Motion Sculptures

Street Fighter Motion Sculptures from dantheadman on Vimeo.

I found this awesome video on Vimeo. An awesome motion sculptures of Street Fighter characters such as Chun Li and Ryu. Kinda of nolstagic as it reminds me of my younger self, playing video games in a room with my cousins on a saturday afternoon. Very impressed by the visuals, especially towards the end!


The video was inspired by another animation entitled "Forms", which was really well done.


Forms (excerpt) from Quayola on Vimeo.

Sometimes bad is good

Check out this amazing video Poonikins The Magic Warrior Princess. I seriously find this video hilarious and entertaining. All the bad things that will happen in maya - timing issues, vertex overlap. However, some of the lighting, shaders and effects were pretty good though, not to mention the humor. Have a good laugh.

Dumb Ways to Die

Another viral video. If you have yet to check out this one,you have to! Really cute animation. Tips on dumb ways to die.

Jellybean Art

Jellybean art.


22 months
1,357 hours
30 people
2 ladders
1 still camera
288,000 jelly beans

Very impressive. As we all know, animation requires a ton of patience. In the same position, doing the same thing, just perfecting every subtle detail. Kudos to the animators! With Kina Grannis's vocal and jelly animation, it is just killer.

 Be sure to watch the making of.


 

YAY! Adventure Time!

I love Jake the Dog and bacon pancakes. Here is 10hour worth of bacon pancakes.

It is pretty cool and funny but gets annoying after the 2 minutes mark so I set this tune as my alarm. Love-hate kind of song.

Dubstep Addiction

Recently I'm really into dubstep and I don't know why. I used to hate it with all the beeps, bass and squeaky noise. My friend said it sounds like transformer having sex. Haha! Slowly grow to dig dubstep. It's strange how the mind works. Here is one animation to go with 16 bit - Dinosaurs. Freaky cute and fun!





This cover of Skrillex by Luke Holland is pretty sick!

Sayonara

Sayonara from Eric Bates on Vimeo.


Check out this amazing animation. I like the style very much.

Madagascar 3

Have you guys watched Madagascar 3? I think Dreamworks have done it again. I love the way how they create a unique personality out of each character and it is how different the animals are that makes the animation so fun to watch. I was laughing from the start to the end of the film.

The timing of the animals is fantastic and it mimicked the reality really well. The voice actors really bring out the characteristic of each animal and their accents played a great deal in the movie. I love the play with perspective during the circus performance and the sense of humor.

One big attractive bait about animation is the use of exaggerations that is so ridiculous yet believable at the same time.




One of the most memorable scene is when the catchy and contagious remix of the tune " I Like To Move It" entitled Afro Circus plays.

Madagascar is definitely in the Top 10 to wach animated film in 2012.

Why I like Adventure time

I'd been watching Adventure Time for a while now and this show is really epic! So here are my reasons why I like Adventure Time/ why I think the show is popular.

1) The character designs.

Each character is so different from the other. Each got their own style. A human, a talking dog, a lumpy cloud, princesses, flying unicorn, kings, talking game console. The crazy plot, wild characters and lame dialogues makes it really appealing. I especially love the colors and the rubbery arms.

2) The music.

Adventure time has got some really catchy tunes. I love the theme song. It is a basic three chord song but nonetheless a catchy tune on the ukulele. If you go on youtube, you can see thousands of covers of this tune.









One of my favourite songs on Adventure time - Daddy why did you eat my fries


3) Lumpy space princess

I really like this character a lot. LSP is voiced by Pendleton Ward (creator of Adventure Time). Lumpy space is a manly bimbo. Her lines just makes me laugh so hard and I look forward to her appearances from the show. "Oh my globe", "What the lump" The lumpy space language appeals to me.






4) The story behind each character.

I love it when the story of the past of each character is revealed. Such as the Lumpy space Princess and her world, Marceline's broken relationship with his Dad and the Ice King's secret. We are presented with the reasons behind the traits of each individual characters.







I guess there are more reasons why I like it but I think I'm gonna stop here. This show is definitely not for kids but as an young adult I love it!

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (2011)

 How many of you like reading books? Music and books made me survived my darkest times. I believe in the power of knowledge. Here is one powerful animation about the beauty of books. Very well animated. Love the character designs and style. A very moving story.

You got to check this one out!

DoYaThing - Collaboration

"DoYaThing" Official Video - Gorillaz featuring Andre 3000 and James Murphy. I'm still in love with Gorillaz!

This music video produced in line with the new Chuck Taylor All Star Gorillaz Collection near end of February 2012.  Probably one of the coolest video of the kicks out there in my opinion. Awesome motion capture and 3d animation going on with live background. Check out the behind the scenes footage too.

Len Lye

Biography

• Len Lye, born Leonard Charles Huia Lye (5 July 1901 - 15 May 1980)

• A Christchurch, New Zealand-born artist

• Known primarily for his experimental films and kinetic sculpture.

• His films are held in archives such as the New Zealand Film Archive, British Film Institute, Museum of Modern Art in New York City, and the Pacific Film Archive at University of California, Berkeley.

• As a student, Lye became convinced that motion could be part of the language of art, leading him to early (and now lost) experiments with kinetic sculpture, as well as a desire to make film.

• Lye was also one of the first Pākehā artists to appreciate the art of Māori, Australian Aboriginal, Pacific Island and African cultures, and this had great influence on his work.

• In the early 1920s Lye travelled widely in the South Pacific. He spent extended periods in Australia and Samoa, where he was expelled by the New Zealand colonial administration for living within an indigenous community.

Techniques

• Experimented with new colour processes such as Dufaycolor and Gasparcolor
• “Direct animation”, a method of painting, scratching and stencilling directly onto motion picture celluloid.
• Different materials and paints in order to achieve a surreal and experimental look that gave it a real surface so it didn’t appear merely as painted on.

A colour box
Lye began to make films in association with the British General Post Office, for the GPO Film Unit. His 1935 film A Colour Box, an advertisement for "cheaper parcel post", was the first direct film screened to a general audience. It was made by painting vibrant abstract patterns on the film itself, synchronizing them to a popular dance tune by Don Baretto and His Cuban Orchestra.



Comments

• Len Lye presented a mass of complex and jumbled movements through painting directly onto celluloid. This had the added effect of creating a greater sense of off-screen space, as if the patterns are streaming in and out of the frame. Furthermore, the dynamic shapes seem to dance to the popular Cuban music making up the soundtrack.
• Color films were still uncommon in the 1930s & there was considerable novelty to seeing streaks & shapes & shadows in all colors bouncing around on the screen.

Rainbow dance



• An advertising film for the Post Office Savings Bank, combines original live action footage of a silhouetted dancer (Rupert Doone) with graphic backgrounds and cartoon drawings.
• Increasingly began to incorporate more 'concrete' symbols within his films, yet did so in a rather idiosyncratic manner, continuing to formally experiment with music, colour and movement.
• Len Lye used a recurring silhouetted figure in the film, enacted by dancer Rupert Doone, and transformed the surrounding mise-en-scène into a colourful, shifting landscape, aided by the use of stencil patterns and deregistration effects.
• Rainbow Dance (1936) has an increased appeal by right of incorporating a human subject. It clocks in at just under four minutes, featuring the dancing & sportsmanship of Rupert Doone turned into surreal animation, partly an early example of rotoscoping.



