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kylesvariouslistsandstuff · 1 year ago

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2D Purists, Cut It Out

Once again, I'm seeing people get all ornery over the latest look at WISH, the new feature from Walt Disney Animation Studios that marries their post-TANGLED house style and aesthetic to a more watercolor-based look. Once again, people are grousing that it doesn't look as good as the 2012 short PAPERMAN, and others are grousing that it just isn't 2D, period. I feel like the artists and film crew behind WISH are getting a lot of flack, especially on the heels of the recent Writer's Strike coming to an end. Not a good look, if you ask me.

I've gone over it many times before, I'm farggin' exhausted. Walt Disney Animation Studios, as they stand, are likely lucky to even be making films, let alone make it to 100 years of existence. It's the bedrock of the entire company: No Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, no Walt Disney Company. It seems as if it's alive by virtue of that alone... They were on the chopping block multiple times in the post-Walt span of 67 years, as recent as 2006, believe it or not! Each movie has to do well in some way in order to justify to the heads that they're a building worth investing hundreds of millions of $$$ into. When reliable hitmaker Pixar is right next door, too. Remember, Disney purged a long list of animation studios/partners: Blue Sky Studios, Disneytoon Studios, several arms of the animation studio, Skellington Productions, etc. etc. So, I'm just going to take what I can get. I'm sure I'll find something of merit, both visually and storytelling-wise, in WISH. The recent trailer, I thought, was a bit of alright. Nothing too fancy to me, but it looks like it'll be a fun time nonetheless. I haven't been wowed upside-and-down by a WDAS feature in ages, but that's a me thing. WDAS is doing THEIR thing, and I guess it's not entirely for me. That's OK! Clearly it's working on someone else... Note ENCANTO, RAYA, and even STRANGE WORLD's sheer success as streaming titles, ditto slightly older movies like the FROZENs and MOANA.

But I think some people should understand that in animation, on one half of the playing field, it's not about the art unfortunately. It's called the animation INDUSTRY for a reason.

I get it. We miss the halcyon days of Disney making a new, gorgeous, splendorifously animated feature using pencil and paper, and post-1989, a lot of digital aid. I get that. I'm a 1992 baby, that era was my era, my jam. THE LION KING alone is one of my **formative** films. It's why I write stories and make comics and would LOOOOVE to turn them into animated movies. I was a preteen during the BROTHER BEAR/HOME ON THE RANGE days when it was all fading away, and I watched - as a late teen/young adult - the studio try to make it a thing again, only to blow it.

It's because it was never about the method, the technique, or anything.

To the artists and filmmakers, it absolutely was! No denying that.

To the bean counters? NO. It's product to them, builds the bottom line, fills the pockets, etc.

That's how it's been in the post-Walt age, post-Golden Age, whatever. Steve Hulett, who worked at Disney Animation circa 1976-86, summed it up once: "These are studios. Not Renaissance art factories."

It makes me think of how a lot of classical art was commissioned by merchants, it was largely glorified fanart of Biblical scenes, but the artists who made those works put their ALL into them. Much in the same way the filmmakers put their all into [name any Disney/big studio 2D animated movie made from 1990 to 2004].

In order words, they more than understood the assignment, no matter how flawed the picture might've been on a writing level. (Like say, POCAHONTAS, an utterly gorgeous movie that the filmmakers clearly went HARD during its production.)

There are so many 2D movies made around the world or independently. I recently saw Disney and Pixar veteran Jim Capobianco's THE INVENTOR, a half Rankin/Bass-style stop-motion half European-like 2D film, in a theater! All by myself, may I add. 10 years in the making, a personal labor of love of his own.

Are these complainers *ever* there for those types of films? I thought so.

Where am I going with this? Ah yeah, that's a big reason why 2D was shuffled out of the question by executives. CGI was huge in the early 2000s, and it seemed that even the least-liked features (note SHARK TALE and CHICKEN LITTLE's critical reception) could outgross or out-success the most beloved 2D features of that period. Both of those movies outgrossed LILO & STITCH, for context...

