Broken Pencil YYC
Broken Pencil YYC
brokenpencilyyc
Calgary, Alberta
Gitanjali Rao is an Indian animator known for her most recent work, Bombay Rose. With this as her debut feature film, she is single-handedly bringing Indian animation to the forefront alongside the international acclaim and awareness of Bollywood films.
Bombay Rose blossomed in unconventional ways. With the lack of financial support from the Indian government, and the lack of resources from private sectors that won’t finance animation films that won’t bring in mounds of revenue, and much less films that have what Rao intends with all her work: a social message.
Rao, whose graphic style is mainly used for short films, pushed herself to spend two years on Bombay Rose, painting the film frame by frame. In wanting to create a world that has a personal feel, she chose the technique to accentuate the organic feel through animation. And with the acclaim that followed, her labour of love returned in success.
Her singularity as a visionary director and artist shines through her use of animation to traverse continents, religions, race, and age. She focuses on showcasing big stories of ordinary people who overcome the realities of life to then become heroes and heroines through survival.
Her stories are impactful, unique, revealing, and beautifully intricate. She is not just another filmmaker from India, but one who is fighting against all odds to bring Indian animation to the world.
#GitanjaliRao#IndianAnimation#BombayRose#Animation#HistoryFriday
Broken Pencil YYC
brokenpencilyyc
Calgary, Alberta
Grace Huntington, Retta Scott, Bianca Majolie, Mary Blair, and Sylvia Holland.
These are names of the unsung artists whose influence in the animation world were integral to making the Walt Disney Studio into what it is today. They worked on classics such as Bambi, Cinderella, Snow White, and Fantasia. From the 1930s to the 2000s, women were underrepresented and undervalued. That was normal across the board, and it reflected the culture at the time.
But when it came to animation, women and girls were only hired in the Pen and Ink Department, where they had no creative freedom or input - and that’s why Disney’s hire of Bianca Majolie into the story department was so revolutionary. She was followed by Grace Huntington, Sylvia Holland, Retta Scott, and Mary Blair. Disney believed that “The girl artists have the right to expect the same chances for advancement as men, and I honestly believe they may contribute something to this business that men never would or could.”
Although Disney’s visionary leadership cannot be denied, a prank revolving a wild pig under Grace Huntington’s animation desk represents just one of the many challenges they had to face in this boys’ club environment. But from all this adversity, these women fought hard to earn their place at the studio. Their contributions brought to life many beloved characters and worlds for Disney studios, including Dumbo, The Little Mermaid, Peter Pan, and Alice in Wonderland.
Their names, uncredited at the time, are now etched into the history of Disney and the animation world. Their work represents not only their creativity, but their resilience, perseverance, and their overcoming of the adversity with grace, patience, and even belief in a little magic.
They are Bianca Majolie, Grace Huntington, Sylvia Holland, Retta Scott, and Mary Blair. They are the Queens of Animation.
#Animation#HistoryFriday#Disney#QueensofAnimation#WomensHistoryMonth
Broken Pencil YYC
brokenpencilyyc
Calgary, Alberta
What is a cartoon?
You might know it as a silly drawing, a satirical comic, or an animation with exaggerated interpretations of something.
But, did you know that “cartoon” was once used to describe Leonardo da Vinci’s life-sized sketches, too?
During the Renaissance, the word cartoon meant a preliminary drawing or design that would be the model for the finished work. Think: blueprint.
The word itself, however, comes from the Italian word cartone, meaning pasteboard, or cardboard.
So in the very beginning, the word meant the material that the drawing is made on, then it changed to mean the drawing itself, and now it means a comical drawing, a series of drawings, or animation.
This week, we’ve added an easter egg for next week’s topic. See if you can figure it out!
#Comics #Cartoons #Animation #Drawings #Disney #HistoryFriday #EasterEgg
Broken Pencil YYC
brokenpencilyyc
Calgary, Alberta
Lotte Reiniger, a German film director and a pioneer of silhouette animation, created “The Adventures of Prince Achmed” in 1926, using cardboard cutouts and an early version of the multiplane camera, which she called a tricktisch, or “trick table”.
By using multiple glass panes under the camera for foreground, midground and background, she created an illusion of parallax and depth for her two-dimensional subjects.
Her innovation preceded that of Walt Disney’s popularized Multiplane Camera, which was patented under the name “Control Device for Animation” in 1938.
Even today, movies are inspired by Reiniger’s work. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1, “The Tale of the Three Brothers” was constructed in the style of Reiniger's silhouette animation.
For the curious who want to learn more about her: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Gm9kZLP0uE
#Animation #History #Film #LotteReiniger #Disney #Camera #Silhouette #HistoryFriday
Broken Pencil YYC
brokenpencilyyc
Calgary, Alberta
Lotte Reiniger, a German film director and a pioneer of silhouette animation, created “The Adventures of Prince Achmed” in 1926, using cardboard cutouts and an early version of the multiplane camera, which she called a tricktisch, or “trick table”.
By using multiple glass panes under the camera for foreground, midground and background, she created an illusion of parallax and depth for her two-dimensional subjects.
Her innovation preceded that of Walt Disney’s popularized Multiplane Camera, which was patented under the name “Control Device for Animation” in 1938.
Even today, movies are inspired by Reiniger’s work. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1, “The Tale of the Three Brothers” was constructed in the style of Reiniger's silhouette animation.
For the curious who want to learn more about her: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Gm9kZLP0uE
#Animation#History#Film#LotteReiniger#Disney#Camera#Silhouette#HistoryFriday
Broken Pencil YYC
Broken Pencil YYC
Broken Pencil YYC
Broken Pencil YYC
Broken Pencil YYC
Broken Pencil YYC