THE ART OF THE IRON GIANT (2016, Ramin Zahed)

Ramin Zahed. The Art of The Iron Giant. Insight Editions, 2016.

/ PDF / English / 144 pages / 1608878880 /  978-1608878888

This beautifully illustrated book revisits the classic film The Iron Giant, with unprecedented access to rarely seen development art and storyboards from the Warner Bros. archives.

In director Brad Bird’s beloved and critically acclaimed 1999 movie The Iron Giant, an inquisitive young boy named Hogarth Hughes forms a powerful friendship with a robot visitor from outer space. Set in the days of the Cold War, the film follows the adventures of Hogarth and the Iron Giant as they try to escape a town’s hysteria, a shady government agent, and the US military.

Featuring the voices of Vin Diesel, Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick Jr., Cloris Leachman, John Mahoney, and Eli Marienthal, The Iron Giant is considered one of the classic animated gems of the era, offering a beautiful mix of hand-drawn and CG animation. In celebration of the timeless legacy of the film, Warner Bros. released a special remastered Signature Edition featuring two new scenes.

The Art of The Iron Giant takes an in-depth look at the making of this modern classic, featuring interviews with the director and the talented members of the creative team who worked endless hours to bring their vision to the big screen. Including never-before-seen images, concept art, backgrounds, and storyboards, this deluxe volume provides fascinating insight into the creative process, in addition to offering a sneak peek at some of the alternative images and plotlines the filmmakers considered before coming up with the final version of the movie. Showcasing the brilliant work of Brad Bird and his tireless team of masterful artists, The Art of The Iron Giant is a must-have companion to the movie and a wonderful testament to the enduring magic of this animated classic. (Amazon)

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THE NOBLE APPROACH (2013, Tod Polson)

Tod Polson. The Noble Approach: Maurice Noble and the Zen of Animation Design. San Francisco, Chronicle Books, 2013.

/ PDF / English / 176 pages / 1452102945 / 978-1452102948

Nice book about the most influential animation designer of all time. There's also a bit of a bio here: his humble beginnings at the art school, working with Disney: he was the background painter in many of the Silly Symphonies, notably the Oscar winning The Old Mill (1937), eventually he became a background/layout artist working in Snow Whites, Bambi, Pinocchio, Fantasia and Dumbo... and then, he joined the strike against Disney! he was one of the very few "selected circle" artists to join, he had everything to lose but he did it anyways cause "it wasn't fair to the guys on the lower rungs". So he fought, won and... finally leave :(

During the war time period, started the first of many collaborations with Friz Freleng, Chuck Jones, Bob Clampett, Robert Mackimson.  

In 1951 he joined the Chuck Jones animation unit as layout designer and history was made, thus it begans his work at Warner Bros. Designing and creating background layouts for Duck Amuck, What's Opera Doc?, Kiss Me Cat. Then Working at MGM, retirement and coming out in the 90's. Etc. Etc.

But mainly this is an outline on the design philosophies of Maurice Noble, ilustrated with some of his designs: where to get inspiration from, how to choose color, how to break down the layout, etc. His logical approach to animation design: "Backgrounds and characters should work in harmony" and a simple line art style never interferes with a gag, design should always support a story not the other way around. (by pelida77)     

By the way, if you are any interested in background art take a peek at this amazing blog by Rob Richards:

animationbackgrounds.blogspot.com

"The real art of animation is filled with ideas and beauty and is never-ending joy"

(Maurice Noble)

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CHUCK JONES EXTREMES AND IN-BETWEENS (2000, Margaret Selby)

Chuck Jones Extremes and In-betweens: a Life in Animation / DIR: Margaret Selby / WRIT: Greg Ford; Margaret Selby / PHOTO: Mead Hunt / EDIT: Steven Wechsler / SOUND: Danny Caccavo / PRD: CAMI Spectrum / 2000 / 1h 24m.

