Understanding Animation

276 Pages·1998·13.388 MB·English

by  Paul Wells

UNDERSTANDING
ANIMATION
Understanding Animation is a comprehensivei ntroduction to animated film, from
cartoons to computer animation. Paul Wells' inSightful account of a critically
neglectedb ut increasinglyp opular medium explains the defining characteristics
of animationa s a cinematicf orm, outlines different models and methodsw hich
can be usedt o interpret and evaluatea nimatedf ilms, and tracest he development
of animatedf ilm around the world, from Betty Boop to Wallace and Gromit.
Part history, part theory, and part celebration, UnderstandingA nimation includes
notest owardsa theory of animation; an explanationo f its narrative strategies;a n
analysis of how comic events are constructed; a discussion of representation,
focusing on gendera nd race, and primary researcho n animationa nd audiences.
Throughout,P aul Wells' argumentis illustratedw ith cases tudies,i ncluding Daffy
Duck in Chuck Jones' Duck Amuck, Jan Svankmajer'sJ abberwocky, Tex Avery's Little
Rural Riding Hood and King Size Canary, and Nick Park's Creature Comforts. Understanding
Animation demonstratesth at the animatedf ilm has much to tell us abouto urselves,
the cultures we live in, and our view of art and society.
Paul Wells is Subject Leader in Media Studies at De Montfort University in
Leicester.
This page intentionally left blank
UNDERSTANDING
ANIMATION
Paul Wells
RO Routledge
U
TLED Taylor & Francis Group
G
E
LONDON AND NEW YORK
First published 1998
byRoutledge
2Park Square,Milton Park,Abingdon,Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue,New York ,NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group,an informa business
©1998 Paul Wells
Typeset in Joanna and Bembo by
J&L Composition Ltd,Filey,North Yorkshire
All rights reserved.No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilized in anyformor byanyelectronic,
mechanical,or other means,now known or hereafter
invented,including photocopying and recording,or in any
information storage or retrieval system,without permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Acatalogue recordfor this book is available
from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data
ISBN 978-0-415-11596-4 (cased)
ISBN 978-0-415-11597-1 (limp)
CONTENTS
Figures viii
Acknowledgements ix
Introduction: 'Seeing the brick' 1
'If the story's so cock-eyed, what's the point of it?' 4
'So, what's the answer?V isual education?' 7
1 Thinking about animated film 10
What is animation? 10
Flipbooks, frame-by-framea nd funny faces 11
Case study: Early comic strip cartoon concepts 17
Disney and the realist principle 21
Case study: The problem of realism 24
True animation? 28
2 Notes towards a theory of animation 35
Styles and approaches3 5
Terms and conditions: Orthodox animation 36
Case study: Deconstructingt he cartoon 39
Terms and conditions: Experimental animation 43
Case studies: Non-objective and non-linear animation 46
Backward looking, forward thinking: Cases studies in developmentala nimation 51
3 Once upon a time: Narrative strategies 68
Definitions and devices 69
Metamorphosis 69
Condensation 76
Synecdoche 80
Symbolisma nd metaphor 83
Fabrication 90
v
CONTENTS
Associative relations 93
Sound 97
Acting and performance 10 4-
Choreography 111
Penetration 122
4 2S ways to start laughing 127
1 Magical surprises 128
2 The power of personality 129
3 The visual pun 13 1
4- Expectation and exploitation 134-
5 'Just a minute, Chubby-you ain't seen half the kid's repertoire-e-e!':
Some old saws 135
6 'Catch that and paint it green!': Adult Avery 14-0
7 Extending the premise of the visual gag 14-1
8 The developmento f alienation devices 14-2
9 Literal, visual and verbal gags 14-4-
lOOn black humour 14-5
11 Recognising torment and taboo 14-6
12 Jones' Road Runner gags 150
13 Some theories on characterc omedy 152
14- The shaggy dog story 156
15 Discontinued lines 160
16 Accidents will happen 161
