#also always inspired by early 2d dreamworks

[estcaligo]

A short forced break from digital art. But it's so refreshing to draw traditionally more! I'm glad I always carry a sketchbook with me (though sometimes I end up doodling in a regular notebook too). So, some rough rough sketches. Not really twst, mostly OCs and ideas for personal projects. I also enjoy making collages from my art, picking out the poses/expressions I like the most.

[k00285326]

Animation Research - Task 2

Ther are many processes and subgenres in the world of animation. The most famous of these are 2D, 3D and stop motion, however these are only these are only a section of the types of animation.

Claymation

Claymation is also one of the more well-known techniques of animation, itself being a a form of stop motionanimation. Claymation consists of characters that are made of a maleable substance, capable of being formed into expressions and different forms.

Personally, claymation has always seemed to teeter on the uncanny vvalley for me, even in films like Wallace and Gromit. The sequence below from "The Adventures of Mark Twain" uses this effect to its benefit, delivering a horrifying sequence where Satan tortures the lives of his creations.

(The Adventures of Mark Twain, Will Vinton, 1985)

Marrionettes

The most famous example of this type of animation is the Thunderbirds series from 1965, as well as the 2004 movie Team America: World Police". The reason this style of animation is rare is that it is incredibly difficult to work with, with strings getting tangled everywhere.

Another aspect of marrionette puppetry is that the characters cannot show any emotion, which leaves it to the voice acting and their movements. A film that I feel excells at this type of animation is "Strings". It takes the medium seriously, creating a fleshed out world and a story inspired by Hamlet.

(Strings, Anders Rønnow Klarlund, Bald Films, 2004)

Hybrid Animation

Hybrid animation is when techniques of animation are combined to make a final product. This is mostly seen in 2D animation of the early 2000s, when hand drawn animation started to utilize computer generated imagery in order to keep up with the growing popularity of 3D animation.

When done well, this brings another kind of magic to animation, like in "The Prince of Egypt" or "Treasure Planet". In "Treasure Planet" for example, the character Long John Silver's cybernetic parts are animated using CGI, while the rest of his body is hand drawn, and it is integrated so well that it is entirely unnoticable. In "The Prince of Egypt" CGI is used to enhance the visuals to an epic scale.

(The Prince of Egypt, 1998, Dreamworks Pictures)

[ja-khajay]

2020-2021 Animation Watch(ed)list

I haven’t posted about animation in a while that I remember, and I know a lot of my followers are into it as much as me so I decided to make a list of the animated movies and series I watched on the past year or so, coupled with my short, spoilerless take on them. Enjoy!

Organized by

Things I saw for the first time

Things I rewatched

Under a cut for the sake of your dashboards! PS: I have not added any images yet. If you are interested in knowing more about the visuals of these movies, I might make an old fashion ask-prompted imageset list.

Part One: Things I saw for the first time

The Bear’s Famous Invasion of Sicily

Movie, 2019, Italian/French

9/10, a delightful little movie with amazing visuals. It feels like an animated picture book.

One of those “plot is in the title” media! I had never heard of this before but was heavily recommended it by my family members, who all loved it! It’s a sweet story, nothing groundbreaking but the unique colorful visual style alone makes it worth it.

The Castle of Cagliostro

Movie, 1979, Japanese

10/10. Reminded me of all the books i loved reading as a child

I assume its because it’s so old and the art style and themes are so different that it gets little to no love compared to other Ghibli movies, which is a shame! It’s fun with an endearing cast and as always, great animation and music

Mushishi

Series, 2006, Japanese

10/10 three episodes in I knew it was going to be my favorite series ever

One of the few things I’ve seen I’ll describe as life-changing. It’s absolutely lovely but never toots its own horn about it. Humble, calming, emotional and surprisingly mature. It’s pretty impossible to binge due to how intense the experience is. I just want to walk in the forest now...

FMA: Brotherhood

Series, 2009, Japanese

6/10 Dissapointing adaptation of a classic story

I read the manga for this when I was in middle school and remembered loving it. The animated version does an ok job of presenting the characters and worldbuilding and has some nice action scenes but overall looks really damn cheap and just. Not very good. Seeing I already knew most of the plot I did not have the element of discovery that made me marvel so much reading the original. It’s still a nice series but I really recommend reading it instead.

Code Lyoko (s1+2)

Series, 2003, french

3/10. 1.5 being for the opening song alone

This show sucks ass if I hadn’t been watching this with my bestie I would have dropped it two episodes in. The art style is ugly the stories are always the same and the first season has a (later removed thank fucking god) LITERAL “erase any consequences” button as a plot device in every episode. If you watch it for one thing let it be the nostalgia factor of early 00s Vidya Game Plot

The Legend of Hei

Movie, 2019, Chinese

7/10. Impressive visuals and a poor story

I finally watched this, peer pressured by the load of gifsets on my dashboard! It’s a sweet movie with really impressive animation, sometimes a bit too flashy for my taste (the action sequences go so ham they become not very readable...) but the story was just ok? The setting is barely explained and you are instead bombarded with vague epicspeech about powers and stuff that made me fondly remember Kingdom Hearts lol but that asides it’s a really good time! I need to watch more Chinese movies the few I know are just delightfully off the shits in how they approach action and I love that

Hunter x Hunter

Series, 1999, Japanese

9/10. Superior to the recent one!

I first got introduced to the series via the 2011 one. Comparatively, the 99 series focuses way less on action and way more on the characters, which I love because that fits my personal preferences! Despite mediocre filler episodes and some weird slight pointless plot changes, what it changes from the original manga doesn’t have much of an impact on the characters. The animation quality isn’t always consistent including a huge art style change for an arc (???) but it’s overall pretty nice. The series really shines in the last arc it adapts.

Oban Star-racers

Series, 2006, Japanese/french

9/10 a lovely surprise

This series is completly obscure despite having been created by people famous for their other series (Cowboy Bebop, Code Lyoko that i can name) and it’s a crime! It’s a kids show but without being stupid about it who tells the story of an inter-planetary race. If you liked that one scene in the star wars prequels you know what I mean. It’s got surprisingly nice animation for a TV series, and some truly great character design. The art style is a bit unique in a not for everyone sense, but I didn’t mind it much. It’s also THE most offensively 2000s series i’ve seen in terms of visuals. y2k kids assemble

The Little Prince and the Eight-Headed Dragon

Movie, 1963, japanese

8/10. Classic fairytale format with incredible visuals

Watched this for the art style because I know it inspired Samurai Jack, and it delievered! I dont’ have much to say about this one, it’s a very simply film but it’s sweet. For my pirates out there if you want to find it in good quality with english subtitles it’s VERY hard to find. If you just want to see the looks of it, it’s on Youtube with portugese subs.

We now enter the Gobelins Shorts Zone....!

My Friend Who Glows In The Dark

10/10 makes me cry each time

Pure delight...great animation writing everything. A little short about death and friendship but not in the way you imagine!

Colza

9/10

Visual treat...homely and nice :) not far from a 10 but a 9 because nothing about it is that groundbreaking

Sundown

9/10

If you’ve ever been ten minutes from failing a group project because of a single dude you will REALLY enjoy this. Loved the colors and personality

T’as vendu mes rollers?

10/10

It’s SUCH a sweet little short I loved that one so much

Dix-huit kilomètres trois

10/10

Surprisingly well written dialog. Visuals are great but the humanity of the characters carries this to another level

Un diable dans la poche

9/10

Amazing visuals and the most tense/creepy of Gobelin shorts i’ve ever seen. Chilling

La bestia

8/10

I had some issues with the pacing. Interesting story and visuals choices but I was not fond of the art style

Goodbye Robin

5/10

Confusing but predictable. Both at once??? Yes!

Le retour des vagues

6/10

Cool animation stuff but felt pretty pointless

                                                                ***

Part Two: Things I rewatched

Ruben Brandt: Collector

Movie, 2018, Hungarian

10/10. Underrated as hell

Watched this fully blind for the first time in an animated festival and rewatched it with friends. It’s a crime I never see anyone talking about it given the amount of whining I see about the lack of both adult animation and 2D movies? This film is a unique love letter to art in the form of a weird mix of charming crime story and psychological horror with amazing visuals. I recommend watching it blind and also buying it to show appreciation for how nice it is!!! WATCH THIS MOVIE...

Mononoke

Series, 2007, Japanese

10/10 Visual/storytelling masterpiece in the weird shit departement

If you can stomach intense stuff watch this. The visuals are incredibly unique and beautiful and under the jewel tones and art direction high takes it’s a really cool horror series. My only obstacle to enjoying it the first time I saw it was how dense it is - simply put, it’s so...culturally Japanese it’s not very accessible to me who doesn’t know anything about the culture? Watching it for the second time helped understanding the stories more! 

Corto Maltese in Siberia

Movie, 2002, french

9/10 but really close to ten. A great adaptation!

I’m a huge fan of the original comic so I entered this a biiiittttt suspicious it would suck but it was a really pleasant surprise! It has all the wonder and charm of the original and the animation was surprisingly good for the little budget. If you’re not familiar with the series, it’s a sort of geopolitical action/adventure movie but with it’s own really poetic vibe to it. It’s almost impossible to find online but happens to be fully on YouTube so go ham I guess?

