Anyone in the Ottawa area going to the Animation Festival this weekend? http://ottawa.awn.com/index.php?option=com_oiaf&task=showschedule&i=2007/09/21&Itemid=634 There are a couple of Disney Presenters: Marlon West, Visual EFX Supervisor and Artistic Coordinator for “How To Hook Up Your Home Theater,” takes us behind he scenes of this new Goofy short and explains how the filmmakers used a paperless system to recreate the look of the1940s Goofy Classics. Come learn how Disney filmmakers were able to avoid the digital handiwork that defined the effects animation of Disney’s recent features. In his compelling new biography, noted animation historian Michael Barrier avoids the well-traveled paths of previous biographers, who have tended to portray a blemish-free Disney or to indulge in lurid speculation. Beginning in 1969, two and a half years after Disney's death, Barrier recorded long interviews with more than 150 people who worked alongside Disney, some as early as 1922. Barrier juxtaposes Disney's own recollections against the memories of those other players to great effect. What emerges is a portrait of Walt Disney as a flawed but fascinating artist, one whose imaginative leaps allowed him to vault ahead of the competition and produce work that even today commands the attention of audiences worldwide. This looks like such a cool event I wish I had found out about it sooner but we already have plans for the weekend we can't really change. Maybe next year.
