Event Recap: Animating a Deer with J.B. Kaufman

It was a fulfilling day for those who spent the morning of Saturday, June 25 outside The Walt Disney Family Museum, learning to draw animals from live models, and returning in the afternoon for WDFM historian JB Kaufman’s lecture, The Anatomy of an Animal: Animating a Deer. When asked if they enjoyed the live study session, the assembled crowd voiced a resounding "Yeah!"

Kaufman remarked that it took many years for Bambi to materialize from paper to the screen. He believed that it began as early as 1933 when producer-director Sidney Franklin bought the film rights to Felix Salten’s book. Franklin ultimately realized that it could not be a live-action film, so he collaborated with Disney to create an animated feature film. Walt wanted Bambi to be more lifelike, character animation with realistic subtleties. Work on Bambi at the Disney Studio did not commence until 1938. During the four years it took to complete Bambi, the world had changed. Kaufman recapped what events took place such as the transfer of Disney's distribution rights from United Artists to RKO Radio Pictures, Multiplane camera technology, Walt Disney Productions' first public stock offering, a devastating strike, and the onset of World War II redirecting the focus of the Studio to the war effort. Sharon joined the Disney family, and Walt’s parents passed away. Although Bambi was considered a full-length animated film at 70 minutes, it was only six minutes longer than the economically-produced smash hit Dumbo (at 64 minutes).

It was a technical challenge to animate animals realistically. Walt wanted to ensure that the animators had everything they needed to create Bambi with realism and heightened subtlety. Live animals were brought in for the animators to study and sketch their movements, and master art instructor Rico LeBrun was hired to teach. Kaufman compared the fawns in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to the deer in Bambi with an emphasis on how the legs performed and moved. Instead of stick-like legs, Bambi had well articulated joint movements from the hip to the hoof. Bambi’s movements were analogous to human movements, or the leaping stages of a frog, and these movements changed with age, just as a child matures from a toddler to an adult. Yet, with the lifelike movements, there was a fine balance with fantasy in creating the face and character of Bambi.

Legendary animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnson expressed that Bambi was the culmination of the advanced development of Disney animation that had begun with Snow White. Kaufman, however, feels that Bambi stands alone as an unusual and distinctive delicacy of animation. We watched the example of a romantic sequence of doe and buck frolicking and rejoicing in the arrival of Spring (accompanied by the song, I Bring You a Song), which impressed us with the same sentiments. J.B. screened a bird flight sequence that was so successful that it has been repeated in several later films. When Bambi was released in 1942, trailers and posters promoted the movie as a great love story. Our senses were opened up to new dimensions and approaches, and I’ll be seeing Bambi again with a different set of ears and eyes.

Olga Woo • Volunteer at The Walt Disney Family Museum

Live-study sketch session at the Museum, June 25, 2011. Photo highlights courtesy of The Walt Disney Family Museum.

In Memory of Collin Campbell

Collin Campbell, November 11, 1926-April 2, 2011.We are saddened to note the passing of Collin Campbell, who died in Florida on April 2. He was a layout and background artist in the Disney Animation Department, and was a long-time art director and concept artist for Walt Disney Imagineering. 

Collin was born in 1926 in St. Charles, Michigan, and began his Disney career in 1943 as a messenger in the Traffic Department at the Studio. Soon after, he was drafted and served two years in the Navy during World War II, but returned to Disney upon completion of his service.

For five years Collin attended the School of Allied Arts in Glendale, CA, where he studied cinema design and storyboarding. After working for a year as an inbetweener, he left the Studio to study at the Académie Julian in Paris. He returned in the layout and background departments in 1953, and worked on features such as Lady and the Tramp (1954) and the shorts The Truth About Mother Goose (1957), and Donald in Mathmagic Land (1959). He pioneered the visual design of the new Xerox camera method in his work on the short Goliath II (1959) and the feature One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961), before transferring to WED Enterprises (now Walt Disney Imagineering).

