Hello everyone!
I want to share with you my favourite online resources about traditional animation. This is not a comprehensive list of everything about 2d/traditional animation but only a list of my favourite places on the web where you can find news and insights about this great form of art.ย
(Note: Iโm not an animator so this list is more focused on animationโs history and less on its technical aspects)
Blogs
โDeja Viewโ - Andreas Dejaโs blog. Heโs one of the greatest contemporary animators (he worked for Disney in โThe Lion Kingโ, โBeauty and the Beastโ, โHerculeโs and other movies) and heโs also a Disneyโs historian. He wrote a book about the โNine Old Menโ wich is a very interesting reading for animators but also for animationโs fans.
Floyd Normanโs blog, Floyd Norman is an animator and a Disney legend. He is the first black animator that Disney hired, back in the days. There is a great documentary (Floyd Norman. An Animated Life) about his life and career which was on Netflix some time ago, and is now available on other streaming platforms.
Disney History -ย Interesting discoveries about Disney history, vintage disneyana, ect. Upadated by Didier Ghez, author the โWaltโs peopleโ book series.
Ink and Paint Club - The blog of Disneyโs Art Director Mike Peraza.
On Instagram
Glean Keaneย -ย Another giant of animation and a Disney legend. He was a character animator for Disney in movies like โThe Little Mermaidโ, โBeauty and the Beastโ, โAladdinโ, โPocahontasโ.
John Pomeroy - Heโs an animator and an illustrator (he started at Disney and later left the studio to form the Bluth Studios with Don Bluth, Gary Goldman and others).
Sandro Cleuzoย -ย Animator, worked with Disney and Dreamworks and Don Bluthโs Studios. He used to have a blog which is not updated anymore but itโs still interesting as an archive of facts about animation.
Claire Keane - Concept artist and illustrator. She has worked on โTangledโ which is a 3d movie but, as a visual development artist, her (amazing) work is totally 2d.
Aaron Blaise -ย He is an animation film director and wildlife artist. For 21 years heย worked with Disney as an animator or supervising animator on โThe Rescuers Down Underโ, โBeauty and the Beastโ, โAladdinโ, โThe Lion Kingโ, โPocahontasโ, โMulanโ and more.
Yoichi Nishikawa - Ghibli Background artistย
Tom Bancroftย -ย Animatorย for Disneyย (โAladdinโ, โMulanโ). He and his brotherย Tony Bancroftย (โThe Lion Kingโ, โThe Emperorโs New Grooveโ) have a podcast about animation.
Ken Duncan - Animator โ(Herculesโ, โTarzaโn, โTreasure Planeโt) and founder of Duncan Studio
Clio Chang - Story artist at Walt Disney Animation.ย
Websites
Traditional Animationย -ย Everything about traditional animation,ย by Lavalle Lee.
Cartoon Brewย -ย About 2d and 3d animation.
Catsukaย - Website about traditional and 3d animation. The greatest thing about this website is its focus on Japanese and European animation. Itโs also on Tumblr, Instagram, Facebook, etc.
Nausicaa.net - The best resource for everything Studio Ghibli. Itโs one of the oldest website about Ghibli (it was founded in the 90s).
Halcyon Realms - website about animation (mostly Japanese), photography and art. The great thing is the webmaster reviews a lot of books about Japanese animation/concept art.
Zippy Frames - website about European animation
D23 - Official site of Disneyโs fan club
Walt Disney Family Museumย - Lots of informations about Disney history and the museumโs exhibitions.
On Tumblr
Ghibli Collectorย - My favourite Ghibliโs blog. Itโs also on Instagram.
The Walt Crew - One of my favourite blogs about Disney. Lots of behind-the-scenes stuff, concept art, animatorsโ interviews. etc.
Animation Proclamations -ย From Winsor McCay to Hanna-Barbera and occasionally beyond.
Animation, Appreciation, Educationย - About animation history. Itโs not updated anymore.
The Disney Eliteย
Mickey and Company
Wannabeananimatorย -ย Art, tips, and news for everyone who loves animation
Disney Concepts and Stuff - Dedicated to sharing the artistic process behind Disney & Pixar films. It isnโt updated anymore but itโs a beautiful archive of concept art.
