Book Review: The Alchemy of Animation
Producer Don Hahn's Book About Disney Animated Films
Oct 3, 2008
There have been many books dedicated to the art of Walt Disney's animated films. Movies like Cinderella, Bambi, Pinocchio and Fantasia have been the bedrock on which the Disney empire has been built, and many of their films have rightly been called classics. So it's not surprising that, over the years, the Mouse House has commissioned countless tomes archiving the art that went into those flicks.
So what makes Don Hahn's book The Alchemy of Animation different from all the others? In addition to cramming colour photos from countless cel animated, CGI and stop-motion films (yes, Tim Burton gets his due in here, too) in its pages, veteran producer Hahn (Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King) walks the reader through the process of making an animated film, from initial idea to final reel.
Aiming for an older audience than his previous book, 1996's Disney's Animation Magic, Hahn gives an insider's look at how an animated film is put together, showing storyboards, colour studies and cartoons from Disney films to illustrate his points.
The Alchemy of Animation: Inside Disney Animated Films
Act One walks the reader through the process of storyboarding an animated film. Act Two talks about the differences between computer-generated production (his term), 2-D hand-drawn production (also called cel animation) and stop-motion. Act Three discusses how an animated film is promoted, with sections on how to break into animation, a glossary of industry terms, and suggestions for additional reading.
Hahn leavens what could've been a rather dry guide with countless cartoon images, and more than a little humour. For instance, here are his steps to "plussing" an animated film:
- Screen it
- Discuss it
- Get that sinking feeling that you don't know what you're doing
- Weep openly
- Tear it apart
- Correct it
- Re-(story)board it
- Rebuild it
- Screen it again
- Repeat as necessary
The inclusion of sumptuous images from countless Disney and Pixar animated films is pretty much worth the cost of admission right there. Animation freaks will drool over sketches and colour studies from classic movies like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to 1993's The Nightmare Before Christmas and last year's Ratatouille.
In addition to that, Hahn also scored images from upcoming films like Bolt (due November 21st), The Princess and the Frog (coming December 25, 2009) and Rapunzel (due sometime in 2010). On top of that, Hahn even dropped in an initial cartoon from a flick he's developing with Tim Burton, a feature-length, stop-motion adaptation of Burton's 1984 short Frankenweenie.
Yes, every image in this book is from a Disney flick, but name another studio that's had as long and illustrious a history with animation. Not only that, Hahn's producer status allowed him to get a hold of some rough sketches and character studies that show how these movies could have gone in very different ways.
The Final Analysis
The Alchemy of Animation succeeds on two levels. First, it can serve as a coffee table book, with its glossy colour illustrations from classic and contemporary Disney and Pixar movies. It's also a concise introduction into the process of making animated films.
Whether you're a teenager interested in pursuing animation as a career, or someone who wants an attractive, reasonably-sized book showcasing pretty pictures, Don Hahn's The Alchemy of Animation is capable of satisfying both desires. 8/10.
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