tell a story. It is drama, humor, comedy, dance and tragedy. There are many ways to get the man out of the box. Knowing what information to give an animator can certainly help bring out the potential ideas inherent in any spot. Not knowing what to tell the animator could box everyone in. 

Howard Beckerman - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 24, Iss. 6, (Feb 11, 1983): 28-29.

Animation festivals are an excellent invention for bringing together animation artists and producers from all over the world. They can also be a very humbling experience as well. I remember being on the jury of a children's film festival, where animation was featured, in Gijon in northern Spain. This event is not as well known in the United States, for some reason, as other competitions but the experience taught me a great deal about how people in other parts of the world respond to films. 

The filmmaker who thinks that his efforts and hard work must automatically be enjoyed by international audiences might come away from some festivals with an injured ego. Though animation is appreciated, even adored universally, there is no guarantee that audiences in various lands will succumb to the charms of every animated film. 

In Zagreb, where a major world festival is held, audiences react vocally or stamp their feet when a film gets too didactic or boring. In the aforementioned Gijon, films from the United States that were too slick received little tolerance from judging adults, yet a thousand school children bussed in from Spain's far flung provinces cheered for sympathetic characters and could care less about a film's production values. 

Festivals differ in character and films that get excellent response at one event may not even get a nod at another. There are films however, that do have universal appeal and often these productions are not slick and commercial but contain elements that reflect the human condition. At Gijon, the year I was there, a 16mm live action film with no dialogue concerning the antics of a kitten took a top prize. It was a film that children everywhere could appreciate. 

David Ehrlich is a filmmaker and teacher, periodically ventures from his home in the heart of Vermont's farmland distant locales to view the films of others and to see how his own efforts fare at the various international events. Recently he attended two disparate festivals, one in Espinho, Portugal and the other in Lucca Italy. Ehrlich made some notes on the good and bad aspects of these celebrations of animation and comic art and he came up with some interesting insights. Ehrlich's observations and experiences reveal that while festivals may be regular events touted by much publicity, they all don't deliver the same satisfactions to their participants. His comments follow: 

"CINANIMA, the International Festival of Animation which took place November 10th-14th, is a young six years old. Its home is Espinho, a charming Portuguese town on the northern seacoast. The festival organizers have little funds available to them, but they work without pay and their perseverance and love of animation makes this festival one to be reckoned with in the future. The festival competition has ten categories including a new one made to order for American Independent animators, Experimental Animation, apparently a first in the history of international animation festivals. Many of the films that have been screened here in recent years have gone on to win wide recognition at the larger more prestigious festivals. With 175 films entered from 25 countries, the all-Portuguese selection committee chose 72 films for competition and 28 for non-competition screenings. Shown were award-winners from Ot-tawa and Zagreb Festivals, as well as many films that are either new or receiving little exposure. 

"The shows in the comfortable Casino Theatre were punctual and were well-attended by enthusiastic audiences. Film titles were announced in three languages (Portuguese, French and English). There were retrospectives of Polish animation that occurred a bit late in the evening (11:30) but the festival staff was receptive to suggestions by its guests that late shows begin earlier next year. Another problem was the disproportionate number of films in the 3-12 minute category (37) as opposed to the less than 3 minute (10) and 12-40 minute categories (4). The international jury, with members from Italy, Romania, Spain, Holland and Portugal, tried to solve the numbers problems fairly by awarding two prizes in the 3-12 minute category, and again, the staff was entirely receptive to suggestions concerning changes in next year's categories. 

"All guests were given daily bulletins on screenings, meetings and symposiums. The third day featured a wine-tasting party in Porto and lunch in an elegant chateau. The final award ceremony, held in the Casino, was a warm occasion that ended in a buffet, disco-dancing, and the presentation of CINANIMA souvenirs to all foreign guests. 

"This festival, as well as NASCENTE, the cultural organization that sponsors it, is serious about animated film. Because of the staff's receptivity to constructive criticism, the festival has grown much in the past six years to the point at which some of the best animators from around the world send their, new films here. CINANIMA promises to continue developing into a highly recognized international event. 

"The International Exhibition of Comics, Animated Films and Illustrations was held October 31st through November 7th in Lucca, one of the most beautiful towns in Italy. The festival staff, with apparently large financial resources, managed to get some of the best international animation of the last wo years, in addition to retrospectives of U.S. Last Coast Independents, U.S. serials, Italian productions and the Russian Yuri Norstein's work. The festival catalog is extremely well-designed and the food is superb. All this notwithstanding, it must be said that the primary concern of the organizers is the exhibition and sale of comic art with related meetings and symposiums, and those attending the festival for animation will be disappointed. The animation programming was so difficult to follow that one never was quite certain which show would be screened upon arrival at one of the three theatres. Programs during the daytime were poorly attended and seldom began on time. The most important showings of the International Panorama, scheduled for 10 pm every eyeing, rarely began before 11:30 when the other activities would wind down. Those spectators still there at 11:30 would hardly be in the most receptive mood. The extent of the shabbiness of this festival was best marked by the sense of resignation of the audience when Norstein's last film masterpiece, TALE OF TALES, was screened without its middle section because 'there was not quite enough time left after the comic art presentations.' Many Italians present at the festival expressed the sad view that the festival's administration had not improved in ten years despite frequent criticism. American animators should be forewarned that his festival is simply not serious about animation. The non-competitive International Panorama is chosen by the festival directors 'by invitation only', and a number of works by American independents were screened, including Faith Hubley's THE BIG BANG AND OTHER MYTHS, Will Vinton's CREATION, DINOSAUR, and GREAT COGNITO, Steve Eagle's CURRENT CAPRICE, George Griffin's FLYING FUR, and Jane Aaron's INTERIOR DESIGNS." 

Ehrlich's encouragement of participation in the more sympathetic Espinho festival may have some animators wondering how to find out about that event. Any questions should be addressed to, CINANIMA ORGANIZER COMMITTEF Apartado 43 4501 Espinho Codex, Portugal. 

Howard Beckerman - "ASIFA-East Awards" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 24, Iss. 5, (Feb 4, 1983): 26-27.

ASIFA-East Awards

On the night of January 27th members and friends of ASIFA-East, the local chapter of L’Association Internationale Du film d’Animation, gathered to view the winning entries in the groups yearly film festival. Presiding over the occasion was ASIFA-East president Richard Rauh of The Optical House. The meeting was held at the May auditorium at The Parsons School of Design. It was the 13th such event for the organization, the longest running, active animation festival in the world.

This year’s event received more than 70 entries and due to the length of many of the films, the judging, which is done by the organization members, had to be held on three nights at different locations around the city. It began to take on the tone of the larger film celebrations such as the New York Film Festival, as ASIFA members were invited to assemble at the Optical House for the screening of the video entries, at the New School for the bulk of the professional films and finally at The School of Visual Arts for the student entries.

For the first time in its 13 years of existence (President Rauh referred to this milestone as ASIFA’s bar mitzvah year) the executive committee agreed to allow participants to submit videotapes. The accepted medium had always been 16mm prints because of their ease of projection to a large gathering and for their superior visual quality. The reality of the times which requires television spots to be transferred to video after the initial printing leaves most production houses without the additional prints that were used for contest submissions in previous years.

The awards are bestowed on the creators of outstanding films that fall into a handful of categories ranging from, best student entry, best design, best animation (incidentally this festival is the only one, animation or otherwise, that recognizes such a category), best concept, best direction, and best soundtrack. Often there are additional awards for unusual or special films that tend to rise above the category designations.

Each year there are encouraging surprises in the student classification that never ceases to amaze the seasoned professionals gathered for the event. This particular festival attracted a healthy amount of entries and the winning entries indicate only the most polished of the films, yet do not take away from excellent efforts that were apparent in the work of many of the films of up and coming young animators.

Overall the 13th ASIFA-East Festival winners seemed to stress the element of design over any other aspect of the animation medium. Many of the submissions contained some aspect of style and technique that made them interesting, rather than any great pyrotechnics in the area of animation itself.

The Movie Channel and MTV received a special award for encouraging the creative use of animation in the many and humorous promos that were made for that outlet. Several of the city’s animation companies contributed to the list of entries in this area, but the jury felt that the award should go to the company that requested the films simply for the wonderful and varied work that their commitment inspired.

Every festival brings forth one film that stands away from the rest. This year’s top winner was Michael Sporn’s rendition of the Rosemary Wells children’s book, "Morris’s Disappearing Bag." The film developed the designs of the author’s illustrations and Sporn skillfully put the whole thing together with music, narration and animated effects to retain the charm of the original.

Following is the list of awards just as they were issued on the night of the event.

Student Films

3rd Prize: Gary Schwartz, ‘“‘Animus.”’

2nd Prize: Doug Heil and Bob Nagel, ‘‘The Story of the Cat.””

Ist Prize: Sylvie Fefer, ‘‘Brushstrokes.’’

Honorable Mention For Design

Flip Johnson, ‘‘The Roar From Within.”

Tom Gutherly IV, ‘‘Circle Game.”’

