“Today marks the 11th anniversary since Coraline premiered. A lot has changed since then, but it’s nice to see some things are still the same… in the Other World!”
“Clash of the Titans” was one of the movies that got serious rotation in the early days of cable television. Largely a creation of Mr. Ray Harryhausen. Medusa (seen above) was one of the most horrifying scenes I can recall from my youth. Of course today it seems tame compared to Hollywood’s worst, but it is a masterful excersize in suspense.
This and many other monster icons can be found on the design weScare which is available as a t-shirt, poster or among 148 other icons of horror and fantasy on this limited edition screen print.
Since it’s finally starting its festival run, I can share the poster I did for this stop-motion film that has been in the works Forever®.
You can get more info on when and how to watch this tale of Accordion-mans Ominously Standing On Mountains over on the Enjambre Hexagonal instagram, along with production shots in case you’re some kind of puppet pervert and really want to see stop motion characters in various states of undress:
I feel like I should blur this picture, it’s too spicy for general audiences.
KUBO: IT ALL STARTS WITH AN IDEA… AND THEN GETS BIGGER
*If you haven’t read my other posts about the conception of KUBO, please scroll down:)
Ideas are very personal. As shared in a previous post, the story of KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS is no exception. Inspired by my wife’s relationship with her mother and the beauty of Japanese folktales, I put pen to paper 15 years ago and started to jot down ideas.
Once I had the initial concept in place, i picked away at it for years until I felt it was ready to go from something private to something shared. It had evolved from a small, poetic fairy tale to an epic journey. In other words, it was ready to pitch to the big boys.
In considering what might be the best home for Kubo, I immediately thought of Laika. I’d worked on Coraline in 2006 and had a feeling they might be get the tone I was going for with Kubo.
So, after a few emails, a dinner pitch was on the books to share Kubo’s story with the folks from Laika at the Tam O’Shanter in Los Angeles. Walt Disney often met here with his story artists so it seemed an appropriate venue to pitch a film idea. I huddled into a tiny booth with the head of production, the head of development and the CEO, and pitched two ideas. Kubo was one of them and in one of those rare occasions, I could tell they liked it immediately. I finished the pitch (and my Yorkshire pudding) we shook hands, and went our separate ways. I sent them a copy of my original story and two weeks later, we began negotiations for an option. Great. Fine. Easy. Right?
Not really. The hard work was about to come… writing the script for Kubo.
If Kubo was born in my heart and mind, he grew up at Hugo’s restaurant in Studio City. That’s when Marc Haimes and I began working on the script. It was February, 2012, I had a cup of coffee, an almond energy pancake and the REAL work began.
Destroyed village set from Kubo. I’d do rounds of all the sets to give notes and suggestions. My particular note on this set was ,“make it look more wet.” Pretty sure the crew got tired of hearing that. Sorry guys and thanks for the amazing work;-
An Art table comes alive in this short Claymation #animation film created by high schooler Rae during Mr. David’s School of Film’s Stop Motion Animation class during Winter Break 2015 at Art School Studio in Woodstock, Portland, Oregon. Using Clay, Rae created her first stop motion film and learned the basics of claymation. Voice work done by Hannah, Oscar and Mr. David. Music by Kevin Macleod. Editing by Mr. David (via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyyH1FKdTZs)
For some reason, I thought it would be a good idea to watch somewhere around 50 Christmas and Christmas-adjacent silent films from before 1920 to put together a playlist for you all. So, I hope you enjoy!
I chose these twelve as a representative selection. My general criteria were:
Christmas should be central to the story
The plot should be novel to a modern viewer or something a modern viewer would be surprised to see so early on film
The list on the whole should have a variety of settings and narrative structures
Two quick presentation notes: 1. Some of the videos have music and some don’t, so you may want to check your volume level. 2. The intertitles for some of these films are not in English, so be sure you have captions turned on for English translations.
Short and sweet, this film sees children put to bed by their nanny on Christmas Eve and Santa Claus coming down the chimbley to fill their dutifully hung stockings. Director G.A. Smith used his own patented technique of double exposure to show Santa’s arrival without cutting away from the children’s room. Santa Claus might not pack the punch of a Méliès trick film, but it’s a fun novelty and is purportedly the first appearance of Santa Claus on film.
