Creativity versus Realism
Today, I want to share with you a personal friend of mine. I have had the chance to spend a few days with the legendary cartoon animator Gene Deitch and his equally great wife Zdenka last year in Prague.
This man, well in his 80ies, continues to work every day from his apartment or studio in Prague. He still climbs the hills that are in the city. We strolled down the beautiful streets of Prague for hours and he told me about his adventures during his time in Prague when the city was still behind the iron curtain, under the control of the communist regime. After several hours I asked him if he was tired and wanted to go back. His response, characteristic to Gene, was “No, but if you want to go back and rest we can go home.”. Shocked by this man’s stamina, we continued to explore the city, but I digress.
One subject that Gene is very passionate about is how the “arms race” of realism in animation has stifled creativity, and I agree. The video games industry and later Pixar are the primary culprits that have caused animation to move away from hand drawn art over the years. This is no old-fashioned mumbo-jumbo from a man stuck in the digital divide. Make no mistake, Gene may be well in his 80ies, but he owns an iMac, Powerbook, Ipad, iPhone and a ridiculous HD TV that puts mine to shame. He is synced up with Dropbox and Skypes to every corner of the world. This man certainly has no fear for technology!
If you think cartoons or animated movies were better back in the days, watch this video to understand why.
21/21 Guns
