Music, Sound & Animation
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April 1997 Vol. 2 No. 1 Music,Music, SoundSound && AnimationAnimation Andrea Martignoni on Pierre Hébert’s La Plante humaine William Moritz on The Dream of Color Music Carl Stalling’s Humor Voice Acting 101 Table of Contents 3 Editor’s Notebook A Word on Music and Animation; Harry Love. 5 Letters to the Editor The Thief and the Cobbler. Children’s Workshops; Errata. 8 The Ink and Paint of Music Amin Bhatia recounts a day in his life as an “electronic composer” for animated TV shows, explaining his tools and techniques. 11 The Burgeoning of a Project: Pierre Hébert’s La Plante humaine [English & Italian] Andrea Martignoni delves into Pierre Hébert’s radical method for marrying animation with music. 20 The Dream of Color Music, and Machines That Made it Possible William Moritz gives a quick and dazzling historical overview attempts to create visual music using “color organs.” 25 Who’s Afraid of ASCAP? Popular Songs in the Silly Symphonies From 1929 to 1939, Disney’s Silly Symphonies united animation with a rich array of music, including such songs as “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf.” J.B. Kaufman reports. 28 Carl Stalling and Humor in Cartoons Daniel Goldmark shows how Carl Stalling, who may have been the most skilled and clever composer of car- toon music Hollywood ever had, used music to create gags and help tell a story at the same time. 31 Voice Acting 101 So, you want to be a voice actor? Well, Joe Bevilacqua tells you all you ever wanted to know, drawing on his experience and that of some of Hollywood’s top voice talent. 36 An Interview With Mark Hamill While most people identify Mark Hamill with his role of Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars films, few realize that he has had a highly successful career as a voice actor. Jacquie Kubin talks to Mark and helps put the record straight. 39 “A Screw Here, a Crank There”: Payut Ngaokrachang and the Origins of Thai Animation The father of Thai animation, Payut Ngaokrachang, tells John A. Lent how he got his start through a set of for- tuitous circumstances. 42 The Influence of Religion on Early European Animation P. Pluie-Toile expounds on the mysteries and surprising richness of religious imagery found in the fledgling works of various European animation industries. 44 Festivals, Events: 49 Reviews in Brief Preview of NATPE’s Animation & Special Wendy Jackson reports on new animation music, video Effects Expo and book releases. by Wendy Jackson 52 Desert Island Series . 45 Film Reviews: If a Tree Falls on a Desert Island, Cats Don’t Dance Does Anyone Hear It? April 1997 by Mark Segall Alf Clausen, Danny Elfman, Howie Mandel, Will Ryan and Luc Hamet. 47 Software Reviews: Web Painter News by Guillaume Calop 56 63 The Dirdy Birdy by John R. Dilworth 64 Next Issue’s Highlights 1 Cover: La Plante humaine by Pierre Hébert. © National Film Board of Canada. © Animation World Network 1997. All rights reserved. No part of the periodical may be reproduced without the consent of Animation World Network. ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE April 1997 2 by Harvey Deneroff A Word on Music mated feature film genre in the and Animation minds of industry executives and Manny Davis, the former public alike. This bias was rein- Terrytoons director, told me that forced in recent years with the introduction of color to car- Disney’s The Little toons in the 1930s seemed very Mermaid, which had many stage natural to him, something that and music critics hailing it for wasn’t necessarily the case with resuscitating the moribund live-action films. The same might Broadway musical. also be said about sound and ani- The association of animated mated films. With few exceptions, features with musicals, however, early sound films paled in com- has also been an albatross parison to the silent movies that around the neck of filmmakers, went before them and whose who have hardly dare to make glory days these talkies seemed to was run once again so everyone an animated feature without the so cruelly eclipse. could experience it. requisite song and dance num- Animated movies, however, This sort of infectious energy bers. Happily, there have been were not hampered by the cum- was unleashed in animation stu- some signs of change of late, bersome restrictions the new tech- dios almost across the boards dur- given the success of Toy Story, nology imposed on their live- ing the early sound period. Thus, Space Jam and Beavis and Butt- action brethren. (Limitations that when the people at Disney saw head Do America, which are basi- were delightfully spoofed in the the way Fleischer Studios had mar- cally straight comedies. Stanley Donen-Gene