Redline

Movie, 2009, Japanese

10/10 cinema was invented for this, actually

Every review of this movie i’ve seen gives it five stars and starts by talking about how immensly stupid it is. I’m no different. It’s a masterpiece of escalating energy with the depth of a puddle and it fucking rules. It’s free on YouTube too so there really is no excuse to not watch it. Watched it for the first time on a huge cinema screen and despite this my second rewatch on my small laptop was as/even more enjoyable. If you watch this stoned with friends you might travel to another dimension

Spirited Away

Movie, 2001, Japan

10/10 deserves the love it gets

I watched this a single time as a kid and had little memory of it! I mean it’s Ghibli you know it’s going to be good as hell but this one rly shines in how colorful and detailed it is and in it’s world! It made me remember I had a huge crush on the dragonboy as a kid. I’m gay now

Kung-fu Panda (1&2)

Movie, Usa

10/10. KFP fucking rules

Honestly my favorite franchise of the whole disney/dreamworks/pixar hydra. It’s fun as hell, doesn’t skip a single beat and has amazing animation and character designs. If something is a good time I will not care if it’s deep or not and boy I fucking love these movies

Sinbad, Legend of the Seven Seas

Movie, 2003, Usa

5/10 Some great some really bad and overall generic

I tend to hate american cinema and this includes that era of animation I have no nostalgia for. Sinbad is in a weird place because I love adventure stories and the visuals of the movie absolutely deliver but it’s very predictable and TANKED by the addition of the female character, pushed in your face as “look we have woman!!!” despite her writing being misogynistic as hell lol. The evil goddess rules tho. This movie would have been a solid 9 if instead of the girl the two dudes had kissed

[turquoisewave]

hey sira ..... about that post with the time periods with sinbad and treasure planet and all that ..... WHAT WAS GOING ON? you said you wouldn't rant about it in the tags so i sent this ....... i need answers ..... TT_TT

Alrighty so the main way I know about it is because I learned about the decline of mainstream 2d animated films in the US so I’m gonna be covering both, partially using a copy/paste of a rant I made months back. All info under the readmore:

HOKAY SO, this isn’t all the factors and it’s not everything it’s just what I remember. I tried to fact check this mess and I think I changed any inaccuracies but I COULD BE WRONG.

So, animation in the 2000s, why it was the way it was and why a lot of films went under-appreciated. One thing you gotta remember is that while animation is a creative field, the companies in charge of them are businesses. And businesses will almost always go for low risk/high reward shit. This means, if there’s something tried and true they’ll stick with it. This is why studios often modeled works after other studios (funny talking animals, white gloves, black eyes with that lil white slit, musical shorts like Silly Symphonies, Happy Harmonies, and Merrie Melodies which yes were all by different studios), or in direct opposition of other studios (don bluth going darker with themes to contrast disney’s cuteness, bugs bunny’s trickster personality to contrast mickey’s nondescript Good personality, etc).

But there’s only so long you can do the same stuff before people get tired of it. Most animated feature length films had the same formula: a retelling of an old tale with musical numbers and cute sidekicks. And they started not doing so good.

However, animation at this time had grown in leaps and bounds. Digital coloring and compositing, merging of 3d effects, big studios run by huge companies, and a track record for being profitable as fuck. At the time the companies didn’t want them to go under so they decided to try to get Innovative. Cause that’s how they’d stayed afloat when things went bad before.

They weren’t going to stray from adapting though, too many unknown factors in original stories (which would also require more workshopping and pre-production). So, they’re still adapting old stories. However, they’re pulling from different sources, and in the case of Disney giving them a twist.

Atlantis was inspired by Journey to the Center of the Earth mixed with the myth of Atlantis, Treasure Planet was of course Treasure Island but Pirates in Space (which is one of my favorite nonsensical aesthetics), Dreamworks SKG (their 2d animation dept) went super old school with myths and legends (Sinbad, Prince of Egypt). And both studios went ham on trying to be innovative with the tech at their disposal.

There’s another reason why they went so hard, besides of course being artists. I said before that at the time companies didn’t want their 2d departments to flop, but as time progressed a new alternative began to become prevalent: 3D animation. And this became a huge threat to 2D studios.

Important to note in this regard is the advent of Pixar in the mid 1990s. 3D animation had come a long way from its clunky, surrealist roots. And with the success of movies such as Toy Story and A Bug's Life, it proved itself to be an upcoming profitable medium. It wasn't just the animation though, Pixar had amazing storytellers and directors. And this shit was new, not directly based on an old Grimm Fairy tale or something. In short their whole package was amazing. Dreamworks started being active around this time too and added fuel to the 3D animation fire. Granted Shrek was based on fairy tales, but in a way that was a subversion and became incredibly iconic for it.

At the time Pixar was independent from Disney but working in contract with them. And the success was more than welcomed. As always in capitalism, the question of profitability comes into question. Traditional 2D animation, especially at the high framerate disney was known for, is expensive af to make. Often if directors and producers are not careful, a budget can really run away from you. For example, Toy Story only cost 30 Million USD to make. Treasure Planet cost 140 Million USD. (granted that's because of the combination of 3d and 2d elements. But Lilo and Stitch was almost strictly 2D and still cost more than Toy Story at 80 million USD.) Also, Disney also kinda oversaturated their market. They released a fuckton of straight to dvd sequels (which Disney himself was avidly against) which kinda degraded the overall quality of the Disney 2d animation brand.

There was also competition from other factors. The early 2000s saw the Harry Potter boom, and Lord of the Rings came not soon after. Those of course siphoned off a lot of attention. They were part of pre-established series. The experimental stories that Disney was doing at the time, i.e. AU versions of literary classics, fell flat because the target audience was not familiar with the origin sources, and those that were weren't interested in "kids movies" They had no fucking clue how to market them, and the target audiences didn’t know to look for them.

Lilo and Stitch actually met with success, because 1) they marketed the hell out of it and capitalized on Stitch's mascot-like status and 2) it was more rooted in the kid demographic rather than that awkward kid/teen straddle the other two had. But even Lilo and Stitch couldn't save the Orlando animation studio when Disney finally decided to shut it down. They concentrated the last of their 2D animation studios in Burbank, California. Pixar's contract with Disney ended in 2004, and Disney tried to capitalize on the success of 3D with their own films, Meet the Robinsons and Chicken Little. Both were uh...the Meet the Robinsons wasn't too bad but Chicken Little was like...trying to hard to be a hacky version of a Dreamworks movie Ratatouille was released by pixar independent of Disney which is a neat thing to note. And of course met with success Meanwhile 2D kept falling behind, and whenever it flopped like with Home on the Range it was just another nail in the coffin. Disney renewed its contract with Pixar, and after the release of The Princess and The Frog they switched gears to focus solely on 3D animated feature length films, relegating their 2D staff to tv shows. Granted there's some great shows like Gravity Falls etc but, the fact that they've given up on films is disappointing. But the numbers don't lie. Tangled was its biggest success in a long time. And then Frozen came and blew it out of the water.

tl:dr - People were tired of seeing grim fairy tales stories retold with musical numbers and sometimes talking animals. - Studios tried to use different sources for adaptations and put cool spins on them and incorporate new technology.

But it didn’t end up working in their favor and 2D animation declined because:

- success of studios that were using 3D animation (though credit can also be given to their pre-production staff/writers/storyboarders) - competition from other growing franchises, in some cases Disney cannibalizing its own profits (Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean) - Cost effectiveness of 3D vs 2D - Changing of fads and appeal to audience - Inability to market movies properly to target demographics - Studios actively sabotaging their 2d studios to have an excuse to tank them and focus on 3D work.

So yeah, that’s all I got. I’m definitely missing some nuances here though feel free to correct me whoever sees this.

[imagitory]

D-Views: The Princess and the Frog (with guest input!)

Hi everybody! Welcome to another installment of D-Views, my on-going written review series focused around the works of the Walt Disney Company, as well as occasionally films made by other studios that were influenced by Disney’s works! For reviews for Disney films like Mary Poppins, The Little Mermaid, and Treasure Planet or non-Disney films like Anastasia, The Nutcracker Prince, or The Prince of Egypt, please consult my “Disney reviews” tag!

I’m super excited about today’s subject -- not only is its heroine my favorite Disney princess, but I also won’t be watching the movie alone! My darling mum, who has in the past helped me review Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, has graciously agreed to co-review this with me! We hope that you will join us on this magical adventure through the Louisiana bayou as we review...The Princess and the Frog!

In the early 2000′s, the Walt Disney Company -- especially its animation department -- was in trouble. Of all of the films done in the so-called “Experimental Era,” the only animated film that had made Disney a real profit was 2002′s Lilo and Stitch. The others, even if they did manage to receive favorable reviews, were all financial disappointments. The Emperor’s New Groove was fourth at the box office opening weekend behind movies like What Women Want and How the Grinch Stole Christmas and only grossed about 169 million dollars in theaters worldwide after costing 100 million to make. Brother Bear even now boasts a rather sad 37% rating at Rotten Tomatoes. And even if Atlantis: The Lost Empire hadn’t received such lukewarm reviews and been accused of plagiarizing several other movies (most notably Nadia: The Secret of the Blue Water, Stargate, and, as I’ve discussed previously, Castle in the Sky), it wouldn’t have changed the fact that it was released the same year as Dreamworks’ green monster hit Shrek. But no Experimental Era film did as badly as the last one -- Home on the Range -- which after its release in 2004 was so badly received both by critics and at the box office that it prompted Disney to write down the production costs and announce the closing of its 2D animation department for good.

But it didn’t close for good. In 2006, the new president and chief creative officer of the company, Ed Cadmill and John Lasseter, reversed the decision. The 2D animation department had one last chance to turn their dark destiny around, and in 2009, as Disney did after World War II with Cinderella and in the late 80′s with The Little Mermaid, it pinned its hopes on a beautiful, goodhearted princess.

The Princess and the Frog in some ways was Disney’s attempt to return to their Disney Renaissance roots. Its directors -- John Musker and Ron Clements -- had previously directed The Little Mermaid and Aladdin among others. The reinvented fairy tale story features magic, a theatrical villain, a prince, animal sidekicks, romance, and Broadway-musical-style songs. Even the advertising highlighted how much it wanted to remind millennial audiences of the films they grew up with, putting a spotlight on the music and beautiful hand-drawn animation, rather than the “adult,” meta humor that Dreamworks had used to advertise its films and Disney later used to advertise its next Disney princess movie, Tangled. Some production details leaked to the public, such as the title of “The Frog Princess,” the main character’s original name, and her profession as a chambermaid, also were edited upon receiving backlash, and still others (such as the use of voodoo in the plot and our black princess’s prince not being black) were just left as is. Despite all of the negative press that swirled around the project, there was also a lot of promise that Disney fans noted too, such as Dreamgirls supporting actress Anika Noni Rose being cast as Tiana, Pixar composer Randy Newman being chosen to write the film’s score and songs, and Oprah Winfrey being brought on both as a technical consultant and the voice of Tiana’s mother Eudora.

