Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/2965
Flipping the Animation Style e characters move using a style of ani- mation inspired by United Productions of America (UPA), which was especially popular in the late 1940s and 1950s, with "Mr. Magoo" and "Gerald McBoing- Boing" among the most famous examples. " e [UPA] animators weren't constrained by accurately moving volumes in space," explains animation director Pete Nash. " ey wanted something more abstract and conceptual, so they fl attened the imag- es and did simplifi ed graphic designs. e principles of animation took a backseat to concept; that is, they could break any rule if it supported the concept. An arm could grow, a character could be off -balance as long as it supported a strong idea." Applying that idea to CG characters was tricky. "In 3D, you're more confi ned by realistic stuff , like textures," Nash says. "If you stretch a texture too far, it looks like rubber." So the crew found ways to have September 2009 15 CG I•Stereo ■ ■ ■ ■ Flipping the Animation Style e characters move using a style of ani- mation inspired by United Productions of with "Mr. Magoo" and "Gerald McBoing- Boing" among the most famous examples. " e [UPA] animators weren't constrained " e [UPA] animators weren't constrained by accurately moving volumes in space," explains animation director Pete Nash. Weather station intern Sam Sparks (Anna Faris) reports on the latest climate change, a giant pancake that fl opped from the sky. Sony Pictures mageworks artists twist computer graphics into a colorful, cartoony, and hilarious animated feature for Sony Pictures Animation By Barbara Robertson