Readers of The American Cinematographer have frequently asked how modern animated cartoons are made. [American Cinematographer feels] particularly fortunate, therefore, in obtaining this series of articles in which Mr. Fallberg will detail the progress of a Walt Disney cartoon from the inception of the story-idea to the completion of the final technicolor print.
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THE problem of bringing a character to life by animation is a curious mixture of artistic and technical considerations. Both these factors are interrelated. The animator can't devote himself entirely to the artistic side without considering various technical factors that govern the screen presentation of the scene.
Animation is as much a knack as it is an art. An animator must be a good artist, but it doesn't follow that every good artist has what it takes to be an animator. The requirements of animation demand, besides drawing ability, a certain feeling for analyzing and portraying action, a good appreciation of story-values, a feeling for the fundamentals of pantomime, and a willingness to compromise artistic freedom to exacting technicalities.
The term "animation" is sometimes loosely applied to the entire cartoon industry, but its correct usage implies the actual, specialized work of the animator. For those who insist on definitions, animation is, specifically, the art of creating a series of drawings which, when photographed in a certain sequence and projected upon a motion picture screen, present the illusion of motion.
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