The marketing decision to focus more on nostalgic millennial adults rather than the new Generation Z is what I feel largely contributed to The Princess and the Frog not being the blockbuster Disney was hoping for. As much as I wholeheartedly believe that animation is not and has never been a children’s medium, the attitude that lingered around the public consciousness in the late 2000′s and sadly even today is that animation -- most importantly, 2D animation -- is for kids, and without the kids being just as excited to watch the film as their nostalgic parents, uncles, aunts, and older siblings, The Princess and the Frog was fighting an uphill battle, even if it was produced by a marketing monster like Disney. Even though the movie was handicapped by this bad marketing choice, however, I would still argue that The Princess and the Frog was a success. Even with that bad marketing choice, the racism-themed controversies that had swirled around its production, and the release of James Cameron’s blockbuster Avatar a week later weighing it down, Tiana costumes were selling out everywhere prior to Halloween that year. The movie still was #1 at the box office opening weekend, an honor not held by a Disney animated movie since Lilo and Stitch. It still made $104.4 million and was the fifth highest grossing film that year. It still earned pretty favorable reviews, earning an 85% at Rotten Tomatoes.

Sadly, because The Princess and the Frog wasn’t the big blockbuster that The Little Mermaid had been, Disney turned its focus more toward its 3D projects, and after the release of Winnie the Pooh in 2011 (the same weekend as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 -- COME ON, DISNEY, WERE YOU EVEN TRYING TO GIVE THIS FILM A CHANCE??), the 2D department did close its doors after all, and the studio went in a new direction with the release of Tangled. It’s a choice I lament Disney making, for as much as I’ve enjoyed most of the 3D entries to the Disney Revival, there was something so utterly magical about seeing The Princess and the Frog’s premiere at Walt Disney Studios in Burbank with my mother back in 2009. 2D animation is a beautiful art form, and it’s frustrating that Disney has turned its back on it so thoroughly after it got Disney to where it is now. The Princess and the Frog could’ve been the Great Mouse Detective to another 2D film that could’ve been a Little Mermaid and proved once again that 2D animation is for everyone, not just for kids, just as Little Mermaid did. But instead, the film that was the Revival version of The Little Mermaid was Disney’s first 3D princess film, Tangled -- and not to diss Tangled as a film, but it saddens me that it succeeded largely by playing to the public’s ignorant attitude that 3D animation is more “adult” than 2D animation and that the way to communicate that your animated movie is “for adults too” in your trailers is through using snarky meta humor rather than through artistry and complex themes.

With all this background out of the way...laissez le beau temps rouler! Let’s start the film!

Anika’s singing voice starting our film out is just a perfect introduction. Its pure, unassuming tone just ripples with sincerity as we are led into our introductory scene for our main character Tiana, her mother Eudora, and her absolutely hysterical best friend, Charlotte “Lottie” La Bouff. As we leave the La Bouff manor, we also see a touch of the “Lady and the Tramp influence” that Musker and Clements added to the production in the background design. Just by transitioning from the well-kept, affluent neighborhood in the dimming sunlight to the more run-down areas of town at night, we get a perfect, complete sense of the environment that our heroine lives in, all without any dialogue. And yet, as Mum pointed out, even the rundown areas are full of warmth and charm. Just like in Lady and the Tramp, they never look scary or shady, simply modest and maybe a little worn. On the note of charm, as well, I absolutely friggin’ adore Tiana’s dad, James. Considering how big of a role he has in the story, it’s really good that we see how big of an impact he had on his daughter through his good, hard-working attitude and love for his family and neighborhood despite not having much screen-time.

Once the “Walt Disney Pictures” banner floats by, we finally meet Tiana as an adult. As mentioned earlier, Tiana is my favorite Disney princess. Part of the reason why comes back to the fact that Tiana’s movie came out right before I started my first job (ironically enough at a restaurant in Disney World) and she inspired me to give 120% everyday, but the other reason Tiana speaks to me so much is because she reminds me quite a bit of Mum! Like my mother, Tiana is a very warmhearted, logical, and hardworking person who never sits on her laurels and is always ready to fix a problem, and it was really cool to see a Disney princess with the same kind of organized mind and stubborn work ethic that I saw in my mum growing up. That feeling I had watching Tiana’s story is one of the things that inspired me to write my Disney crossover story TrueMagic, where I wrote a character directly inspired by Mum. On top of all that, I realize that Tiana speaks a lot of the millennial and gen Z experience, having to save up a lot of money at two dead-end minimum wage jobs just to try to get ahead in a world where the cards are stacked against her. We even see her sleeping in the room she grew up in, meaning she’s still living at home as an adult to make ends meet!! Isn’t that relatable!!

I have heard others critique Randy Newman’s music, but in my opinion the score and songs developed for this movie perfectly set the mood of 1920′s New Orleans. The opening number “Down in New Orleans” is really well-paced with the medley of scenes introducing Tiana’s usual work day, Dr. Facilier’s vindictiveness and desire for Eli La Bouff’s wealth, Naveen’s playboy attitude, and Charlotte’s instant attraction to the newly arrived Prince. Of the songs, I’d personally cite Tiana’s “Almost There” and Facilier’s “Friends on the Other Side” as the strongest links, with “Gonna Take You There” as the weakest, but even if you don’t end up finding the songs catchy, I don’t think anyone can deny how well it suits the film’s setting.

Now admittedly, one critique you could give the film is its idealized, whitewashed view of historical race relations. Let’s be honest: in the 1920′s, a rich cotton baron like Eli La Bouff would not have visited a cafe on Tiana’s side of town and he would not let his precious daughter engage with Tiana as an adult either. As much as there were people who didn’t follow the common attitude that black Americans were somehow “inferior” to white Americans, if you didn’t follow that attitude, you couldn’t have expected to be very financially successful or influential in such a racist society, as Mr. La Bouff is. On top of that, Tiana would not only be facing passive prejudice when trying to open her own restaurant, like the kind the Fenner brothers express about her “background” -- she would also be likely facing active discrimination and potentially violence. As much as this film doesn’t truly represent the way things were back then, however, I would argue that the decision in the end benefits the picture, which clearly is supposed to be a fairy tale. This is a story where a girl kisses a frog, becomes one herself, meets an alligator who plays the blues and a firefly in love with a star, and both fights against and alongside people who practice voodoo. It may have a historical backdrop, kind of like Pocahontas and The Great Mouse Detective do, but it is still a fantasy. There are other films that aim to teach us about how things really were back then, so why can’t we have one where a young black American lives her own fairy tale in the iconic Crescent City? Plus, in Mum’s words, an integral part of this story is the pure, unlikely friendship between Charlotte and Tiana, which would have been close to impossible in a completely historical setting. To my memory, it’s actually one of the few times we see a close friendship between two female contemporaries in a Disney princess movie -- the closest we’d had previously were relationships like Aurora with the three fairies (which was more of a familial relationship) and Belle and Mrs. Potts (which...yeah, big generation gap). Even in films that came later, we have Elsa and Anna, but they’re sisters, not just friends. And Tiana having a friend like Charlotte ends up being pivotal in her eventual triumph.

Speaking of Charlotte and her friendship with Tiana, something I love about her is that she doesn’t just give Tiana the money she needs to open her own restaurant. Instead, because she knows Tiana has pride and wouldn’t just accept the money for nothing, Charlotte finds a reason for her to give her the money she needs by assigning her the task of making beignets for the ball she and her father are hosting. It’s something that reminds me a bit of my mum and her best friend, who also comes from a wealthy family -- like Charlotte, my mum’s best friend likes spending money on my mum, but has always known that she can’t buy my mum’s friendship. Both she and Charlotte know that you can only be a friend through expressing sincere caring, which is the mark of a true friend.

Ever since The Princess and the Frog first came out, “Almost There” has been my work mantra, and every time I hear it, I just am full of drive and excitement. The animation for this sequence -- animated by senior Disney icon Eric Goldberg, who previously worked on the Rhapsody in Blue segment in Fantasia 2000 and was the supervising animator for the Genie in Aladdin -- is also pitch perfect, incorporating both Al Hiershfeld-inspired designs and an Art Deco vibe to envelope us in Tiana’s fantasy. It’s one of the kind of artistic risks that Disney used to do more often, like the Pink Elephants sequence in Dumbo, the fairy’s gift sequences in Sleeping Beauty, and the Zero to Hero sequence in Hercules, and you just don’t see this sort of highly stylized song sequence in most of Disney’s newer films. The only one that comes to mind is the “You’re Welcome” sequence in Moana, which ironically enough also featured Eric Goldberg drawing all of Maui’s “Mini-Maui” tattoos! Those sorts of stylized musical numbers is something I’d love to see more of in the Disney Revival, because it gives the film in question such character and can bring an already great song to new heights.

Naveen is a character who I could’ve very easily disliked upon first meeting him. Obnoxious, selfish, and/or vain characters -- such as Lightning McQueen from Cars or even Kuzco from The Emperor’s New Groove -- really tend to rub me the wrong way, unless there is something in the character at the very beginning that makes me want to see them improve themselves. Fortunately our main prince is saved for me because we see that along with his vain, shallow, playboy attitude, he also expresses a great love of music and living life to the fullest. He doesn’t ignore his responsibilities as a prince just to be rebellious or lazy, but because he is so in love with New Orleans and its culture. He isn’t an angry or willfully condescending person: he immediately starts dancing with regular New Orleans citizens and is enthralled with the moves of a tiny street entertainer. And just as Tiana represents the millennial experience through working multiple jobs just to make ends meet, Naveen expresses a different kind of millennial experience -- that of being so sheltered by one’s privilege that, once you’re on your own, you’re incapable of sustaining the life style you’ve become accustomed to and are led by society to believe you should be able to achieve. At this point, it’s still easy to feel sorry for Lawrence, Naveen’s resident “Peter Pettigrew-look-alike” manservant, though that impulse quickly disappears after we see his interactions with our villain, Dr. Facilier. Speaking of which...

