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COMD COMD Topics in &

New York City College of Technology The City University of New York

Department of Communication Design

COMD 3642 – Topics in Animation & Motion Graphics

Course Description This course will provide an overview and study of the and motion graphics. Each class will focus on the work of various within a specific time period or genre, from the early shows of the late nineteenth century to current and emerging digital animation technologies. The course objective is to explore the lives and environments, artistic and narrative influences of these animators. This will be accomplished through a series of discussions, lectures, assignments, and viewing and videos.

3 cl hrs, 3 cr

Prerequisites 3500 level courses

Course Objectives INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES ASSESSMENT

For the successful completion of this Evaluation methods and criteria course, students should be able to:

Understand a fundamental principle of the Students will demonstrate knowledge by human eye: the persistence of vision. creating a simple flip-book.

Demonstrate knowledge of the evolution Students will demonstrate knowledge by and development of early forms of re-creating in a series of animation and motion graphics. assignments.

Understand animation's influence on Students will demonstrate knowledge of popular culture and identify the important this by researching and writing a critical animators in history. paper exploring these societal influences.

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INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES ASSESSMENT

Define the major innovations developed by Students will demonstrate knowledge of Disney Studios. these innovations through discussion and research.

Discuss various trends in animation genres Students will demonstrate knowledge of and styles. this by researching and writing a critical paper exploring these trends.

Describe new technological innovations in Students will demonstrate knowledge of animation for web and computer these technological innovations through applications. discussion and research.

General Education Outcome covered: How the outcome is assessed: Academic and Professional Reading Evaluate through class discussion and The student will demonstrate the ability to written tests if students absorbed read pertinent information using industry- information from industry-specific specific sources. sources. Writing Evaluate how well students absorbed and The student will demonstrate the ability to consequently applied the learning though write clearly articulated thoughts in a graded written portions of projects. professional, informed manner. Oral Communication Evaluate through class discussion and /or Speaking: The student will demonstrate written tests if students use appropriate the ability to articulate himself using nomenclature to defend creative, critical relevant industry-specific language and technical decisions in project concepts and development.

Teaching/Learning Method ● Lectures and readings ● Demonstration ● Project based labs ● Research assignments ● Blackboard

Required Text Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons by Penguin ISBN-10: 0-452-25993-2 ISBN-13: 978-0-452-25993-5

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Suggested Text: Enchanted Drawings: The History of Animation Charles Solomon Random House Publishing ISBN-10: 0-5171-1859-9 ISBN-13: 978- 0-5171-1859-7

Attendance (College) and Lateness (Department) Policies: Attendance is taken and is important to success in this class. Both absences and arrival more than 15 minutes after the start of class will be marked. If excessive, the instructor will alert the student that he or she may be in danger of not meeting the course objectives and participation expectations, which could lead to a lower grade.

Academic Integrity Standards Students and all others who work with information, ideas, texts, images, music, inventions, and other intellectual property owe their audience and sources accuracy and honesty in using, crediting, and citing sources. As a community of intellectual and professional workers, the College recognizes its responsibility for providing instruction in information literacy and academic integrity, offering models of good practice, and responding vigilantly and appropriately to infractions of academic integrity. Accordingly, academic dishonesty is prohibited in The City University of New York and at College of Technology and is punishable by penalties, including failing grades, suspension, and expulsion.

Grading 90% = Course assignments/exams Quiz #1 5% Quiz #2 5% Critical Essay #1 15% Midterm 25% Critical Essay #2 15% Final 25%

10% = Class preparation/participation/attendance CP/P/A 10%

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Topics WEEK Lecture Topic Laboratory Exercise Homework Assignment

