Animation
World Magazine, Issue 1.11, February 1997
Staying Ahead of the Game
by Jerry Hibbert
Jerry Hibbert.
Britain is now generally considered to be one
of the countries at the forefront of the animation explosion. Our home
grown talent is in great demand overseas, and our ability to keep one step
ahead of the new technology boom is well known. Few animators now regard
technological growth with suspicion, or as a threat to their traditional
skills, but rather the complementary tool it actually is.
The most common mistake I see, is the use of computers in place of a good
idea or as a substitute for poor draughtsmanship. The purest filmmaker's
skills (be they for a 30 second TV commercial or a one-and-a-half-hour
feature) will always be the most important. The ability to create images,
the art of characterization, the scriptwriting, all of these skills come
way ahead of technique. Yet computers, and the inevitable avalanche of
new technology now available to studios, should be viewed with discerning
enthusiasm!
In the 14 years Hibbert Ralph Animation (HRA) has been operating, I believe
that the changes in the animation industry have been greater than at any
other time. In order to maintain our position as one of London's leading
studios, we have had to keep our eyes firmly on the horizon as well as
on the job in hand.
Title sequence for South Bank Show No. 6
(London Weekend Television), directed by Pat Gavin.
Embracing New Ideas
As a studio, we made an early decision to try and embrace new ideas and
explore new directions in an attempt to keep us on our toes, creatively,
and to allow us to compete successfully in an ever changing market. I hope,
that by taking you through our company history, I will be able to show
how we have evolved, grown and branched out into new areas as and when
the time seemed right. These changes have varied from hiring a new director,
to exploiting the opportunities offered by the Internet.
We are, primarily, a commercials production company, having produced over
1300 spots for companies ranging from large multinationals to small specialized
companies and charities. We have also directed music videos for artists
like Queen and Fleetwood Mac, and television title sequences for the UK's
Independent Network and the BBC.
My partner, Graham Ralph and I joined forces in 1983. In an early attempt
to buck tradition, we invited maverick designer Pat Gavin to join us as
third director. His inclusion was considered to be a radical step at the
time, as Pat is not an animator in the purest sense, but his love of animation,
combined with his formidable design and film skills meant that he was able
to add a completely new dimension to our fledgling studio.
In the early years, we concentrated on commercials and TV title sequences,
including many award-winners for London Weekend Television's arts flagship
The South Bank Show.
As our reputation grew, naturally enough, our workload increased and by
1989 the need for another director became of paramount importance. Luckily
we didn't have to look far, as one of our star animators, Kim Burdon, was
the obvious choice. He has gone on to produce some of our most memorable
commercials, adding to the awards cabinet in the process! The studio does
not consider itself to have a house style--we have concentrated on being
flexible and experimental and avoided the pigeonholing by clients that
can so often hinder a studio's growth.
By this, stage, Graham was experiencing commercials overload! He had directed
hundreds of commercials over the previous 6 years, won over 40 commendations
from around the world, and had moved to our own large promises in London's
Soho.
Dale Farms Bring Me Sunshine spot, directed by Graham Ralph.
Graham in particular felt the need for fresh challenges
and an entertaininents division seemed to offer the opportunities that
he felt would creatively refresh him. So in 1989, we launched Hibbert Ralph
Entertainment (HRE) with Graham at the helm.
The new company's aim was to produce television programs with the same
professional approach and adherence to quality already established within
HRA. Placing the emphasis on strong narrative structure and designing simple,
but charming characters and backgrounds, Graham managed to surmount the
first and most pressing problem, that of having to adjust to the far smaller
budgets of the entertainments world!
His first project, a charming children's series called Spider!,
was snapped up by the BBC almost immediately. It aired in 1991 and has
been sold throughout the world, winning prizes at The Chicago Children's
Film Festival, as well as being in competition at festivals in Annecy,
Berlin and Adelaide. Graham followed this with a complete change of style,
producing a half-hour version of Wagner's Rhinegold, which was shown
on BBC Television in 1994 as part of the Operavox series.
Toshiba Ni-Cam spot, directed by Jerry
Hibbert.
Speeding Up the Production Process
By this stage, in an attempt to speed up the production process and to
allow us greater flexibility before entering an edit suite, we became
one of the first companies to invest in an Animo system. This is a software
package tailored to the needs of animation studios. It runs on a network
of high-performance PCs and, starting with layout designs, original animation
drawings and backgrounds, the system provides numerous production tools
to produce high quality digital animation direct to disc, videotape or
35mm film. In essence, we use it as a flexible paint, trace and compositing
package, as it can scan drawings; create color character models; digitally
paint and recolor sequences and combine all this with other media such
as live-action or 3D animation sequences.
Graham gave it its first real test, employing it for the opening title
sequence on Rhinegold and various short sequences within the film
itself. It showed great potential from the outset, but was slower and less
flexible than we had initially hoped. Now, three years on and several updates
later, it has shed its teething troubles and has become fast and reliable.