Len Lye’s work
• Lye’s sense of movement was rooted in the physical, “the kinetic of the body’s rhythms”, not purely a matter of visual patterns.
• Lye’s cinematic “figures of motion” sublimated their commercial purpose by emphasising geometric and all-over abstraction and direct authorial inscription.
• His work appeals to more than just our visual sense, it appeals to our physicality, our sense of our selves and our own bodies. The kinetic sculpture in particular creates a visceral reaction in the viewer - you feel the sound of it echoing through your chest as it ‘performs’ its choreographed ballet of movement and sound. Fountain III (1976) is an enormous, slowly revolving over-arching bouquet of steel rods lit with theatre lights, and it made me feel simultaneously awed, amazed and slightly seasick as I walked around it.



Significance
• Len Lye is recognised as one of New Zealand's leading contemporary artists, film-makers, sculptor and kinetic designers.
• A major initiative, led by the New Plymouth District Council, the Govett-Brewster Gallery and the Len Lye Foundation to create a landmark centre celebrating the life and works of Len Lye required significant funding and support from both within Government, and abroad.
• Contribution in developed hand-crafted abstract cinema.
• Len Lye was a major influence on Walt Disney for Fantasia.

Bibliography

• Auckland City Art Gallery (1980) Len Lye: A personal mythology 
• Bouhours, Jean Michel and Horrocks, Roger (ed) (2000) Len Lye, Paris, Edition Centre Pompidou.
• Curnow, Wystan and Horrocks, Roger (1984) Figures of Motion: Len Lye, Selected Writings'
• Horrocks, Roger (2002) Len Lye: A Biography, A
• Horrocks, Roger (ed) (2002) Happy Moments: Text and Images By Len Lye
• Kashmere, Brett (2007) "Len Lye" in Senses of Cinema
• Len Lye in Te Ara online encyclopedia
• Horrocks, Roger (2009) Art that Moves: The Work of Len Lye, 
• Horrocks, Roger (ed) (2009) Body English: Text and Images By Len Lye

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UPA

UPA (United Productions of America) 
HISTORY

Introduction

• UPA was founded in the wake of the Disney animators' strike of 1941

• Among them was John Hubley, a layout artist who was unhappy with the ultra-realistic style of animation that Disney had been advocating.

• The points at issue concerned working conditions

• There were resistance to the studio's basic approach to animation

• Along with a number of his colleagues, Hubley believed that animation did not have to be a painstakingly realistic imitation of real life; they felt that the medium of animation had been constrained by efforts to depict cinematic reality.

• UPA's big break came in 1949, when Bosustow made a deal with Columbia Pictures to provide the cartoons for them to release.

• UPA had fallen heir to Columbia's cartoon properties, such as Tito & His Burrito and Flippity & Flop, but preferred to develop properties of its own.

• UPA’s original stories like Rooty Toot Toot stand out from the thick crowd of theatrical cartoon shorts — which included an ever-increasing amount of UPA's own influence.

• UPA Pictures' legacy in the history of animation has largely been overshadowed by the commercial success of the vast cartoon libraries of Warner Brothers and Disney.


Characteristics of UPA animation


• The UPA style was characterized by flattened perspective, abstract backgrounds, strong primary colors, and "limited" animation. Instead of using perspective to create the illusion of depth in a drawing, UPA's cartoon objects looked flat, like the blobs of color that they were.

• UPA's innovations include limited animation, by which fewer and simpler drawings were used to make animation effects. Because it allowed great saving in production cost But as originally conceived, it was less a cost-cutting shortcut than a choice of styles.

• Instead of filling in backgrounds with lifelike detail as in, say, a forest scene in Bambi, UPA presented backgrounds that were broad fields of color, with small squiggles to suggest clouds and trees.
• Instead of varying the shades and hues of colors to imply the colors of the natural world, UPA's cartoons contained bold, bright, saturated colors.



Reduced movements in UPA animation


• First, the amount of movement within the frame was substantially reduced. Rather than have a cartoon woman move her entire head in a shot, a UPA cartoon might have her just blink her eyes.

• Second, figure movements are often repeated. A character waving good-bye, for instance, might contain only two distinct movements which are then repeated without change. Full animation, in contrast, includes many unique movements.

• Third, UPA uses fewer individual frames to represent a movement. If, for example, Yosemite Sam were to hop off his mule in a movement that takes one second, full animation might use 24 discrete frames to represent that movement. Limited animation, in contrast, might cut that number in half. The result is a slightly jerkier movement.

Techniques used to produce cartoons on a reduced budget


• Cels and sequences of cels were used repeatedly — animators only had to draw a character walking once.

• characters are split up into different levels: only portions of a character, such as the mouth or an arm, would be animated on top of a static cel.

• clever choice of camera angles and editing.

• use of camera techniques such as panning to suggest movement. A famous implementation of this is the "crash" technique, which involves the camera shaking rapidly back and forth to simulate a shock wave.
• "smear animation:" movement is rapid and portrayed in only three frames: the beginning state, the ending state, and a "blur" frame similar to that of a picture taken with a camera that had a low shutter speed.

• cel reversal (simply using a mirror image of the cell to represent the opposite angle). Many cartoon characters are drawn symmetrically to expedite this technique. • the visual elements were made subsidiary to audio elements, so that verbal humor and voice talent became more important factors for success ("talking heads").

• silhouette helped avoid having to keep track of shading on an animated character or object.

• sliding a cel across a background to suggest movement.

• Stock footage: sequences that are reused frequently. This is the case of the character transformations in the Magical girls subgenre of Japanese anime series. Filmation used this strategy for much of its productions.
• extensive recaps of previous episodes or segments, to cut down on the amount of new material necessary (used often in serials).

• The most egregious case of limited animation, known as Syncro-Vox, involved pasting a film of the moving lips of a real-life person over a still frame of an "animated" character to give the appearance that the character is doing the talking. Cambria Studios held a patent on the technology, and as such, it was primarily used on their productions, such as Clutch Cargo.

• Chuckimation, another notoriously low-budget process, simply moves various "animated" figures by hand or by throwing them across a space. Most commonly used with stop-motion animation, it usually does not allow for characters' mouths to move.

ROOTY TOOT TOOT


Summary
The short retells the classic popular song "Frankie and Johnny". Frankie is on trial for the murder of her piano-playing lover, Johnny. The prosecuting attorney accuses her of shooting Johnny "rooty toot toot/right in the snoot." Nellie Bly the singer ("She's no singer!" shouts Frankie) claims she witnessed the shooting. The case is looking bad for Frankie until her lawyer, Honest John the Crook, spins a wild story about involving innocent Frankie, a jealous Johnny, and an incredible ricochet. The jury convenes and finds Frankie "not guilty." Frankie is thrilled, until she sees Honest John dancing with Nellie Bly. She quickly picks up Exhibit A (the gun) and shoots Honest John "rooty toot toot/right in the snoot" in front of the entire court room.

GERALD MCBOINGBOING


Summary
The story describes one Gerald McCloy, who at the age of 2 years old begins "talking" in the form of sound effects, his first word being the titular "boing boing." His panicked father calls the doctor, who informs him that there's nothing he can do about it. As the boy grows up, he picks up more sounds and is able to make communicative gestures, but is still incapable of uttering a single word of the English language. Despite this, he is admitted to a general public school, where he is chided by his peers and given the derogatory name "Gerald McBoing-Boing." After startling, and angering, his father, he decides to run away and hop a train to an unknown location. However, just before he catches the train, a talent scout from the NBC Radio Network (as identified by the NBC chimes) discovers him. He is then hired as NBC'sfoley artist, performing shows for a division of the company labeled "XYZ" on the microphones, and becomes very famous, with the last scene showing him riding with his parents in a very expensive automobile among throngs of fans.