The Christmas Angel follows an impoverished girl driven into the city to beg on a snowy winter night. First she’s chased away from a church by more seasoned beggars; then she’s thrown out of a poultry seller and harassed by police. On the verge of falling asleep in the snow, a rag-and-bone man rouses her and offers her help. Later, the girl passes out beside a road but is luckily spotted by a wealthy couple on a car ride. When they learn of her plight, they bring her home along with food and gifts.
Though not as fantastical as some of Méliès’ more famous works, The Christmas Angel is still highly stylized (and stylish) and features special effects that photograph beautifully. It’s also worth noting that the version of the film included here is the American cut. The original French cut, titled Détresse et Charité (Distress and Charity), did not include the sequence with the wealthy couple and instead ends with the girl dying in the snow.
Directed by Edwin S. Porter for Edison Manufacturing Company
This is the first time the poem “Twas the Night Before Christmas” was put on film. Loosely following the poem, we see Santa Claus prepare for his yearly trek while a middle-class family prepares for his visit. When Santa heads out, we are treated to an extended panning sequence with a fully painted backdrop for a mini Santa and his reindeer to glide across. When Santa arrives at the family home, he chaotically dumps presents and decorations around their living room and makes a large, decorated tree appear out of thin air. (Across many of the movies I watched to put this post together, this seems to be a favored scenario for the jolly fat man around this time–and it’s delightful.) The family then wakes to find their gifts and the film closes with Santa directly wishing us a Merry Christmas.
Directed by J. Searle Dawley and Edwin S. Porter for Edison Manufacturing Company
Even at the risk of this list being too Edison heavy, I couldn’t leave this great short out. While walking with his mother, a rich little boy encounters a poor little girl alone in the cold. They take her home to play and warm up. When the boy learns that the girl doesn’t believe in Santa because apparently Santa doesn’t visit poor children, he hatches a scheme. On Christmas Eve, the boy has a stake out near the fireplace and takes Santa hostage, tying him up and holding him at gunpoint. The boy then forces Santa to visit the girl–going so far as shimmying down the chimney himself to let Santa in the front door. When the girl wakes up to a beautifully decorated tree, new toys, and a full stocking, she can finally believe in Santa Claus. While I’m generally not so into stories about supposedly benevolent rich people, I do love the implications this story has on how Santa Claus works and I also find the means with which the boy gets his way hilarious.
This entry is a three-for, which I hope you’ll excuse, but I couldn’t decide which Cretinetti Christmas to share! Cretinetti, the comedic persona of filmmaker Andre Deed, is an absolute agent of chaos.
In the 1909 film, Cretinetti attempts to bring a tree home for a Christmas party. The destruction escalates wildly, culminating in an entire building falling to pieces.
If you can believe it, the stakes are even higher in the 1910 film, when Cretinetti can’t resist sneaking out of bed on Christmas Eve to snack on the candy decorating the tree. When Santa sees what Cretinetti has done, he chides him and takes him back to his workshop, which is apparently in heaven. Destruction ensues. Cretinetti then proceeds to cause havoc for Saint Peter, annoying god so much that he calls the devil to come get Cretinetti. Cretinetti is then chased to hell where demons try to cook him alive. Thankfully, spoiler alert, it was all a bad dream and he wakes up on Christmas morning with a terrible stomach ache.
The 1911 film returns to localized chaos. Cretinetti has a run-in with a mail carrier and his Christmas packages get mixed up with one of the carrier’s parcels. The parcel contains three bottles of ether which then begin to emit gasses in the middle of the family Christmas party.
I wasn’t familiar with Cretinetti before reviewing films for this list, but I’m definitely going to seek out more of Deed’s movies. Each of these films had well-executed chaotic slapstick; over-the-top in all the right ways.
Produced by Cricks & Martin Films for Clarke, Nickolls, & Coombs Confectionery
To start, if you’re not sure what a Christmas cracker is, it’s a colorfully decorated paper tube that makes a cracking noise as you pull it open. Inside the tube is a paper hat, a joke, and/or a small toy. It’s a traditional part of UK Christmas celebrations.
This short starts as a documentary of the workers at Clarke, Nickolls, & Coombs constructing the crackers. It’s a fun thought that as early as 1910, people were interested in watching how mass-produced consumer goods were made. It’s also fun to see these skilled workers ply their trade so deftly (even though I’m sure wages and working conditions were less than ideal). The film ends with a family celebrating around a Christmas tree topped with a functional giant cracker.