1 Persistence of Vision - Review course syllabus. Buy required Parlor tricks, optical -Demonstration of the fundamental text: toys, Muybridge motion principle of the persistence of vision, “Before Mickey” studies, early cinema. using a . -Demonstration and creation of a flip- Assignment 1: book. -Create a Flip-

book using 40 - screened: Optical Toys (excerpts from Before 3” x 5” index Film) Motion cards. Studies (Muybridge 1881 – 1887)Early Lumiere Brothers Films (Lumiere – 1895)excerpt from History Of A Crime (Zecca – 1901)Trip To The Moon" (Melies – 1902)The Enchanted Drawing (Blackton –1900)Humorous Phases Of Funny Faces (Blackton – 1906)The Dream Of A Rarebit Fiend (Porter – 1906)

2 Early History Films screened: Reading due: Early animation devices Fantasmagorie (Cohl – 1908)Drame “Before Mickey” and influences, graphic Chez Les Fantoches (Cohl – 1908)Man Chapters 1 – 4 narrative, comics, film, In The Moon (Cohl – 1909)The Gertie and Felix Automatic Moving Company (Cohl – 1910)Professor Bonehead Is The Animation Shipwrecked (Cohl – 1912)Little Nemo (McCay – 1911)How A Mosquito Pioneers Operates (McCay – 1912)Gertie The The 1st animators; Emil Dinosaur (McCay – 1914)The Sinking Cohl & Winsor McCay Of The Lusitania (McCay – 1918)excerpts from “Dream of a Rarebit Fiend” series: The Pet (McCay – 1921), The Flying House (McCay – 1921)

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WEEK Lecture Topic Laboratory Exercise Homework Assignment

3 The Silent Era and Films screened: Reading due: Disney 'Twas But A Dream (Barre – 1916)Krazy “Before Mickey” Felix, the evolution of Kat Goes A Wooing (IFS – 1916)Krazy Chapters 5, 6, & 9 sound, and early Disney Kat At The Circus (IFS – 1916)Colonel Heeza Liar At Bat (Bray – 1917)Bobby The First Animation Bumps in Before And After (Bray – Studios 1918)Katzenjammer Kids in Policy And Pie (IFS – 1918)Mutt And Jeff in The Flood (Fisher Films – 1918)Feline Follies (Sullivan – 1919)

4 Disney Quiz #1 Reading due: “Of , Mice And Magic” Symphonies, full Films screened: Ch. 2 (pp29-39), animation, Snow White, : In The Beginning Ch. 3 (pp83-106) Pinocchio, marketing (excerpts from Fleischer documentary) Out Of The Inkwell - The Tantalizing Fly (Fleischer – 1919)excerpt from KoKo's Hot Ink (Fleischer – 1928)excerpt from Silly Scandals (Fleischer – 1931)Boop Oop A Doop (Fleischer – 1932) In Snow White (Fleischer – 1933)excerpt from Grampy's Indoor Outing (Fleischer – 1936)Newman's Laugh-O-Gram (Disney – 1920)excerpt from Puss In Boots (Disney – 1923), Alice The Toreador (Disney – 1925)The Mechanical Cow (Disney – 1927) (Disney – 1927)Steamboat Willie (Disney – 1928)

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WEEK Lecture Topic Laboratory Exercise Homework Assignment

Fleischer Films screened: Reading due: “Of 5 Urban animation, Hays' Silly Symphonies - Skeleton Dance Mice And Magic” code, studio system, (Disney – 1928) Ch. 2 (pp39-64), Koko, and Betty Boop (Disney – 1932) The Ch. 3 (pp106-124) Old Mill (Disney – 1937)excerpts from Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (Disney – 1937)excerpt from Pinocchio (Disney – 1940)A Night On Bald Mountain (Disney – 1940)The Fleischer's "3D Turntable" (Fleischer – 1933)excerpt from I Eats My Spinach (Fleischer – 1933) Meets Ali Baba And His 40 Thieves (Fleischer – 1937)excerpt from Gulliver's Travels (Fleischer – 1939) Superman – The Mechanical Monster (Fleischer – 1941)