THE TELL TALE HEART
 
Summary


The plot focuses on a murderer whose increasing guilt leads him to believe he can hear his victim's heart still beating beneath the floorboards where he buried him. Seen through the eyes of the nameless narrator, the surrealistic images in the film help convey his descent into madness.
A surrealistic take on Poe’s story, the entire cartoon is presented from the point of view of the mad narrator (voiced by James Mason). You see everything as he does and the world of this cartoon is asymmetrical, dark, bizarre and utterly nightmarish. “The Tell-Tale Heart” utilizes UPA’s “limited animation” technique, but implements the lack of movement and dimensions in a far more creative and atmospheric manner than their typical children’s material. There’s a lot of camera work in this cartoon, as we pan across paintings of the vast and imposing old mansion (as the audience, we’ve been implanted inside the madman’s body, after all) and they use several lighting techniques to mask portions of the background paintings, revealing them slowly or suddenly depending on the narrative flow, to create a terrifying illusion of movement and horror even when, well, nothing is actually being animated.


Comments


• There are lots of unnerving overlays of things such as veins, webbing out across the frame, or the slow lengthening of the old man’s shadow creeping across the dusty floor, or the pulsing beat of some wet organ flashing momentarily across the screen.
• For an animated film with only a limited amount of frame-to-frame animation in it, Director Ted Parmelee ingeniously gets the most out of what he can and the result is something unique and darkly beautiful.
• “The Tell-Tale Heart” was considered so abnormal and disturbing in its day that it was the first cartoon to ever be rated X in Great Britain.


Significance

• UPA had a significant impact on animation style, content, and technique, and its innovations were recognized and adopted by the other major animation studios and independent filmmakers all over the world.

• UPA pioneered the technique of limited animation, and though this style of animation came to be widely abused during the 1960s and 1970s as a cost-cutting measure, it was originally intended as a stylistic alternative to the growing trend (particularly at Disney) of recreating cinematic realism in animated films.

• It was an artistic attempt to break away from the strict realism in animation that had been developed and perfected by Walt Disney. While Disney's animation methods produced lush and awe-inspiring images, it was felt that realism in the medium of animation was a limiting factor. Cartoons did not have to obey the rules of the real world (as the short films of Tex Avery and their cartoon physics proved), and so UPA experimented with a non-realistic style that depicted caricatures rather than lifelike representations.

• UPA studio made the first serious effort to abandon the keyframe heavy approach perfected by Disney.

• Their first effort at limited animation, Gerald McBoing-Boing, won an Oscar, and it provided the impetus for this animation method to be accepted at the major Hollywood cartoon studios, including Warner Brothers and MGM. However, the real attraction of limited animation was the reduction in costs: because limited animation does not require as many drawings as fully keyframed animations, it is much less expensive to produce.

• The 1950s saw all of the major cartoon studios change their style to limited animation, to the point where painstaking detail in animation occurred only rarely.

Bibliography


Books

• Brown Arthur:  Everything I Need to Know, I Learned from Cartoons! 
• Animation art: from pencil to pixel, the history of cartoon, animé & CGI
• Barrier, Michael (1999): Hollywood Cartoons. Oxford University Press. 
• Maltin, Leonard (1987): Of Mice and Magic: A History of American Animated Cartoons. Penguin Books. 
•  Solomon, Charles (1994): The History of Animation: Enchanted Drawings. Outlet Books Company.

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Walt Disney

Biography

• Walter Elias "Walt" Disney

• Born in December 5th 1901

• Deceased due to lung cancer in Burbank California: December 15, 1966

• His brother Roy Disney inaugurated Disney world on October 1, 1971

• an American producer, film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon and philanthropist

• famous for being one of the most influential entertainment in the industry during the 20th century

• The Walt Disney Company today has annual revenues of approx. US$35 billion.

• Innovator in animation and theme parks design

• Awarded 4 honorary Academy awards and has won 22 competitive Academy awards out of 59 nominations, including a record 4 in a year

• Won 7 Emmy awards.


Timeline

• Winding of first studio (Laugh-O-Gram Studio)
• Known as Newman Laugh-O-grams, Disney's cartoon became widely popular in the Kansas city area
• Through success, Disney was able to hire additional animators such as Hugh Harman, Rudolf Ising and close friend Ub Iwerks
• Unfortunately, high employee salaries unable to sustained by studio profits.
• Studio loaded with debt and wound up bankrupt
• Disney planned to establish studio in the movie industries in Hollywood, California.


Hollywood
• Disney and brother set up cartoon studio in Hollywood
• Disney sent out unfinished print of Alice Comedies (which he started making while in Kansas city but never got to distribute) to New York distributor Margaret Winkler.
• Winkler was keen on a distribution deal with Disney for more live-action/animated shorts based on Alice in the Wonderland.

Works:
Alice Comedies

• Virginia Davis (live action star of Alice’s Wonderland) and her family were relocated at Disney’s request from Kansas to Hollywood
• Disney Brother’s studio was located on Hyperion avenue in Silver Lake district till 1939.
• Lillian Bounds was hired in 1925 to ink and paint celluloid
• Walt Disney married Bounds in the same year.
• New series feature both Dawn O’Day and Margie gay as Alice
• 
  

Oswald the lucky rabbit


What happened?

• Oswald was drawn and created by Iwerks (Disney’s friend)
• New series Oswald the Lucky rabbit was almost an instant success, Oswald a popular figure
• Disney studio expanded and Walt re-hired Harman, Ising, Maxwell and Freleng from Kansas City
• Margaret Winkler was married to Charles Mintz in 1927 and assumed control of her business
• Mintz ordered all new animated series to be put into production for distribution through Universal Pictures.
• In February 1928 Disney went to New York for negotiation of a higher fee per short from Mintz and was shocked when Mintz announced reduction in fee per short and pay-cut for all his animators.
• Mintz announced the start of his own studio if Disney went against the contract.
• Disney declined Mintz offer and lost his all his staff.
• Universal Pictures owned the Oswald trademark not Disney but could not make films without Disney.
• It took Disney’s company 78 years to reacquire the rights to Oswald the lucky rabbit from NBC Universal in 2006 through Al Michaels.

