Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (NES) by Probe Software
For some of their films, Disney would film real actors so that the animators could watch them for reference.
These are great images!
I had an image saved of Eleanor Audley posing for the Evil Stepmother in Disney’s Cinderella for a post much like this one. Not only did she pose for and provide the voice for Cinderella’s stepmother, she also posed for and provided the voice for Sleeping Beauty’s Maleficent.
At this point the Disney animators were instructed that they could reference photographs of the actors, but were not allowed to copy or trace them. Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston both preferred that their animators draw from life rather than rely on rotoscoping (all though this did not necessarily stop them from doing that anyway).
Source: The Illusion of Life
My sister will like these, if she hasn’t already seen them. ;)
One of the many frustrations people have while learning art is the discrepancy between what they imagined for their piece in their mind and what they end up creating when trying to render it. These days, especially for younger aspiring artists, it isn’t always explained that even the masters use references. There are loads of pictures from Disney’s productions like these. They do everything from just general practice drawing animals or actors from life to staging these specific scenes in detail. Drawing from life or reference is not just for art in a realistic style; it helps any art in any style.
These are awesome! And also you are so right. I know that even with the most stylized cg movies made today, it is really common for animators to film themselves doing the actions to use as reference! It just makes your art look so more believable to use a reference.
Atari meets Disney for “Sorcerer’s Apprentice” for the 2600
I saw this in real life and it was only $9, but I didn’t buy it. I’d long heard rumors about its existance but wasn’t certain it had ever actually come out. But it did in 1983, and here are two videos showing its gameplay. You’re Mickey Mouse in that scene from Fantasia, where you are shooting down and catching stars, then going downstairs to catch mops — miss them and the water level rises, catch them and the buckets come to lower the water level. The game gradually gets faster, and that’s it.
Chris Sanders’ sketches and storyboards for Beauty and the Beast
I love how distinct Chris Sanders’ style is whenever he draws monsters!
“It was a difficult picture because we’d never done any animal with anatomy and Walt wanted the deer to be very believable.” - Ollie Johnston, Animator
“Walt’s idea was to get all of his artists to draw in the way of the old masters and then put them to animation. They started bringing in real animals and having them on the sound stages and it became a zoo in itself.” - Mel Shaw, Animator