6 Warners and WWII Films screened: Reading due: “Of War cartoons, chase, Bosko & Harmon-Ising - featuring Mice And Magic” censorship, gags , excerpts from Bosko The Talk-Ink Kid Chapter 9 (pp223- , Disney (Harmon – 1929) 250) strike Sinkin' In The Bathtub (Harmon/Ising – 1930) Bosko The Doughboy

(Harmon – 1931), Smile Darn Ya, Smile The origins and rise of (Ising – 1932) (Avery – Warner Brothers 1936)excerpt from I Haven't Got A Hat Animation, focus on (Freleng – 1935) directors and Bugs Porky In Wackyland (Clampett – 1938) Bunny Daffy And Egghead (Avery – 1937)excerpt from Porky's Hare Hunt (Hardaway – 1938) excerpt from Hare- um, Scare-um (Dalton/Hardaway – 1939)Elmer's Candid Camera (Jones – 1940)The Wild Hare (Avery – 1940)excerpt from Corny Concerto (Clampett – 1942)More Bugs! - featuring excerpts from Little Riding Rabbit (Freleng – 1944), The Unruly Hare (Tashline – 1945) Gorilla My Dreams (McKimson – 1948), Rabbit Fire (Jones – 1951)

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WEEK Lecture Topic Laboratory Exercise Homework Assignment

Critical Essay Due 7 Warners and WWII Reading due: “Of War cartoons, chase, Films screened: Mice And Magic” censorship, gags , Red Hot Riding Hood (Avery – Chapter 9 (pp250- propaganda, Disney 1943)excerpt from The Lunch Hound 280) strike (Bray – 1927) Scrub Me Mama With A Boogie Beat The Production Code, (Lantz – 1941) racism and censorship, Coal Black And De Sebben Dwarfs wartime Propaganda (Clampett – 1943) cartoons WWII Compilation (1941 – 1943) The Ductators (McCabe – 1942), You're A Sap Mr Jap (Gordon – 1942), Seein' Red, White, & Blue (Gordon – 1943), Scrap Happy Daffy (Tashlin – 1943), Any Bonds Today (Clampett – 1942), The Spirit Of '43 (King – 1943), (Avery – 1942), The 11th Hour (Gordon – 1942), Daffy The Commando (Freleng – 1943) Nips The Nips (Freleng – 1944) in Spies (Jones – 1944)Russian Rhapsody (Clampett – 1944)Herr Meets Hair (Freleng – 1945)Draftee Daffy (Clampett – 1945)

1950s and Television Mid-Term Exam Reading due: “Of 8 Limited and stylized Mice And Magic” animation, UPA, Films screened: Chapter 12 , Disney Hellbent For Election (Jones – Features, The Zagreb 1944)excerpt from Robin Hoodlum Studios (Hubley – 1948)excerpt from Ragtime Bear (Hubley – 1949)Gerald McBoing

Boing (Cannon – 1950)excerpt from Rooty Toot Toot (Hubley – 1951)excerpt from Madeline (Cannon – 1952) excerpt from A Unicorn In The Garden (Hurtz – 1953) excerpt from The Puddle Jumper (Burness – 1956)The Tell Tale Heart (Babbitt & Parmelee – 1953) (Hubley – 1959) or The Hole (Hubley – 1962)Ersatz (Vukotic – 1961)

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WEEK Lecture Topic Laboratory Exercise Homework Assignment

Alternative Styles Films screened: Reading due:

The influence of drugs Jabberwocky (Svankmajer – 1971)Street Hand-outs 9 and pop art in animation of Crocodiles (Brothers Quay – 1986) in the 1960’s and excerpts from (Bakshi – 1970’s. Focus on Jan 1972) Wizards (Bakshi – 1977) Svankmajer, (Bakshi – 1978) Brothers Quay, the films (Bakshi – 1981) of , and excerpts from Yellow Submarine ’s (Dunning – 1968) “Yellow Submarine.”

