Let’s face it. Disney isn’t normally knocking on musicians’ doors, asking them to join the cast of their next animated masterpiece. Yet through the years, artists such as Lou Reed, Marilyn Manson, Tom Petty, and the lovable Donny Osmond (he was a little bit rock and roll, lest we forget!) have lent their voices and talents to a few lesser-known animated films, and cartoon series as well. Whether making an animated cameo, contributing to the soundtrack, or even taking on a completely different character, you’ll find that these ten rock and roll artists have certainly left their mark on the industry. Who did we leave out? Read More »
Recently, we spotted Katy Beveridge‘s amazing bicycle wheel animation, where she channeled the zoetrope to turn her bike’s wheels into a delightful moving piece of art, over at Colossal. The work got us to thinking about other unusual spots for animations, whether built into turntables, sent down miniature tracks or painted frame by frame on city walls. As it turns out, you can turn almost anything into an animation. Click through to see our collection of animations in unusual places, and we bet that like us, you’ll start to see everything that moves with a new eye. Read More »
French caricature artist Émile Cohl created what is considered to be the world’s first animated cartoon in 1908. His black-and-white short film, Fantasmagorie, is composed of 700 drawings that Cohl illuminated on a glass plate. He photographed black lines on white paper and then reversed the negative to make it look like chalk on a blackboard. Each drawing is only slightly different than the one before it. Timing in advance was key (and laborious), but Cohl’s process allowed some spontaneity with the images — which is why Fantasmagorie has such a stream of consciousness style. Click through to enjoy the minute-long animation. Read More »
Visual effects artist Lena Gieseke (who was previous married to Tim Burton) created a 3-D video of Picasso’s Guernica — the 1937 anti-war painting that symbolized the bombing of the titular northern Spanish town. It was displayed as a mural at the World’s Fair in Paris, and then made a brief tour around the globe — acting as a reminder about the tragedies of the Spanish Civil War (and war in general, really). The monochromatic work takes on a new life in Gieseke’s three-minute exploration through the landmark piece. Is it strange to see the cubist work of art — which aimed in part to flatten space — made dimensional? Read More »
Director Hoku Uchiyama teamed up with band Evelyn Evelyn for their old timey song, “Have You Seen My Sister Evelyn,” to create a series of complementary animations on foggy windows. Drawings traced on fogged glass narrate the song performed by fictional conjoined twin sisters, both named Evelyn (musicians Amanda Palmer and Jason Webley). The animation looks simple, but the director had a hard time capturing condensation forming on the glass properly. Instead of relying on Mother Nature, Uchiyama used water and a dulling spray to create a foggy look. He then digitally added finger oils, moving water, and a warped perspective so objects behind the glass appeared true to life. Check out the process in action past the break.
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Robert Krulwich and Adam Cole explore the pros and pitfalls of being immortalized in the English language in a comical, new animated video from NPR. In paper puppet form, Cole travels through the dictionary singing a folksy tune about those who have passed but live on as eponyms — something he’d very much like to do. But after Krulwich points out that not everyone who’s had something named after him has been better better off, citing Joseph Guillotin and John Duns Scotus as examples, Cole swiftly changes his tune. Watch the video after the jump.
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This New York Times article about childhood authors Shel Silverstein, Maurice Sendak, and Dr. Seuss reminded us that both Silverstein and Sendak are publishing new books this month. Silverstein’s, called Everything On It, is a posthumous collection of poems and comes out on September 20. We obviously can’t wait, and to that end, we’ve been going through the Silverstein archives.
Back in 1964, Shel Silverstein wrote The Giving Tree, which has become one of the most beloved children’s books ever — and certainly his most famous — despite how selfish that little boy was. We’re not sure how we managed to miss it earlier in life, but we just discovered that the author narrated an animated version of the story in 1973. He also showed off his harmonica chops on the soundtrack. We’ll warn you: It’s a bit weird hearing Silverstein’s voice because it sounds so antithetical to the whimsical voice of his words. Check it out after the jump.
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David Lynch may be focusing on his music these days, but we’re still pretty stuck on his films — and so, apparently, is animator Lee Hardcastle, who has created a very funny claymation rendition of Lynch’s debut feature, Eraserhead, packing the entire story (such as it is) into 60 seconds. The creepy baby, the cleavage, and that unmistakable hairdo are all there in the clip, which also makes excellent use of cotton balls as smoke. If you like what you see, visit Hardcastle’s YouTube page to see his versions of everything from The Lion King to Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
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Here’s a must-watch for Monty Python fans: Cartoon Brew has posted a segment that aired on Bob Godfrey’s Do-It-Yourself Animation Show in 1974 that has Terry Gilliam teaching viewers how to do the cut-out style of animation that made him famous. He explains that he makes cut-outs because “it’s the quickest and easiest form of animation I know” and then takes us through the entire process, from choosing images to storyboarding to filming. The 15-minute clip also includes a healthy selection of Gilliam’s best work to date. As a guest, he’s both informative and funny, but long-time fans may be most charmed to see him looking so young.
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Boing Boing points us to an inspired video, created by AndyTDesigns, imagining what the credit sequence might look like if Pee-wee Herman were to launch a new TV show. (Note: he absolutely should.) “It would be great to see a Pee Wee show based more on Pee Wee’s Big Adventure, and more episodic in nature, with P.W. solving mysteries, finding missing things, and having adventures, but along the way his playhouse friends help him as well,” writes the film’s creator. The minute-long opening credits find our hero on his bike, solving crime with the help of some familiar friends. And the animation, which rotates ably through a number of styles, is superb.
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