Published between 1982 and 1995
On my desk I had a copy of the book The Snowman – I have it still -and I thought it would make a really marvellous little film. We phoned the publishers and bought a one-year option. Then we purchased more copies of the book, cut out Raymond Briggs pictures and made an 8-minute Animatic, … Read more
Brian Sibley gives a retrospective view of Pinocchio as the film goes on release once more. In writing of Pinocchio, you are limited only by your own power of expressing enthusiasm. To put it in the simplest possible terms, this film is fantastically delightful, absolutely perfect, and a work of pure, unadulterated genius… Not my … Read more
The characters, like those in Snow White, are sharply delineated: a cast of players, humorous and dramatic, who compensate for the somewhat insipid personality of Pinocchio himself. First and foremost there is Jimmy Cricket – voiced by veteran Hollywood entertainer, Cliff Edwards, and visualized by the young Disney animator, Ward Kimball (who was on the … Read more
A personal view of collecting original animation artwork from Stewart Selkirk. Collecting things, from cigarette cards to fine art paintings, can be both a strange and enjoyable business. Strange when one sees the inflated amounts that can be paid by some individuals at auction for a penny black or a signed Picasso sketch. Enjoyable when … Read more
If you have an idea for a film but never have the time to make it, Neil Carstairs can recommend a two year posting to a remote part of Scotland to get you started. I finished all the drawings for my previous film The Circle and the Square in the first three months of a … Read more
After each painting operation the cels had to be laid out to dry. It was just as well that I was back home from the far north by this time, since, although my landlady up there was kind enough to let me use the dining room table for drawing, I could not have spread out … Read more
Bob Godfrey asserted his independence when he left the comparatively safe haven of W.H. Larkins and became self-employed in company with Keith Learner. Although we did not know it then, they were soon to be joined by Vera Linnecar and Nancy Hanna, to become the four corner posts of Biographic Cartoon Films Ltd. Bob won … Read more
A number of films which might have been made by Disney or Fleischer in the early days are now being made by people like Stephen Spielberg. Live-action films dominated by special effects are edging further and further into areas once the sole preserve of the animation studios. On the other hand, subjects that should be … Read more
K.C.: You mean… the narration suffers in translation? B.G.: Yes! Especially puns and ‘English’ jokes. And even the English voices have proved to be a drawback. Richard Briers has a very English voice for the Roobarb series, and then there is my own voice for Hemy’s Cat… K.C.: I think the timing ofa gag suffers … Read more
As the hype dies down Brian Sibley steps back and takes an objective view of the latest feature cartoon to come out of the Disney Studio. By a cunning ruse of counting The Many Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh as if it were a feature film instead of a compilation of shorts, Walt Disney Productions were able … Read more