Mickey Mouse

• After losing rights to Oswald the lucky rabbit, Disney felt a need to develop a new character to replace him.
• A character based on a mouse which he adopted as a pet while working in Kansas City
• Ub Iwerks reworked the sketches made by Disney so the character would be easier to animate.
• Mickey’s voice and personality was provided by Disney until 1947
• “Ub designed the character but Walt gave him soul”
• The mouse was originally named “Mortimer” but later christened to “Mickey Mouse”
• The first silent animated short with Mickey is titled Plane Crazy followed by a short with sound titled “Steamboat Willie”

Silly Symphonies

• Silly symphonies was released in 1929
• The very first of the series was titled “Skeleton Dance”, entire drawn and animated by Iwerks
• Both Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies series were successful
• In 1930, Disney signed a distribution with Columbia Pictures
• Original basis of cartoon were music novelty
• Carl Stalling wrote the score for the first Silly Symphony cartoons.
• By 1932, Mickey Mouse had become quite popular but Silly Symphonies was not as successful.
• The same year, Disney faced increasing competition as Max Fleischer’s cartoon character “Betty Boop” was popular among theatre audiences.
• Walt convinced Herbert Kalmus to redo “Flowers and Trees” which was originally done in Black and White with three strips Technicolor.
• “Flowers and trees won the first Academy award for best short subject in 1932
• After Silly Symphonies, all future Silly Symphonies series were done in colour as well.
• Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
• After creating 2 cartoon series, Disney began plans for full length feature in 1934.
• When the film industry knew of Disney plans to produce a full length animated version of Snow White, they dubbed the project as “Disney’s folly” and were certain that the project will destroy Disney Studio.
• Both Lillian and Roy tried to talk Walt Disney out of the project but he continued his plans.
• Disney employed Don Graham to start training operation for studio staff and used Silly Symphonies as a platform for experiments in realistic human animation, distinctive character animation, special effects and the use of specialised processes and apparatus as the multiplane camera.
• Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was in full production from 1934 to mid-1937 when the studio ran out of money.
• Disney showed a rough cut of the motion picture to loan officers at the Bank of America who gave the studio money to finish the picture.
• The finished film was premiere at the Carthay Circle Theatre on December 21, 1937.
• The film became the most successful motion picture of 1938 and earned over $8million in its original theatrical release.
• The Golden Age of Animation
• Success of Snow White earned one full size and seven miniature Oscar statutes
• Disney builds a new campus for Walt Disney Studios in Burbank which opened for business on December 24, 1939.
• Snow white was the peak of Disney’s success and ushered a period known as the Golden Age of Animation for Disney.
• The feature animation staff completed Pinocchio, continued Fantasia and Bambi.
• They were at early production of Alice in the wonderland and Peter Pan.

1941-1945 World War I

• Shortly after the release of Dumbo in October 1947, United States entered World War I.
• US army contracted most of Disney’s studio facilities and had staff create trainings and instructional films for military.
• Morale boosting shorts such as “Der Fuehrer’s Face” and feature film “Victory Through Air Power” were created in 1943.
• However the military films did not generate income and feature film Bambi underperformed when it was released in April 1942.

1945-1955 Post-war period

• By late 1940s, the studio recovered enugh to recontinue production on full length feature Alice in the wonderland and Peter Pan.
• Disney began work on Cinderella which became Disney’s most successful film since Snow White and the seven dwarfs.
• Despite rebounding success through feature films, Disney’s animation shorts were no longer as popular as theu used to be.
• People begin to draw attention to Warner Bros and their animation Bugs Bunny.
• By 1942 Warner Bros cartoons became the country’s most popular animation studio.

Bibliography

Books

• Barrier, Michael (1999). Hollywood Cartoons: American Animation in Its Golden Age. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 
• Broggie, Michael (1997, 1998, 2005). Walt Disney's Railroad Story. Virginia Beach, Virginia. Donning Publishers. 
• Eliot, Marc (1993). Walt Disney: Hollywood's Dark Prince. Carol. 
• Mosley, Leonard. Disney's World: A Biography (1985, 2002). Chelsea, MI: Scarborough House.
• Gabler, Neal. Walt Disney: The Triumph of American Imagination (2006). New York, NY. Random House. 
• Schickel, Richard, and Dee, Ivan R. (1967, 1985, 1997). The Disney Version: The Life, Times, Art and Commerce of Walt Disney. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, Publisher. 
• Sherman, Robert B. and Sherman, Richard M. (1998) "Walt's Time: From Before to Beyond" 
• 
  
• Thomas, Bob (1991). Disney's Art of Animation: From Mickey Mouse to Beauty and the Beast. New York: Hyperion.
• Watts, Steven, The Magic Kingdom: Walt Disney and the American Way of Life, University of Missouri Press, 2001

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Top 30 animated films of all time

I love animations! I'd been watching it since I was a kid. I still love it now and I'm half an animation student. (the other half is music) Anyway, I'd compiled a list of top 30 must watch animations but they are not ranked. Hope you like it!

1) The Incredibles (2004)



Genres: Science Fiction/Fantasy, Comedy, Action/Adventure, Kids/Family and Animation

Running Time: 1 hr. 55 min.

Studio: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures


Synopsis: Once one of the world's top masked crimefighters, Bob Parr--known to all as "Mr. Incredible"--fought evil and saved lives on a daily basis. But now fifteen years later, Bob and his wife--a famous superhero in her own right--have adopted civilian identities and retreated to the suburbs to live normal lives with their three kids. Now he's a clock-punching insurance claims adjuster fighting boredom and a bulging waistline. Itching to get back into action, Bob gets his chance when a mysterious communication summons him to a remote island for a top-secret assignment.

What I like about the movie: Action packed. Pretty intensive climax with all the fighting scenes. I thought the exaggerations and facial expression of the characters were pretty well done. Bob is a superstrength character and everything just seems so miniature to him. His unenthusiastic pokerface just tells me how sick he is of normal life. I can go on and talk about other characters but it will be too long of a review. It is just pretty well animated. Yeah! Good stuff if your looking for some superpower character movies!

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

2) Ratatouille (2007)



Genres: Action/Adventure, Animation, Kids/Family and Comedy

Running Time: 1 hr. 51 min.

Studio: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Sypnosis: A rat named Remy dreams of becoming a great French chef despite his family's wishes and the obvious problem of being a rat in a decidedly rodent-phobic profession. When fate places Remy in the sewers of Paris, he finds himself ideally situated beneath a restaurant made famous by his culinary hero, Auguste Gusteau. Despite the apparent dangers of being an unlikely - and certainly unwanted - visitor in the kitchen of a fine French restaurant, Remy's passion for cooking soon sets into motion a hilarious and exciting rat race that turns the culinary world of Paris upside down.

What I like about the movie: Food! I love food! The cooking and the whole french thing is just a great cinematic experience. I love the tagline: Everyone can cook. A rat is the last thing you want to see in a kitchen and I just simply love the irony that this film creates. Paris is so beautiful even when it was 3d modelled. Lol. I love the sense of humour and the awkward moments.

Rating: 4/5

3) Toy story series



Toy Story (1995)

Genres: Kids/Family, Comedy, Action/Adventure, Animation and Science Fiction/Fantasy

Running Time: 1 hr. 21 min.

Studio: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Sypnosis: Woody, a traditional pull-string talking cowboy, has long enjoyed a place of honor as the favorite among six-year-old Andy's menagerie of toys. Quick to calm their anxieties about being replaced by newer arrivals, Woody finds his own confidence shaken, and his status as top toy in jeopardy, upon the arrival of Buzz Lightyear, simply the coolest space action figure ever made. Woody plots to get rid of Buzz, but things backfire and he finds himself lost in the outside world with Buzz as his only companion. Joining forces to find their way home, the two rivals set out on an adventure that lands them in the clutches of Sid, a sadistic neighborhood kid who is notorious for dismembering and reassembling "mutant" toys in his bedroom. As "guests" of Sid and his dog, Scud, the two fugitive toys forge a genuine friendship and learn that only through mutual trust and respect do they have any chance of survival.



Toy Story 2 (1999)

Running Time: 1 hr. 25 min.

Sypnosis: The adventures of toys Woody and Buzz Lightyear continue when their owner Andy goes off to summer camp, leaving them to their own devices. Things take a bad turn when an obsessive toy collector kidnaps Woody because he is a highly valuable collector's item. Buzz Lightyear, Mr. Potato Head, Slinky Dog, Rex and Hamm, all leap into action to rescue Woody and get home before Andy returns from camp.



