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Masters of Animation
Traces the history of animation, and provides brief profiles of top animators from the U.S., Britain, Europe, and Japan.
136 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1987
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June 14, 2021
This is a good, basic book on animation and its history. Be aware that this was published in 1987, so it's not up-to-date, but I see that as an advantage rather than a flaw.
The first section of the book is an overview of the history of animation. It's very sparse, but fine. It's the sort of thing you'd see in many other similar books or in an animation history course.
The second section of the book is what originally made me interested in it. It lists dozens of animators, giving them all at least one full page to showcase their biography, some of the films they've produced, and many color photographs to showcase their style. The animators featured come from all over the world, although their is a noticeable lack of animators from East Asia, other than Japan. Speaking of Japan, what surprised me (as someone who has watched anime for the majority of their life, and has an interest in older anime) is that a lot of the artists featured here were previously unknown to me. It seems that this book has a bias towards auteur-type animators who would be well-known in the short animated film festival circuit, with barely any mention of TV animation at all, which actually gives this book a unique perspective.
The third section of the book is my favorite, being all about CGI animation. The first Pixar short was made in 1984, and with this book being published in 1987, it very much feels ahead of its time and at the forefront of a new wave in animation (Pixar doesn't even get a mention!). You can feel the author's enthusiasm for this new medium as he explains in detail the tremendous work and effort that goes into the process of computer animation, the many hurdles that animators face, and even some of the history and applications of this medium that we now seemingly take for granted.
The first section of the book is an overview of the history of animation. It's very sparse, but fine. It's the sort of thing you'd see in many other similar books or in an animation history course.
The second section of the book is what originally made me interested in it. It lists dozens of animators, giving them all at least one full page to showcase their biography, some of the films they've produced, and many color photographs to showcase their style. The animators featured come from all over the world, although their is a noticeable lack of animators from East Asia, other than Japan. Speaking of Japan, what surprised me (as someone who has watched anime for the majority of their life, and has an interest in older anime) is that a lot of the artists featured here were previously unknown to me. It seems that this book has a bias towards auteur-type animators who would be well-known in the short animated film festival circuit, with barely any mention of TV animation at all, which actually gives this book a unique perspective.
The third section of the book is my favorite, being all about CGI animation. The first Pixar short was made in 1984, and with this book being published in 1987, it very much feels ahead of its time and at the forefront of a new wave in animation (Pixar doesn't even get a mention!). You can feel the author's enthusiasm for this new medium as he explains in detail the tremendous work and effort that goes into the process of computer animation, the many hurdles that animators face, and even some of the history and applications of this medium that we now seemingly take for granted.
Displaying 1 of 1 review