We now use it regularly for its paint, trace and inbetweening capabilities
and, ultimately, it will be of enormous benefit to both HRA and HRE,
but especially HRE, if the entertainments side take on more series work
in the future.
After Rhinegold, HRE was commissioned by BBC to produce a series
entitled William's Wish Wellingtons, which has become something
of a children's classic in the UK. They are now at the planning stages
for a third series. The second, meanwhile, has aired in the US, within
Children Television Workshop's Big Bag program and is currently
airing on BBC television in the UK.
Their most recent, and most ambitious project is a half hour special entitled
The Forgotten Toys. Featuring the voices of Bob Hoskins and Joanna
Lumley, it was shown on the UK's ITV (Independent) network on December
26, 1995. It was recently awarded the UNICEF Jury and Children's Jury prizes
for Best Short Film at The Berlin Film Festival. It also went on to be
honored at the Amalfi Animation Festival, the Chicago Children's Film Festival
and the Zlin International Film Festival for Children and Youth in the
Czech Republic.
A series of The Forgotten Toys is now in production and due to air
in the autumn of this year. The team is also busy developing a new half-hour
special entitled The First Snow of Winter, which they hope to have
in production later this year.
The Forgotten Toys (Meridian Broadcasting), directed by Graham Ralph.
The Next Logical Step
One of the greatest changes we have chosen to undertake, has been the setting
up of a 3D department. After the computerization of the 2D paint and trace
process with Animo, the next logical step was to gear the studio up to
tackle 3D work. We began researching this possibility 3 years ago and eventually,
18 months later, our New Technology Unit opened it's doors.
This was considered to be a radical step for a British studio, not least
because in London, production companies and facility houses are generally
regarded as two totally different organizations. Hibbert Ralph was seen
to be redefining the accepted definition of a British production company.
In reality, we saw it as a simple extension to the traditional drawn animation
skills we already possess.
Most UK production companies are reliant on facility houses to supply 3D
computer work, which is budgeted and subject to inevitable time constraints.
Although we still have strong working relationships with most of London's
facility houses, this new setup has enabled our traditionally trained artists,
animators and directors, to have personal access to the equipment, which
has allowed us all far greater freedom to experiment and break new ground.
To take control of the new department and help channel all this creative
energy, we employed Natalie Zita, a former award-winner with London facility
The FrameStore, to act as Head of 3D. Natalie was closely involved in setting
up the unit and was attracted to the new department because she felt that
it would encourage original work, particularly at the heart of the animator's
craft: characterization.
Toshiba London/New York spot, directed
by Jerry Hibbert.
Eighteen months later, and with a staff of 12,
the New Technology Unit has certainly proved itself. As well as meeting
all our creative expectations, it has enabled us when necessary to offer
agency producers more flexibility with costs and scheduling, all of which
adds up to quite an attractive prospect for our clients.
We have produced in-house some notable commercials, including two for Toshiba
laptop computers entitled London/New York and Town and Country
through Duckworth Finn Grubb Waters (London), and several US commercials,
including Holiday Celebration for FTD through Grey (New York) and
Maze and Open Door for American Airlines through DDB Needham
(Dallas).
In 1995, we hired two new directors, bringing our total to six. Caron Creed
and Andrew Painter had both worked at Richard Williams' studio, amongst
others, and had been offered positions at three of the major US studios.
We were extremely pleased that they chose to join us, and they have contributed
hugely to our success over the last 18 months.
With so much new expertise in house and following on from our recent successes
in the US, it seemed logical to investigate the opportunities offered to
us by the Internet. We have Set up our web site and continually work to
improve it.
Hershey's Sleigh Ride spot, directed by
Jerry Hibbert.
Like everyone else, we intend to use it to advertise
ourselves and to allow people to "visit" our studio to view some
of our past work. Where we feel we can most benefit, is by utilizing a
video web conference system made available to us by 2GL Systems Interactive.
This package streams video animation--still in production--through a web
conference page contained in the commissioning client's secure project
folder. The client can view their commissioned animation stage-by-stage
during it's development, and can view our comments at any time, anywhere,
provided they have a Web browser, a Hibbert Ralph password and a connection
to the Internet, and remain confident that their work cannot be seen by
others.
This extraordinary leap forward for the communications industry will allow
us to service clients on the other side of the world, as if they were a
mere street away. Even the most hands-on creative will feel 100% involved
at every stage of the decision making process.
Although technical changes have provided opportunities not previously considered
possible, the traditional skills have never been more important than they
are now. But with a little help from our digital friends, the sky is truly
the limit. In the words of the immortal Buzz Lightyear, "To infinity
and beyond!"
Jerry Hibbert is Director of Hibbert Ralph Animation and Chairman of
The Guild of British Animation.
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