Toy Story 3 (2010)

Running Time: 1 hr. 38 min.

Sypnosis: Woody and Buzz had accepted that their owner Andy would grow up someday, but what happens when that day arrives? In the third installment, Andy is preparing to depart for college, leaving his loyal toys troubled about their uncertain future.

What I like about the movie: I believe that toys is the most treasured item that the kid will ever have. A big part of our childhood revolves around it and really having a film on toys answered our need. It is interesting that everything is shot in the point of view of the toys. All the behaviour of each toy is so interesting. I just love every plot of the series! It is one of the rare series that has high ratings for each film. Very well animated and I love the colours and framing of the shots. Disney has done it again!

Rating: 5/5

4) Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (2009)



Genres: Animation, Adaptation and Kids/Family

Running Time: 1 hr. 21 min.

Studio: Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group

Sypnosis: Inspired by Ron and Judi Barrett's beloved children's book of the same name, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs follows inventor Flint Lockwood (voice of Bill Hader) and a brainy weathergirl (voice of Anna Faris) as they attempt to discover why the rain in their small town has stopped, and food is falling in its place. Meanwhile, lifelong bully Brent (voice of Andy Samberg) relishes in tormenting Flint like he did when they were kids, and Mayor Shelbourne (voice of Bruce Campbell) schemes to use Flint's latest invention -- a device designed to improve everyone's lives -- for his own personal gain

What I like about the movie: Yay! Another animation on food! Gosh this is one yummy movie with food falling from the sky. Well I think all animation with food is really appealing. The 3d cloth is really well done. I think this movie has a great sense of humour. Well all animation does but jokes about food is good. Just watch it.

Rating: 4/5


5) Meet the Robinsons (2007)



Genres: Animation, Adaptation, Kids/Family and Science Fiction/Fantasy

Running Time: 1 hr. 36 min.

Studio: Walt Disney Studios Distribution

Sypnosis: When Lewis meets a mysterious boy from the future named Wilbur Robinson, the two travel forward in time where Lewis discovers the amazing secret of the Robinson family. Lewis is a brilliant twelve-year-old with a surprising number of clever inventions to his credit. His latest and most ambitious project is the Memory Scanner, which he hopes will retrieve early memories of his mother and maybe even reveal why she put him up for adoption. But before he can get his answer, his invention is stolen by the dastardly Bowler Hat Guy and his diabolical hat - and constant companion - Doris. Lewis has all but given up hope in his future when a mysterious boy named Wilbur Robinson whisks our bewildered hero away in a time machine and the two travel forward in time to spend a day with Wilbur's eccentric family. In a world filled with flying cars and floating cities, they hunt down Bowler Hat Guy, save the future and uncover the amazing secret of Lewis' future family.

What I like about the movie: I really like the character Goob. He is so adorable. The facial expression is very well animated. I love time travelling and if you do then you should watch this. One great adventure to the future!

Rating: 4/5

6)Kung fu panda series



Kung Fu Panda (2008)

Genres: Animation, Kids/Family, Action/Adventure and Comedy

Running Time: 1 hr. 31 min.

Studio: DreamWorks Animation


Sypnosis: A clumsy panda bear becomes an unlikely kung fu hero when a treacherous enemy spreads chaos throughout the countryside in this animated martial arts adventure featuring the voices of Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, and Jackie Chan. On the surface, Po (voice of Black) may look like just another portly panda bear, but beneath his fur he bears the mark of the chosen one. By day, Po works faithfully in his family's noodle shop, but by night he dreams of becoming a true master of the martial arts. Now an ancient prophecy has come to pass, and Po realizes that he is the only one who can save his people from certain destruction. With time running short and malevolent snow leopard Tai Lung (Ian McShane ) closing in, Furious Five legends Tigress (Jolie), Crane (David Cross ), Mantis (Seth Rogen), Viper (Lucy Liu), Monkey (Chan), and their wise sensei, Master Shifu (Hoffman), all draw on their vast knowledge of fighting skills in order to transform a lumbering panda bear into a lethal fighting machine. Now, if the noble Po can master the martial arts and somehow transform his greatest weaknesses into his greatest strengths, he will fulfill his destiny as the hero who saved his people during their darkest hour.



Running Time: 1 hr. 31 min.

Sypnosis: Po is now living his dream as The Dragon Warrior, protecting the Valley of Peace alongside his friends and fellow kung fu masters, The Furious Five. But Po's new life of awesomeness is threatened by the emergence of a formidable villain, who plans to use a secret, unstoppable weapon to conquer China and destroy kung fu. He must look to his past and uncover the secrets of his mysterious origins; only then will Po be able to unlock the strength he needs to succeed.

What I like about the movie: This movie is seriously hilarious if you're looking for a good laugh. The fat panda doing kungfu is just funny to look at perhaps it reminded me of my friend. I do have some doubts about this movie at first but after watching it I think it is really worthwhile. It's about chinese martial arts and some good old chinese saying is in it.

Rating: 4.5/5

7) Rango (2011)



Genres: Comedy, Action/Adventure and Animation

Running Time: 1 hr. 47 min.

Studio: Paramount Pictures

Sypnosis: Rango is a sheltered chameleon living as an ordinary family pet facing a major identity crisis. After all, how high can you aim when your whole purpose in life is to blend in? When Rango accidentally winds up in the gritty, gun-slinging town of Dirt -- a lawless outpost populated by the desert's most wily and whimsical creatures -- the less-than-courageous lizard suddenly finds he stands out. Welcomed as the last hope the town has been waiting for, new Sheriff Rango is forced to play his new role to the hilt.... until he starts to become the hero he once only pretended to be.

What I like about the movie: This movie is very different from the rest of the movie I'd watched. In a wild west setting, this movie just brings out a cowboyish vibe. I simply love the lighting! Very well lit and brings out the awe of the deserts. Spectacular film and I must say that I am pretty impressed with the composition and texturing of the characters. This movie has pretty good soundtracks too.

Rating: 4/5

8) Kiki's Delivery Service (1989)



Genres: Kids/Family, Science Fiction/Fantasy and Animation

Running Time: 1 hr. 43 min.

Studio: Studio Ghibli

Sypnosis: Veteran animator Hayao Miyazaki directs this buoyant children's adventure yarn about a young witch striking out on her own. At her mother's behest, 13-year-old Kiki sets out on a year-long apprenticeship with her black cat in tow. With a shaky command of her broom, she ends up in a charming little coastal town that looks like a cross between the French provincial and San Francisco. Unfortunately, the local hotels have a strict "no witches" policy and the police have taken a dim view of her recent aerial mischief-making. She's saved from the street by a kindly baker's wife, who offers her room and board in exchange for her delivering by broom the baker's wares. Soon she befriends a college-aged artist, an old women who fusses over her, and a boy her same age who is nursing a massive crush. All is well until she wakes up one day and realizes that she can't make her broom levitate nor can she talk to her cat. What will Kiki do?

What I like about the movie: Hayao Miyazaki is one of my favourite animators. That's the reason I bought the a box of dvds of Studio Ghibli with all the epic animations. I must say Studio Ghibli make one of the best 2d animation. This one classic film. A young witch on a broom with her cat and away from home. I just love anything magical, socery or anything that brings me to another realm. It is sort of an escape from reality. It is just rare to see full length feature of 2d animation nowadays.

