Desert Island Series....Animation Industry-ites

This month, we asked a few of our writers and people involved in the business of animation to list what films they would take with them if stranded on a desert island. Piet Kroon is a Dutch animator currently working on The Quest for Camelot at Warner Bros. Feature Animation. Pat Raine Webb is President of ASIFA UK. Jerry Hibbert is Director of Hibbert-Ralph Animation Ltd. in London and Chairman of the Guild of British Animation. And right here in Hollywood, Steve Hulett and Jeff Massie deal with the business of animation as representatives for the Motion Picture Screen Cartoonists' Union, Local 839 IATSE.

Piet Kroon's Top Ten picks

1. My Life As A Dog by Lasse Halstrom, a beautiful swedish children's film . . . bittersweet like life itself. 2. Manhattan by Woody Allen, because not everyone gets corrupted. 3. The Life of Brian (Monty Python) by Terry Jones--the "bright side of life". 4. 101 Dalmatians (animated) by Wolfgang Reithermann, Hamilton Luske and Clyde Geronomi. because I love the design of this film. It has great caricatured human characters for a change. 5. The Big Snit by Richard Condie. Brilliant fun. "Okay teens! Begin to saw!" 6. Balance by the Lauenstein Brothers. A perfectly balanced film, a clear idea finds its singular expression. 7. Amarcord by Frederico Fellini. "Una Donna!" Great nostalgic tableaus of childhood, and very funny. 8. A Good Turn Daily by Gerrit van Dijk. Drop a quarter in the jukebox and watch the world spin. 9. Elbowing by Paul Driessen, because it is simple, efficient and eloquent. 10. Raiders of the Lost Ark by Steven Spielberg. What's a desert island without a rollercoaster?

Georges Lacroix's favorites

"I need to see all of these films again, as I have so much to learn from them."

1. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfts by David Hand. I first saw it when I was five years old, and I knew at that time that I wanted to be an animator. I must also mention the movie behind this movie, which is Disney's Cinderella. If I had a big pocket, i would bring it too! 2. Toy Story by John Lasseter. I like this film so much because it is more about the emotion than the technology. Thank you Mr. John Lassetter, Mr. Ralph Guggenheim, and Pixar for proving that we are in a new era of animation. All of the new students born with the computer will open up a new very wide magic world of this art form. We will have many great surprises in the next 10 years. I would like to take my retreat or retirement and step back to watch the new art develop! 3. Bad Luck Blackie by Tex Avery. I'd like to bring the whole Tex Avery collection! 4. Red Hot Riding Hood by Tex Avery 5. The Nightmare Before Christmas by Tim Burton & Henry Selick, one of my favorite American animated movies. 6. My Neighbor Totoro by Hayao Miyazaki, the master of classic animation in Japan. I like Totoro because it is so sensitive, but of his other films I also love La Puta, Porco Rosso, and Nausicaa. Miyazaki is a genius. I love the ways of this man, he is great person. 7. Flyer Tombs by Isao Takahata, a film about the Hiroshima bomb. The animation gives the ability to pass emotion through the image with elegance. 8. Akira by Katsuhiro Otamo, the pioneer of new, avant garde animation in Japan. 9. AOS by Yoji Kuri. A very graphic film. I first saw it when I was a student. It shocked and inspired me. I like the generous ways of Kuri, who is serious yet not serious at the same time. 9. The Man Who Planted Trees by Frédéric Back. He is a great human being. There is much we can learn from him and his films. I had the honor and privelege to have the Fantôme exhibit accompany the exhibit of Frédéric Back at the Hiroshima Festival in 1996. 10. Le Petit Soldat (The Little Soldier) by Paul Grimault. 11. And for good luck!: Topor by Leopold Survage.

Pat Raine Webb's picks

"If I do actually get stranded on a desert island I would really need a minimum of 100 favorites but these will do as a starter. I don't dare mention books or music, or I would need a whole issue of your magazine!"

Animation:

1. The Big Snit by Richard Condie, the funniest serious animated film to date. 2. The Tale of Tales by Yuri Norstein, a moving and beautiful Russian epic. 3. Once There Was A Dog by Edward Nazarov. This makes me laugh. 4. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by David Hand. This still makes me cry. 5.What's Opera Doc? by Chuck Jones. How could I leave this out?

Live Action:

1. The Thief of Baghdad by Ludwig Berger, Tim Whelan & Michael Powell. My all-time favorite film. 2. Star Wars by George Lucas. Can I have the trilogy please! 3. E.T. by Steven Spielberg. How wonderful to have a lovable alien instead of a revolting one. 4. Stand by Me by Rob Reiner. The best ever "coming of age" film. 5. King Kong by Merian C. Cooper & Ernest B. Shoedsack, The best ever "monster" movie

Jerry Hibbert's selections

"Here they are in no particular order with a reason for choosing each--usually personal in some way."

1. Yellow Submarine by George Dunning, because George gave me my first job. 2. Bambi by David Hand. I watched my children watching this wide-eyed and learning about the circle of life. 3. Gone in 60 Seconds by H.B. Halicki. Pure car chase fun. 4. Carry on Camping by Gerald Thomas. English lavatorial humor at its best. 5. The Girl Can't Help It by Frank Tashlin--great music! 6. Bullitt by Peter Yates, because I always wanted a Dodge Charger and never got one. 7. American Graffiti by George Lucas, the perfect Saturday night out. 8. Ice Cold in Alex by J. Lee Thompson, because my father fought in the North African desert and took me to see this one as a boy. 9. Apocalypse Now by Francis Ford Coppola. 10. The Godfather by Francis Ford Coppola.

Steve Hulett's

1. The Adventures of Robin Hood by Michael Curtiz. 2. Aladdin by John Musker & Ron Clements. 3. City Lights by Charlie Chaplin. 4. Gone With The Wind by Victor Fleming. 5. His Girl Friday by Howard Hawks. 6. How Green Was My Valley by John Ford. 7. The Sea Hawk by Michael Curtiz.8. Spartacus by Stanley Kubrick. 9. The Thief Of Baghdad by Raoul Walsh.

Jeff Massie's

1. Children of Paradise by Marcel Carne. 2. The General by Buster Keaton. 3. Great Expectations by David Lean. 4. The Invaders (49th Parallel) by Michael Powell 5. Jules and Jim by François Truffaut. 6. The Magnificent Ambersons by Orson Welles. 7. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance by John Ford. 8. Rules of the Game by Jean Renoir. 9. The Third Man by Carol Reed. 10. Yojimbo by Akira Kurosawa.