model sheet Archives - AnimationResources.org - Serving the Online Animation Community AnimationResources.org

Archive for the ‘model sheet’ Category

Thursday, April 25th, 2024

Design: Reluctant Dragon and Pinocchio Model Sheets

Today, I’d like to introduce you to our latest Animation Resources Alliance member, Van Eaton Galleries. Mike Van Eaton has been a supporter of this project for some time, and he has hosted several fundraisers for Animation Resources at his storefront gallery in Sherman Oaks, CA. His walls are jam packed with wonderful animation art, and he has generously agreed to allow us to digitize material in his inventory for inclusion in the archive database.

Earlier this week, Mike brought in a box full of Disney model sheets. The Disney Studios was probably the best organized operation ever to produce animated cartoons, and the heart of their production process was the Model Department run by Joe Grant. Concept designs were quickly duplicated and distributed as preliminary models, allowing development at the studio to proceed at a rapid pace. Once designs were approved, they were distilled into sheets full of drawings that captured a full range of angles and expressions. These detailed instructions on how the characters were to be constructed and posed were provided to every artist working on the film.

Here are a few samples of the model sheets Mike Van Eaton generously allowed us to digitize today…

The Reluctant Dragon (1941)

Pinocchio (1940)

These original production photostatic model sheets are available for sale by Van Eaton Galleries for $50 apiece. If you decide to add any of them to your collection, tell the folks at the Van Eaton Galleries that Animation Resources referred you, and they will donate a portion of your purchase price to our project.

Thanks to the Van Eaton Galleries for their support of this important project.

Stephen Worth
Director
Animation Resources

This posting is part of the online Encyclopedia of Cartooning under the subject heading, Animation.

THIS IS JUST THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG!

Animation Resources has been sharing treasures from the Animation Archive with its members for over a decade. Every other month, our members get access to a downloadable Reference Pack, full of information, inspiration and animation. The RefPacks consist of e-books jam packed with high resolution scans of great art, still framable animated films from around the world, documentaries, podcasts, seminars and MORE! The best part is that all of this material has been selected and curated by our Board of professionals to aid you in your self study. Our goal is to help you be a greater artist. Why wouldn’t you want to be a member of a group like that?

Membership comes in three levels. General Members get access to a bi-monthly Reference Pack as well as a Bonus RefPack from past offerings in the in-between months. We offer a discounted Student Membership for full time students and educators. And if you want to try out being a member, there is a Quarterly Membership that runs for three months.

JOIN TODAY!
https://animationresources.org/membership/levels/

FREE SAMPLES!

Not Convinced Yet? Check out this SAMPLE REFERENCE PACK! It will give you a taste of what Animation Resources members get to download every other month! That’s 560 pages of great high resolution images and nearly an hour of rare animation available to everyone to download for FREE! https://animationresources.org/join-us-sample-reference-pack/

Animation Resources depends on your contributions to support its projects. Even if you can’t afford to join our group right now, please click the button below to donate whatever you can afford using PayPal.

Posted in disney, model sheet | Comments Off on Design: Reluctant Dragon and Pinocchio Model Sheets

Friday, July 14th, 2023

Inbetweens: Tex Avery Model Sheets

Posted in Inbetweens, mgm, model sheet, tex avery | Comments Off on Inbetweens: Tex Avery Model Sheets

Thursday, March 23rd, 2023

Animation: Alex Toth Model Sheets

Alex Toth passed away last year at the age of 77. Along with Will Eisner and Jack Kirby, Toth is considered one of the giants of adventure comics. Toth began his career at age 15, creating illustrations for Heroic magazine. He graduated from the High School of Industrial Arts in 1947, and soon was working at DC Comics on The Flash, Green Lantern and The Atom. He left DC in 1952 and was drafted into the Army in 1954.

After his stint in the service, he moved to Los Angeles, where he worked for Dell on the highly regarded Zorro comics. He began working in animation for Dick Brown on Space Angel, and in 1964, he joined Hanna-Barbera as a designer and storyboard artist on Jonny Quest, The Herculoids and Super Friends. His designs for these shows are masterful and imaginative.

The pity is that the actual animation on these shows isn’t even close to being in the same league. Realistic designs like these are very difficult to animate, and require a draftsman of Toth’s calibre to be able to pull off convincingly. But the late 60s was the wrong time for such a challenge. Hanna Barbera was in a mad race with Filmation to see who could put out the cheapest factory-made programming on the tightest schedule. Toth’s imagination and skill were left behind in the dust. Instead of respecting what could have been, Toth’s designs are now taken completely out of context and subjected to ridicule in current TV programs.

Animation Resources supporter, Kent Butterworth brought us a few original Toth drawings to digitize, and I’ve supplemented them with some xeroxes belonging to the family of Carlo Vinci.