Just as Tiana is my favorite Disney princess, Dr. Facilier is my favorite Disney villain. Voiced by Keith David, the man who previously gave life to Goliath in Disney’s Gargoyles, the so-called “Shadowman” is -- in Mum’s words -- just “deliciously evil.” His voice drips with cold charisma, dipping into rich bass tones but never sounding groggy or lacking in energy, and the animation -- done by Bruce W. Smith, supervising animator for Oscar Proud from the Disney Channel show The Proud Family -- just fits David’s line-reads like a glove. Although Lawrence briefly provokes Facilier, effectively foreshadowing his true viciousness, the witch doctor largely puts on a theatrical persona that entices even the most jaded viewers in with his song “Friends on the Other Side.” Mum brought up the wonderful comparison to Oogie Boogie in Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, and just like Oogie Boogie, Facilier’s number feels very unscripted and spontaneous, and yet it’s still conniving. Even though the song is jazzy and oddly conversational, there’s this dangerous, sinister darkness echoing in the background, not just in the echoing voices of the Friends on the Other Side but in the lyrics with multiple meanings (”when I look into your future, it’s the green that I’ve seen”). Along with the theatricality, however, Facilier doesn’t forget to also be very intimidating as a villain -- the scene where he turns Naveen into a frog gets quite scary in its imagery.

Just as everything seems to have come up roses for her, Tiana is suddenly about to lose the restaurant of her dreams for good. But there is still hope -- or, at least...there’s a frog. Or a prince. A frog pri -- you get the point. Interestingly Naveen, while a frog, reminded Mum and me of two very different characters. Mum immediately thought of Aladdin, thanks to his charming, smiling expressions, while I immediately thought of another frog seeking a kiss from a beautiful girl: Jean-Bob from The Swan Princess. I personally think the second of those is a coincidence, given that Jean-Bob and Naveen really don’t have much in common excluding a flamboyant accent, but Aladdin’s influence on Naveen’s character animation is pretty reasonable. After all, Flynn Rider’s design was also influenced by previous Disney princes.

Not having seen this movie in a while, I’d forgotten about the “frog hunters” sequence in the middle of the movie until it came on screen. I know that Tiana and Naveen had to face multiple dangers before they reached Mama Odie, not just for dramatic storytelling but also to help cement their budding relationship...but I’m sorry, the characters of the frog hunters are just...uncomfortable. The stereotypical portrayal just comes across as very mean-spirited, especially when compared to the great respect for New Orleans culture in the rest of the movie. The scene does give Tiana and Naveen good character development, though, so it’s a flaw I can overlook to enjoy the rest of the movie.

Usually I don’t enjoy Disney “sidekick” characters as much as I do more developed main or side characters, but I will grant that as sidekicks go, Louis the alligator and especially Ray the firefly are among the better ones. Louis is kind of there for humor more than to advance the plot at all, which is a shame, but Ray becomes both ridiculously charming and central to the film’s theme of love when we see his romantic side in his song “Ma Belle Evangeline.” This song has special significance to Mum and me, all because of Mum’s little Russian Blue/Short-Hair kitty, Evangeline, or Eva for short. When Eva and her sister Ella (full name Cinderella) were being driven home from the pound, the two cats were absolutely beside themselves, crying and yowling the whole way. The only thing that quieted them was me singing songs to them, including songs based on their names -- Cinderella’s opening theme (”Cinderella, you’re as lovely as your name”) for Ella, and “Ma Belle Evangeline” for Eva. Even now, Eva knows that that song is her song, and she always relaxes whenever she hears it. The song sequence in the film also beautifully reflects Tiana and Naveen’s budding relationship, which has already affected them enough that they are starting to take influence from each other. Tiana has started to open up and have some fun, while Naveen is more able to acknowledge his shortcomings and takes more responsibility. They even see eye to eye enough that they stop Louis from telling Ray that Evangeline is a star, not a firefly. Tiana/Naveen is my Disney OTP mainly because of that influence that they have on each other. Both of them are such beautifully flawed characters, but they both also teach and encourage each other to be better people than they would have been on their own.

Tiana and Naveen learn that if they want to turn human again, they need help from Charlotte, who will be “princess” of the Mardi Gras Parade until midnight that night. Unfortunately, when Tiana finds Charlotte, she finds her about to marry who she thinks is Naveen on a float in the parade. Admittedly I kind of wonder why Tiana didn’t consider that it might not be Naveen, as earlier she saw a human Naveen dancing with Charlotte before meeting frog!Naveen and so should know there’s an imposter, but I suppose it’s just story convention, to have this kind of a pre-climax misunderstanding. It’s the same reason why Naveen is locked in a box on the float where he can interrupt the wedding, rather than being stowed away more securely somewhere else, or why Charlotte didn’t turn into a frog too after not being able to turn Tiana and Naveen back.

At long last, our climax arrives. After Dr. Facilier “lays Ray low” in a scene that makes both Mum and me cry out in grief, he corners Tiana in the graveyard, enticing her with the dream she’s worked so hard for in the hopes of getting the medallion that would allow Lawrence to impersonate Naveen and Facilier to steal the La Bouff fortune. But because of all of the character development Tiana’s gone through, she remembers what’s really important -- the people she loves -- and she outdoes the Shadowman, condemning him to be yanked down into the underworld by his so-called “Friends” for all time. The growth Tia’s gone through also gives her the strength and courage needed to put her dream aside and tell Naveen about her feelings for him. And because she’s a true friend, Charlotte shows no hint of bitterness about missing out on her “happily ever after” with Naveen -- instead she immediately is supportive of her friend and tries to fight for her happiness, to the extent that she looks over the moon when Tiana and Naveen get married as humans. Even Ray, who Mum wishes desperately had been able to make it, achieves happiness by finally becoming a star beside his beloved Evangeline. As our film comes to an end with a reprise of “Down in New Orleans,” we’re left with a sense of triumph and optimism...two things that embody our newly crowned princess beautifully.

The Princess and the Frog is a movie that, in Mum’s and my opinion, should receive much more appreciation that it has. Financially speaking, it only did about as well as The Great Mouse Detective and Lilo and Stitch in theaters, but it still has left a lasting impact. I still see plenty of little girls dressing as Tiana in the parks, and I still hear about young black women and girls who have found validation and comfort in the first African American Disney princess. Even I, who share a complexion with white bread, find Tiana an engaging, brilliant role model in today’s world -- in Mum’s words, she embraces the idea of success being half inspiration and half perspiration, but she also learns the virtue in disregarding the chase for success when it comes at the cost of your values. She learns how to love, how to grow, and how to change, while also encouraging the best from those around her. The Princess and the Frog also features what I would argue is the best Disney animated villain since the Disney Renaissance, a soundtrack that embraces its setting to the Nth degree, and a prince who grows just as much as his love interest does while they are together. It’s not a perfect film, but no film is, and Mum and I hope that like other Disney films that didn’t make much money on their initial theatrical releases, we as a Disney fanbase can make this movie a cult classic and give it the love it fought so hard to earn and so rightfully deserves. Look how it lights up the screen -- ma belle Princess and the Frog!

[vumanenc1102]

2D Animation’s Past, Present, and Future

(Pencil test for Sleeping Beauty) (original video source)

Traditional animation, also called hand-drawn animation, classical animation, cel animation, or by its modern handle, 2D animation, was the main form of animation from the late 19th century up until the creation of the modern computer, when computer-generated animation became the norm. Thanks to animation programs, there’s now a new mode of animating called computer animation, also known as 3D animation, where a figure is rigged to move about in a determined stage, similar to how real-life programs and films are made – the only difference being that the actors are now the animators through a character. Many North American studios had started out with 2D animated movies, but then shifted to focus on creating 3D animated movies thanks to the ease of the technology.

(Gif from Toy Story 4) (source)

Today in our modern world with many technologies at our hands, 3D animation has become the favored animation style, as proven by how much gross they procure at the box office compared to 2D animated films. Disney has virtually abandoned 2D animated movies, seeing as how their last movie in the medium was The Princess and the Frog released in 2009. The movie did well at the box office, but not as good as other 3D animated movies released since then. Seeing as how Disney has monopolized the animation film industry, anything they do will be copied in other animation studios, most notably American ones: DreamWorks Animation, once a studio where both 2D and 3D animated films were worked on in harmony, hasn’t made a 2D animated movie since 2003, when Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas was released. 2D animation just doesn’t cut it anymore, and is the main reason why North American studios have opted to stop using it entirely in their films. Because of this shift in power, 2D animation can now mainly be seen in T.V. programs and commercials, with many programs being made from independent creators who’re not affiliated with any studio.

(Gif from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power) (source)

Since 2D animated movies have been booted out of the theaters, it seems that 2D animation will – and has been able to – find a home on the T.V. screen. Thanks to many streaming services available, the services are able to host a multitude of programs and movies, included in these would be 2D animated movies and shows, making them accessible to a larger audience. Independent, or indie, creators are creating their own shows and movies in this medium, examples including Cannon Busters, Urbance, Ernest and Celestine, Hullabaloo, among many others. Additionally, television channels such as Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon are creating and hosting majority 2D animated shows, these including Steven Universe, Adventure Time, The Loud House, and SpongeBob SquarePants. Even bigshot Disney, on their channel Disney XD, has been creating and hosting 2D animated shows like Phineas and Ferb and Star vs. the Forces of Evil. While there are T.V. programs that’re rendered in 3D animation – Miraculous Ladybug, Lego Ninjago, etc. – this goes to show that 2D animation isn’t going anywhere, it’s just migrated someplace new.

That being said, many indie creations aren’t able to access a large audience due to needing the economic support of traditional animation fans who want to see the content. Since indie creators are working alone without much support aside from their small teams, they’ve had to resort to creating Kickstarters in order to raise enough money to start working.

(Gif from Spirited Away) (source)

On the other side of the ocean, Japan has had a long history of 2D animation, so far as to say that it’s its only animation medium. Astro Boy, originally a manga – Japanese comic book – circulating from 1951 to 1981, was first made into an animated program that ran from 1963 to 1976. While the show has been remade two times, with a third adaptation being made, the first show was the one to set in motion what would become known staples of anime. Since then, innumerable animes have been made for every genre, ranging from robot and mecha anime Gurren Lagann to romantic comedies like Ouran High School Host Club. Anime isn’t just programs either, it boasts many exceptional movies such as Akira, Ghost in the Shell (1995), Ponyo, Wolf Children, and more. One of the biggest anime studios is Studio Ghibli, who can be said to be the Japanese Disney. Studio Ghibli has even collaborated with Disney to promote their movies in the North American venues, most notably with Spirited Away.

