sdelmonte | Thoughts on Animation from Katzenberg

Here's an interesting little brief about something intelligent that Jeffrey Katzenberg had to say about hand-drawn animated films:

"Jeffrey Katzenberg, who is often credited with reviving traditional animation when, as chairman of Walt Disney Studios, he oversaw such features as The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King, has come to the defense of the technique following the dismal failure of Disney's recent Treasure Planet. While some writers have forecast that the hand-drawn art will be replaced by what is thought to be far less expensive computer-generated animation, Katzenberg, now a partner in DreamWorks, told today's (Wednesday) Los Angeles Times: "There's been a rush to judgment that some movies failed because of their technique." Referring to DreamWorks' first animated feature, Katzenberg remarked: "I don't believe that The Road to El Dorado didn't succeed because of its technique, any more than Titan A. E.[whose failure shuttered 20th Century Fox's animation unit] or Treasure Planet failed because of their techniques. To blame our animators for El Dorado not working would be nonsense. The idea and the way in which we told the story simply were not compelling enough, and I think the other movies share those shortcomings. It hurts to have to accept that responsibility, but that is the reality." "

Which is to say, a good script helps. Never mind that I think a good marketing campaign helps even more, and right now I beleive that not one American studio has any idea how to market dramatic and action-oriented animated films, even those that are CGI. But it may help the beleaguered animators a bit to know that Katzenberg is still their best friend in Hollywood.