Caren Aque, ‘‘Vis-a-Vis.”

Nancy Gold, ‘‘Chalk Test.’’

Special Award

David Burd, ‘‘The Movie Channel and MTV I.D.’s.’”

Sound Track

3rd Prize: Telequest, Inc., “How Things Work: Who Put The Picture On My TV.”

2nd Prize: Peter Wallach Enterprises, ‘‘Doin’ What The Crowd Does.”

Ist Prize: Steve Eagle, ‘Currents Caprice.”

Concept

3rd Prize: Jerry Lieberman Productions, Inc., ‘‘Mildew Munchers.’’

2nd Prize: Emily Hubley, ‘‘Delivery Man.”’

Ist Prize: 8th Frame Camera Service, ‘‘Set The Date.”

Design

3rd Prize: Perpetual Animation, Inc., ‘‘New Jersey State Bank.””

2nd Prize: Sinking Ship Productions, ‘‘Warm Bread.”’

Ist Prize: Steve Eagle, ‘Currents Caprice.’’

Animation

3rd Prize: Perpetual Animation, Inc., ‘‘Riunite-Saxon,’’ Animator, Vinnie Bell.

2nd Prize: Michael Sporn Animation, Inc., “Stones Don’t Grow,”’ Animator, Lou Scarboro.

Ist Prize: R.O. Blechman, Inc., ‘‘Caveman,’’ Animator, Tissa David.

Direction

3rd Prize: Perpetual Animation, Inc., ‘“‘Hitachi Signal Trucker.”’

2nd Prize: Grossman Brothers, ‘‘Hot Living Room.’’

Ist Prize: R.O. Blechman, Inc., ‘‘Caveman.’’

Best Picture of the Show

Michael Sporn Animation, Inc., ‘‘Morris’s Disappearing Bag.’’

Based on the book of the same.name by Rosemary Wells and illustrated by the author.

Musical track by Ernest Troost.

Animation by Michael Sporn.

Howard Beckerman - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 24, Iss. 4, (Jan 28, 1983): 26, 28.

With all the discussion of animation that goes abroad in the land, there is rarely any mention of one of the key resources of the professional animation artist, the union. 

In New York animators are represented by the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists, Local 841 which was founded in the late thirties, a time when unionism was building and growing. Actually, the cartoonists of the popular characters of that period, such as Popeye and Betty Boop, were among the last of the film trades to organize. 

Of all the creative groups artists were always considered the least likely to seek organization in a union, or at least that has been the popular myth. The animation field as based on the collective employment (and exploitation) of hundreds of talents in order to bring forth a product that looked as if it had been created by a single hand. The public often knew no other name than that of the producer, which served to create a brand or star name to better sell the product but furthered the betterment of the anonymous artists' working conditions nary a bit. 

The myth of the sensitive independent artist was allowed to perpetuate itself because it gave many a studio owner an opportunity to exploit his help. Prior to the formation of the union, animators were required to sign contracts on an individual basis, which may have made them feel like movie stars, but like the actors kept them under the control of the studio for a period of time so that they couldn't dash off to a competitor. 

The animation field has come a long way from those happy days when cartoons were only expected to be found in the neighborhood theater and possibly in educational films at schools. The use of graphics in motion can now be spotted wherever film or video is employed. No longer are the efforts of animator expected to come predominantly from the United States, but from almost any nation in the world. In the early days of the animation medium artists were trained in studios, today there are schools in various cosmopolitan centers of the globe which teach the rudiments of the trade to many young and receptive minds. Animation is no longer the province of a few studio managers or even a thousand paid professionals, animation belongs to anyone who wishes to pursue it, be it for financial gain, art or just for pleasure. 

This increased interest in the obsession of making drawings move has both advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand it creates a pool of fresh new talent ever waiting in the wings to step in and pick up a pencil or a computer and give it a go. On the other hand it creates a state of anxiety for both producers and professional animation artists as well. 

Having thousands of willing young hands ready to do battle with the daily animation grind might seem like an excellent benefit for a studio manager to use for rush assignments or to hold over the heads of dissident employees, but the reality is something else. 

Turning out a superior bit of commercial animation for the satisfaction and scrutiny of clients paying increasingly higher bills requires the use of seasoned professionals. That's where the union comes in. It's not enough that someone be talented or even enthusiastic as many of the up and coming generation undoubtedly are, but studios need people who are experienced. When one is new in a field he or she may ask a lot of questions, but when a person is well versed in the many subtleties of the trade, they know the right questions to ask. By subscribing to the union a studio can be assured of obtaining talents that are ready to pick up an assignment and bring it to a finished state in the most direct and professional manner. 

Still, the influx of new talent that is busily reinventing the business is a source of insecurity for animators who are normally an insecure bunch to begin with. Long associated with studios that have accepted their abilities and offered it to the public as the work of anonymous hands, they are sensitive to every stirring in the wind that might mean the loss of their livelihood. While it is not unusual for animators to have turned their talents to related fields such as illustration for magazines or writing or teaching, years learning and practicing their highly specific art has made most of them too overspecialized to simply turn around and adapt to areas that are precise and demanding in their own right. 

When animation people are anxious they turn to their union, more specifically to their business agent, for advice, for help or for just someone to harangue and argue with. At Local 841 the business agent is Gerard Salvio. 

"In 1974, I inherited an ailing organization," says Salvo in the cadences of someone who grew up on the streets of New York. The Screen Cartoonists union, though its name implies the animation of rabbits and ducks, also numbers among its members optical effects technicians and television graphic artists. At various times there were often more effects personnel than cartoonists, such has been the variances in the demands of the commercial field. Salvio himself came to the union through the ranks as an optical camera operator. Upon his election to the business agent job there was some disappointment among animation people who felt that the position should be held by an animator. 

Much of this feeling has dissipated under the weight of day to day realities. Gerard Salvio is in there everyday doing the job which can require the combined talents of administrator, mediator, father confessor, challenger and referee. 

Most animators are reticent to take on such a position, preferring the world of their lightboards as the place to express their many sided personalities. What they have come to realize, more or less, animator, inker, painter, checker or camera operator, is that Salvio is in there, day after day doing what has to be done. He is sympathetic to their interests. Working through the union office, which has a two person full time staff, to handle the union welfare plan and annuity fund; Salvio carries on union business. Top Cel, the monthly newsletter, is edited by Judy Price. At the meetings the members can have the say on the conditions and policies that affect the whole organization. 

Presently Local 841 is in negotiation with the producers in the city who are well aware of the problems besetting the business. Many of those who operate animation and optical houses are former members and officers of the union and the field is young enough to contain producers who worked their way up through the ranks and are aware of the problems. Around the bargaining tables, the discussions will undoubtedly be heated. Such issues as, competition from outside the city, and concern for the technologies that are infiltrating the field, come up for review. 

Howard Beckerman - "Small Screen - Big Effects" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 24, Iss. 3, (Jan 21, 1983): 30-31, 73.

Small Screen—Big Effects

"I'm so used to seeing the things that I do on a tiny Moviola screen that recently while at a mix I had the opportunity to view an effect of mine on a very large screen, and it knocked me over. I felt like George Lucas." This is John Gati speaking. Gati is one of the several directors of stop motion and special effects that populate this island between the Hudson and the East rivers, who as their daily task create illusions that are comparable to those we are accustomed to seeing on the screen at our local Bijou. the only difference is that their effects are created viewing in the more intimate arena of home video or in some corporate board room. Gati has caused credit cards and razor blades to soar through the air and watchbands to twist and twirl in space. These illusions are accomplished in the same manner that similar effects are done in multimillion dollar Hollywood space epics. Seen in the context of a dramatic story and enhanced with stereophonic sound the illusions attending such films as Star Trek II, E.T. or Poltergeist are extremely effective. The techniques that bring those awesome screen images about are also employed daily by studios in New York to add zest to familiar commercials. 

At the Optical House, Dick Rauh and Dee D'Andrea showed me some of the things that had come across their desks in recent weeks. They had been doing simulated space effects for an NBC report on the Space Shuttle mission as well as a similar visual for a Sharp commercial depicting the many types of space vehicles that that company had helped create. While viewing these illusions that could easily have graced the scenes of "Star Wars" or "The Empire Strikes Back," D'Andrea revealed the way combinations of space ship, planets and starry outer space were made. 

No Opticals Used

"We shot 4 x 5 transparencies of very detailed models and matted them in over the other elements, all in the animation camera. No opticals were used." D'Andrea explained that shooting the color photos compared to filming the models in stop motion on a set has several advantages. 

"For one thing we can do all manner of pans and zooms on the still without being tied down to an existing filmed spaceship. Also, if we wish to reshoot or make changes, we don't have to back to a set to re-rig models." But what if you wish to show the space object moving in dimension, turning around and the like? "Well, in the case of the NBC Space Shuttle program, we photographed the model with a still camera but placed it in various positions, then refilmed these shots under the animation camera." 