Now, couple that with CGI being less of a hassle in certain ways. Suppose a big change is made to a movie well into production, and scenes have already been animated. Shaded and lit, even. Well, the sets and character models are still there, so the worst they have to do is shoot a scene from a different angle and reanimate their digital puppets. In 2D? New background to draw and paint, gotta redraw and reanimate the characters AGAIN and keep them ON MODEL- ahhhhh! You can see why CG is preferred in this instance. Perfect for a pipeline of movies that can't be disrupted.

So to bean counters and execs, it was only about getting movies made and them making money. In the early 1990s, CG wasn't at a place where it could sustain a feature-length film, so big-time animated movies were done in 2D almost exclusively. And it just so happens... The animators at studios like Disney, like DreamWorks, like Fox Animation, like Kroyer Films, like Warner Animation, etc... The makers of all your faves from HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME to THE IRON GIANT to THE ROAD TO EL DORADO to ATLANTIS, etc. The filmmakers got the assignment. That assignment being "Make big family film that's sure to be big franchise and McDonald's Happy Meal hit". They took that assignment, and WENT HARD. They didn't have to, but they did anyways. They gave us the coolest damn 2D animation we could've asked for, no matter the writing or the finished movie and how it would fare with critics/audiences. And even the writing, it's like, they did what they felt was right - even if it didn't register for critics nor get audiences interested.

So, again, it was all assignments, and 2D was pretty much the only method they could use. Stop-motion was reserved for the likes of NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS and CHICKEN RUN, more off-beat projects. There was never a stop-mo wave. LAIKA literally runs off of commercials and shoe money, the exploits of a nepo baby. So, it was mainly 2D til TOY STORY came along. TOY STORY came out in fall 1995, and once you started seeing films like ANTZ, A BUG'S LIFE, TOY STORY 2, SHREK, etc. That was it. And these developments coincided with audiences choosing the 2D animated movies they wanted to see, and avoiding the rest... And also them getting so wowed by CGI, while seeing 2D as same-old same-old. Capitalism then cemented 2D features' fate, unless it's based on a TV show, like SPONGEBOB or MY LITTLE PONY. It didn't matter that the CGI wow factor was a fad, and that by the end of the 2000s, audiences didn't flock to see *every* CG movie on the block. CGI was the way, and that was that about that. Because it's about getting the thing made and released without the special challenges a 2D movie presents.

Only FIXED is the anomaly right now, which Sony Animation was willing to take a chance on. It is still unknown if it hits theaters or streaming. If it's the former, this is... I think the first 2D animated **theatrical** movie from a mainstream animation studio that's *not* based on a TV show in ages. Like, since... What? WINNIE THE POOH? (Which is based more on the classic Disney shorts/feature than any of the TV show iterations of the character.) THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG?

You can never guess what audiences will flock to see. If you randomly threw a solid 2D feature out in, say, 2027... It could be big, it could flop hard. But the studios, the industry, they're unwilling to chance that. Thus they aren't, and will not. Quality doesn't matter, because you could throw a **great** 2D movie out, and it could still flop just because... If FIXED does well, I don't know what it means. Could move a needle, maybe not. I kinda don't care, because capitalism is an unmovable object. I don't have a crystal ball, and I can't say for sure what could happen. I guess you could say I'm "Will 2D Come Back" Agnostic. I don't deny it, but I don't think it'll for sure happen. I DO NOT KNOW, haha.

The mass refusal to make 2D animated features in mainstream theatrical feature animation (not streaming, mind you, as we did get KLAUS, WOLFWALKERS, and MY FATHER'S DRAGON from some of the high-end services) was so firm, so absolute, that the idea of traditional animation might as well been tax write-off'ed and Men In Black-erased from our minds. That's how FIRM these companies were in getting rid of it, that's how FIRM they are in NOT wanting to utilize it for a feature film.

So instead, we get stylized CG films like the SPIDER-VERSEs and PUSS IN BOOTS 2 and MITCHELLS VS. THE MACHINES and NIMONA and such. We get maybe a brief 2D scene in a larger CG movie, or some small 2D elements. That mix has got the advantages and the 3D immersiveness of CGI, mixed with that special sauce people love about 2D... And even then, for some people, it just isn't enough. Some will insult the artists and their work, which is not cool. But I'm sorry, either take what you can get or continue to be unsatisfied... Or, seek out 2D stuff that's regularly being made. That's just not by studios as big as Disney and DreamWorks, and not being made in America at that. Broaden your horizons, they're EVERYWHERE.