Directed by J. Searle Dawley for Edison Films Manufacturing Company
There are so so so many film adaptations of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol made before 1920 that it was hard to choose which one to include on this list. In the end I chose this 1910 version for its economy of storytelling, fluid use of special effects, and for Marc McDermott’s great performance as Scrooge.
Directed by Gilbert M. Anderson (Broncho Billy) for The Essanay Film Manufacturing Company
Gilbert M. Anderson was an incredibly prolific and popular filmmaker and star of early American film, particularly in his role as Broncho Billy. As was typical for Anderson, he’s pulling triple duty on Broncho Billy’s Christmas Dinner as the star, director, and producer. The film features a simple and heartwarming story.
On Christmas, Billy comes across a young woman in peril as her horses got startled and are now pulling her cart along wildly. Billy manages to wrangle the horses and in gratitude she invites him to Christmas dinner at her parents’ home. Unfortunately, her father happens to be the sheriff. But, all is well, as it turns out that Broncho Billy’s been given a pardon and the sheriff welcomes him to the table gladly.
The enduring appeal of outlaws or criminals getting into the Christmas spirit is fascinating to me and it’s cool to see such an early instance of the story!
Produced by Société Générale des Cinématographes Éclipse
In all honesty, this is the least Christmassy of all the films I included here, but its style and novelty stood out. The sets, costuming, and production design are lush. It might also be one of the weirdest Christmas stories I’ve even encountered.
After Lord Othberg passes away, the conniving Otto plans to assassinate the baby prince in order to inherit the lordship himself. He poisons the baby, but the princess prays for her baby brother to come back to life as her Christmas gift. An angel appears to her and they summon Jesus, who resurrects her baby brother. Of course, they then place the revivified baby in the castle’s nativity scene, to the joy of all but Otto.
Directed by Van Dyke Brooke for Vitagraph Company of America
With a more classic Christmassy story, Ida’s Christmas tells us of a family who are facing hard times. Ida (played by a very small Dolores Costello) has her eyes on a pricey doll. Meanwhile, her mother seeks out employment with a wealthy family. The matriarch of the wealthy family overhears Ida’s wish and decides to buy the doll for her as a surprise. Later, Ida is distraught to find that the doll has been purchased but comes across a wallet that someone has dropped. She considers taking the money, but chases down the owner instead. The old man gives her some reward money for returning the wallet. Ida rushes to see if she can buy the doll, but has second thoughts when she thinks about how much her family could use the money. She arrives home with the money just in time for a Santa-esque old man to show up bearing packages and an assurance that the wealthy family has work for her father. The film ends with the family celebrating an unexpectedly Merry Christmas.
It’s a sweet story that hits so many beats of what we now consider traditional Christmas tales.
Fair warning, if you thought The Princess’s XMas Gift was odd, you might need to ready yourself for this one. Stop-motion virtuoso Władysław Starewicz (Ladislas Starevich) spins a tale about a tiny ornament of Santa/Ded Moroz coming to life on Christmas and going out into the wild to bring Christmas joy to creatures small and smaller, including a frog and a ladybug. Starewicz’s animation is as impeccable as ever and the short is imaginative and quirky.
One of my favorite scenes from La Roman de Renard, directed by Wladyslaw and Irene Starewicz, 1930.
La Roman de Renard (Tale of the Fox) is one of the earliest stop-motion animated films, and it greatly impressed me. Wladyslaw Starewicz’s career went from early experiments, filming insects and manipulating their little bodies stop-motion style once the hot lights killed them, to creating this incredible remake of a French fable. La Roman de Renard reportedly took 10 years to plan, and 18 months to shoot. What gets me is that he paid such close attention to detail (the inhale and exhale of the Lion Queen’s chest as she fawns over the serenading Cat, the movement of each animal’s eyes, the background behaviors of the lesser characters) and made it all look surprisingly natural. A smile crept onto my face at the beginning of this film and stayed there throughout. Many thanks to the Boo for finding this and knowing I’d love it.
You can watch the entire film *here* thanks to MissBillieDove’s playlist.
Algy had spent an exceptionally long, cold and sleepless night before the dawning of the day of the solstice in the faraway land of Patadragonia, but he quickly forgot his weariness, and the anxieties which had troubled his mind during the hours of darkness, when the dawn finally broke over the snowy mountains.