Stop Motion and Early Films screened:The Cameraman's Reading due: 10 Computer Revenge (Starevich - 1912)The Dinosaur “Before Mickey” , Ray & The Missing Link (O'Brien - 1915) pp.237-242 Harryhausen, early excerpts from King Kong (O'Brien - Gaming, , 1933) & Mighty Joe Young (O'Brien - 1949)Philips Broadcast of 1938 (Pal - special effects 1938) DocumentaryJiri Trnka DocumentaryThe Hand (Trnka - 1965) Vincent (Burton - 1982)

Contemporary Quiz #2 Reading due: 11 Independent Hand-outs Filmmakers Films screened: Films by contemporary Asparagus (Suzan Pitt – 1978) animators Tale Of Tales ( – 1984) The Big Snit (Richard Condie – 1985) Your Face ( – 1987) All My Relations (Joanna Priestly – 1990) The Bats (Jim Trainor – 1990) excerpts from Drawing the Passing (William Kentridge documentary – 1999) ( – 2000)

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WEEK Lecture Topic Laboratory Exercise Homework Assignment

Anime Films screened: Reading due: 12 The origins of , excerpts from Black & White TV Shows Hand-outs Manga, and special Astro Boy (1961), Gigantor focus on the films of (1963), The 8th Man (1964), Animal City Kids (1968), Ge Ge Ge No Kitaro (1971) excerpts from Color Screenings of early TV Shows Japanese TV shows, Speed Racer (1967-68), Ryu The feature films and Ghibli Primative Boy (1971) Studios productions Mazinger Z (1972), Cutie Honey (1973)

excerpt from Original Animation Videos

Fooly Cooly (2000) excerpts from New Trends in Anime Dark Stalkers (1993), Patlabor (1993), Agent Aika (1997), Yukikaze (2003)excerpts from various Otomo films; Harmeggedon (1983), Akira (1987), Metropolis (2002) excerpts from various Hayao Miyazaki films; Future Boy Conan (Miyazaki – 1978) The Castle Of Cagliostro (Miyazaki – 1979) Nausicaa Of The Valley Of The Winds (Miyazaki – 1984) Laputa, Castle In The Sky (Miyazaki – 1986) My Neighbor Totoro (Miyazaki – 1988) Porco Rosso (Miyazaki – 1992) Princess Mononoke (Miyazaki – 1997) Spirited Away (Miyazaki – 2001)

Current Trends After Reading due: 13 Effects, Pixar, Hand-outs DreamWorks, 3D Modeling.

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WEEK Lecture Topic Laboratory Exercise Homework Assignment

Current Trends Critical Paper #2 Due Reading due: 14 Flash, Simulations, and Hand-outs Video Gaming.

Final Exam 15 Final Exam Films we didn’t have time to screen & Leftovers student favorites.

Bibliography

Cartoon Modern-Style and Design in Fifties Animation Amid Amidi Chronicle Books ISBN-10: 0-8118-4731-4 ISBN-13: 978-0-8118-4731-5

That’s All Folks-The Art of Warner Bros. Animation Steve Schneider Henry Holt and Company ISBN-10: 0-7607-1215-8 ISBN-13: 978-0-7607-1215-7

The Fleischer Story Leslie Cabarga DaCapo Press ISBN-10: 0-306-80313-5 ISBN-13: 978-0-306-80313-4

Before Mickey Donald Crafton University Of Chicago Press ISBN-10: 0-2261-1667-0 ISBN-13: 978-0-2261-1667-9

Cartoons: One Hundred Years of Cinema Animation Giannalberto Bendazzi Indiana University Press ISBN-10: 0-2532-0937-4 ISBN-13: 978-0-2532-0937-5

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Enchanted Drawings: The History of Animation Charles Solomon Random House Publishing ISBN-10: 0-5171-1859-9 ISBN-13: 978- 0-5171-1859-7

Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons by Leonard Maltin Penguin ISBN-10: 0-452-25993-2 ISBN-13: 978-0-452-25993-5

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