While the bulk of the work that comes through The Optical House is for commercial clients, they also manage to create effects for feature films and have developed atmospheric illusions for special effects Director Bran Ferren for the film "Altered States" and the recent Paul Mazursky production, "The Tempest." Even as Dick Rauh started to describe detailed storm sequences that they were asked to devise for the latter film, his mind ran to a spot for Chef Saludo Pizza which they were required to express the idea that the packaging for this product allows more heat to reach the pizza during the cooking procedure. Here a combination of live action models, expertly filmed by Herb Lobel, were combined with moving images of heat. A look at the final result reveals that this spot is as much in the realm of fantasy as any effect produced for any sci-fi or mystery feature. The pizza and the special pan that it comes in moves through the air, and the heat from hot coals glows and animates towards the food as it would never be discerned in true live action cinematography. It is a valid use of fantasy to express a product theme. 

Tim Clark is a designer who is called upon to create graphic effects that must not only rival the kind that might highlight title sequences of a feature production but also has to devise sequences that look as if they were done with the aid of electronically generated systems. Clark works out of Rowohlt Animation at 35 West 45th Street where he employs a computerized camera stand to embellish the ideas that come from his orderly mind. 

Effects From Flat Art Works

Bending over a desk of his own design, he showed me clips of dimensional effects that he was able to develop through the use of simple flat artwork. "sometimes the original art that we use looks like stuff that you would never take a second notice of. We've made effects from images composed of rubber cement smears and crayon scrawls," explained Clark, "When you throw the image out of focus or embellish it with a glow and it springs to life, you'd never connect the final result with the actual art employed." 

Clark has devised his own tilting camera board for creating spatial designs. From flat art he can produce amazingly believable dimensional images that follow the laws of perspective. One of Clark's more ambitious jobs involved a dazzling display of cameras in space created for Chinon Camera Company. "The complications were enormous, said Clark. "I designed the entire concept from the client's rough idea, and then figured out how the illusion would be accomplished. " Here again, still color photos of the product were made and exposed in many runs under an animation camera. "When you see the final spot it all looks so simple, but believe me," he insisted, "it was as complicated as any effect achieved in Hollywood production." 

Excitment & Grueling Toil

Most of the toilers in the field of special effects agree that the process is exciting during the period of concept and grueling toil during execution. John Gati remembers working 24 hours around the clock performing the task of twisting a Speidel watchband. An actual band was used..." and I couldn't take my eyes off of it for one second, because if it shrunk or expanded without my seeing it, the whole shot would have been ruined," said Gati, giving an idea of the precise attention that must be paid to each assignment. 

At Totem Productions, Werner Koopman adds his own point of view to the subject. "My contention, " he said, "is that the average feature production does not employ the trickery or the exotic effects that are required to enhance the average 30-second spot that uses special effects." Koopman, who has spent 32 years learning his trade, started out, as he says. "...in the great American tradition. While in college I was hired as a substitute office boy at Film Graphics for two weeks., and stayed on to become an editor, a cameraman and so on." Like most special effects experts, he is proud of his work, and understands the frustrations that go with it. "We don't get our applause on the set the way actors do. We have to wait maybe 15 hours till the footage returns from the lab to see if we are going to get a pat on the back.  

Recently Koopman was asked to create an effect in which a handful of Mini Wheats had to flip themselves over in a bowl to reveal both sides of their tasty little selves. The bits of breakfast food had not only to execute this move without revealing the rig that aided their animation, but they had to do it with personality. It's the little touches that make the actions effective. The cereal at least is rigid in shape, but once Koopman had to manage to animate flexible products like plastic garbage bags flying through the air and fitting into each other. This spot for the Hefty Company had to be rigged with minutely thin wires and were shot on "ones," a departure from the tradition of shooting animation moves for two frames at a time. This adds to the complications of the job but the added realism helps the look of the final effect. "It's got to be believable, otherwise we'll never get the people into the stores, and that's really what it is all about." 

One thing that many of the special effects creators agree on is, as Koopman expressed it: "Too often the advertising agency people meet and decide that an effect is too expensive and then discard it. They would do better to call in one of us that design and do these effects and they may find that it can be done in a way that is considerably less costly.

There's always a way to solve effects problems. It's the illusion that counts. It's all the same, bi: screen or small screen  in the hands of the experts.

Howard Beckerman - "Apples, Oranges and Bananas" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 24, Iss. 2, (Jan 14, 1983): 28.

Apples, Oranges and Bananas

When the New York Times features an article in its advertising column on animation, that's an event. This past week, Phil Dougherty, the stalwart observer of Madison Avenue, compared the advantages of animation as against computer graphics and live action. Even before he got down to the brass tacks of the comparison he began his comments with a remark that unsettled many of the producers in town. 

Dougherty simply stated that the animation studios were not doing as well as the computer houses. He was leading up to a punch line that quoted computer expert, Judson Rosebush, as explaining that he felt the Japanese would be swallowing up the local computer business in a short time. 

Hal Hoffer of Perpetual Animation Inc., felt that even though the past few months have been slow and many businesses have been affected, his studio has been active and is now busily engaged in the production of several spots. Lou Gifford of Kim and Gifford also noted that though there were times when they had been busier, they were active throughout the past year. Presently, Phil Kimmelman of KMCP Productions is also engaged in the animation of a new series of commercials. A much brighter view than Mr. Dougherty painted. 

Animation is obviously alive and well in New York, but I think we have all become conditioned to a new situation. In the last 12 years animation studios, involved in spot production, have grown smaller and this condition creates a new norm. When studios were hiring a full staff of artists and even had their own cameras and editing departments that was normal. You didn't open a studio unless you could put together the full complement of talents and equipment. 

Today many studios maintain small staffs, free-lance out much of the artwork and farm out the shooting and editing to services. The norm now is a small studio. Being busy today relates to keeping a group of workers bustling that may be one third the size that studios hired in the recent past. Animation is there, it's just become more rarefied. Looming over this situation is the computer, promising to do everything that hordes of artists used to do by hand yet even better and faster. The important thing to remember is that computers do their own kind of thing and animation when it is at its best cannot be imitated by any other medium. As Jack Zander stated in a quote in the Dougherty article, "The Seven Dwarfs could never have been done on a computer." 

Comparing animation to live action and computer generated images is really like comparing apples, oranges and bananas. Though each one can be designated as fruit you would be gravely disappointed if when upon biting into an apple you perceived the taste of banana. 

All the comparing that we do of advertising techniques misses the point. Each device serves a definite purpose. The guy that rents a blimp to circle the city displaying a message, is reaching an audience that is on the street and not looking at television. 

Animation when used to advertise products can often do things that live actors cannot do or would look silly doing. How sad that so many fine actors are being asked to say so many trite things when they could be used in more believable situations. Animated characters could well be employed to mouth all of the remarks that are constantly being touted on the air extolling this or that product. 

There is a believability in animated characters that cannot be obtained even from a live actor. An actor is a paid performer, a cartoon character like Donald Duck does not have a private life. When he espouses a product, it's direct and pure. 

The sad fact is that too much uncreative animation is just as boring as too much uncreative live action or uncreative computer animation. When something really good comes along it is universally enjoyed. When live action spots are done well and show intelligence there is no touching it with any other technique. When computers perform their complicated, twisting patterns, many of us stand up and take notice, and when animation on television shows something more original than a character simply waving his arms and pointing to a cereal box, then maybe more people will demand animation. Let's face it, boring is boring no matter how it is presented. When an audience is interested they couldn't care less about how the message was delivered. 

Perhaps in the coming year we should all forego the comparison between one technique over another, for the good of all the techniques. Let each of us perfect whatever medium that works best for him. Comparing apples, oranges and bananas can only lead to frustration, and if we're not careful we might just wind up with a bunch of lemons. 

Howard Beckerman - "Animation Can Take It" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 24, Iss. 1, (Jan 7, 1983): 26, 36.

Animation Can Take It

The animation field has had to fend off some pretty tough blows this past year. First is the pressure from the economic situation that caused fewer commercials to be made. Then there was the everpresent reality of work leaving traditional areas to be completed in other cities and other countries. Add to this the competition from recent advances in computer technology and the continued interest in live action filming and you can sense the problems old and new that beset this medium. 

Until the late 60's hardly a year went by that did not witness the starting of several new studios and the growth of some of the already established ones. In the late 50's and early 60's the demands of a field tied to the vagaries of advertising fashions began to wear heavily and studios began to close only to be replaced by spin-offs eager to fight the battle with fresh vigor. By the close of the decade several of the more affluent animation shops, now encumbered by overhead that often included live action facilities, began to tumble. 

In the wake of this misfortune, out of work animators began to open their own little shops to not only scoop up commercial work but to fish among the many educational film deals that were suddenly being proffered by corporations that had decided that they would solve the nation's learning problems. Many of these studios suckled at the breasts of The Children's Television Workshop which in turn was being nourished by healthy grants from the Ford Foundation and the United States Government. 