Rating: 4/5

9) My Neightbour Totoro (1988)



Genres: Action/Adventure, Kids/Family and Animation

Running Time: 1 hr. 27 min.

Studio: Studio Ghibli

Sypnosis: The story follows Satsuke and Mei, two young girls who find that their new country home is in a mystical forest inhabited by a menagerie of mystical creatures called Totoros. They befriend O Totoro, the biggest and eldest Totoro, who is also the king of the forest. As their girls' mother lies sick in the hospital, O Totoro brings the sisters on a magical adventure but also helps them to understand the realities of life. Like most films released by Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli, this family-oriented feature has a powerful ecological theme.

What I like about the movie: Another great film. I googled and found out that Tororo is actually a creatur known as Galesaur (correct me if I'm wrong) except that it is gigantic and magical. It colour and composition of nature is really awesome. Kids and animals are really best friends.

Rating: 4/5

10) Finding Nemo(2003)



Genres: Comedy, Kids/Family, Animation and Action/Adventure

Running Time: 1 hr. 40 min.

Studio: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Sypnosis: Life along the Great Barrier Reef is full of dangers when you are a tiny clown fish. And for Marlin, a single parent determined to protect his only son Nemo, there are constant fears and anxieties. When, on his first day of school, Nemo defies his father and swims off alone to investigate a boat, he is suddenly scooped up by a diver as Marlin helplessly watches. Marlin turns desperate as he frantically swims off in search for his son. As he passes a school of fish he bumps into Dory, an agreeable blue tang with severe short-term memory loss, who offers to help. Together this aquatic odd couple set out on an impossible mission, finding themselves in troubled waters and contending with such hazards as sharks, deadly angler fishes and a forest of jellyfish. Meanwhile, in a dentist's office overlooking Sydney Harbor, Nemo has landed in a fish tank that is home to a colorful group of characters who want to initiate him into their gang. When word of Marlin and Dory's ocean adventures gets back to Nemo, he is so thrilled to learn of his father's search for him that he becomes motivated to move forward with a daring escape plan of his own.

What I like about the movie: Another LOL movie. Can I say I really love Dory the fish. Dory fish. This amazing adventure of Marlin looking for his son. I thought the caustics was very well done. There are a few annoying characters (in a positive way) that brings out the film. Another nice animation for kids and family.

Rating 3.5/5

11) Howl's Moving Castle (2004)



Genres:Action/Adventure, Kids/Family, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Animation and Art/Foreign

Running Time:1 hr. 59 min.

Studio: Studio Ghibli

Synopsis: Sophie, a diligent teenage girl working in her family's
hat shop, finds her life thrown into turmoil when she is literally swept off her
feet by a handsome-but-mysterious wizard named Howl. This innocent encounter
engages the vain and conniving Witch of the Waste, who transforms into a
90-year-old woman. Sophie's efforts to break the curse bring her to Howl's
magical moving castle, where she befriends Markl, Howl's apprentice, and the
hot-headed fire demon Calcifer. Her love and support have a major impact on
Howl, who can be maddeningly self-indulgent and singularly noble: He defies
royal orders to participate in a meaningless war and risks his life to bring
peace to the kingdom.

What I like about this movie: Magic! How many times do I have to say I love magic. The idea of a moving house is fascinating! I love the whole steam punk idea and it is pretty darn amazing of an adventure to me. Good plot, cute fire!

Rating: 4.5/5


12) Fantastic Mr. Fox(2006)



Genres: Animation, Comedy, Adaptation and Action/Adventure

Running Time:1 hr. 28 min.

Studio: 20th Century Fox Animation

Synopsis: Mr and Mrs Fox live an idyllic home life with their son
Ash and visiting young nephew Kristopherson. But after 12 years, the bucolic
existence proves too much for Mr Fox's wild animal instincts. Soon he slips back
into his old ways as a sneaky chicken thief and in doing so, endangers not only
his beloved family, but the whole animal community. Trapped underground and with not enough food to go around, the animals band together to fight against the
evil Farmers -- Boggis, Bunce and Bean -- who are determined to capture the
audacious, fantastic Mr Fox at any cost.

What I like about the movie: Stop motion. I mean it is quite rare to see stop motion films and I think they pulled it off really well. Good modelling and nice colours. Good adaptation from Roald Dahl's book. I love Roald Dahl and I read all his books when I was a kid.

Rating: 4/5


13) Spirited Away (2001)




Genres:Kids/Family, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Animation and Action/Adventure

Running Time: 2 hrs. 5 min.

Studio: Studio Ghibli

Synopsis: Tale of the fanciful adventures of a ten-year-old girl
named Chihiro, who discovers a secret world when she and her family get lost and
venture through a hillside tunnel. When her parents undergo a mysterious
transformation, Chihiro must fend for herself as she encounters strange spirits,
assorted creatures and a grumpy sorceress who seeks to prevent her from
returning to the human world.

What I like about this movie: Basically everything. If I were to rank these animations, Spirited Away is easily at the number 1 spot. I love the mysterious vibe of the animation. The transformation of the girl is amazing under difficult circumstances. This is a rather melancholy film for me and I love the soundtrack! This film got pretty good orchestra composition. I read Spirited Away book by Hayao Miyazaki and some of the sketches and preliminary sketches are pretty amazing. Must watch!

Rating: 5/5

14) Wall-e(2008)




Genres: Comedy, Science Fiction/Fantasy and Animation

Running Time: 1 hr. 37 min.

Studio: Pixar Animation Studios

Synopsis: After hundreds of lonely years of doing what he was
built for, Wall-E (short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) discovers
a new purpose in life (besides collecting knick-knacks) when he meets a sleek
search robot named Eve. Eve comes to realize that Wall-E has inadvertently
stumbled upon the key to the planet's future, and races back to space to report
her findings to the humans (who have been eagerly awaiting word that it is safe
to return home). Meanwhile, Wall-E chases Eve across the galaxy.

What I like about the movie: I love the lighting. You should borrow the Wall-e book. It's got pretty impressive digital painting of the storyboards. I'm really intrigued by robots - sound they make, the buttons and such. This is a comical and touching story that in a sense mock at human. Amazing.

Rating: 4.5/5

15) The Lion King (1994)




Genres: Animation, Kids/Family, Musical/Performing Arts, Comedy, Action/Adventure and Romance

Running Time:1 hr. 27 min.

Studio : Walt Disney Studio

Sypnosis: A heroic coming-of-age story which follows the epic
adventures of a young lion cub named Simba as he struggles to accept the
responsibilities of adulthood and his destined role as king of the jungle. As a
carefree cub, he is both excited and anxious to become king, one day, and spends
his days frolicking with his pal, Nala. His father, King Mufasa, the revered
ruler of Pride Rock and the lands that surround it, teaches him about the
"Circle of Life"--the delicate balance of nature which bonds all animals
together; Simba's father cautions him to prepare for the day when he will be
called upon to lead. Mufasa's evil brother, Scar, hopes that day will never
arrive and schemes to do away with the king and Simba so that he can assume the
throne for his own tyrannical purposes. Scar and his hyena henchmen--Shenzi,
Banzai, and Ed--lure Simba into the path of a wildebeest stampede in which
Mufasa is killed trying to save his son. Scar convinces Simba that he is
responsible for his father's death and urges him to leave the Pride Lands and
never return. A frightened and guilt-ridden Simba flees into exile where he is
befriended by a wacky but warmhearted warthog named Pumbaa and his free-wheeling meerkat companion, Timon. Under the dubious guidance of this nature's odd couple, Simba adopts their "Hakuna Matata" (no worries) attitude towards
life--taking things one day at a time. The cub matures into a young adult and is
able to forget his past until a beautiful young lioness--who turns out to be his
childhood friend Nala--arrives on the scene. She tells him of the hard times and
suffering that have come to the Pride Lands under Scar's reign, and beseeches
him to take his place as king. With the help of Rafiki, a wise shaman baboon,
Simba realizes that his father's spirit lives on in him and that he must accept
the responsibility of his destined role.