One of Collin Campbell's atmospheric concept paintings for Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room, 1962. © DisneyHis initial assignment was creating the interior and models for Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland. Other projects included Pirates of the Caribbean, the Blue Bayou restaurant, and it's a small world; and extensive design, concept, and art direction work on many of the attractions throughout the parks in Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

In addition, Collin was a combat artist for both the Navy and Air Force, a sideline that took him to Japan, Korea, the Phillipines, and Thailand war zones, twice to Vietnam, as well as aboard the Apollo 15 pickup carrier.

Collin is survived by his wife, Lois Dabio Campbell of Lighthouse Point, Florida.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MICKEY!!!!

In honor of Mickey's special day, noted film historian and author, J.B. Kaufman, penned this ode to everyone's favorite mouse:

Thursday, the 18th of November, marks an important birthday in Disney history: the birthday of Mickey Mouse. Today, the venerable mouse turns 82 years old.

          Earliest known drawing of Mickey Mouse

Over the years, other dates have been put forward as Mickey’s birthday. For a time during the 1930s, the 28th of September was selected as the big day. The Disney studio was not only aware of this claim, but actually encouraged it, because their distributor, United Artists, used it as the basis for a promotional campaign. During “Mickey Mouse Birthday Week” in September, United Artists encouraged theaters to book multiple Mouse cartoons, as many as six or seven in a single program. Mickey was at the height of his popularity during those years, and the press obligingly picked up the story each September, noting the significance of his birthday.

Today, however, we recognize 18 November as the official date. That’s because, on that date in 1928, Steamboat Willie opened at New York’s Colony Theater. It wasn’t the first time Mickey had appeared on a theater screen—Plane Crazy, the first Mickey Mouse short, had been previewed in theaters as early as the previous spring—but neither Plane Crazy nor the followup picture, The Gallopin’ Gaucho, had succeeded in finding a distributor.

Steamboat Willie was different. It was Walt Disney’s first sound film, and it marked a significant advance over the sound cartoons made by other producers. Walt and his team hadn’t just tacked a soundtrack onto their film; they had planned Steamboat Willie as a sound film from the ground up, with comedy business that used sound effects and music in an integral way. The result was a fresh, original cartoon with clever musical gags. It culminated in Mickey’s makeshift performance of “Turkey in the Straw” on the deck of the boat, using livestock and kitchen utensils as his “instruments.” It was a star-making performance.

That fact was made abundantly clear on 18 November 1928, when Steamboat Willie opened at the Colony as part of a program with the sound feature Gang War. Delighted audiences and reviewers took note of this unusual cartoon. Mordaunt Hall of The New York Times wrote: “It is an ingenious piece of work with a good deal of fun.” Variety called it “a wow” and noted: “Giggles came so fast at the Colony they were stumbling over each other.”

This was only a beginning, of course, and most cities across America would not see Steamboat Willie until months later in 1929. But it was clear from the beginning that this cartoon was something original and different, and so was its star. Mickey’s personality—cheerful, clever, resourceful—was unmistakable from the start, and once his success story began, there was no stopping it. Small wonder we observe that historic occasion as his birthday!

By the next November, Mickey was well known from coast to coast—and overseas as well, since by then a European distributor had contracted to distribute the Mickey Mouse series. He had also been joined by a second series of Disney shorts, the Silly Symphonies.

By November 1930, Mickey’s worldwide success was firmly established. Mickey Mouse character merchandise had started to appear, leading off with storybooks, dolls, and other toys. A Mickey Mouse comic strip was appearing in daily newspapers. A chain of Mickey Mouse Clubs, started as an impromptu stunt by a California exhibitor, was rapidly spreading to other states. And Walt’s rival cartoon producers had begun paying Mickey the ultimate tribute: imitation. From one studio after another came cartoons featuring mice that were blatant ripoffs of Mickey.

Around this time, Mickey’s second birthday, the Disney studio started work on a special short to mark the occasion: The Birthday Party. In this cartoon Minnie and the rest of the gang conspired to throw a surprise party for Mickey. The party featured gifts, music, dancing, and of course a cake adorned with two candles. The Birthday Party was not completed and released until January 1931—a fact which probably didn’t seem important at the time, since hardly anyone outside the studio knew when Mickey’s “birthday” actually was. But this may have contributed to uncertainty and confusion over the date later on.