As the recurring pattern of inflation and recession took its toll on the costs of labor and materials, the grants became smaller and money to the schools became scarcer. The mighty corporate giants that had envisioned themselves as free enterprise crusaders against illiteracy suddenly divested themselves of recently acquired film libraries and teaching machines. 

Studios that had been coasting on the promise of increased productivity, which seemed almost assured in those days of high expectancy in the educational market, either grabbed the opportunity to move into the more lucrative television spot area when the teaching films halted, or simply fell by the wayside. 

Since the early 70's the amount of new studios that do traditional animation began to decline in the New York area. It was in this period that the ascendency of the optical service studios began to be noticed. The tendency to look upon animation as a device to be employed for special effects and for graphic enhancement of commercials and entertainment films suddenly cut into the number of uses that cartoon animation could be put to. The 70's ushered in the demand for spots utilizing heavily animated scenes incorporating rotoscope as well as complicated visual effects that required intricate camera technique often combined with costly optical bench technology. 

The past decade owes its prevailing styles and commercial demands to two inspirational films that appeared in the 1960's. Both "2001, A Space Odyssey" and "The Yellow Submarine" laid the groundwork for many of the commercials that have been produced since then. "The Yellow Submarine" had a profound affect that only began to fade towards the middle of the 70's while the promise of "2001" became more virulent as the development of improved optical printers and the sudden leap to prominence of computer devices for creating graphic displays. 

At the start of the 80's videotape technology, a mode that had seemed to be doomed to the mundane recording of filmed work, suddenly sprang into view as an entirely new form of entertainment. The average television viewer could now decide which programs to watch and when to see them. The stockpiling of television shows and favorite films purchased in stores now proliferating the nation's cities has turned the idea of television viewing into a new aspect that was barely conceivable just a few years ago. 

This same electronic device that allows the home television user to record a favorite show and play it back days and months later, can also be applied to the recording of stop motion images, drawn, painted or modeled. Obviously, with the speedy turnover in electronic engineering developments the next few years will definitely herald systems that will redefine how we prepare and shoot animation. 

Animators surely realize that these are revolutionary times, yet there have been other revolutions in the field that caused anxiety and consternation, yet somehow the business survived. When sound was ushered in just over fifty years ago, it created a scurry for developments that would enable animators. to draw their characters to the strains of music as well as figure out how to make them talk. In the late 40's UPA gushed forth with new styles of animation, and I can remember the confusion that ran through the ranks of animators who were suddenly reinvestigating their design approach after the appearance of the landmark "Gerald McBoing-Boing" film.

Today when queried, people in the field respond with an initial frown denoting the grim aspects of what appears to be a decline in the use of traditional animation. As the conversation develops several factors come to light. It becomes obvious that animation will always be needed to do the many tricks that cannot be done in any other way. The advent of computer and video techniques will become a boon to animators once the new systems begin to merge more readily with the old knowledge, just as it did in the early sound days. Even now animation is being used to explain computer advantages in commercials and informational films. 

With further developments in the direct to video methods of animation, there will be even more cartoon and design graphics being produced to satisfy a new demand for animation that can be accomplished more quickly and on the air sooner. Still, the wide area of video cassettes, videodiscs and the promise of more and more cable outlets will eventually explode in a rush for more and more animation. 

Even now the burgeoning video game market depends on simple animation to supply the images for the electronic gadgetry, who knows what will be in store in years to come as this fledgling field grows and develops. Remember, the movies began as an arcade entertainment which went from kinescopes to theater presentations to television. The arcade games of today may be the new animation/film/dramatic medium of the future. 

What do we do today till the Buck Rogers future arrives? Animators and producers must remember that they are not needed only for the mechanical knowledge that they possess, but for what got them into the field originally, their ability to create fantasy, ideas, cartoons and humorous drawings. For now they may have to turn to other pursuits that can utilize these same talents, but in the future they will be back creating the ideas to augment the new technologies. It will be a great day, because so far I haven't seen any laughs in all the mass of new electronics that surrounds us. 

Howard Beckerman - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 23, Iss. 52, (Dec 24, 1982): 28, 42.

 ". . . I'll have Walter Disney

 Pictures on the wall, 

When my ship comes in."

              Eddie Cantor, "Kid Millions," 1934 

The drawings and paintings that make up an animated film were never meant to be studied individually but instead were intended to be viewed as part of a continuous flow of melding images. Art for the Disney films was usually enhanced with double exposures, camera effects and the illusion of motion which transformed them from bits of paper, paints and cels into pieces of believable time and place. Much of these finely rendered works were discarded with the trash after they had served their purpose, or if they were salvaged at all it was strictly for reference heeds and not for privileged hanging on gallery walls. 

Animation art served the same purpose as magazine illustration or comic strip art. It was made to be reproduced and as soon as it was the artists' handiwork lost its reason for being. In the last few years interest in animation drawings, cels and backgrounds has been growing among collectors much to the surprise of veteran animators, even though they may have clung to favorite sketches themselves for over thirty years. 

Much of the current interest was fired by the vast exhibit at the Whitney Museum last year which under the shepherding of Greg Ford was able to herd thousands of drawings, paintings and photographs into one arena for popular viewing. The public responded enthusiastically, and many individuals returned time and again to peruse samples of Disney studio art; most of which had never been exhibited anywhere before. 

Now, two books have appeared in time for the holiday gift buying season that contain choice examples of graphic works from the Disney archives. "Walt Disney's World of Fantasy" by Adrian Bailey and published by Everest House has been packaged for a general market. Yet inside this collection of Disney family photos, stills from live action films and colorful views of Disneyland, are some fine reproductions of drawings and pain-tings that were the underpinnings of the animated films. 

The book is designed so that the reader can happily glide through the text and keep turning pages to find new delights on each subsequent leaf. Adrian Bailey has detailed the now familiar life and times of Walt Disney and has attempted to add a bit of balance to a story that has often included only the bright side and ignored failures and critical put downs. Yet the text rarely strays from the accounting of Disnev triumphs even as it is expressing some of the negative aspects of more than fifty years of efforts from the Disney organization. 

For instance, one reference explains that the film Pinocchio was not as charming as its predecessor, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and that it did not follow Collodi's original story very closely, yet on the following page the film's integrity is rescued when the author observes that, "Pinocchio is a film that is at times almost surreal, and in this respect takes its cue from the fantasy of the original." 

Bailey also takes a stab at explaining the personality of Disney, and as he attempts to pull together the opinions of those who met Walt on a daily basis the reader will not get any negative impression of the Master of Burbank, because this book is weighed heavily in the direction of extolling the genius of the man whose fortunes it follows. 

"Walt Disney's World of Fantasy" contains several previously unpublished photographs of Walt and his surroundings that should appeal to the fans and followers of the creator of Mickey Mouse, but the high point of the work is the sketches and animation drawings scattered throughout. 

Many prominent artists that visited the Disney workshop over the years expressed their wonder at the strength of the drawings as against the slickly finished colored cels that became the final film. It is rare then to see a collection of art that was only preliminary acts to the big show. Yet much of the sketches and inspirational paintings are worth close scrutiny and appreciation. Curiously, all of this work was accomplished by artists who had little interest in their daily doings as real art. 

Happily the author refers to several of Disney's best artists by name a welcome practice that has begun to usurp the earlier anonymity that shrouded the hundreds of practitioners of the art that toiled in the fields of animation. 

Disney himself had little truck with the presumptions of art and was strictly concerned with the entertainment values of his films. Though he surrounded himself with the best animation artists in the business, Walt was always looking toward the final screen result. A new book now contains examples of the art that made up the foundation of these films. Entitled: Treasures of Disney Animation Art" and unlike "Walt Disney's World of Fantasy", it has been solely designed as an art publication in the manner of hooks that extoll the work of Picasso or Rembrandt. 

This volume with a preface by publisher Robert Abrams and a lengthy introduction written by John Canemaker is an impressive 12" by 51/2" bulk that is intended to approximate the size of the original art as closely as possible. Contained in this volume are samples of layout sketches, parts of animation sequences, background renderings chalk techniques, an approach once popular in cartoon studios and ad agencies, but that has now been usurped by felt markers. The many pastel and chalk drawings in the collection reveal the excitement of shaded hues on deep colored papers an effect out of the realm of even the most brilliant felt markers. 

Wherever possible the artists' names are mentioned along with the samples of art which fills this 320 page work. The numerous references to, "Artist unknown", attests to the problem of finding out who did what in the short history of animation. 

An interesting point to note is that this vast volume contains no drawings by Disney himself. You would have to turn to "Walt Disney's World of Fantasy to find a sampling of early art done by Walt. In the introduction, John Canemaker filmmaker and animation historian tells of the studio's attempt to improve the product and points out the pattern of change that took place from the early simple Mickey Mouse cartoons to the more complex demands made on the artists to produce films such as a Dumbo or Fantasia. 

While these books are not cheap, "Walt Disney's World of Fantasy" is just under $40.00 and "Treasures of Disney Animated Art" retails for $85.00 they offer a chance to own reproductions of animation drawings and paintings that are not readily available for scrutiny and study. 