INTERVIEWEES: Chuck Jones; Maurice Noble (Background Artist); Bob Givens (Layout); Martha Sigall (inker-painter); June Foray (Voice actress); Stan Freberg (Voice actor); Marian Jones (Wife); Linda Jones (Daughter); Richard Kent Jones (Brother); Glen Keane; John Lasseter; Eric Goldberg; Rob Minkoff; Matt Groening; Ken Burns (Director); Ron Howard; Steven Spielberg; Joe Dante; Robin Williams; Whoopi Goldberg; Roger Ebert (film critic); Leonard Maltin

Very few animators are as recognizable as Charles M. Jones; you can tell by the look of it, that you're watching a Chuck's piece. There's an emphasys on the characters expressions, and a tinge of irony in their attitudes (like if the characters were only actors performing their parts). The "camera" work; the odd angles; those briefs moments of stillness before the action begins; the astounding Maurice Noble's backgrounds. Even among the huge Warner Bros library; so many great directors, so many different styles, yet, his work always excelled. As John Lasseter says, "he's given us his versions of some of the most famous cartoon characters in history, but his versions are the definitive ones."

This documentary was shown as an episode for PBS "Great Perfomances" TV series. Covers a good part of Chuck's career. His beginnings working as a cel-washer. Joining the Leon Schlesinger's Studio, and developing an early style, a strongly Disney influenced animation e.g.: Sniffles Takes a Trip (1940)But working with Tex Avery and breathing through the whackiness atmosphere of Warner Bros, soon enough Chuck will find his own voice. And so, comes his first absolutely personal works: The Draft Horse (1942) and The Dover Boys (1942).

This will inevitably lead to the masterpieces: Rabbit of Seville (1950) Feed The Kitty (1952); Duck Amuck (1953); Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century (1953); The Cats Bah (1954) One Froggy Evening (1955); Rocket Squad (1956) What's Opera, Doc? (1957); and so many more!!! great characters, like: Bugs Bunny; Elmer Fudd; Daffy Duck; The Roadrunner and the Coyote; Marvin the martian; Pepé le Pew; Papa, Mama and Junior Bears; Hubie and Bertie...    

His final period, always experimenting, always trying new things: How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966) The Dot and the Line (1965); and even his attempt on the Tom and Jerry series (1963-1967).

There is a lot more to tell about Chuck's career, but this serves as a great introduction. (by pelida77)

"I discover isn't a question of drawing, it's a question of expression what makes every character come to life." (C. Jones)

AVI / 700 MB / 1h 24m / Audio: Eng / (5/5 RAR parts)
Video: MPEG-4 / 624x352 (16:9) / 1017 Kbps / 23.976 fps / 0.193 Qf
Audio: MP3 / 48.0 KHz / 122 Kbps
Part 1...
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7 MINUTES (1993, Norman Klein) *Incomplete

Klein, Norman, M., 7 Minutes The Life and Death of The American Animated Cartoon, London, New Left Books, 1993.

JPG / 15 MB / Eng / *Incomplete (I'm being honest here) / 1859841503 / 978-1859841501

I recomend you use the Gonvisor or similar to read this book.

A long Essay about the american seven-minute cartoon, starting with the coming of sound in 1928 till the death of the genre in the 60's.
Klein it's a confusing critic, very obscure at times... you may get lost with the terms and clasifications he uses. But if you read this book while you watch the cartoons he analyzes, it could be a fun experience. Some clever points combined with pure nuisance (sadly, this last is way more frequent).
Brilliant: Norman classifies the characters in cartoons in three essentials roles: The Over reactor (Yosemite Sam,Donald Duck); The nuissance (e.g.: Daffy, ); and The Controller (Bugs in Duck Amuck; sub role: The Censor: Grandma in Sylvester and Twetee; the Wizard in Fantasia or the black woman in Tom and Jerry); This roles will evolve and change throughout different periods but still stay recognizable.
I'll give a list of themes (because the chapter titles suck):
19th Century Illustration and The Vaudeville influence. A comic strip cartoon. The irreverence in earlier cartoons. Felix The Cat. The irruption of Disney's first sound shorts. Mickey Mouse The Fleischer Style: City, Machines and Madness. Betty Boop and Popeye. The Decline of New York. Merrie Melodies. The dramatic improvement of color. 1936, towards a movie-like "Full animation". Moral Melodrama: the cautionary cartoon. The Sadism period. The chase cartoon... and a little more

