La Linea comparo: Four generations of hands

Sorry for not posting yesterday. Between the TAIS Showcase (freakin' success, packed house, more on Monday) and getting ready for a martial arts demo this weekend (yes, I am a ninja, just not that ninja), I was completely shagged out. To make up for it, a super-deluxe ending to our La Linea week. Today, a side-by-side comparison of 'Animator as God' toons. The classic example, the Fleishcer's Out of the Inkwell series...check out the detail on the ink spots! The Fleischers were masters of compositing real-world and animated elements, and I believe only Gertie the Dinosaur predates them in the category of animators interacting with their characters.

Next, the Golden Age example, Chuck Jones' immortal Duck Amuck. Still remains one of the best examples, and really gives the depth and breadth of not only Jones' talent as a director, but the scope of personality he gave Daffy.

On to 1970, and Maestro Cavendoli. Here we see the concept broken down to it's bare essentials, a simple line on paper that changes color to suit the character's mood. Mr. Linea is voiced by Carlo Bonomi, by the way...his Milanese accent coming through despite the gibberish.

Finally, the contemporary example, Cellar Door's excellent DooDlez series. Each one is two minutes long, simple black and white, although the characters and interactions are quite detailed. Note that this episode has a particularly canuck flavour, which is good...Cellar Door Productions is in Charlottetown, PEI.

Well, that's that! Damn, 10 minutes over lunch. I'll report big on the TAIS showcase on Tuesday. Happy Canucklehead Day, and Happy 4th to our Yankified readers. Cheers!