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A Comparative Analysis of Character Animation and Performance Between American and Japanese Feature Film

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A Comparative Analysis of Character Animation and Performance Between American and Japanese Feature Film A Comparative Analysis of Character Animation and Performance between American and Japanese Feature Film Animation University of the Witwatersrand School of Digital Arts A n im at io n M as t e r s Name: Reg Krommenhoek Student Number: 325490 Supervisor: Stephen Cloete Abstract This research paper seeks to gain a better understanding of t he disparity in character animation and performance be t w e e n Japanese and American a n im at io n through a comparative analysis of feature films by Studio Ghibli and D i s n e y . The analysis incorporates an investigation into the cultural and historical elements that influenced the development of the m e d ium i n bo t h r e g io n s as w e l l as t he individuals that pioneered animation techniques and approaches to performance that contributed to both studios ’ unique styles. Beyond the textual and technological readings of animation, this research p a pe r engages with performance theory and seeks to explore the disparity in a n im at io n ba s e d o n performative differences . By g ain i n g, a n ua nc e d understanding of performance in animation and the characteristics of these fo rm s of performance one can gain a greater under s t a nd i n g o f ho w e ac h studio approaches characte r animation and performance , a n d w hy t h e s e approaches di ffe r . This is achieved through id e nt ify i ng the difference in ideology regarding movement and the processes by which these movements are rendered . The identification of t he key performance models - figurative or e m bo d ie d - and their use by each studio is t he n re- integrated into the greater discussion regard i ng the textual and technological readings of animation a n d h o w the textual and technological elements help reinforce the unique style and approach to each performance mode . Thus gaining a nuanced understanding of the medium in both regions in regards to an im at io n production and the disparity in animation on a performative level . 2 | P a g e Acknowledgments I would like to thank my loving family who always support me no matter the e nd e av o u r. I w o u l d a ls o li k e t o t h ank m y s upervisor and the Digital A rts faculty of Wits U n iv e rs it y for their guidance and support throughout my academic career . 3 | P a g e Declaration I declare that this research report is my own unaided work. It is submitted for the degree of Master of Arts in Digital Arts in the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. It has not been submitted before for any other degree or examination in any other university. ___________ __________________ 15th day of February 2018 4 | P a g e Contents A b s t r ac t .................................................................................................................................................... 2 Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................................ 3 Table of Figur es .................................................................................................................................... 6 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 8 Limited Animation vs. Full Animation ..................................................................................... 14 Disney and the Golden Age ........................................................................................................... 17 Japanese Animation History ......................................................................................................... 24 Anime Historical Predecessors ............................................................ 32 Studio Ghibli .................................................................................... 37 Performance in An im at io n ............................................................................................................. 47 Figurative Performance ..................................................................... 50 Embodied Performance ...................................................................... 58 Performance Space ........................................................................... 67 A n aly s is ................................................................................................................................................... 80 Disney and Ghibli Performance ........................................................... 80 Disney and Ghibli Performance Space ................................................... 92 Co nc lu s io n ............................................................................................................................................. 97 Works Cited ......................................................................................................................................... 100 5 | P a g e Table of Figures Figure 1: Manga panels from Astroboy Volume 1, The Birth of Astroboy. ........... 31 Figure 2: Astroboy and the use of several Tome. .............................................................. 32 Figure 3: Part of Choju jinbutsu giga ....................................................................................... 34 Figure 4: Genji Monogatari Emakimono published by the Toku gawa Museum in Nagoya, Japan, 1937 ......................................................................................................................... 35 Figure 5: Noh device in which the audience experience the contemplative world in Spirited Aw ay .................................................................................................................... 37 Figure 6: Howl's Moving Castle animated by moving and rotating planes ........... 39 Figure 7: Hayao Miyazaki (Left) and Yasou Otsuka (Right) ........................................... 40 Figure 8: Illustrating Otsuko Yasou’s ‘peghole technique’ angling characters to impart a sense of dynamism in more limited animation .......................................... 43 Figure 9: A more recent example from Princess Mononoke in which the peghole is used to shift the weight rather than drawing it creating dynamic m o v e m e nt .............................................................................................................................................. 44 Figure 10: François Delsarte Eye Expression Chart .......................................................... 51 Figure 11: Preston Blair's Stylized Facial Expression ...................................................... 52 Figure 12: Sample of Graphic Emblems taken from Neil Cohn's Japanese Visual Language: The Structure of Manga ........................................................................................... 53 Figure 13: ‘Gainax pose’ in Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann ( 2 00 7 ) ............................. 54 Figure 14: ‘Gainax pose’ in D ie bu s t e r ( 2 0 0 4 ) ...................................................................... 54 Figure 15: Comic strip language used as a performative element in early a n im at io n ............................................................................................................................................... 56 Figure 16: Don Graham instructing Disney Animators .................................................... 60 Figure 17: The Three Little Pigs by Disney. From left to right, Practical Pig, Fiddler Pig and Piper Pig ...... 61 Figure 18: Scenes from Mickey Mouse Plane Crazy (1928) displaying lateral scene composition similar to comic strips. .......................................................................... 70 Figure 19: Plane Crazy (1928) was the first animated Mickey Mouse cartoon adapted to a newspaper comic strip titled "Lost on a Desert Island (1930)". When comparing the two a clear connection between comic spatial composition and the early Disney animations is presented. ....................................... 70 6 | P a g e Figure 20: Skeleton in The Skeleton Dance in frontal display representative of vaudeville theatre. ............................................................................................................................ 72 Figure 21: Extreme close up from Satashi Kon's Paprika (2006) .............................. 74 Figure 22: Mickey’s Steamroller (1934) but with shadows absent. This illustrates the inconsistency in the use of shadows as within the same scene Minnie sprouts a shadow within the same performance as seen in Figure 6. .... 79 Figure 23: Mickey's Steamroller (1934) showcasing the use of the formulaic noonday shadow ................................................................................................................................. 79 Figure 24: Emoting Tarzan (1999) ............................................................................................. 82 Figure 25: Emoting Spirited Away (2001) .............................................................................. 83 Figure 26: Jiji’s figurative facial gesture. Kiki’s Delivery Service ............................ 87 Figure 27: Jiji’s figurative performance Kiki’s Delivery Service ................................ 87 Figure 28: Chihiro Figurative Performance in Spirited Away ...................................... 88 Figure 29: Chihir o’s Figurative Performance Spirited Away ....................................... 88 Figure 30: Weight shift and movement out of depth. Tarzan ..................................... 90 Figure 31:
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