THE LAYOUT-MAN is one of two artists who does important preliminary work on all animated cartoons produced for theatrical release. It is he who designs the production and visualizes the overall graphic presentation of the story. His role is same as the art live-action film. (All illustrations © by Walt Disney Prod.)
THE BACKGROUND ARTIST renders up in color the finished backgrounds that the animation cells will “work against.”
HE FUNCTION AND SCOPE of the animated cartoon director and the importance of music and timing the preparation of animated films were the subjects discussed here last month. In this chapter we will take up the functions of the layout-man, whose position is similar to that of art director in a live-action production, but with a little of the director’s responsibility and that of the director of photography added.
Concurrent with the timing of the animated cartoon by the director, the layout-man plans the staging and the setting. He plans the exact pictorial locale of each scene, the size and movements of the characters, figures out all of the camera moves such as trucks (moving toward or back from a character), and pans (following a character along). He considers interesting ways to present the artistic side of a scene special-effects, atmosphere shots, interesting camera-angles, and so on.
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