Howard Beckerman - " The Art of Frederic Back" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 23, Iss. 51, (Dec 17, 1982): 24, 49.

 The Art of Frederic Back

It is important that I tell you about the films of Frederic Back. Working' through the auspices of A Radio Canada, The CBC French Services division, Back has created a world of animated stories that should be seen and studied by anyone engaged in the production of frame-by-frame images. 

In a program of selections of animated films that included the work of Francine Leger and Paul Driessen from A Radio Canada at this month's meeting of ASIFA-East, there were three selections of Back's work. His films have a distinctive soft quality, derived from the use of colored pencils on frosted acetate and the delicate appeal of his characters. Yet this softness packs a sturdy wallop. 

The selections included, Illusion, an 11-minute film, Tout Rien (Everything Nothing), 81/2 minutes and Crac, 15 minutes. Back's films have won numerous awards in international competitions and the latter film, Crac, received the Academy Award this year. Crac tells the tale of a rocking chair, built a century ago, which is then passed down from generation to generation. At last it ends up in a modern museum as the museum guard's comfortable spot to rest. Among all of the ultra modern art displayed on the walls, the small children that visit the gallery find the rocking chair the most wonderful object. At night while the guard makes his rounds, the chair calls up images of its past life. We see the scenes that comprised the earlier part of the film, scenes of country folk working and celebrating to the strains of fiddles and stomping musicians. These images merge with the avant garde cubistic and abstract museum paintings, bringing the whole pageant of the old and the new together. As the museum guard passes by the images fade and the chair comes to rest. 

Tout Rien is a story about Adam and Eve and their annoyance with their Creator who has not given them the adornment that other animals possess. They request that they be covered with fur as bears are. This fails to satisfy them when they find that they become too warm wearing fur, so they request feathers. They are also disappointed in that arrangement. At last, having exhausted their demands to become as bears, birds, monkeys or fish, they slink away, and they contrive to dress themselves in the varied coverings of these beasts. So begins the slaying of animals for their feathers and hides. 

Adorned with a bit of every animal we see the image of primitive man plundering the species around him. The spear pierces each one of them and finally, adorned from head to toe with the trappings of birds and mammals, wearing shark's teeth necklaces, the spear pierces the image of God in a pagan ritual. With humor and a lightness of touch that is almost startling compared to current styles of animation, Back manages to drive home the point of our relationship to the environment. Most important, as in all of Back's films, he tells us about ourselves. 

Animation at CBC French Services is divided between nine animators. Back designs and animated his film almost entirely himself with the aid of other CBC artists when necessary. In a time when we expect to see animation that contains strong attitudes toward disarmament, world peace and concern for the ecology to emanate from the hand of an exuberant recent film school graduate, it is a delight to find that these images of regard for the human condition made with exceptional artistic ability created by a man of mature years. 

Frederic Back was a young artist and illustrator in France during World War II and emigrated to Montreal in the late 1940's. He became a teacher at an art academy and continued working as an illustrator. Along the way he began doing animation and gradually it grew to a fulltime obsession. 

In 1977 Executive Producer Hubert Tisson coordinated the formation of a team of creative people to enliven the already operational animation department of CBC French Services. Back became an integral part of this department and surrounded by other creative people, they jointly produced hundreds of opening titles and promotional films as well as 10 animated shorts. Their work is exhibited in many ways. Primarily made for Canadian consumption on television or in theatres, the films are traded internationally with other countries and find their way to prestigious international film festivals. 

There is a lesson to be learned from viewing the animated ideas of Frederic Back. These shorts, with their warm and gently humorous portrayal of children and animals, combined with well integrated musical tracks and excellent pacing, offer a contrast to much of the mechanical animation that pervades shows for children as well as the harsh, hard-edged look that American commercials have come to embody. 

Children's programming should have the diversity of visual design that is apparent in the best books for their age level and advertisers might benefit from portraying their products in a more humane style rather than with the slick and heavy handed techniques that confront us at every twist of the dial. More necessary than style is one factor that reveals itself in every frame of Frederic Back's work. It is something worth striving for: good taste. 

New Animation Publication 

Harvey Deneroff, in Los Angeles, informs us that Grafitti, the ASIFA Hollywood newsletter is to be turned into a quarterly magazine. The publication, which may go through a name change, will feature articles bout animation for professionals in the field, and hopes to pick up readership from the thousands of interested non-animators throughout the country. It is termed "a sort of American Cinematographer for animators" by Deneroff. Currently he is soliciting articles and illustrations for the first issue. A publication date will be announced shortly. 

Anyone wishing to participate in this venture and to contribute articles should contact Deneroff at 23121/2 Scarff Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007. The phone number of ASIFA-Hollywood is (213) 466-0341. 

Howard Beckerman - "Comings and Goings" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage; New York Vol. 23, Iss. 50, (Dec 10, 1982): 26-27.

 Comings and Goings

Animation is noticeably in the news these days. The holiday season, heralding the openings of features and television specials, is one reason for this attention. On November 19th three animated features opened in New York, an unusual event in itself. 

It must have come as a shock to the producers of the feature length films, each of which began production on different dates and each with the hope of exclusivity upon opening. It would seem that being the only animated feature at this season would have a certain advantage at the box office. One of the films, "Heidi's Song," an offering from the television production organization, Hanna-Barbera, had been in production for a good many years and was scheduled to premiere months ago, yet here it was making its long awaited debut at the same moment with Rankin and Bass', "The Last Unicorn" and Friz Freleng's "1001 Rabbit Tales," featuring Bugs Bunny. 

It must have been interesting for the local critics, who are generally a bit awkward in their assessment of animation, to have to run around from theater to theater to view each of the new movies. Can't you just see the critics at the Times, who normally spend their days ogling Bergman, Kurosawa and Fellini, to decide who will review which cartoon production? 

Even more surprising than the fact of the simultaneous premieres was the reality that none of the offerings were from the Disney Studio. The Disney boys however had beaten Messers. Rankin, Bass, Hanna, Barbera and Freleng to the punch with the rerelease of the 1940 classic, "Fantasia," featuring a newly recorded Dolby soundtrack. "Fantasia," as you may recall, was the first theatrical film to incorporate stereophonic sound when it was initially released. In fact there were much more than just two speakers to deliver the music to the audience, but several theaters in key cities had been accommodated to reproduce "Fantasia's" nine separate tracks (reduced to three for projection) so that sounds would appear to emanate from various points in the theater. It was called Fantasound in 1940 and it was a bold and costly innovation at that time. 

Now the producers have yanked the film back into the studio and rerecorded the tracks for the purpose of obtaining the ear tingling resonances that seem to be required for today's "Walkman" generation. Also on the chopping block went the scenes featuring music critic and composer, Deems Taylor, who introduces each of the film's concert portions. His tuxedoed figure has been replaced with a voice over narrator mouthing the same dialogue. It all seems like a lot of effort for nothing, unless a younger generation will appreciate the souped up sound reverberations without any knowledge of the historical aspects of this film. I have a sneaking suspicion that the Disney people have been chafing for almost 40 years over the Warner Brother's send up of this feature in their short subject, "Corny Concerto" which included Elmer Fudd portraying Deems Taylor in caricature complete with white tie, tails and Taylor's characteristic mannerisms. With the updated "Fantasia" track, the Disney organization not only has a new chance at the box office but they also can create confusion for the new audiences who see the Warner's short and wonder why Elmer Fudd looks the way he does. 

Mighty Mouse Honored

While all of this hullabaloo was going on at neighborhood movie houses, the library in New Rochelle was quietly making history by exhibiting the art and memorabilia of the Terry-Toon years. Paul Terry's studio had been situated in this community just 45 minutes from Broadway, from about 1934 till the late '60's. The exhibit, that had originally been mounted in April of this year and was accompanied by seminars and a dinner dance, was rehung to celebrate the completion of a sculpture depicting Mighty Mouse and Heckle and Jeckle soaring through the air. The work was specifically commissioned to be displayed permanently on the library site. 

The figures, accompanied by a plaque honors the talents of Paul Terry and all of the hundreds of artists and technicians that were employed at the studio over the years, was sculpted by Michael Lantz, a well known artist from New Rochelle. Lantz is the brother of cartoon producer Walter Lantz who for 60 years has been creating animated films, most notably those featuring Andy Panda and Woody Woodpecker. 

The exhibit and the commemorative sculpture is sponsored by the New Rochelle Council on the Arts. Much of the effort to bring the idea and its reality to New Rochelle was due to the persistence of Diane and Eli Bauer, Doug Crane and Thea Eichler. The unveiling of the Mighty Mouse sculpture was attended by New Rochelle's mayor, Leonard Paduano, Paul Terry's daughter, Pat Leahy, Arts Council members as well as former Terry-Toon employees. Smiling for the cameras were animation artists Doug Crane, Eli Bauer, Marty Taras, Al Kouzel, Doug Moye and myself. 

