Character Designs from Treasure Planet

Disney and Pixar’s original feature film Luca is a fun and heartwarming story about two teenage sea monsters who share a life-changing summer

Sketches by Denise Shimabukuro - ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴅᴏɴ'ᴛ ʀᴇᴍᴏᴠᴇ ᴄʀᴇᴅɪᴛ -

The more I think about it, the stronger I feel that "101 Dalmatians" is the most modern of all Disney animated features. Artistically this is the peak, right here. A film which embraces modernism and a gutsy graphic style never attempted before or since. It is almost surreal to remember that this movie is over 50 years old! So why hasn't Disney Animation advanced even further in the decades following Dalmatians? I think part of the reason is the fact that Walt Disney himself did not care for this "artsy" look. He probably thought the film looked rough and too unpolished. To me the beauty of it is that it makes a statement which challenges the audience: Look, this is a sketch, but it is alive and real at the same time. And of course audiences completely bought into this concept and embraced the movie. Come to think of it, Disney experienced another breakthrough not so long ago: Mike Gabriel's short film "Lorenzo", which took pencil animation to the next level. More on that in an upcoming post. Above and below, concept art by Ken Anderson, inspired by Ronald Searle. The anatomically correct Pongo caught me by surprise. Story sketches by the one and only Bill Peet. Avant-garde Vis Dev by the one and only Walt Peregoy. Final frames from the film reveal the sheer joy of experimentation for an animated film.

This is what Tangled could have looked like.

Concept artist and illustrator Karl Simon was kind enough to share some of the concept art he created for Disney’s Beauty and the Beast.

Walt Disney's animation studio didn't invent character animation, but it elevated it to unimaginable artistic heights. Here are a few random thoughts that help illustrate just WHY this studio was the industry's leader: APPEAL You can't take your eyes off classic Disney characters. There is a visual magnetism in this Timothy drawing. You want to look at him, you want to get to know him. RESEARCH TRAVELS They realized that by studying local folklore on site gave the films great authenticity. THE STUDY OF REAL ANIMALS This added believability to the characters which no other studio came close to. PHENOMINAL STORY SKETCHES They reveal not only story continuity, but also staging, camera angles and personality. THE WILLINGNESS TO START OVER When something didn't feel right it had to be revisited and redone. Frank Thomas' early Pinocchio animation moved nicely, but the footage was tossed because the character design lacked appeal. THE GUTS TO GO DARK Even though animation was full of likable cute characters, Disney did not hesitate to put them into highly dramatic situations. These guys were risk takers! PHENOMENAL LAYOUTS Mickey is looking up at a giant's castle. Camera angles like the one take highly skilled artists to draw such an up shot convincingly. SMART USE OF LIVE ACTION REFERENCE By hiring outstanding character actors for animation reference the scenes were practically half done by the time the animator got started. (Not all animators approved of this working method though.) LET FUNNY ANIMATORS DO THEIR THING The balance of realistic characters combined with comedic ones added a great dynamic. Particularly in the feature films. GLORIOUS COLORS All of Disney's animated films have stunning color models for their characters. From Technicolor extravaganzas like "Alice in Wonderland" to more subtle color palettes like "101 Dalmatians", they all work beautifully. LET THE STYLE EVOLVE What started as rounded sculptural drawings evolved into sophisticated artistic graphics. This challenged some artists, but audiences embraced the change eventually. ECONOMIZE BUT DON'T COMPROMISE Evan after Xerox was introduced to save money, the studio was still capable of producing masterful animation. The overall look changed again, but character animation maintained its very high standard. A GROUP EFFORT When all disciplines like animation, effects and background painting come together on the highest level possible, visuals like this one were achieved. This is animation for the ages.