It was truly a magical morning, for when the purple sky began to light up with the lovely pinks and blues of a Patadragonian dawn and ethereal mists started to shimmer up from the frosty plains, Algy heard a most extraordinary sound, and at the same time felt a strange vibration. Glancing around, he saw that the cherry blossom which he had brought so carefully from the strange Easter island had started to shimmer and sparkle on the rock behind him, and in a few moments more he understood why…
Although the little dragon had told him that despite its wish to join a circus it had never actually seen one in Patadragonia, the procession which was making its way along the migration route they had been seeking the day before could not possibly be mistaken for anything else. Algy guessed that the cherry blossom had worked its unique magic once again, and although he was sure that he would miss the funny wee creature, he was delighted that by bringing the cherry blossom to this land he had been able to help his little friend realise its lifelong dream at last.
For when the dragon saw the circus train proceeding along the track it was overcome with excitement, rushing about here and there and performing its special fire-breathing act in the air, even though it was unlikely that the creatures of the circus could be watching. Despite its exhilaration, the little dragon was at first reluctant to leave Algy’s side, but when it saw that the procession would soon be out of sight, and heard the circus music beginning to fade away, Algy did not have to exert much effort to persuade his unusual friend to seize the day…
Of course Algy felt sad to see his little friend go, but he was so happy for the funny wee dragon, and so certain that they would meet again in the future - as long as he kept the magical cherry blossom safe - that when the final calliope in the circus train vanished out of sight he thought only of the little dragon’s exciting and happy new life in the circus it had always longed to join, and of all the wonderful new adventures which undoubtedly lay ahead…
[The circus band is playing the “National Emblem March,” composed in 1902 by Edwin Eugene Bagley, in a version created by Algy’s assistants. Algy says be sure to turn on the sound!]
p.s. For the sake of his longstanding tumblr friends, Algy wanted to post his own version of this grand finale to his recent adventure with his little dragon friend - which waspremiered in a special Tumblr Tuesday feature on the Adventures of Algy on @staff yesterday.Algy apologises for the longer-than-usual gaps in his recent adventures, but it was owing to the amount of work required for this video and the special timing arranged with @staff for Tumblr Tuesday.
Hello! Happy solstice. What’s this, you ask? Well, it’s a Tuesday. It’s also the end of one of Algy’s adventures in Patadragonia. Who’s Algy? Algy is a friend-shaped accidental adventurer. In this particular part of his story, he helps a dragon with some mad dance moves join the circus. In Patadragonia. (Sound on for total immersion.)
On the morning of the solstice…
…in the faraway land of Patadragonia, dawn broke with a beautiful deep pink glow over the mountains, and ethereal mists shimmered up from the frosty plains. Algy was still dozing after his long, sleepless night under the full moon when suddenly he heard a most extraordinary sound, and at the same time, he felt the special cherry blossom which he had brought all the way from the magical Easter island begin to vibrate and sparkle on the cold, bare rock behind him…
There was no doubt about it: the moment had arrived…Algy knew that his little dragon friend was about to realize its lifelong dream at last, and although he was sure that he would miss the funny wee creature, he could not have been happier for his very special friend, especially as he felt certain that—so long as he kept the magical cherry blossom safe—they would be bound to meet again in adventures yet to come…
[The circus band is playing the “National Emblem March,” composed in 1902 by Edwin Eugene Bagley, in a version created by Algy’s assistants.]
Something VERY exciting has happened to Algy - a unique tumblr adventure which he never even dreamed of…
A wee while ago, Algy was approached by tumblr staff and asked whether he would be interested in appearing in a special “Tumblr Tuesday” feature on the staff blog… well, you can imagine what he said!
And this is one of the reasons why Algy’s adventures here on his own blog have been on pause the past couple of weeks… It wasn’t only because his assistant had to work in her garden, although that was true too.
So Algy sends his fluffiest apologies to his loyal followers for the absence of posts during the past couple of weeks, and hopes you will all enjoy this video conclusion to his recent adventures with his dragon friend, which by agreement was premiered @staff and not here on @adventuresofalgy
And he sends his fluffiest thanks and hugs to Loll and Ben
p.s. Algy says be sure to turn the sound up for the video…
Just a bit more weathering but he’s just about finished, and then FaceBones gets added to the Metalocalypse shadow puppet pile. Can you guess whose next on the gottafinishthisfuckingthing block? He’s pretty fucking giant. He hates dentists. He’s drank bleach. He makes really bad girlfriend choices. Oh and he held a political office once.