Hugh Harman

This past week, newspapers carried the obituary of Hugh Harman, who working with Rudolph Ising, was responsible for the inauguration of both the Warner Brothers and the MGM cartoon departments. Harman, Ising and several other young artists began began making cartoons with Walt Disney in Kansas City shortly after World War I. When Disney set up shop in Hollywood, Harman and some of the others were sent for to help produce the Alice in Cartoonland series that Disney and his brother Roy had managed to get distribution for. By the end of the decade they were all pitching in on a new series, Oswald The Lucky Rabbit, which had supplanted the Alice cartoons. At this time Harman, Ising and Friz Freleng, another of the Kansas group left to work with Charles Mintz, Disney's distributor, who undertook to do the Oswald cartoons on his own using most of Disney's best animators. The major reason they left was due to Disney's interest in his own career and lack of concern for the contributions of those in his employ, Harman once told interviewer Mike Barrier.

Harman eventually became partners with Rudolph Ising and the two gained distribution for their character, Bosko The Talk-Ink kid. The arrival of sound films not only effected the name of the series but the studio name as well. In deference to the wonders of science that had rendered films lyrical, the partners chose the euphonious title, Harmon-Ising to hang over their studio door. 

Though none of their characters achieved the fame that accompanied those from other studios, Harmon-Ising were the only producers whose technical expertise matched the look of the Disney product. In fact during the '30's the Disney organization, in an effort to meet their quota, farmed out a Silly Symphony to Harman-Ising since they were the only ones that could duplicate the Disney style and flair. 

It would take a research genius to discover any articles written exclusively about Hugh Harman. Most of the world's animation information tends to illuminate the doings of Walt Disney. In fact there were probably more lines written about Harman's brother Fred who drew the Red Ryder comic strip for many years. Still the passing of Hugh Harman is an important note in the history of animation, a medium that he was closely connected with all his life and to which he had, though often unrecognized, a profound effect. 

Howard Beckerman - "Onward and Upward" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage (Archive: 1960-2000); New York Vol. 23, Iss. 49, (Dec 3, 1982): 42.

 Onward and Upward

When things get slow in the animation business, the harrassed studio owner looks to whatever available means there is to bring work into the shop. Naturally, advertising is one of the ideas that looms as the surest way to bring attention to you and your work. So the question arises, have you ever considered doing your own television commercial? 

All those years that you have been creating 30-and 60-second spots that lavishly praise this toothpaste or that deodorant, you never once made a spot telling the world about what a great studio you have. Just think of it, your own commercial. But what would you say? It would have to be something to the point, something significant and at least as good as the slogans that go with the nation's top consumer goods. 

You could say that "Animation's The Real Thing," or you could invite people to become part of "The Animation Generation," except that you would have problems explaining it to Coke and Pepsi. The answer is to hire a copywriter. 

Now with a copywriter creating a knockout slogan, you can move onto the visuals. Since that's what you have been doing for all of those national advertisers, it should be easy to figure out some snappy logo or character that will extol what it is you do. Then you realize that your own design style is hopelessly dated, so you do the only natural thing. You hire a designer to develop the theme that the copywriter has been diligently working on. 

Then you hire an assistant copywriter and you make the designer the art director and then hire an assistant art director. Now, while the chief copywriter and the head art director are having important meetings, the assistants can develop the ideas to enhance your commercial. 

While all of this is going on you decide to check out the marketplace so you contact the various television networks to see what sort of time buy would be set to your spot. Since there is so much to learn about so many stations you find it beneficial to hire a time buying specialist to decide on all of the pertinent information. This is smart because it leaves you time to get the animation ready for the commercial. That is if you can get into the meetings that are now going on between the head art director, the chief copywriter, the assistant art director and the assistant copywriter. 

Eventually, the time buyer brings in a young assistant to help with the load, and they join in the meetings with all of the other department heads and assistants. Since you have a small studio with inadequate conference space, the meetings move to a convenient-restaurant across town where the food is good but the service is slow. 

Meanwhile, you are all alone at your desk eating a cottage cheese sandwich which you brought from home. Feeling left out, you hire a secretary to answer the phones and you begin attending these lunchtime meetings. 

At one of the meetings, it is decided that it would be more beneficial to have the studio situated closer to the advertising business, since so many decisions on the proposed commercial relate to that field. The next day you begin the necessary negotiations to move your desks and materials to Madison Avenue. 

Once settled, you can't get over how fine your new place looks. The secretary, who has by now hired a receptionist, has an office for herself. She's using a new copying machine to duplicate the storyboard. Most of the copies are for your new legal department, four lawyers who will determine if your commercial will get past the FCC, FTC, the NAACP and the B'nai B'rith.

At last the fateful day arrives; the storyboard is complete. You are aghast at what has been agreed on by your entire staff, including the new office boy who had always wanted to get into films. They have voted unanimously that the spot should be done in live action! 

Your first thought is to fire the whole lot of them, but then you have second thoughts. You look around and realize that you are now no longer an animation studio. Instead, you have become an advertising agency. 

So you gather your crew together and explain that now you are an advertising agency. You tell them you are going to sell the storyboard to another animation company and then begin soliciting work from national advertisers. It is unanimously decided to have a high level meeting on the subject, after lunch, of course, at a restaurant across town where the food is good and the service is slow. 

Howard Beckerman - "The Little Red Hen" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage (Archive: 1960-2000); New York Vol. 23, Iss. 48, (Nov 26, 1982): 20.

 The Little Red Hen

Several years ago I worked for a studio which, during slow periods, would put the help onto a short film of their own called "The Little Red Hen." The hope was that when the production was completed it would be shown in theatres. As far as I know, neither of those events ever took place. Eventually we all moved on to other desks at other studios where there where other down time films on the shelves. No matter what the title of these productions, we always referred to them as, "The Little Red Hen." 

Now the possibility of getting a short subject into a theatre has ceased to be a desirable reality, studios still carry the glint of an idea that can be turned into a short subject for some form of distribution. The battle cry has changed from theatre release to cable release, which sounds like the little device that photographers use to trip camera shutters. 

More often than actual distribution, a film finds its way to one of the international festivals where it can bump up against similar productions from all over the globe and jockey for prizes and recognition. Once a film is screened at such an event it may tickle the interest of distributors who whisk it off to be enshrined in their catalogues for dissemination to schools, television stations and various and sundry organizations. 

Charles Samu is one of the people who is tickled at seeing animation films that can be shown in all of these areas. Presently he is with Home Box Office where his concern is to satisfy the voracious needs of a large cable network and so he spends his days looking at endless reels of "Little Red Hens." Just a few short days ago Samu returned from Lucca, Italy, where as a distinguished guest, he proudly presented three 90 minute shows of American animation for the enlightment of gathered cartoonists and filmmakers. Lucca has hosted a comics exhibit and festival for the past 15 years. Part of the event is set aside to pay respects to animated films along with the preponderant display and discussion of the world's best comic art. 

The Italian animators had just recently formed their own chapter of ASIFA, the international animation organization, and were happy to be able to see the works of the American studios and independent artists. Max Massinino Garnier, a distinguished Italian animator was the host for the animation segment of the Lucca conference. Gamier has been active in the field for a good many years and was nominated for an Academy Award last year for his film "Dedalo." 

The audience at Samu's showings were very interested in the films that he presented representing East Coast American animation. Most people in other parts of the world think only of the Hollywood product, or what they imagine to be of California origin when thinking of animated films. Also they were surprised to learn of how many women were directors of animation, either on their own personal productions or for commercial studios. In Europe women are not yet working in the area of creative control of animation as is the case here on the East coast. Some of the works of Faith Hubley, Kathy Rose, Candy Kugel and Emily Hubley, were shown as examples of East coast independent production along with the films of Eli Noyes, George Griffin and John Canemaker. 

The second surprise for the European filmmakers was that the American independents very often did commercial production and were not solely working on personal efforts. One of the advantages of international festivals is that they help to destroy the myths that we all harbor about the realities of production in each country. For us it is a surprise that European commercials are very often so soft sell and for the animators over there it is interesting to learn that there are commercial studios that have a "Little Red Hen" on the shelf while the guys who spend most of their time creating "Little Red Hens" are out looking for commercials. 

After the event at Lucca, Samu visited Turin and Genoa where he showed the films to other audiences. He found that the cartoonists and animators in Italy were quite interested in our underground cartoonists, the proponents of a design genre often overlooked by the slick school that pervades our own advertising. Samu mentioned that the Lucca conference is sponsored by the town government and was one of the few nods that animation gets from an administration that prefers to back other forms of art and entertainment. Though there are many animators in the country and there is commercial production, animation gets short shift. One ironic incident occurred the day that a group of college students gathered to protest the conference because they felt that the government was misspending money on trivial cartoons while more important needs were not being met. This must have come as a shock to a lot of gray haired cartoonists at the Lucca event, who thought all the time that they were drawing their pictures for the kind of people who were now massed outside the hall yelling curses at them. I always appreciate having Charles Samu share his experiences with me, as he gets to see many of the events that I can't cover. Charles gets to travel, while I must remain here to complete commercials, informational films and oh yes, "The Little Red Hen." 