(Gif from Samurai Champloo) (source)

American audiences love anime. Everywhere you go, there’s anime: today’s kid’s cartoons are always making references to Sailor Moon or Naruto; Pokémon Go made a giant impact all around the world as people of all kinds are trying to catch Pokémons; millennials and Gen Z’rs keep using slang that relates back to anime, like “You are already dead/Omae wa mou shindeiru;” even Disney has been making references to anime, as seen in their films Frozen and Brave, which feature intrepid female leads, something that can be owed to changing gender attitudes, but ultimately “owe a direct line of thanks to Studio Ghibli’s humble hand-drawn animations of years past”. Anime itself was inspired by old Disney cartoons, so it has now come full circle. But why? Why are American audiences so captivated by anime? For one, anime is now more accessible than ever. In the early 2000’s, there wasn’t readily-available subtitled anime, much less dubbed anime, and what was subtitled was made by fans and hosted on YouTube, or it was a collector’s item that would cost a pretty penny. Thanks to new streaming services, especially ones that focus on animes, anime and manga is a lot more accessible now. Take for example Crunchyroll.com: it’s an American company created by university students that streams anime, manga, and dramas (what we Latinos would call “telenovelas”) for free and offers a paid subscription for an even wider access. The website has anime available in eight languages, and has offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chișinău, and Tokyo.

(Gif from One Piece)

Another reason why anime has been such a hit is that anime is as diverse as Western media: there’s something for everyone, and it’s just a matter of exploring and enjoying the content available. Part of that is the creative liberty authors are given, letting them be the one to decide how long the story will stretch for, an example being Eiichiro Oda, the author of One Piece, an ongoing manga and anime. He’s been stated to willing “die for One Piece,” a level of dedication “manifested throughout his series.” On top of that, the East doesn’t have the same sensibilities as the West, making for a larger range of topics that anime can touch upon that Western shows and films would be too frightened or just plain embarrassed to broach, especially given how nowadays people have many hang-ups about many things, and don’t seem to tolerate differences – just look at the outrage Starbucks caused in 2015 when they rolled out a new holiday cup that was just plain red. Every year since then, Starbucks manages to somehow anger everyone about their holiday cups. Anime isn’t made to reach a wider audience, it just wants to tell a story in its own way, and authors and content-creators should know what it feels like to want to tell a story that you know not everyone is going to understand. The movie Spirited Away blew everyone away at the 75th Academy Awards in 2003 where it beat Disney’s two films Lilo & Stitch and Treasure Planet for Best Animated Feature Film, and because of it, put Japanese animated film under the spotlight. Now everyone is informed that anime is not just for kids but can be a compelling medium for storytelling in films, enough to be able to win an Oscar.

(Gif from The Artist) (source)

Noticing how 2D animation is falling to grace in the West despite Western audiences clamoring for anime, a 2D animated medium, makes for a very interesting oxymoron. That being said, this could open up new – or old – doors for 2D animation in the entertainment industry. The Artist is a silent, black-and-white film released in 2011, directed by Frenchman Michel Hazanavicius, and it won Best Picture at the 84th Academy Awards. It was the first silent film to win an Oscar for Best Picture since Wings won it in 1927, and the first totally black-and-white film to win Best Picture since The Apartment won it in 1960. The Artist is mentioned here to demonstrate that old formats such as silent films and black-and-white films can still be successful in this modern age, even going so far to be the most awarded film in France. If silent and black-and-white films could make an astounding comeback, even if just for one moment, then surely the same could be said for 2D animated movies. It’s just a matter of someone driven enough to achieve it.

(Ramen from Gobelins, L'École de L'Image) (also here)

2D animated movies have started to lose their luster in the American film industry. Because of this, 2D animation has seen a new life in T.V. programs and commercials. Unlike their Western counterparts, the East has been producing a vast array of 2D animated anime and films, being able to even win the highest award a film can get in the West, an Oscar. This proves that 2D animation doesn’t have to be a lesser artform in film, because it can be revitalized and recontextualized just as if it were a silent movie being created in the modern age. 2D animation doesn’t have to be a medium of the past and can instead gain some of its grace again as a respected film mode.

Bibliography

Jozuka, Emiko. Japanese anime: From 'Disney of the East' to a global industry worth billions. Ed. Takashi Murakami. 28 July 2019. Article. 12 November 2019. <https://www.cnn.com/style/article/japan-anime-global-identity-hnk-intl/index.html>.

Macdonald, A.G. Why Western Culture is Beginning to Embrace Anime. 7 August 2017. Article. 12 November 2019. <https://the-artifice.com/western-culture-embrace-anime/>.

Mc Bain Jr., Everard J. Is 2D Animation Dead? Not Really. 2 February 2018. Article. 12 November 2019. <https://celflux.com/is-2d-animation-dead-not-really/>.

Morr. Why We’re Seeing Less 2D Animated Movies and Why They Probably Won’t Make a Comeback. n.d. Bloop Animation. Blog Post. 12 November 2019. <https://www.bloopanimation.com/why-were-seeing-less-2d-animated-movies-and-why-they-wont-make-a-comeback/>.

Riki, J.K. Why Should 2D Animation Be Abandoned? (Part 1). 2015. Commentary. 12 November 2019. <https://www.animatorisland.com/why-2d-animation-should-be-abandoned-part-1/?v=7516fd43adaa>.

Shutterstock. How Hayao Miyazaki Influenced American Animation with Spirited Away. 20 July 2016. Article. 12 November 2019. <https://www.shutterstock.com/blog/miyazaki-influence-on-american-animation>.

Smith, Brandon. Former Disney Veteran Explains Why Big Studios Have Abandoned 2D Animation. Ed. Kelly Conley. 27 February 2015. Opinion. 12 November 2019. <https://www.rotoscopers.com/2015/02/27/former-disney-veteran-explains-why-big-studios-have-abandoned-2d-animation/>.

[xxamity0parkxx]

10 Favorite Movies Tag 🎥

tagged by: @myhollie1911 | tagging: @captainjosmy @kristinart18 @raimboweyeseditor @mssproductions @theevilsquirrelqueen & anyone who wants to do it :3

I tried to keep these pretty varied so they weren’t all Disney movies but welp x’D

1) Aladdin  |  I’m sorry. I just freakin love this movie xD Also really liked the live-action version too, but the animated will always be my favorite and hold a special place in my heart <3

2) Pride & Prejudice (2005)  |  I will never apologize for my love of this movie or classic novels set in the early 19th century with romantic themes however. So relatable and brilliant. Also Mr. Bingley & Jane are a blessing.

3) Treasure Planet  |  Gosh my love for this movie is so strong and huge... Like where to start? The cinematography? The themes? The characters/character arcs? It makes me sad that it’s so depressingly underrated... It often gets a bad rap for the combined steampunk, futuristic-combo design or pop music but I freakin love all of it and will defend this movie to my dying breath.

4) The Proposal  |  ..... okay but I like cheesy romantic comedies, don’t judge me x’D Also Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds are a blessing

5) Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse  |  If only film companies were this innovative again x’D I loved watching this movie in theaters, and have watched it a hundred times since. The creativity and hardwork the people involved in this movie put into it is soooo apparent and so appreciated. My favorite superhero in an animated feature integrated with comic book designs? Heck ya, I’m in!

6) Sleeping Beauty  |  I am probably a lonely person in the ‘I love Sleeping Beauty’ corner but.... I freakin love Sleeping Beauty. Especially for the artistic, tapestry-like animation. And the humor! Just *insert Pacha meme*

7) 42  |  Gosh do I love inspirational, historical uplifters like this about amazing people that lived... Jackie Robinson has always been one of my heroes, and this movie is downright amazing and makes me feel so much <3 (and apparently I have a thing for baseball movies during the mid 1900s since I also love A League of Their Own, so there’s also that xD)

8) She’s The Man  |  I’m a sucker for hilarious, low-budget teen comedies like this. Bless the actors for the amazing humor that makes me legit cry from laughing so hard

9) Prince of Egypt  |  I wish Dreamworks did more 2D animation cause James Baxter is brilliant. The art and animation quality is just astounding in this movie, and the score is just downright soul-hitting for me. It has easily become one of my household staples ever since I was little

10) Secondhand Lions  |  This movie isn’t very well known, but it’s one of my favorites. It’s not an expensively-made movie... but that’s part of what makes me love it so much. The actors put so much thought and quality and fun into what they are doing to make it so relatable yet magical and that it becomes such an enjoyable movie to watch. And always leaves me feeling really good by the end of it <3

Bonus: The Mummy  |  Evie is absolutely 100% my mood and I love her

[pikespendragon67]

Bajillion Questions Meme

Rules: Answer all questions, add one question of your own and tag as many people as there are questions!