On Youtube
The Art of Aaron Blaise - Lots of tutorials and demonstrations, provided by Aaron Blaise. During this period of emergency he is providing free animation lessons!
Alan Becker Tutorials - great channel with lots of tutorials about 2d animation. He did an entire seriesย of tutorials about the โ12 principles of animationโ as described by Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas in their bookย โThe Illusion of Lifeโ.
Sean Dudleyโs Channel - This channel has a lot of documentaries about Disney movies (making-of, behind the scenes stuff).
Today in Disney History - Insights on Disney history
Traditional Animation
Don Bluthโs Channel
Studio Ponocโs Official Channel
Naohisa Inoue - Channel of Japanese artist Naohisa Inoue, the background artist and painter who created the beautiful fantasy landscapes of โWhisper of the Heartโ.
Joe Hisaishiโs Official Channel - Ok, this is not precisely about animation but itโs the official channel of composer Joe Hisaishi, who composed the soundtracks for almost every Ghibli movie :)
Documentariesย
Note:ย There are two important upcoming documentaries about the art of traditional animation. One is Hand Drawn Documentary, and the other is Pencil Test Movie.
On Studio Ghibli
The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness (2014) - Documentary about Studio Ghibli, (it is mostly focused on Miyazaki and producer Toshio Suzuki). Hereโs the trailer.
Never-Ending Man (2016) - Documentary about Miyazaki and the making-of the short film โBoro the Caterpillarโ.ย Trailer.
10 years with Hayao Miyazakiย (2019) - Itโs the most recent documentary about Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. It is a 4 episodes doc that you can stream for free on the NHK website.
The Making-of Isao Takahataโs Onlyย Yesterday
About Walt Disney and Disneyโs Artists
(Note: a lot of the artists in this list started at Disney but they later left the company and worked on other projets).
Walt Disney - An American Experienceย (2015) -ย PBS Documentary about Walt Disney.
Walt Disney - The Man Behind the Mythย (2001)
Floyd Norman, An Animated Life (2016) - Doc about animator Floyd Norman. Itโs one of my favourite documentaries - recommended!!
Growing Up with Nine Old Menย (2013)ย - Doc about theย โnine old menโ, the group of animators and artists behind the Disney movies of the Golden Age era.
Frank and Ollie (1995) - doc about legendary animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston. [Available on Disney +].
Animating Art (1987)- Documentary about animator Art Babbitย
The Art of Mary Blair - Short doc about the amazing visual artist Mary Blair
The Hand Behind the Mouseย (1999) - Documentary about Ub Iwerks, the creator of Mickey Mouse.
Tyrus - PBS doc about artist Tyrus Wong.
Waking Up Sleeping Beauty (2009) -ย The film documents the history of Walt Disney Feature Animation from 1984 to 1994, covering the rise of a period referred to as the Disney Renaissance.[Available on Disney +].
Walt and El Grupoย (2009)- documentary about the tour Walt Disney and some Disneyโs artists did in South America in 1941. The creative results of the tour were โSaludos Amigosโ and โThe Three Caballerosโ. Itโs been on my wishlist since forever but itโs not easy to find (itโs on US Amazon but itโs not available in Europe).
Richard Williams: The Thief Who Never Gave Upย (1980)
Others
The Modest Heroes of Studio Ponoc (2019) - Making-of Studio Ponocโs Modest Heroes.
Books
The Animatorโs Survival Kit (2001) - A classic book by Richard Williams. I think every aspiring animator has this book.
The Illusion of Life (1995) . Another classic written by two legends - Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston.
The Nine Old Men: Lessons, Techniques and Inspiration from Disneyโs Great Animators - Another book every aspiring animator must have. Written by Andreas Deja.
Waltโs People book seriesย + They Drew as they Pleased book series - Two book series by Disney historian Didier Ghez. I havenโt read them, but theyโre on my wishlist :)
The Art and Flair of Mary Blairย (2014) - book about the art of Mary Blair, written by animation historian John Canemaker