17 Objects have a life of their own 162
18 'The sight of 4-0-year-old genitalia is too disgusting, is it?':
Self-conscioush umour 163
19 Everything can mean its opposite 167
20 'Yabba-Dabba-Doo!' 168
21 Telling it over and over again 169
22 25 ways to exaggerate,u nderstatea nd alienate 17 2
23 Dedicated to those who disapprove but continue to watch 174-
24- Driessen'sc omedy of cruelty 179
25 Techno-tittersa nd post-modernf orms 180
5 Issues in representation 187
The body in question 188
'Paster than a speeding bullet .. .': Men and masculinity 190
The concept of 'everyman' 196
Wayward girls and wicked women: The feminine aesthetic 198
VI
CONTENTS
Cross-dressing,t ransvestism,g ender-bending,c ross-speciesc oupling and
other unusual trends 203
Case study: Is Jerry a girl? 208
Race in context 2 IS
6 Animation and audiences: 'My mother used to call me Thumper!' 222
Cinema and the spectator 222
The Disney version 223
Disney and mass observation 226
Nostalgia's not what it used to be: Disney, then and now 232
Towards a conclusion 24-2
Notes 24-4-
Bibliography 250
Index 258
Filmography 262
vu
FIGURES
Disney's short film, Playful Pluto (1934) 5
l.1 J. Stuart Blackton's 'trick' film, The Haunted Hotel (1907) 14
l.2 Oskar Fischinger'ss hort film, Composition in Blue (1935) 30
1.3 JamesW hitney's film, Lapis (1965) 31
2.1 JoannaQ uinn's challengingf ilm, Girls' Night Out (1986) 55
3.1 Caroline Leaf's ink-on-glassa nimation, The Street (1976) 71
3.2 OsamuT ezuka cinematic-stylef ilm, Jumping (1984) 79
3.3 Jiri Trnka's subversivep uppetf ilm, The Hand (1965) 86
3.4 Yuri Norstein'sp rofoundly personala nd dream-like film,
Tale of Tales (1979) 97
3.5 Erica Russell'sf usion of animation, dance and music,
Feet of Song (1988) 116
3.6 Monica Renault'sa nd Gerrit Van Dijk's dancef ilm,
Pas a Deux, (1989) 118
4.1 The deadpanS pecial Delivery (1 978), made by the National
Film Board of Canada 157
4.2 Oscar-winningB ob's Birthday (1994), by Alison Snowdena nd
David Fine 164
4.3 John Lasseter'se xperimental,c omputer-generateadn imation,
Tin Toy (1988) 181
5.1 SusanP itt's extraordinaryf ilm, Asparagus (1979) 200
Vlll
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This is my first book-length discussion,a nd for some readerst his will be self-
evident, while othersw ill feel that it offers somei nterestingt opics for discussion
and further research.W hatever the response,a ll of its flaws are mine; all of its
enthusiasmf or animation mine also.
I'd like to thank a numbero f peoplef or their help and encouragementF. irstly, I
am grateful to the School Of Humanitiesa t De Montfort University in Leicester
for granting me study leave to complete the book, and to Tim O'Sullivan, Pat
Kirkham, and the staff of the Media Studies subject team for their support. My
speciala ppreciationg oes to Laraine Porter, my co-tutor on the Animation Studies
coursef rom which much of the work presentedh erew as developed.F urther, my
thanks go to all the studentsw ho contributeds o much to the course'sd evelop-
ment and success.F or additional help, over and beyondt he call of duty, as they
say, my gratitude goes to JayneP illing, Terry Gilliam, Nick Park, JoannaQ uinn,
Mark Baker, Barry Purves,B ob Godfrey, Roger Noake, Andy Darley, and especially
Marysia Lachowitz and MargaretO 'Brien at the British Film Institute/Museumo f
the Moving Image Education.
A final note of thanks goes to RebeccaB arden and all of the staff at Routledge
for all their patiencea nd hard work.
This book is dedicatedw ith all my love to my wife, Joanne.
Further acknowledgements
I am grateful to the following copyright holders for the provision of stills to be
used as figures in this book:
Playful Pluto (1 934) courtesyo f Disney and the BFI
The Haunted Hotel (1907) courtesyo f the BFI
Composition in Blue (1940) courtesyo f the BFI
Lapis (1965) courtesyo f the London Film Maker's Co-operativea nd the BFI
The Street (1976) courtesyo f the National Film Board of Canadaa nd the BFI
IX