Rod Scribner Opening for UPA shorts

[LiimLsan]

This is the way UPA should have animated everything: with the characters MOVING like moving drawings, not just not moving. Stuff like this, or Rooty Toot Toot, or Bobe cannon's work beFORE he joined UPA...

[satekmary506094]

Fantastic Music!

[DisneyVideos2000]

Excuse me, where can you find "Magoo's Arabian Nights"?

[Aaronamations]

I can't get enough of these stylized 50s modern cartoons

[Invisib0]

Wow, still has Rod Scriber's distinct quality, even if that animation is more limited.

Still strange to think the UPA style actually caught on as well as it did, to the point where every animation studio was copying it! Did people really find it more appealing than the Golden Animation style?

[wmbrown6]

UPA 'toons were "highly regarded" by those in the media, because they were considered "different" from the "run of the mill" 'toon fare of the time; also, that studio had specialized in "hip" and "intellectual" fare - which in a way prefigured the media critics' preference towards "Monty Python" over Benny Hill and other so-called "low" comics from the '70's onwards.

[transylvania50]

Cool beans, Rod Scribner. I love how surprised the two taller trumpet players are when the little one blasts their ears out.

I bet he enjoyed animating angular characters, though. It must have been challenging to animate specific shapes like the ones he used here, not a mere circle or oval. Maybe he didn't like working for UPA, but as far as animating in this style, I bet he got some enjoyment out of it.

[rasputin63]

Magnificent... even though the colors are slightly faded now... One can only imagine how rich that crimson was when new. To see this style taken to its zenith,  why not re-watch the excellent 1961 cartoon 101 DALMATIONS.

[cartoonzrule]

I bet Rod Scribner hated animating in this style after leaving Warner Bros.

[LeeJTurnock]

That was the trouble with UPA. They all wanted to do something "different" so badly, it literally didn't matter if it looked horrible and had the worst imaginable animation, as long as it was different from the rich, warm style of Disney and Warner Bros it was okay by them.

[Mesterius1]

That's one of the most unfair descriptions I've ever heard of UPA. While it's more than true that TV cartoon studios like Hanna-Barbera emulated some of their tecniques into mere money-saving devices, the UPA crew actually had high artistic ambitions as their foundation - and their style was rooted in the creative freedom of modern art. The animation isn't "horrible" by any means, it's simply a different stylistic approach... and as such, it may clash with some people's tastes, as all styles do.

[spsmyth]

@Mesterius1 I have to agree with you. You can say what you want but to dis UPA as "horrible" without a knowledge of what went through Stephen Bosustow's mind when forming the company is ludicrous. The idea was to be almost anti-Disney, not only in the content, but the working style at the studio. Some fantastic cartoons came out of UPA, including "The Tell Tale Heart," "Rooty Toot Toot" and two Mr. Magoo shorts that won Oscars. Yep, pretty horrible.

[AllRequired]

@Mesterius1 Imagine Scribner-style animations getting past first draft today.

[paolotami]

amazing stuff... I bought Amid's Cartoon Modern as soon as it was on Amazon and everytime I open it I find it more and more inspiring. thanks for sharing!

[blastingrod]

Opening and closing titles...too cool!

[CaptainWrong]

Ultra hip. Thanks for the share!