What I like about the movie: This is a must watch animation for all the aspiring animators. If you'd done 2d animation you would have known that the pencil test are pretty darn challenging and Lion King is amazing. Animals are brought to live and it is one of those classics that Disney is famous for. This show is about courage and love. Teehee.

Rating: 5/5

16) Tangled (2010)



Genres: Animation, Kids & Family, Musical & Performing Arts, Comedy

Running time: 1hr. 40mins.

Studio: Walt Disney Pictures

Synopsis: When the kingdom's most wanted-and most charming-bandit Flynn Rider hides out in a mysterious tower, he's taken hostage by Rapunzel, a beautiful and feisty tower-bound teen with 70 feet of magical, golden hair. Flynn's curious captor, who's looking for her ticket out of the tower where she's been locked away for years, strikes a deal with the handsome thief and the unlikely duo sets off on an action-packed escapade, complete with a super-cop horse, an over-protective chameleon and a gruff gang of pub thugs.

What I like about the movie: The crappiness. I like the idea that this is not really a classical Rapunzel movie but rather an exaggeration of the story. If you're looking for a good laugh, you can try this.

Rating: 3/5

17) Up (2009)



Genres: Action & Adventure, Animation, Kids & Family, Comedy

Running time: 1hr. 29mins.

Studio: Pixar Animation Studios

Synopsis: A feisty septuagenarian teams with a fearless wilderness ranger to do battle with a vicious band of beasts and villains in this computer-animated adventure scripted by Pixar veteran Bob Peterson and co-directed by Peterson and Monsters, Inc. director Peter Docter. Carl Fredricksen is a 78-year-old balloon salesman. His entire life, Carl has longed to wander the wilds of South America. Then, one day, the irascible senior citizen shocks his neighbors by tying thousands of balloons to his home and finally taking flight. But Carl isn't alone on his once-in-a-lifetime journey, because stowed away on his front porch is an excitable eight-year-old wilderness explorer named Russell. Later, as the house touches down on the world's second largest continent, Carl and his unlikely traveling companion step outside to discover that not only is their new front lawn considerably larger, but that the predators therein are much more ferocious than anything they ever faced back home.

What I like about this movie: I love the plot. Who doesn't want to fly away in a house by balloons? The adventure of an old man and a young boy is rather a good combination. Russell's lovable character just adds to the film. Rather spectacular views and the animation is very heartwarming. Awesome!

Rating: 4.5/5

18) The adventures of Tin Tin (2011)



Genres: Kids/Family, Action/Adventure, Animation and Adaptation

Running time: 1 hr. 40mins.

Studios: Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment

Sypnosis: Paramount Pictures and Columbia Pictures Present a 3D Motion Capture Film The Adventures of Tintin directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by Steven Moffat and Edgar Wright & Joe Cornish. Starring Jamie Bell as Tintin, the intrepid young reporter whose relentless pursuit of a good story thrusts him into a world of high adventure, and Daniel Craig as the nefarious Red Rackham.

What I like about the movie: If you're crazy fans like me who read the adventures of tin tin, you should watch this. Just a thrilling adventure of explorer with his dog. Lol.

Rating: 3.5/5

19) Coraline (2009)



Genres: Action & Adventure, Animation, Kids & Family, Science Fiction & Fantasy

Running time: 1hr. 40mins.

Studio: Focus Features

Sypnosis: A young girl walks through a secret door and discovers a parallel reality that is eerily similar to the life she already knows, yet deeply unsettling in a number of ways, in director Henry Selick's animated adaptation of Neil Gaiman's international best-seller. Eleven-year-old Coraline Jones (voice of Dakota Fanning) is fearlessly courageous, and perhaps far too adventurous for her own good. Coraline and her parents (Teri Hatcher and John Hodgman) have recently relocated to Oregon from Michigan. Bored in her new home since her parents are distracted by work and she has yet to make any new friends, Coraline passes the time by exploring her new neighborhood with an annoying local boy named Wybie Lovat (Robert Bailey Jr.). But after paying a visit to her eccentric neighbors Miss Spink (Jennifer Saunders) and Miss Forcible (Dawn French), a pair of aging British actresses, and crossing paths with the outright weird Mr. Bobinsky (Ian McShane), the precocious young girl becomes convinced that her new surroundings are just as dull as she'd initially suspected. Shortly thereafter, Coraline discovers a hidden door in her new house, and decides to investigate. Venturing into the eerie passageway inside, Coraline emerges into an alternate version of her own reality. At first glance, this strange new world seems even better than the real thing; there her parents aren't distracted by work, and Coraline is always the center of attention. There's even a mysterious Cat (Keith David) that's fascinated by her every move. But when Coraline's button-eyed Other Mother (also Hatcher) attempts to make her stay permanent, the frightened young girl must summon her resourcefulness and bravery in order to find her way back home and save her real family.

What I like about the movie: This is one creepy movie that moves into a different realm. Great visuals and just pure bizarreness (in a good way)

Rating: 3.5/5

20) Arthur Christmas



Genres: Kids/Family, Holiday and Animation

Running time: 1 hr. 37 min.

Studios: Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, Sony Pictures Animation

Synopsis: 'So how does Santa deliver all those presents in one night?' The answer: Santa's exhilarating, ultra-high-tech operation hidden beneath the North Pole. But this year, Santa's son Arthur has an urgent mission that must be completed before Christmas morning dawns.

What I like about this movie: It just nice to watch an animation revolving around a festive theme. It adds to the mood and is heartwarming! I love the character design. Awesome!

Rating: 4/5

21)Despicable me (2010)



Genres: Comedy, Animation and Kids/Family

Running Time: 1 hr. 28 min.

Studio: Universal Pictures

Synopsis: In a happy suburban neighborhood surrounded by white picket fences with flowering rose bushes, sits a black house with a dead lawn. Unbeknownst to the neighbors, hidden beneath this home is a vast secret hideout. Surrounded by a small army of minions, we discover Gru planning the biggest heist in the history of the world. He is going to steal the moon, yes, the moon. Gru delights in all things wicked. Armed with his arsenal of shrink rays, freeze rays, and battle-ready vehicles for land and air, he vanquishes all who stand in his way. Until the day he encounters the immense will of three little orphaned girls who look at him and see something that no one else has ever seen: a potential Dad. The world's greatest villain has just met his greatest challenge: three little girls named Margo, Edith and Agnes

What I like about the movie: Epic cute characters. Agnes and those yellow creatures are adorable. I love how Gru is a complete failure to be an asshole. Putting cuteness and evilness side by side is a good combo. Great movie for a good laugh!

Rating: 4/5

22) Megamind (2010)


Genres: Kids/Family, Thriller, Adaptation, Comedy, Action/Adventure and Animation

Running Time: 1 hr. 36 min.

