editor@awn.com
The Animated Film Collector's Guide Clarification
In his review of my book, The Animated
Film Collector's Guide (Townsend
3.5) Emru Townsend states that it "aims
to be the collector's bible, replacing our dog-eared Whole Toon catalogs
as reference material." The Whole Toon catalog was still defunct when
I began writing, but it was never my intention to replace it with my book.
The Animated Film Collector's Guide should be regarded as a supplement
to, not a replacement of, Whole Toon.
I wrote my guide as a companion to Giannalberto Bendazzi's Cartoons and
Leonard Maltin's Of Mice and Magic. After reading these books, I wanted
to see the films described by Bendazzi and Maltin, but had a hard time
locating them because, while a surprisingly large number are available
on video, many are hidden away in compilations. Other titles are available
only from obscure sources such as foreign, independent, and educational
distributors, the filmmakers themselves, or are out-of-print. Most of the
films available from these sources are not listed by Whole Toon., but comprise
about half of the information in my book. The other half will lead you
to Whole Toon., the best single place to buy animation on video.
Sincerely,
David Kilmer
Two More Additions
There are two additional books that can
be recommended in terms of Jerry Beck's June article "The Essential
Animation Reference Library" (Beck
3.3) While they probably don't have the production
values of what Mr. Beck has listed, I think both these books would be helpful.
One is How to Draw Animation Storyboards by Bob Singer, published by Comic
Art Publications. While the production on this book, admittedly, is poor,
the information it provides to the novice is very educational. It includes
chapters on staging and planning storyboards for psychological effect and
continuity to the script. It also contains storyboards by Singer, Moebius,
Floro Dery, Will Meugniot and Alex Toth.
And speaking of Alex Toth...Alex Toth: By Design written by Alex Toth and
Darrell McNeil, published by Gold Medal Publications, is an excellent visual
history of Toth's career in animation including models of characters and
props from many Hanna-Barbera series including Space Ghost, Jonny Quest,
Sealab 2020, The Three Musketeers and Super Friends. Also included is a
storyboard sequence from Super Friends. The massive amount of work Toth
did in the field can be enlightening and intimidating at the same time.
I hope you don't mind my referring to these additional books, but these
should definitely be in the essential animation library.
Sincerely,
Neil Hansen
Kudos on Asian Issue
I found the article "China-The Awakening
Giant: Animation And Broadcasting In The Mainland" (Vallas
3.5) by Milt Vallas very informative and enjoyable
as it reminded me of many experiences and hardships I have gone through
in the past and continue to go through today. I have been working in China
since 1990 and still return to China on a regular basis to conduct business
for animation. I am thrilled every time I return to cities like Shanghai.
I want to thank you for finally publishing some serious pieces on animation
production in Asia. There is a great deal of work and hard effort that
is done over here and most of the Western public has no idea that the animation
they are watching is produced in Asia. China is quickly becoming a powerhouse
in this industry and will continue to grow. Later this month Beijing will
host their animation convention where outside industries and local producers
will get together and compare notes on the ever-expanding business of animation
in China. I will be there.
Again, thanks for the article Milt!
Best Regards,
Rick Allen
Mulan Retort
In response to Andy
Klein's review of Mulan (Klein
3.3):
Eddie Murphy was pretty darn funny in Mulan. If you ask me, he made that
movie. To say he was not as funny as James Woods in Hercules is, well,
pretty lame.
Mulan has more heart to it than Hercules. The fact that Mushu confesses
to Mulan in her time of desperation was a great turning point for the character
and gave a little more dimension than would be afforded otherwise. Mushu
was a great lead-in for the audience and a mirror for Mulan.
Sincerely,
Olun Riley
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