Howard Beckerman - "Runaway Production" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage (Archive: 1960-2000); New York Vol. 23, Iss. 47, (Nov 19, 1982): 34.

 Runaway Production

A few short weeks ago, striking animators went back to their drawing boards in Los Angeles. At least some of them did. Others who had joined the picket lines found they were not needed. It seems that the main purpose of the union action was to gain acceptance of a clause in their contracts, with producers of animated television entertainment films to limit runaway production but during the course of the strike some of these producers completed their network obligations overseas. This ironic twist has caused much unhappiness in a field that has already been jeopardized by demands for programs to be completed on shorter deadlines resulting in expanded layoff time between seasons. 

One studio, Hanna-Barbera, which is a subsidiary of the Taft Broadcasting company, has attempted to maintain a staff throughout the years by putting theatrical features into production. One such effort, "Heidi's Song" will open during the coming holiday season, and another film, "Rock Odyssey" is being animated currently. Both films are fully animated, a departure from that studios traditional limited movement techniques employed to satisfy the huge footage demands of television. In fact one animator reports that the latter production is the heaviest animation he has ever had to contend with in a career that extends more than 30 years. All this production, no matter how complex, will not satisfy the job needs of the approximately 1600 animation workers in the Los Angeles area. 

One woman who will not be returning to studio work after the strike and who is still annoyed at the producer's insistence on overseas productions, is studying to be a nurse. "I doubt they will be sending bedpans to Taiwan," she jokes. 

A great deal of work has been sent to studios in Australia, Korea and Taiwan. The recent Disney film, "Tron," was made almost completely outside of the home studio. While much of the special effects work was done in California and New York, other aspects of the production employed scores of artists in Taiwan as was indicated by the many Chinese names listed in the film's credits. 

Sending work overseas is obviously an attempt to get cartoons done at cheaper rates than are paid American animators. Perhaps the only way the strike could have been effective would have been if related television technicians refused to project American productions made overseas. 

There is a bright side to this situation. Look what the Japanese have accomplished by adopting American business practices. They have become so successful that we look to them for guidance. I always thought that if it were possible we should have given them the transistor in 1938 and thereby avoided World War II. 

The Japanese have succeeded because they not only manufacture good products at reasonable prices, but they have the vast American nation, the largest consumer country in the world to purchase their output. Unfortunately some of our own industry is suffering because of this competition, but there is a possible solution to the problem. 

Japan now wealthy and prosperous must give us a helping hand. They should have us do their Saturday morning animation. We could be the recipients of RRP, Reverse Runaway Production. We gave them the transistor they should give us Speed Racer. 

We could throw all of our knowhow into the breach. We wouldn't have to worry about unemployment in Detroit, we'll continue to buy Toyotas and Datsuns and simply put all of our auto workers into the animation business. 

Working together in the good old fashioned American way, we will become the masters of Kung Fu and Samurai pictures. If this plan sours there is an alternate solution. As long as producers are sending animation overseas, why not give the Russians a chance to join the interchange. I always figured that if Russians were able to sell something in the American marketplace, they could become as successful as the Japanese and the West Germans, and they wouldn't have to worry about what happens in Poland and places like that. I suggest we give the Russians our television commercials to animate. It would be a lift for the stagnant Soviet economy and might create a renewed interest in commercials for a jaded American public. What television viewer would not perk up upon hearing those timeless advertising slogans given a new life. For American Express there would be, "Don't defect without it!," Eastern Airlines advertising department might wince at, "The Wings of Marx" but it might get recognition when placed adjacent to "The Detente Skies of United." Burger King could gain strength by the insistence of, "Have It Our Way!" I suppose the Telephone Company would feel a bit uncomfortable to see a Soviet tank turning the corner of a Warsaw street with the slogan, "Reach Out And Touch Someone" scrawled on its side, but just think how helpful it would be to have all of that military might on their side when they approach the Public Service Commission for an increase in phone rates. 

Much of what I have proposed will probably be rejected by experts who refer to economies as the "dismal science." I'm sure we can come to some meeting of the minds once the experts admit that economics is no science, and, as you can see, it doesn't by necessity have to be dismal. 

Howard Beckerman - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage (Archive: 1960-2000); New York Vol. 23, Iss. 46, (Nov 12, 1982): 37, 46.

Once several years ago when the commercial field was in one of its periodic slumps, I found my way to a desk at the Norcross greeting card company where instead of animating for television I was designing funny messages that said Happy Birthday. The experience was enlightening in the way many unexpected events in our lives are. I met some very fine artists and found that I had enough versatility to perform in an area that I had never worked in before. Best of all I learned a few things about what novelties the American public was willing to plunk down hard earned cash for. 

Though the company was quite aware of its formidable competition, it was at that time the third largest greeting card producer after Hallmark and American Greetings, the powers that controlled the creative output did not always admit to the superiority of much of the competitions' line of greetings. One day while browsing through a card shop, I came across a beautifully designed calendar created by the Hallmark people. Though it was only September, I plunked down a big $1.85 for it. Today when large, oversized illustrated calendars are commonplace and sell for $5.00 and more, the calendar that I selected that day was an early attempt at exploring the market. 

When I arrived back at the Norcross studios I happily showed the calendar around. "Who would spend $1.85 for a calendar?" asked the head of the department. "I did," I said. The calendar was whisked away to be shown to several writers and art directors with the promise that it would be returned shortly. The next day came and my calendar was not only still unreturned, it was unable to be found. The company offered to pay for a new one. 

I quickly raced back to the store where the day before the calendar had made its debut. There were none left, and it was only September. Back at Norcross, people were still walking around saying, "Who would spend $1.85 for a calendar?" "Everybody," I replied, calendarless. 

I was reminded of this incident this past week upon reading of the death of Joyce Hall, founder of Hallmark Cards, the company that had made my calendar. 

In the years since I worked at Norcross, their competitor had diversified not only into calendars but into many other adventurous areas of the publishing and card related business. Norcross on the other hand was acquired by another company and eventually moved from its sprawling Madison Avenue offices to a small town in Pennsylvania, and after some struggles with a changing field, this long established company reduced its production earlier this year. 

The obituary for Hallmark's founder and guiding hand, in the New York Times, mentioned Joyce Halls, attitude toward the television program that his company sponsored for many years. The Hallmark Hall of Fame was a prestigious show bringing solid dramatic productions to the television screens as every important holiday took its turn in the year. In comparison with much of what appears on the tube, these shows were tasteful and thoughtfully produced. "I'm not a philanthropist in the matter of culture," the Times said in a quote from Hall, "but I feel that good television is good business." 

There has to be some food for thought in a statement about our field made by someone as successful as Hall who used television to sell his wares while enriching the medium that made it possible. I use the comparison between the two companies not to show that one is more successful than the other, certainly Norcross, served the public well for several decades, but it is interesting to observe that without taking risks and playing it safe can lead to stagnation, a condition that oftentimes occurs in our own industry. 

Advertisers assume that if a program is popular it will lead to greater sales of the sponsored product which I'm sure is easy to check. One of the humorous sidelights of The Hallmark Hall of Fame is that their competitor, Norcross would receive glowing letters complementing them on their fine program from little old ladies who assumed that Hallmark and Norcross were all one big happy company. While product identification is always a problem for an advertisers, producing a quality show that helps a whole industry image is still a worthwhile result. 

One of the areas where Joyce Hall's attitude toward quality programming to encourage sales should be considered, is certainly animation for television. Animated films are a form of popular culture and in our society all culture, low or high has to compete in the marketplace. Creating programs that have value, not only in the commercial sense, but in the idea that they will enrich peoples lives, could bring dividends that goes beyond the original intent. Not only did the Hallmark people find this out, but so did Walt Disney who managed to build a library of movies and programs that are still ringing cash registers, while they entertain ad enlighten audiences year after year. Thinking of the long haul in the creation of television programming, especially for the young, makes sense. 

The fabulous success of the Hallmark company in its own area as well as the television medium should be enough of art incentive for us to heed Joyce Hall's words. "Good television is good business." 

Howard Beckerman - "Animation and Corporate Video" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage (Archive: 1960-2000); New York Vol. 23, Iss. 45, (Nov 5, 1982): 38, 40.

 Animation and Corporate Video

Corporations are now involved in video production on a scale greater than ever before. Where as in the past many large organizations may have had some filmmaking capabilities within the plant, they depended mainly on independent film companies for most of their important communication needs. Today the entire picture is changing. Corporations of various sizes now boast video equipment in greater amount than the average film studio may have had invested in 16mm paraphernalia.

Although there is still a demand for the talents and expertise of the independent film production house, the advent of video technology and the many ways this medium can be incorporated into the structure of large business firms has changed the face of the industrial film production field. 

Each corporation uses the new technology in a manner suited to the nature and needs of their business and communication requirements. After looking over the facilities of a few representative organizations one thing became apparent. Though companies may be heavily equipped with all of the latest video or computer technology, they still find it necessary to go outside their own cozy halls when they need specialized talents. 

