Here's three fantastic images from the Disney animated flick for the new millenia, ATLANTIS. Allegedly this is the film that Disney has up it's sleeves that will say, "NOONE COMPETES WITH US... WE INVENTED THE LEAGUE" If memory serves Mignola (of HELLBOY fame) did a whole lot of design work on this flick, and certainly these designs seem to say that in spades. Looks great, but for now... let's go on to SIR ETCH-A-SKETCH...
Hello fearless one,
It was nice getting to meet you in town last time, and a thousand thanks for taking me along to Dreamworks. Having seen their work on EL DORADO, I keep telling everyone that 'LLAMA LLAMA' my pet name for KINGDOM OF THE SUN should be dropped immediately lest we make fools out of ourselves. Farting choreographed Llamas are no competition for what I saw of EL DORADO. However, I can proudly say, "ATLANTIS is the best looking animated feature project around!" Now sure, I am a bit Disney biased, but Harry let me tell you, these pictures represent the proverbial tip top of the iceberg. The film is being taken seriously, for all intents and purposes, there are no songs, no dancing, it is a straight adventure film.
I know you love old vintage films like "Journey to the Center of the Earth" and "20,000 Leagues Beneath The Sea." This project combines that with the old George Pal flick, "Atlantis, The Lost Continent."
The images here are advance tests, not the finished product. This merely will give you a hint at the direction we are taking this. Imagine shafts of light diving into the water that this ship cuts into. Imagine Egyptian/Mesopatanian sculptures. Imagine creatures unlike anything you can imagine. It doesn't follow the 'Disney Formula'.
Of course, from what Katzenberg said sitting there on the floor at Dreamworks, it's the same direction that they are already headed. Hopefully Eisner will simply accept the fact that there are some new players. It's good for us marketing types, the animation guys and gals, etc. Competition breeds evolution, and animation has been fairly stagnant long enough. That is why we animation lovers are excited everytime you announce a project like "Iron Giant," "Bone," "Spirit," "John Henry." It shows that the field is healthy and alive. That the artform is surviving and flourishing.
Oh, I do not know if you saw the 'jibe' at Katzenberg in Variety last week regarding "Antz," and "A Bug's Life," but I know for a fact that it's a bald face lie. And if Eisner or Steve Jobs had a shred of dignity they would come out and say as much. This is the exact dirty politics that makes us people in the trenches look up at the 'bosses' and draw a line between us and 'them.' Enjoy Harry. Oh and you animation lovers, I hope you enjoy it as well.