I was tagged by @sakuraberyl. LESSGO...under the cut so this doesn’t become too long

1. Coke or Pepsi: I don’t drink soda 2. Disney or Dreamworks: Depends on what era you’re talking about. Like, modern Disney is pretty freaking awesome in comparison to modern DreamWorks. Also if Pixar counts or not. Because I love 2D Dreamworks and Pixar (excluding the Cars movies).  3. Coffee or Tea: Neither 4. Books or Movies: Both 5. Windows or Mac: Windows but god I do not like having constant updates where I get unnecessary apps and the lack of easy video editing software 6. DC or Marvel: Grew up with DC cartoons, currently liking the Marvel cinematic universe. Hoping that the Aqua Man movie will be awesome like Wonder Woman, though! 7. XBox or Playstation: Playstation, though I’m sticking to Nintendo consoles so I can focus on my school work first. Love me them JRPGs 8. Dragon Age or Mass Effect: I’m in the dark about both of these series but with me being a huge fantasy nerd I think Dragon Age would be preferred here. I still like Garrus and Ja’al though! 9. Night Owl or Early Rise: Night owl 10. Cards or Chess: Cards. Especially Black Jack 11. Chocolate or Vanilla: Chocolate 12. Vans or Converse: I want to wear Vans but the backs always brush up against my heels and cause bruises. Haven’t worn Converse, either... 13. Lavellan, Trevelyan, Cadash, or Adaar: whom? 14. Fluff or Angst: F l u f f. Angst followed by fluff is also good 15. Dogs or Cats: Both I don’t like small energetic dogs. 16. Clear skies or Rain: Clear skies unless it’s really hot out. For rain it depends on how much there is because I freak out if there’s a lot 17. Cooking or Eating out: I’d prefer cooking but I don’t really have the time 18. Spicy or mild: Mild because I am a wimp 19. Halloween/Samhain or Solstice/Yule/Christmas: Halloween 20. Would you rather forever be a little too cold or a little too hot: Cold because then one day I can cuddle with my s/o to warm up 21. If you could have a superpower, what would it be: Teleportation so my mom can stop nagging me about driving and also because I guarantee it would save so much time and money 22. Animation or Live action: Animation. I grew up thinking live action would be as bad as Power Rangers and I’ve barely gotten back into it after The Avengers. 23. Paragon or Renegade: renegade for life Paragon 24. Baths or Showers: Showers 25. Team Cap or Team Iron Man: Team Black Panther 26. Fantasy or Sci-fi: Fantasy 27. Do you have three or four favorite quotes? If so, what are they? “You can be a hero”, “Just because I’m sad doesn’t mean I’ve given up hope”, and “I should like to help everyone, not hurt them. Pure man, black, white, we all want to help one another. Human beings are like that.” 28. Youtube or Netflix: Youtube 29. Harry Potter or Percy Jackson: Couldn’t really get into either but I know the most about Harry Potter 30. When Do You Feel Accomplished: Getting double digit notes for my original content here that isn’t just me reblogging or just “Like”s, getting reviews on a chapter for my fic I worked relatively hard on, parents telling me they’re proud of me, a friend thanking me for cheering them up, having people wanting to create content after being inspired on things I’ve created 31. Star Wars or Star Trek: Wars 32. Paperback or Hardback books: Either’s fine really. As long as it’s physical 33. Handwriting or Typing: Both 34. Velvet or Satin: Both 35. Video games or movies: Stronger preference for video games here 36. Would you rather be the dragon or fight the dragon: Now why would I fight a dragon in the first place? I wanna be best bros with it 37. Sunrise or Sunset: Sunset, since I’m actually awake when that happens 38. What’s your favorite song: Depends on what I’m in the mood for.  39. Horror movies, yes or no: Horror elements, yes. Actual horror movies, no 40. Long or Short hair: Depends on the style and I know I can’t really pull off either rip 41. Opera or Theater: I do like my musical theater, but not if sing-speaking of opera is extremely frequent 42. Assuming the multiverse theory is true and that every story ever told has really happened somewhere, which one of the movie/book/tv show/game/etc worlds would you pick to travel to first: “Do you, Miss Pikes, take Priam to be your lawfully wedded husband?” 43. If you had to eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be: Chocolate seems good. Or the chicken recipe my best friend showed me. 44. Older or younger guys: Older 45. If you could delete any show from TV history, what would it be: The Honeymooners 46. Singing or dancing: I myself am better at “singing” but I like when the two are combined 47. Instagram or Twitter: Neither, please 48. Lord of the Rings or the Hobbit: In terms of theatrical releases Lord of the Rings. Still need to read The Hobbit 49. If you could create either a sequel or bring back any tv show/movie, what would you choose: give me my priam-centric game you cowards Depends on the quality of this sequel/reboot and how much time has passed. Like, I’d love to see more of ACCA-13 but I believe it was the hype that got me into it 50. Who is your favorite movie/TV character you look up to and why? Wander from Wander Over Yonder because I too want to help everyone, Iskandar from Fate/Zero because I want that same level of self-confidence, Midoriya Izuku from Hero Academia because we face the same struggles (not literally but shh), Luann Loud from The Loud House because puns 51. If you were convicted of a crime, what would it be? Internet piracy probably. I got Adblock 52. Anime- subbed or dubbed. Now here’s where this greatly depends. If it’s a Bang Zoom/Aniplex dub I’m definitely more bias towards it because I recognize a lot of the voice actors and like seeing them portray different assortments of characters. Funimation can be good too, such as Space Dandy and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. But then the setting of the show itself and the accents come into play. Like, in Black Butler, the English accents are really forced in the dub and it’s too distracting for me, but I freaking love Hellsing Ultimate and Drifters’ dubs for their use of accents. And then Japanese names can be pronounced differently in English so there’s that problem. 53. City or countryside: Countryside 54. What book have you read over and over? That’s not manga, probably Count of Monte Cristo or some of the mythology books I keep around the house. When I was a kid, Magic Treehouse and Chet Gecko 55. What is your personality type? ISFJ 56. Would you rather change a moment in the past or have a glimpse in the future: As much as the 50s fucked everything up we still need them to learn from our mistakes. ...maybe get rid of fire emblem fates 57. Would you rather have an ex that you hate start dating your best friend, or have an ex that you’re still attached to hook up with someone you revile? Neither, please

(my question)

58. Games you want ported for the Nintendo Switch: Persona 5, NieR (original), Ori and the Blind Forest, Child of Light, Valiant Hearts: The Great War, Journey, Qbeh-1: The Atlas Cube

Tagging @lunarlapin, @writer-of-worlds and @freshaslime

[skygatecreations]

what up i was tagged by @kaitenkenburokuren

RULES: Answer all the questions, add one of your own and tag as many people as there are questions

not tagging that many ppl either.

not taggin no one because I pmuch know all of em pretty well and they all busy being awesome at life. but thank for the tag, these fun despite how smartass I sound.

under cut lmao <- same bro

1. Coke or pepsi? coke <-same

2. Disney or dreamworks? Disney has a higher hit vs. miss ratio with me, but Dworks got some good ones.

3. Coffee or tea? Coffee bro.

4. Books or movies? prolly movies. usually animated sh** that I use as ‘inspiring background noise’ and don’t actually watch a lot of the time.

5. Windows or mac? Windows cause it’s what I know best. Also I don’t tend to  like Apple’s monopoly-ish-ness.

6. DC or marvel? Marvel pm strictly because I like the movies. No clue on comics...Also ol X-men cartoon Storm was my homegirl as a youngling. I honestly think she might have subliminally created the thing I have for white hair lol

7. Xbox or playstation? Playstation cause that’s what fell into my lap.

8. Dragon age or mass effect? no.

9. Night owl or early riser? night owl <- same

10. Cards or chess? cards...but preferably neither because I’m uncannily terrible at non-video games...k actually pretty bad at vid games too but the nons...Jesus Christ 8/

11. Chocolate or vanilla? Are we talking ice cream because that kinda important op. like get yer sh** together...anyway if yes, then Chocolate.

12. Vans or converse? probably neither. not usually my look...also I’m picky as Hell.

13. Lavellan, Trevelyan, Cadash or Adaar? ...what you just call me bro?

14. Fluff or angst? angst in certain doses. Also I’m picky even with that.

15. Beach or forest? both.

16. Dogs or cats? both

17. Clear skies or rain? both kinda - no like...that patchy sort of cloud+sun after it rains that makes the light look all awesome and sh**

18. Cooking or eating out? eating out, but if I learn to cook more it’ll probably be a harder call.

19. Spicy food or mild food? mostly mild. There if like, 1 at times very spicy food that hurts me but tastes freaking amazing lol but been trying some slightly spicer that my normal jam foods lately.

20. Halloween/samhain or solstice/yule/christmas? can’t decide. strangely apathetic at this...slightly concerned about myself now. thanks for the existential crisis, man. 

21. Would you rather forever be a little too cold or a little too hot? maybe a lil too hot tbh. just increase water intake and *thumbs up*. cause a lil too cold makes the migraines worse. like ‘difference between vom-ing or not’ worse.

22. If you could have a superpower, what would it be? Flight bro.

23. Animation or live action? Animation. like good 2D Disney-ish stuff, not this eyesore bullsh** on CN these days.

24. Paragon or renegade? Apache attack Helicopter. idk.

25. Baths or showers? shower <- same...I like baths but I don’t have a plug for the tub so they don’t happen much...

26. Team cap or team ironman? shut up I haven’t seen that movie yet.

27. Fantasy or sci-fi? depends on the mood.

28. Do you have three or four favorite quotes, if so, what are they?

‘Fall seven times, Stand up eight’, ‘Don’t be afraid of dying, be afraid of not living’, ‘Fly as far into the crash as you can’ (or ‘drive’ if we talkin cars) ‘You panic, you die.’ ...idk, a lot of stuff I heard from people that are generally a lot braver and cooler than I am lol.

29. Youtube or netflix? Youtube. Can’t afford netflix. check yo privilege damn.

30. Harry potter or percy jackson? HP. not even close.

31. When do you feel accomplished? *bitter, empty laughter*

32. Star wars or star trek? Not a space opera fan but if I have to choose, Star Wars all the way. because it’s a little LESS space opera.

33. Paperback or hardback books? hardback but can’t say no to all the free classic ebooks that I’ve been finding. Bro. Read the Jungle Book(s). the REAL ones. That mess is epic. All movies made of it so far are SH** and it will anger you once you learn how sh** they really are.

34. Horror or rom-com? Rom-com if must choose. because I have an overactive imagination and I will have f-ed up dreams. My sleep pattern is sh** enough as it is lol...and yet I listen to a lot of ‘true scary story’ narrations...

35. TV shows or movies? tv shows because easy background noise

36. Favourite animal? MANY. Dogs, cats, horses, sharks...

37. Favourite genre of music? MANY. like...only criteria is “do I like it?’. notables are classic rock, epic soundtrack-y sh**, and I’m super hooked on synthwave right now...which basically means I like 80′s synth music...

38. Least favourite book? idk, if I dislike something that much I stop reading/don’t read. I guess Hunger Games series qualifies tho compared to everything I’ve read. Not a bad story, but I really...don’t like first-person perspective...so cringe. sooo shamelessly made for self-insert fantasies.