Anyways, had to vent. Sorry. WISH looks cool, will be seeing.

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locke-writes · 8 years ago

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Bad Day? Sad Day? Need Some Cheering Up? Here’s Some Movies To Help

Now I don’t know about anyone else but whenever I’ve had a bad day, no matter what caused it, I tend to turn to something that I know is going to help. In my case it’s movies. I know that turning to some tried and true comfort classics can make me laugh or make me smile, even when I didn’t think it possible. So I made a list of my own comfort film picks for anyone to check out if they ever need it.

Tagging: @aryn-the-wolfheart @ventixx @wosushi @a-smol-snake @liljs-fanart @labyrinth-of-thoughts @fandomlifegirl @myminddoesmindactually

A Trip To The Moon (1902)

Gertie the Dinosaur (1914)

The Tramp (1915)

A Dog’s Life (1918)

The Adventures of Prince Achmed (1926)

Modern Times (1936)

Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (1937)

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)

Ferdinand the Bull (1938)

Mr Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Pinocchio (1940)

Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)

It’s A Wonderful Life (1946)

Fun and Fancy Free (1947)

Cinderella (1950)

Alice In Wonderland (1951)

Lambert the Sheepish Lion (1951)

Singing In the Rain (1952)

Peter Pan (1953)

Lady and the Tramp (1955)

Sleeping Beauty (1959)

One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)

Bye Bye Birdie (1963)

The Sword In The Stone (1963)

Mary Poppins (1964)

The Jungle Book (1967)

Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967)

The Phantom Tollbooth (1970)

The Aristocats (1970)

Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)

Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory (1971)

Robin Hood (1973)

Blazing Saddles (1974)

Young Frankenstein (1974)

Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977)

Pete’s Dragon (1977)

The Rescuer’s (1977)

Animal House (1978)

Jack Frost (1979)

The Jerk (1979)

Meatballs (1979)

The Blues Brothers (1980)

Caddyshack (1980)

Ghostbusters (1984)

Sixteen Candles (1984)

The Breakfast Club (1985)

Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985)

An American Tail (1986)

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)

The Great Mouse Detective (1986)

Mannequin (1987)

The Pick Up Artist (1987)

The Princess Bride (1987)

Big (1988)

Working Girl (1988)

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1988)

Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989)

The Little Mermaid (1989)

Aladdin (1992)

Heart and Souls (1993)

Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Clueless (1995)

Empire Records (1995)

Powder (1995)

Sabrina (1995)

Tommy Boy (1995)

Toy Story (1995)

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)

Matilda (1996)

James and the Giant Peach (1996)

Anastasia (1997)

Hercules (1997)

Liar, Liar (1997)

A Bugs Life (1998)

The Prince of Egypt (1998)

Can’t Hardly Wait (1998)

Mulan (1998)

Galaxy Quest (1999)

The Iron Giant (1999)

Tarzan (1999)

Superstar (1999)

The Emperor’s New Groove (2000)

Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2000)

The Road to El Dorado (2000)

Bubble Boy (2001)

Kate & Leopold (2001)

Legally Blonde (2001)

Wet Hot American Summer (2001)

The Princess Diaries (2001)

Zoolander (2001)

Treasure Planet (2002)

Danny Deckchair (2003)

School of Rock (2003)

13 Going On 30 (2004)

Howl’s Moving Castle (2004)

Mean Girls (2004)

Napoleon Dynamite (2004)

Anchorman (2004)

Wedding Crashers (2004)

Corpse Bride (2005)

She’s The Man (2005)

The Holiday (2006)

Aquamarine (2006)

Accepted (2006)

Stardust (2007)

Hot Rod (2007)

The House Bunny (2008)

Ponyo (2008)

Step Brothers (2008)

Definitely, Maybe (2008)

Fired Up! (2009)

Scott Pilgrim vs the World (2010)

Easy A (2010)

Paul (2011)

Brave (2012)

21 Jump Street (2012)

The Five Year Engagement (2012)

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)

Begin Again (2013)

Warm Bodies (2013)

The Kings of Summer (2013)

The Way Way Back (2013)

What If (2013)

The Martian (2013)

Mr Right (2015)

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