A corporation may often use their own people as performers, but for best effect they turn to professional actors to deliver the important messages. It might be sufficient to point a video camera out the window of the 24th floor to get a passable aerial view of the city, but when they want the total effect they'll contact a firm that rents helicopters for the real thing, and when they find that no amount of electronic gadgetry can deliver lip-sync animation, they seek out a firm that can create the necessary components. Animators can take heart that there are still many times when their specific knowledge is in demand. 

Recently I visited some of the corporate firms that have embraced the new technology and are actively producing programs for their organizations. I've chosen three of them as examples of the various ways that video is being used in industry today. One of the companies is a major oil corporation, the other a large publisher and the last a key New York banking institution, I will not refer to them by their names as it was explained to me more than once that certain powers that be, stockholders or whomever, may resent the fact that money is being spent on electronic materials at a time when the economy is depressed. Actually this fear may be unfounded, as all large businesses must use some means of communicating, informing or instructing its employees and affiliates and no matter which form this need takes, whether through print matter, film, video or just telephone calls, it all adds up to considerably cost with the only profit being better informed personnel. 

The particular oil company that I visited has a great deal of capability in the production of video programs. They have a suitable stage for taping interviews or enactments of company related themes and of course they have all the necessary cassette machines for editing and making audio and video dupes as they require. The setup looked like an arrangement that one might encounter at a small well equipped video station complete with video camera, dollies, zoom lenses and mixing panel. 

At the other extreme was the bank that had recently incorporated video as a tool to keep this institutions affiliates up to day with the goings on in their New York office. Working primarily with 3/4 " and 1/2" cassettes, this company produces informative material based on meetings and executive talks that can be duplicated in-house on the several cassette machines available. These cassettes, weighing a few ounces each can then be mailed or whizzed off by jet courier to may parts of the globe. 

The publishing house, a firm that had always produced films as well as print materials now includes an increased number of video cassette programs for business and school instruction. Their new video facilities have now replaced all of their former film related equipment and they have a studio that can produce professional quality 1" tape programs for sale or for in-house communications. 

The added advantage to each of these firms in the ready ability to create a video tape that can explain the intricacies of a new method or system or to increase employee morale through a personal message from the chief executive should not be underestimated. 

For a filmmaker to encounter the diversity that now exists at these firms is sometimes a bit unsettling. The ease with which some of these organizations can knock out a meaningful cassette without the hassle of film production can cast a pall over any film producers' aspirations. 

Actually there are many areas where the skilled filmmaker can assist these companies. There is still a need for films that are of professional quality for the times when the large corporation must appeal to the interests of the lay public who will be receiving their message in a theater, on network television or in a school auditorium. 

For the animator the case is not so bleak. Their services are always in need no matter what the method of reproduction, film video or computer. The bank for instance commissioned a film last year, totally in animation, to explain the complexities of their newly installed telephone system to its vast array of employees.

The publishing house produced a film on sex education for junior high school students that included diagrammatic scenes that could only be accomplished with animated art. The oil company, used animation in a presentation to explain its employee benefits system, an assignment that could have been accomplished with live video but because the cassettes were to be sent to countries around the globe, animated characters softened the images of the personnel pictured for all of the various races and nationalities that would be viewing the finished product. 

Animation cannot be dismissed as a medium for delivering information when it cannot be displayed in any other fashion. The very fact that it is drawn and delineated by not just one artist but many artists is a guarantee that it will generally look fresh and different. When the situations arise, and they do quite often, the corporate communicators must reach outside their own resources to gain the necessary elements that can only be accomplished by animation. Animators on the other hand now have to set their sights on the corporate areas that are heavily involved in producing their own films and graphics and show in the best way they can how the art that is made one frame at a time can solve special problems.

Howard Beckerman - "Animation Is a Real Thing" - "Animation Spot" - Back Stage (Archive: 1960-2000); New York Vol. 23, Iss. 44, (Oct 29, 1982): 28.

Animation Is a Real Thing 

With all of the various techniques jockeying for center stage these days, many users of visual media may have forgotten the strength and appeal that animation has for most audiences. In a society that relies heavily on the casual reproduction of everything from printed matter to video copies of classic films, it is with great difficulty that we can recall the glow of the original object.

There are certain things in our world that are obviously the real thing, while others are not. The Statue of Liberty is certainly a real thing while the little three inch figurines that are carried home by tourists are far from the real thing. Marilyn Monroe was a reality but the pin-up photos of her that remain are only a fantasy. 

A print of a painting that appears in a magazine is not the real thing, nor is a movie or a videotape of the painting the real thing. The painting hanging in the museum, that's the real thing.

 Stage Is Real

The actor that struts across the film or video screen, is merely a shadow, an interpretation of reality. The stage performer is the real thing, although there are those that are cynical enough to say that the player you bump into at the drugstore wearing jeans and a two day growth of beard is really and truly the real thing. Animation is the real thing because for it to exist at ail it must be recorded in some manner, and then played back. This goes for all of the earlier forms of animation such as the zoetrope and flipbook and other 19th century scientific toys. Those are most assuredly the real thing, but their brevity keeps them in too primitive a state to be greatly effective.

There is a great deal of animation that is less than the real thing, though. Saturday morning television, unfortunately, is more like radio than something intended to be viewed. So much do the stories depend on recorded dialogue, and sound effects while the animation limps along with stilted use of stereotyped characters that the child viewer is short changed. Any animation that does not offer the possibility of all the magic it can bestow on children is certainly less than the real thing. Popeye and Bluto wrestling, Mickey Mouse being overwhelmed by water in the Sorcerer's Apprentice or Gerald McBoing-Boing walking to school are the real thing. These examples are certainly not live action or computer generated. Live filming and computer animation are real things in themselves. Each is a separate medium that requires individual design approaches. Misusing them only leads to watered down productions that are unsatisfying because they lack the substance of the real thing. 

Animation Offers Control 

Tracing live motion pictures (rotoscoping) to create animation is not real animation, just as simulating a computer look using traditional animation is not real computer animation. Animation as a medium offers a control of elements that cannot be obtained any other way. Dressing an actor in a costume and heavy makeup to look like Popeye or Mickey Mouse is certainly missing the point of what animation is about. The real Popeye is not Robin Williams but the cartoon versions of the comic strip character done by Max Fleischer's Studio in the 30's are the true Popeyes. The Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck impersonators at Disney World are skillful impersonators of characters that have only existed in animation. No matter how good the actors, we still know that the real thing is the animated original.

It's okay to put Christopher Reeve in a Superman suit and say that he is the Man of Steel, because in this case the characters are imitating real life to a great degree, but the real Orphan Annie is neither a character that can be reproduced live or animated for best effect. The real Annie is the one in the comic strip with the blank eyes, the never changing red dress and the wisdom of a college professor. 

Animation in its purest state relates to the world of imagination. Why is it that television commercials use so little fantasy in their treatments? Fantasy is not only images moving against a star field, as might be expected from the constant graphics appearing at every twist of the tv dial. It is also clever use of imagery that can only come from artists' brains. Years ago it was natural for agencies to approach production houses for designs and storyboards for animated spots. It's been a long time since animators have been asked to create selling ideas on a regular basis, and a return to such a practice could well uncork commercials that would find appeal among viewers who are surfeit with repetitive live and animated images.

Once it becomes a habit again to think of animation as a medium of substance, a medium that can be molded and shaped in any form that the mind can devise, then the excitement of the form will be appreciated. Several years ago the master animator Grim Natwick, responsible for the creation of Betty Boop and for most of the animation of the Snow White character in the landmark Disney feature, was asked what he thought of animation. Natwick whose expertise had also embellished many short subjects as well as prominent television commercials responded with, "Animation is animation." A simple reply, yet a whole lot to ponder upon.

 

Mighty Mouse Sculpture 

An exhibit of original art, photos and memorabilia, related to the Terry-Toon Studio, will be displayed at the New Rochelle Public Library, starting November 13. The library on Lawton Street is not far from the center of town where Paul Terry's cartoon studio flourished for over 30 years. The exhibit commemorating the association of the studio with the city of New Rochelle had originally been displayed earlier this year, and is once more being placed on view for the public.

This time around there will be added a sculptured work depicting Mighty Mouse in full flight as a lasting remembrance to the fact that the popular character was created in New Rochelle. The sculptor Michael Lantz, a native and resident of the town and also the younger brother of Hollywood cartoon producer, Walter Lantz, fashioned the work from Terry-Toon model sheets and additional information from sketches by former Terry-Tooner, Eli Bauer. The sculpture will be on permanent display in the children's section of the library.

The exhibit encompasses the history of the cartoon studio from the time it was formed in New York city up to its demise as a production company in the 1960's. The studio moved to New Rochelle around 1933 and occupied two sites at various times The last building that housed the studio is now used by a film company that produces television commercials. The exhibit includes many photographs and cartoon drawings that were made during the Terry-Toon Studio's more than 50 years of operation. The public is invited to view the exhibit without charge.