- The story development and the changes in Style through history.
- Koko the clown, Mickey Mouse, Bosko, Silly Symphonies, Looney Tunes, Superman, Mighty Mouse, Heckle and Jeckle, Woody Woodpecker,Tom and Jerry, Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Porky, Daffy, Wile E. Coyote and The Roadrunner, Mr Magoo, Droopy, Wolfie, Barney Bear, Chilly Willy... And fortunately, many many more.
- Winsor McCay, Otto Messmer, Ub Iwerks, Max Fleischer, Willard Bowsky, Seymour Kneitel, Dave Tendlar, Grim Natwick, Friz Freleng, Tex Avery, Chuck Jones, Bob Clampett, William Hanna, Joseph Barbera, Walter Lantz, Walt Disney, Bill Melendez, Fred Moore, Frank Thomas, Ward Kimball, Marc Davis.
- The notes are at the end of the book, that's a bit anoying.

(by pelida77)

As I've always said, this files are intended to be use as a preview (also a kind of a back up... in case your house... gets burned?); So STOP BITCHING about the missing pages; a 75 % of the book is complete: most of the missing pages are from the notes section
(and finally...books can be bought, you know?)

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Happy New Year!!!

LOONEY TUNES: THE ULTIMATE VISUAL GUIDE (2003, Jerry Beck)

Beck, Jerry. Looney Tunes: The Ultimate Visual Guide. New York, DK, 2003.

PDF / 22.5 MB / Eng /144 pages. / 0789497581 / 978-0789497581

- Ilustrated with more than 800 images. Animation sketches, artwork, Background art and cels.

- It chronicles multiple aspects of classic Warner Bros. animation (every character who appeared WB cartoon), from cartoons and their creators, to comic books, memorabilia, merchandising.

- A complete dissection of each character. It's creator, cartoon appearance's, personality traits, gags, quotes, etc.

It's a nice book... Quite informative about the history of animated cartoon (for a visual guide).

(by pelida77)


"Brilliance. That's all I can say, sheer unadulterated brilliance."

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CHUCK JONES: A FLURRY OF DRAWINGS (Hugh Kenner )

KENNER, Hugh, Chuck Jones: A Flurry of Drawings Portraits of American Genius, Los Angeles, University of California Press, 1994.

PDF / 5 MB / Eng / 114 pp. / 0520087976 /978-0520087972

- Biografía de Chuck Jones (1912 - 2002). Desde sus comienzos en la animación como "cel-washer" (a los 19 años!!!), conociendo a leyendas de la industria como: Ub Iwerk, Grim Natwick, Fred "Tex" Avery, y por supuesto Michael Maltese,Bob Clampett,Ken Harris, Abe Levitow y más.

- Bugs, Daffy, Elmer, Pepé Le Pew, Roadrunner, Willy E. Coyote, The Grinch, Rikki Tikki Tavi.



- Ideas y definiciones sobre animación. Todo un cuadro de época sobre la animación en la primera mitad del siglo XX.

- Multiples citas del propio Chuck, que explican en qué consistía la animación en la Edad de oro.

- El proceso de creacion en el cartoon de la Warner.

- Ilustraciones hechas por Chuck.

- Por momentos el autor no es del todo serio en sus comentarios, y en sus múltiples intentos por hacerse el simpático... se pone en vergüenza (creo además que está un poco loco).

Kenner provides a brief, lively history of animation before focusing on the Warner Brothers animation studio, out of which came the wildest, most outrageous cartoons of the 1940s and 1950s. As Kenner notes, Warner was the only place in animation where the auteur theory applies, for each Warner cartoon director had his own take on the studio's characters. Chuck Jones was one of the directors responsible for the classics featuring the likes of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and the Road Runner, and his mastery of the Warner characters' personalities, along with his distinctive comic sensibilities (more droll than outlandish) and sense of visual design, made his cartoons standouts. In his somewhat rambling essay, Kenner makes perceptive observations on Jones' career and the artistry behind his six-minute gems.

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