Kelly musical, ried Rossini’s William Tell Overture If this trends holds, then per- Singin’ in the Rain.) Instead of to a tornado in Tree Saps, they haps we can start looking at music being hampered by soundtracks, turned the music around and one in animation in the same sense as animated cartoons were sudden- upped Fleischer with a musical tor- Norman Roger, who has said that ly liberated, kicking off a period of nado of their own in The Band he does not so much consider experimentation and innovation Concert. In all, animated cartoons himself a composer, but as some- the likes of which had never been seemed to gain an rhythmic one who designs soundtracks. In seen before. coherence and energy from sound this sense, we can look at music Ub Iwerks, at an awards din- that previously seemed lacking. in its proper context, rather than a ner in his honor in the 1960s, It was also during this period, series of set pieces, where every- spoke fondly of the magic as Daniel Goldmark and J.B. body bursts into song. If so, we moment when he and colleagues Kaufman point out elsewhere, that can delight in the driving rhythms on Steamboat Willie first married the Hollywood majors often used of Roger’s marvelous score for sound with picture. Several crew their captive cartoon studios as Frédéric Back’s Crac!, the voice members gathered behind the vehicles to promote songs fea- artistry of Mel Blanc in a Warner translucent screen (probably a tured in their live-action films and Bros. cartoon, and the minimalist sheet) to play music, while the rest published by their music divisions. soundtrack of a Paul Driessen film, of the crew watched. Then the With the success of Disney’s Snow and perhaps not be afraid to call “band” switched places with some White and the Seven Dwarfs, the it all music. of those out front and the scene musical became the de facto ani- ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE April 1997 3 Harry Love mative. In fact, he very much “Harry Love was the last of the reflected what his friend and pioneers, in at the very start of the sometime boss, Joe Barbera said industry. He was knowledgeable about his professionalism. in all areas—productions, anima- Voice actor June Foray’s recalls tion, storyboard and story. When that she used to get Christmas a project was assigned to Harry cards from Harry long before she ANIMATION WORLD NETWORK Love you knew it was going to be ever met him, or even knew who 6525 Sunset Blvd., Garden Suite 10 done. Those that really knew him he was. She recalls that she “asked Hollywood, CA 90028 will miss him.” my husband, who was a screen- Phone : 213.468.2554 —Joe Barbera writer, ‘Do you know who Harry Fax : 213.464.5914 Love is?’ He said, “No, I never Email : [email protected] Harry Love, despite his longevi- heard of him.” When I finally did ty (having started in animation meet him at DePatie Freleng, some 70 years ago at Charles where he was a producer, I said, Mintz in New York), was not an “How come you wrote to me all ANIMATION WORLD MAGAZINE animator who was known for the the time? And in his New York [email protected] films and TV shows he worked on. accent, he said, ‘Because I thought PUBLISHER Rather, he seemed to be someone you were beautiful.’ And after my Ron Diamond, President who was known for the friend- husband died, he called me and Dan Sarto, Chief Operating Officer ships and support he gave to his we became first friends after that.” Annick Teninge, General Manager fellow artists. His friend and fellow A confirmed bachelor, he EDITOR-IN-CHIEF producer-director George Singer befriended many new talents, Harvey Deneroff noted that, “Harry was always including people like Phil Roman, ASSOCIATE EDITOR/PUBLICITY behind the scenes; he was never owner of Film Roman, who fond- Wendy Jackson really recognized as one of the big ly remembers partying with Harry talents, but he was responsible for before he got married. Singer told CONTRIBUTORS : Joe Bevilacqua bringing up a lot of artists, ani- me of his habit of drawing cartoon Amin Bhatia mators, and writers.” In this characters on the napkins and Guillaume Calop regard, he taught the writing seg- tablecloths of some of the better Daniel Goldmark ment of the evening classes known restaurants around town. Wendy Jackson Hanna-Barbera conducted for four He recalled that Harry “was always J.B. Kaufman or five years, from which, as Singer drawing some of the Bugs Bunny Jacquie Kubin noted “came quite a few writers.” character, which was one of his John A. Lent Part of his support he gave oth- favorites, and passing it out to cus- Andrea Martignoni ers were a series of short tomers in a restaurant.” Foray also William Mortiz “Animation Profiles” he started to noted that “the maître d’s and the P.