39. Favourite season? fall I guess.

40. Song that’s currently stuck in your head? toss up between Neo-tokyo and Running in the Night (totally freaking different vibes? told you I like a lot of sh**)

41. What kind of pyjama’s do you wear? usually-loose camisoles and soft pants/shorts, preferably of Jersey material. I dislike fuzzy ‘warm’ sh**. let the blankets do their damn job lol

42. How many existential crises do you have on an average day? my whole life is one big existential crisis.<- SAME BRO

43. If you can only choose one song to be played at your funeral, what would it be? Bruh that dark.

44. Favourite theme song to a TV show? tbh AS a theme song? ...probably Yuichi ikusawa’s WARRIORS from one of the Yugioh openings. Pretty damn epic. only up to a certain point of the full song tho (opening cut is fine). eventually he starts doing this weird actually laughable thing with his voice and ruins it.

45. Harry potter movies or books? Books. movies are good for book movies though.

46. You can make your OTP become canon but you’ll forget that tumblr exists. will you do it? OTPs are great but I have friends on tumblr and some that I I’m having active interactions with and are expecting stuff from me. I sacrifice the OTP for my duties. *salutes*

47. Do you play an instrument and if so, what is it? *more bitter laughing*

48. What is the worst way to die? anything slow. Bonus bad points if you are alone and have time to think of your fam and friends and how your end will effect them...that got dark again. moving on :)

49. If you could be entirely invisible for a day, what would you do? idk man, maybe just go around looking for wild animals to hang out with without their knowledge...or the risk of being mauled. Or go places I’d never go by myself because ghetto-as-hell and just chill.

50. If you could have personally witnessed anything in history what would it be? The first hop of the Wright Flyer. Dawn of powered flight bitches. 

51. If you could understand animals but you could never understand humans again, would you? ...bruh. No. like I know a lot of people would think that would be cool and sh** but if you think ‘people just don’t get you’ now, imagine if you really were incapable of communication. like...sh** would suck. And you’d have to be a hermit somewhere with no money cause no/extremely limited livelihood options...is my adult showing? I feel like my adult is showing.

52. What is your most favourite album currently? I don’t really do albums. I pick and choose what I like.

53. What is your favourite TV show character? lots of them. usually the dudes with complex/’juicy’ backstories...which is pretty boring because a lot of people would probably say that. because those tend to be the most interesting.

54. What is something you were obsessed with as a child? doggies idk

55. Do you have any tattoos/piercings and if not would you like any? just single earlobe piercings.

56. Biggest pet peeves? hard to call. a lot of things annoy me lol. maybe people not taking responsibility for their own actions/bullsh**.

57. A place you’ve always wanted to visit? Close between Germany or Japan, I got family both places. Japan narrowly wins.

58. cheesecake or carrot cake? carrot cake if it good...and doesn’t have deer turds- I mean raisins. ...I think I got all of them? idk you see one I missed lemme know.

[2djdanger]

RAMBLINGS OF AN ANIMATION STUDENT ON THE BOSS BABY AND THE INDUSTRY ITSELF AND WHY I LOVE THE BOSS BABY WITH ALL MY HEART AND SOUL:

Words cannot describe the love I have for The Boss Baby. I saw an advanced screening of it a few weeks back with the director there & it blew my mind it’s like 3D animation meets 2D along with gorgeous art & so many opposites attract motifs like the baby acting like an adult & the graphic bold bright comic book feel type scenes that also meet this almost soft pastel 1950s/1960s vibe going on. AND THE EMOTION IN EVERYONES FACES AGH IT MAKES ME SO HAPPY AS AN ANIMATOR!!! It’s such a fast paced movie & everything happening at once & throughout all this everyone’s showing a variety of different emotions in a few seconds & the writing is amazing like not many animated films these days go back to the roots of traditional animation & just making it for a wide variety of an audience from all walks of life instead of making the same movie over & over again with great animation but a story line that seems rushed & choppy & not thought out but they keep making sequels anyways whether we wanted them or not just because m o n e y. I’m looking at u Disney with almost everything & Illumination with Despicable Me. It’s not to say that I don’t like sequels bc those companies have made some I enjoyed but it makes me disappointed when they could be putting their talents towards something fresh & new & original. This movie was o r i g i n a l in every sense of the word. Go take your kids to see it, yourself, your parents (I took mine & im a fully grown adult as are they & we loved it), your grandparents, your grandparent’s grandparents!!! It’s so great!!! It’s literally what the 3D animation community needed. I’m a traditional/2D animator myself & it seems more of the 2D movies out there recently have been trying to keep it original and don’t even get me started on the amount of work the animators do in not only 2D but 3D as well. But like recently 3D animation seems obsessed with the technology realizing they can make anything look more & more realistic nowadays then say when Pixar created Toy Story & their shorts in the 80s. These big companies keep churning out these movies not putting much thought into it & spending everything to make it look as real as possible. But that’s not the point of animation at all! They’re losing touch with why we animate in the first place!!! As my old storyboarding teacher once told our class on why we animate, we animate because it shouldn’t be possible in the real world. When you make anything animated you should stop & think: why am I making this story animated? Does it really need to be animated? Can I do this in live action? If you can make a story in live action then why are you animating it at all in the first place? It doesn’t need to be animated! Literally animation is just beautiful. You can do anything with it. And more & more especially with the technology in 3D films they’re slipping away from those values & ideas & making things that can be replicated in live action. So to see The Boss Baby really utilize the original concept of animation to tell that beautiful crazy impossible story & to top it off tell it through the bright eyes of an over imaginative child make it all the more better because it gives way to these big brilliant imagination sequences with these bold graphic designs that I’d die for. The editing and the animation in this movie is literally perfection it’s one thing flows into another into another into another & it works ANNND THERES EVEN GOOD COMEDIC TIMING!!! Sometimes movies live action & animated just can’t capture that kind of fast paced back to back tension followed by good comedic timing so to the writing team on The Boss Baby I say bravo to you & to the animators as well because God knows how difficult it is to draw out a normal sequence of actions but to follow the writing & get that vision out there in the open & follow it & draw it out so every detail works that’s just insane. This movie just inspires me so much & it’s relatable. My childhood was like Tim’s where everything was perfect & I was happy until my baby sister came along & we went at it for years. Another thing back to the genius writing in the film is this style where it forces you into Tim’s shoes because when they first introduce Boss Baby & for the first half of the film you’re made to hate him & he acts as the villain of the film until about halfway through Boss Baby really comes out of his 1 dimensional evil villain shell & just sees Tim in distress & reveals why it’s not only bad for Tim the current situation but why it’s bad for him too & then proceeds to give Boss Baby this insane narrative & beautifully tragic multidimensional backstory. Tim as the first main character has already been developed as a multidimensional character with different feelings & emotional expressions because he doesn’t know much about the world except for his imagination since he is a kid but by showing this then completely flipping everything on it’s head & giving Boss Baby real flaws & strengths that balance out Tim’s strengths & weaknesses it makes them seem a lot more like real relatable people & more so like siblings who depend on each other. As an older sister I can say some of my weaknesses end up being my sisters strengths & vice versa. Then by the end of the film,Boss Baby is this character you can't help but love & root for hoping he wins & can get out of the bad situations like when his formula was stolen so he kept going baby again it's like you feel panicked because you don't want Boss Baby to be normal you want him to be his crazy quirky self. Also this whole tragic narrative really hit me like it just stuck with me because I’m a sucker for these kinds of dark/sad stories layered in a brighter happier story & they coexist in harmony like that’s when you know a film’s really working. So SPOILERS AHEAD even though if you got this far there have already been some light spoilers I couldn’t avoid talking about but these get right into the grit of it. So the idea that Boss Baby was never really born fascinates me. In this world in the movie it makes sense. It’s also really sad as Tim points out as we’re finding out more about Boss Baby that he never had a childhood & how Boss Baby even says himself he was “born” or more so created (in both the universe of the movie & if he was self aware ((which he isn’t but for the sake of explaining this just humor the thought if he was)) that he was created as a character to work in this movie world realm plane of existence whatever you want to call it) all grown up as an adult in a baby’s body. Just think about that for a minute. What if you were born an adult & never went through childhood, never had a family, no one ever loved you or played with you or anything, all you knew was co-workers & business stuff. You never had fun or imagined things. That’s a really sad life if you ask me personally. He never had a chance to be creative or find himself all he knew was what the cold adult business school taught him from day 1. Most adults these days forgot what it was like to be a child & have fun & I think that’s what they were trying to get at with this backstory especially when Tim’s on the plane to Vegas with Boss Baby & just trying to teach him in small little ways how to use his imagination & just be a kid & not be so serious & black & white all the time. Also, I feel like that’s the issue sometimes with my own parents. As an animator I see animated movies as just another way of telling a story whereas people like my parents who don’t understand much from my line of work see it as a children’s media with no substance & pretty pictures. I want to break that barrier because the first animated pieces were NOT made for kids they were for other adults. I feel like it shouldn’t matter anyways if the movie’s marketed for kids because it could always be a good movie regardless of that & people like my parents forget what it’s like to have fun & see a good kids movie. They were kids once, we all were. As with many animated films before it, The Boss Baby brings subtle tasteful adult humor to the film as well as some just downright outrageous adult humor like Boss Baby running around butt naked with a censor bar over his nether regions. When you can marry adult & child humor together in a movie & make it work nicely it’s always a sign of a good movie. So tonight’s the opening night of The Boss Baby in cinemas everywhere & because I have so much love for this movie after seeing the advanced screening & listening to the director, producer, & designer from the movie speak about it & their own experiences they put into this film, like I stated before I dragged my parents out of the house on a Friday night when they would normally be in bed sleeping really early & shared the joy & beauty of the animated feature film with them. Normally my dad’s the one who will give almost any film a try & watch it & really like it. My mom however is extremely picky & if it doesn’t please her in the first 10 minutes or less she will zone out & fall asleep taking a nap through over half the movie. Both of my parents were on the edge of their seats tonight paying the utmost attention to the movie. It was a really beautiful moment to see my parents actually giving this animated movie a shot & they both ended up loving it as much I did on my second go seeing it. I’m not gonna lie I saw the trailers for this movie late last year & it caught my interest but I had this nagging thought that it wasn’t going to be a fresh new story it would just be typical & only made to make some money & keep Dreamworks in the game another year. I was happily proven wrong & this movie just takes everything about these money making no story movies & flips it on its head entirely. I even bought the art book for The Boss Baby because the artwork alone is enough to inspire me while working on my own projects. And that my friends is why you need to see The Boss Baby