Today it’s a different story: Disney fans around the world are well aware of Mickey’s big day. As the date approaches, it seems only fair to point out that the same day, 18 November, is also Minnie’s birthday. After all, Minnie was there at Mickey’s side in Steamboat Willie—and, for that matter, had also appeared with him in the two previous pictures, Plane Crazy and The Gallopin’ Gaucho. This year, we’re wishing “happy birthday” to both of the world’s most famous mice. They’ve been making the world a happier place for 82 years, and they’re still going strong.

The Walt Disney Discovery Summer Camp!

 

The Walt Disney Discovery Camp has ended but the memories will last forever! We had an amazing time this summer with our campers, some of which traveled from as far away as Wisconsin to join us.

Pencilmation Camp, ages 14- 17, culminated with a gallery opening and a film screening of their new short Penny. This two minute animated short was a major accomplishment considering that it was created in 6 out of the 10 days of camp, and none of the campers had ever animated in traditional hand drawn animation.

Animation Everywhere Camp, ages 7- 10, explored many traditional hands on animation techniques such as zoetrope, flipbooks, cal animation, and pixilation. The campers had a chance to draw and then animate the drawings in the computer. It was really fun to see the reactions of these young animators when they first watched their work appear to come to life.

Art Adventures Camp, ages 8-11, gave campers a chance to develop the artist in them. Although most campers wanted to paint every day, they also explored sculpting and drawing, and learned how to care for their materials. The campers even designed and painted their own portfolios that they used to take their art work home. 

Claymation Sensation Camp, ages 11-14, involved a lot of clay. Campers worked hard preplanning and building their stories and miniature sets. When it came time to animate the clay puppets, the campers had an exhilarating time slowly animating their scenes which resulted in six short films.

Campers were met by visiting artists and industry professionals such as: Chris Chua, Animator at Pixar, who shared his expertise on character animation. Alex Madrigal, Concept Artist at Spark Play Media, who talked about character development. We were also graciously visited by Mathew Luhn and Valerie Luhn, Storyboard Artists at Pixar, who stopped by on their own time to say hello and inspire the campers with art they created on the spot.

The film screenings of Disney films each morning really inspired the campers. The afternoons were filled with fun, laughter, problem solving, and amazing amounts of productivity.

The most memorable part of the camp was the new friendships that were created, especially during a very fun lunch time, and the creative environment that made this camp the best place to be an artist in the summer time!

    

   Ruben Esqueda
   Education Coordinator



Spotlight On: John Canemaker

Many Disney enthusiasts will need no introduction to John Canemaker, one of the world’s foremost animation historians, and an Academy Award®-winning animator in his own right. Intimately acquainted with the craft of making animated films, John has used his unique insights to write books exploring the lives and work of past masters in the field. His books have included Before the Animation Begins, which focuses on the top Disney concept artists; Paper Dreams, about the creative talents in the story department; and Walt Disney’s Nine Old Men and the Art of Animation, profiling some of the studio’s greatest animators.

Now John is back with a new and eagerly anticipated book: Two Guys Named Joe. In this innovative dual biography, he introduces us to two major talents who jointly spanned a wide spectrum of Disney history. Joe Grant, who joined the Disney staff in 1933, quickly became one of the studio’s most inventive and indispensable story artists—then, decades after his nominal retirement, returned to exercise a similar creative influence during the Pixar era. His return coincided with the rise of Joe Ranft, standout Disney artist and Pixar co-founder, whose own stellar career was cut short by his tragic early death in 2005. Together, the two Joes exemplified the rich creative spirit that has informed the best in Disney animation history.

John Canemaker will be our special guest at the Museum on August 13 (6:30PM in The Theater) and August 14 (3PM in The Theater) to talk about Two Guys Named Joe. Tickets are available online at www.waltdisney.org. We’re looking forward to his visit!

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