Studio: DreamWorks Animation Synopsis: Megamind is the most brilliant super-villain the world has ever known... and the least successful. Over the years, he has tried to conquer Metro City in every imaginable way -- Each attempt, a colossal failure thanks to the caped superhero known as "Metro Man," until the day Megamind actually defeats him in the throes of one of his botched evil plans. Suddenly, the fate of Metro City is threatened when a new villain arrives and chaos runs rampant, leaving everyone to wonder: Can the world's biggest "mind" actually be the one to save the day?

What I like about the movie: I like the twist in the movie. Not gonna have spoilers here. I read the book on Megamind and the concept art is really good. Baby megamind was way cuter. Great comedy and thriller!

Rating: 4/5

23)How to train your dragon


Genres: Kids/Family, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Animation, Adaptation, Comedy and Action/Adventure

Running Time: 1 hr. 30 min.

Studio: DreamWorks Animation

Synopsis: A Viking teenager named Hiccup lives on the island of Berk, where fighting dragons is a way of life. The teen's smarts and offbeat sense of humor don't sit too well with his tribe or its chief... who just happens to be Hiccup's father. However, when Hiccup is included in Dragon Training with the other Viking teens, he sees his chance to prove he has what it takes to be a fighter. But when he encounters (and ultimately befriends) an injured dragon, his world is flipped upside down, and what started out as Hiccup's one shot to prove himself turns into an opportunity to set a new course for the future of the entire tribe.

What I like about the movie: I love dragons. I like how the way the respect between human and animals are portrayed. The fighting scenes are pretty intense and the awe of dragons are brought out. They got some great lighting too!

Rating: 4/5

24) Cinderella (1950)


Genres: Science Fiction/Fantasy, Animation and Kids/Family

Running Time: 1 hr. 16 min.

Studio: Walt disney Studios

Synopsis: Cinderella, treated as a slave by her selfish stepfamily, dreams of going to the Prince's ball. She gets her wish courtesy of her Fairy Godmother, who warns her to be home by midnight, or else...

What I like about the movie: It is basically a fairy tale that everyone with a childhood would have known. Not much of a suprise since I'd already known the plot but for people who never read the Cinderella tales this can be quite a good twist. I'm not a fairy tale kind of person but this is one of the important classics that all animators should watch!

Rating: 4/5

25) Bambi (1942)


Genres: Animation

Running Time: 1 hr. 10 min.

Studio: Walt Disney Studios

Synopsis: In Disney's spectacularly animated forest fable, a fawn named Bambi is born, destined to become "Prince of the Forest." He soon befriends other woodland creatures such as Flower, a bashful skunk, and Thumper, an outgoing rabbit. As the years pass, they encounter a number of life's lessons in the woods, including the death of Bambi's mother at the hands of hunters. Eventually, Bambi comes of age, completing the cycle of life and taking his father's place. Based on the classic novel by Felix Salten, BAMBI demonstrates the strength of family values and camaraderie. Director David Hand adds a mixture of great songs and life-like backgrounds to make this early Disney film an unforgettable film classic for all ages.

What I like about the movie: Another great classics by Disney. Quite an important film for animators. It's pretty touching and my friends cried when we're watching it. LOL. It's pretty drawn to life. Rating: 4/5

26) Puss in boots (2011)


Genres: Kids/Family, Action/Adventure, Animation, Comedy and Science Fiction/Fantasy

Running time: 1hr. 30mins.

Studio: DreamWorks Animation

Synopsis: Long before he even met Shrek, the notorious fighter, lover and outlaw Puss in Boots becomes a hero when he sets off on an adventure with the tough and street smart Kitty Softpaws and the mastermind Humpty Dumpty to save his town. This is the true story of The Cat, The Myth, The Legend... The Boots.

What I like about the movie: I think these recent years, Dreamworks have been producing a number of rather impressive animations. One of my favourite animation studios, after Ghibli. Puss in the boots is another tale that is rather predictable. Perhaps my lowered expectations, I found the film rather comical and playful.

Rating: 3.5/ 5

27)Dumbo (1941)


Genres: Kids/Family and Animation Running Time: 1 hr. 4 min. Synopsis: Ostracized from the rest of the circus animals, poor Dumbo the elephant is separated from his mother, who is chained up in a separate cage after trying to defend her child. Only brash-but-lovable Timothy Mouse offers the hand of friendship to Dumbo, encouraging the pouty pachyderm to exploit his "different" qualities for fame and fortune. What I like about the movie: I must say I'm pretty amazed with the animators in the past. When I see the date and what they can do with limited technology back then it really is pretty amazing. I love the plot and I can relate to Dumbo perhaps I because I'd been ostracized before(I think a lot of people experienced it at some point or another). Circus stuff are amazing and happy endings. Rating 4.5/5


28)Monster Inc. (2001)


Genres: Action/Adventure, Animation, Kids/Family and Comedy

Running Time: 1 hr. 32 min.

Studio: Pixar Animation Studios

Synopsis: Monsters, Inc. is the largest scare factory in the monster world and the top kid Scarer is James "Sully" Sullivan, a huge intimidating monster with blue fur, large purple spots and horns. His Scare Assistant, best friend and roommate is Mike Wazowski, a lime green, opinionated, fiesty, one-eyed monster. Scaring children isn't such an easy job--monsters believe children are toxic and that direct contact with them would be catastrophic. Inside the factory can also be found the factory's crab-like CEO, the beguiling serpent-haired receptionist Celia and the sarcastic chameleon monster, Randall Boggs, who schemes to replace Sully as Monsters, Inc.'s top Scarer. Visiting from the human world is Boo, a tiny girl who turns the monster world upside-down. What I like about the movie: I love the plot. I'm really amazed with how people come up with plots that no one thought of. I especially love the concept art of the characters (I borrowed the Monsters Inc. book) Exceptional. I love boo.

Rating: 4.5/5

29) Mulan (2002)


Genres: Comedy, Action/Adventure, Musical/Performing Arts, Animation and Kids/Family

Running Time: 1 hr. 28 min.

Studio: Walt Disney Studios

Synopsis: Based on a Chinese folk-tale, Mulan is a young high-spirited girl who tries hard to please her parents but always feels like she is disappointing them. Her father is drafted into the army which amounts to certain death because of his old age. Mulan disguises herself as a man and takes her father's place in battle, guided by a guardian dragon, Mushu. At the height of her success her secret is revealed and she is banished from home. But, undaunted she fights and defeats enemy invaders and saves the Emperor, bringing great honor to her family.

What I like about the movie: Finally a chinese movie! One chinese tale that every chinese kid would have heard of. The teachings of virtues like filial piety. Okay go watch it if you like to know more about Chinese folk tales. I don't really like the sequels though.

Rating: 3.5/5

30) Bolt (2008)

Genres: Animation, Comedy and Action/Adventure

Running Time: 1 hr. 36 min.

Studio: Walt Disney Studios

Synopsis: For super-dog Bolt, every day is filled with adventure, danger and intrigue - at least until the cameras stop rolling. When the canine star of a hit TV show is accidentally shipped from his Hollywood soundstage to New York City, he begins his biggest adventure yet - a cross-country journey through the real world. Armed only with the delusions that all his amazing feats and powers are real, and with the help of two unlikely traveling companions - a jaded, abandoned housecat named Mittens and TV-obsessed hamster in a plastic ball named Rhino - Bolt discovers he doesn't need superpowers to be a hero.

What I like about the movie: Okay last but not least, Bolt. I like dogs and bolt is way too cute. It got a rather predictable plot but worth watching. I think kids will love this.

Rating: 3/5