Disney Screencaps
Recently, I watched a video of a lively discussion between the animators of one of my favorite Disney classics, The Lion King. They covered many topics, from lion-walking logistics to song development, and listening to them elaborate on the process behind a beloved movie of mine was beyond fascinating. What stuck out to me, past the obvious passion these people have for their craft, is how dedicated they were to producing the film in a way that honors animation as an art form.
The stunning opening scenes of Wall-E aside, many animated movies nowadays lack “quiet” time, with little space to breathe, few pauses in action, and rarely a still figure. I think it’s safe to say that as an audience, we get caught up in the dialogue and the colors and the movements, and we generally seek visual stimulation, but I’m not sure when that translated into constant sensory overload. It’s refreshing to take a look back and see what animators could do in their more peaceful, hand-drawn heyday. Stills from older Disney movies could stand alone as artwork. Seriously.
I found this website, Disney Screencaps, today, and I think my body stopped functioning. I’ve never found an online resource with this much power to amaze me, and I suggest you all go take a look. Yes, you’ve seen the movies. I’m sure you think they’re great, but I doubt you’ve seen them like this. One movie becomes seven THOUSAND five hundred individual pieces of art.
Sleeping Beauty is particularly cool, to me, so I have several images to share. If they ever upload clearer images of 101 Dalmatians, I will probably faint. The settings and style of that movie are beauutiful.
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5 Responses to “Disney Screencaps”
Absolutely gorgeous! I can’t wait to check out that website. I feel that the sensory overload is applicable to a lot of art forms. Nowadays, there’s so much information available on the web that people see something, say “Oh, that’s pretty” and move on to the next one without considering the time & effort. It’s wise to pause, breathe, and observe more.
Woah, seeing this in a whole new way. It’s funny also, at least for me, to look at these images after not watching the movie since I was a child. Can I just say… THE TREES!! Wow.
Let’s just all live in a castle, okay? Great.
Did you hear the Tim Burton interview on NPR this morning? He apparently started as an animator at Disney. It would have been during their worst period (the ’80s before the Little Mermaid) and he hated it, of course. I wonder if he would have fit in better during their more artful classic periods, or at least been more encouraged to express himself. They’ve done some really dark stuff!
YES! Elise, I thought the same thing. Haven’t seen it in a lonnnng time, and actually noticed the concept art from it in an exhibit. It’s like I completely forgot someone actually spent time crouched over a table painting or inking these backgrounds. Distracted by the action!
And Rachel, you might want to block out a big chunk of time to dig through that site. So, so much to see.