TL;DR: The Boss Baby is an A+ gorgeously animated film with a breath of fresh air new story told in a way that’s really interesting & new & takes you back to the old days of 2D animation classics despite being a 3D film so disregard Rotten Tomato’s obviously wrong ratings & go see it for yourself because as an animator this movie makes me happy & I want to live in it forever ❤️❤️❤️

[tinkiisms]

rules: answer all questions, add one question of your own

tagged by: @lanterniisms

1. coke or pepsi: neither tbh. i’m a water fairy!! 2. disney or dreamworks: both, but Disney more....sorry Shrek </3 3. coffee or tea: neither D: 4. books or movies: books 5. windows or mac: windows 6. dc or marvel: who?? 7. x-box or playstation: i used to have a playstation when i was little 8. dragon age or mass effect: n/a 9. night owl or early riser: i’m an unintentional night owl because i lose track of time and stay up too late, but also whenever i get up early i’m way more happy and productive during that day. so both? 10. cards or chess: chess is awesome but i never get a chance to play it so cards 11. chocolate or vanilla: swirl 12. vans or converse: i don’t really wear sneakers 13. Lavellan, Trevelyan, Cadash, or Adaar: n/a 15. beach or forest: beach!! 16. dogs or cats: both <333 17. clear skies or rain: clear skies are the best but i also love a good rainy day 18. cooking or eating out: eating out 19. spicy food or mild food: i can handle a little spice but i’m so mild 20. halloween/samhain or solstice/yule/christmas: christmas is so jolly 21. would you rather forever be a little too cold or a little too hot: a little too hot. i used to want to be cold but it’s always so cold in my house, i just want the warmth tbh 22. if you could have a superpower, what would it be: flying 23. animation or live action: both?? why must i choose ;n; 24. paragon or renegade: n/a 25. baths or showers: showers, who ever heard of a bath 26. team cap or team ironman: i haven’t watched the captain america movies so iron man?? 27. fantasy or sci-fi: fantasy has to win for me just because of fairies and princesses 28. do you have three or four favourite quotes, if so what are they:

“Have courage and be kind.” + “Having a soft heart in a cruel world is courage, not weakness.”

I love all the quotes on this article which I look at every once in a while for inspiration

I also have a tag on my personal blog where I put quotes, favorite lyrics, poems, word definitions, etc.

One of my favorite books ever, Tiger Lily, is FULL of amazing, heart-wrenching lines so I love all these quotes, too.

29. youtube or netflix: i watch youtube every day and netflix once in a while so i guess yt 30. harry potter or percy jackson: harry potter was first to my heart and is my husband so i have to choose him 31. when you feel accomplished: when i go out and try something new or am busy during the day 33. paperback books or hardback books: both but for bigger books i like hardcover because they can stay open on their own and i dont have to hold them 34. horror or rom-com: rom-com all the way!! i can only watch like 2 horror movies. 35. tv shows or movies: movies 36. Pink or yellow lemonade: neither 37: wolves or tigers: wolves <333 38. 2D or 3D animated films/shorts/shows: l iSTen i’m not a 2d purist, i enjoy both and don’t see why there needs to be a divide 39. cake, pie, or cookies: hmmmmmm ice cream 40. Star Trek or Star Wars: i like both. i got really obsessed with sw for a while so 41. Bold, pastel, or neutral colors? some colors i prefer bold shades, some i prefer pastel, etc. for example i like a really bright cerulean blue, but for yellow i prefer a softer pastel shade that’s easier on the eyes! 42. Dub or sub? SUBTITLES. bc i can tell when the english voices are over-the-top or cheesy or have an annoying voice, and i can’t really tell anything off about the delivery of lines in a foreign language/accent so it makes the viewing experience more pleasant. 43. Rock or punk rock? i'm more of a pop/indie/alt rock kinda girl 44. What would be the first thing you’d do if you won the lottery? pay off all my family’s debts or college tuition or whatever we need (my sister is in college and i don’t think our home’s mortgage is 100% paid yet so i’d do that first) 45. Would you rather live in a bubble colony on the moon or the bottom of the ocean? beam me up

I tag: anybody who wants to!

[lifebooksloves]

Disney Pixar Artist Ana Ramirez chats about Coco and her new book

Life, Books & Loves had the opportunity to sit and chat with Pixar Visual Development Artist Ana Ramirez. Ana worked on Disney•Pixar’s Coco– out on November 22nd. As well as working on the film as an artist, she also illustrated the “Coco” inspired book Miguel and the Grand Harmony.

I spoke with her about her experience working on the film and how growing up in Mexico helped when making the movie.

  LBL – The film was absolutely stunning. Growing up in South Texas, as a Latina, and seeing the integration of the Mexican culture in a Disney Pixar film was wonderful! Did you have any input as far as the aspects of the culture in the storyline?

Ana –  I was able to give some of my input on that – one hundred percent! Pixar is very inclusive as a studio, and I know it sounds like a big studio, but once you’re there, it’s not. Especially when you’re on a project. I think in total, we’re about 1,200 employees, but that includes HR, Software Engineering, and other departments that aren’t as involved in the making of each film. And there’s a few projects going at the same time. So, really, the crew for one team is not that big. We get a lot of one-on-one time with the director and the producers, especially in the art department. Story as well, and animation, I think we’re very close and work closely with the director. I was on the film very early on.  I started back in 2013 as an intern. Then they found out I was from Guanajuato—they didn’t even know I was Mexican when I got the internship. And Guanajuato very heavily influenced the Land of the Dead. Later on [I found out], Miguel’s family are shoemakers—and my Dad’s a shoemaker! Cause that’s the main industry in Guanajuato. I was very impressed – I was like “This is a story about my life!” But because of things like that, all the coincidences, I was able to get more exposure as an artist and also able to contribute more than I would’ve otherwise. The producer and the director made it a point to ask me to join the cultural consultant meetings, and the production designers always would say, “Tell us if there’s something we’re not doing right.” Sometimes going to the consultants might take longer than if someone just catches it before it goes out. I felt like I had more responsibility and pressure in a way because I wanted to make my country proud and I couldn’t let anything slip through the cracks. Ultimately, it was all teamwork, and everyone was so diligent about their research in a very respectful and culturally accurate way, but I was able to help out as well.

  LBL – One thing I did notice were the Dia De Los Muertos skulls incorporated in the architecture throughout the Land of the Dead. Did you have a say in that and how were those thought into the design concept?

Ana – I worked on a lot of that, too. So, Harley Jessup, he’s a production designer, he was in charge of all the visuals of the film. He supervises everything that all the art department does, everything the technical teams do, everything the animators come up with in terms of design.  He and I worked very closely because he’s the one who recruited me for Pixar, and we happen to have similar sensibilities. He would give me assignments of designing different things for set dressing. Someone would design the big picture set, and I would dress it. I come up with ideas of stands in Mexico – like gorditas, and fruta picada and papel picado-paper flowers. Since the Land of the Dead is based in Guanajuato, I got to do a lot of that. He pushed to design with skull motifs – so we studied architecture and designing lamps, railings, manholes for the Land of the Dead. He came up with the idea for the skulls and then [the art department did it based on his suggestion] – I did a lot of it and I think I did the most of it.  Then I got this mural project where I made a lot of skull inspired paintings for the walls.

  LBL – You also illustrated a children’s book! How was that different from the drawings you did for the film?

Ana – That was a little tough, honestly. Even though I work traditionally in 2D and on paper, for all the designs, they end up being designed for 3D. So, when you draw those, it’s always kept in mind. It was a little tough to take those characters and stylize them again and make them look flat and 2D. I was used to seeing them in 3D, and I didn’t know how to make them not look like that anymore.  I went back and studied the concept drawings and sketches from early on in the research at the very beginning before we knew what the film would be about. So, I used those for inspiration.  Then I added my pass and take on it.  I wanted it to be very stylized and flat. I don’t draw very technical, I love the idea of drawings being more expressive than technically good, and I wanted to convey that.

  LBL – You studied in France, are from Mexico, and live in California. Out of all the places you’ve lived, all the places you’ve traveled to, what’s the best dish you’ve ever had. has been your favorite dish ever?

Ana – My mom’s pastel Azteca! It’s the BEST!!

LBL – It all comes back to family.

It was a pleasure getting to speak with Ana. I was able to stay for a presentation on the film and watching her speak was inspiring. Be on the lookout for the review here on Life, Books and Loves, and please be sure to catch Disney•Pixar’s Coco – in theatres November 22nd.

Pixar Artist Ana Ramirez (left) and Life, Books & Loves contributor Anissa Garcia (left) pose with the colorful Disney Pixar’s Coco film poster

Ana Ramirez Sketch Artist Pixar Animation Studios

Ana Ramirez joined Pixar Animation Studios as an intern in 2013. After completing schooling at California Institute of Arts (CalArts), Ramirez returned to Pixar in 2015 as a full-time sketch artist. She is currently working on Disney•Pixar’s upcoming feature film, “Coco,” set to release on November 22 nd . As a sketch artist Ramirez works with the art departments to help develop the visual look of a film’s characters, set dressings, graphics, shading and overall color. Prior to Pixar, Ramirez worked freelance for Google, Dreamworks TV and Jib Jab, as well as FOX. Raised in Guanajuato, México, Ramirez’s primary schooling took place in Mexico and a short period in the United States. After high school, she moved to France to attend ESMA Montpellier art school, and then returned to the States to study at CalArts where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Film and Video. She currently lives in Oakland, CA.

  Pixar Animator Ana Ramirez

    DISCLOSURE – Information provided by Disney Pixar and Ana Ramirez.

The post Disney Pixar Artist Ana Ramirez chats about Coco and her new book appeared first on Life Books & Loves.

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