Frame Grabs &Layout & Design &repeated posts 12 Dec 2010 08:06 am
Return to an Eyvind Earle Christmas
- Here’s a piece I posted in December 2007. Since the crèches are popping up all about town, and since I’m such a fan of Eyvind Earle’s work, I love repeating it. The video would make a good Christmas purchase and can be bought here.
- Here’s a celebration of the animated segments Eyvind Earle did for The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show.
“The Story of Christmas” is a piece which is about ten minutes long set within this half hour special. (Remember when they called them “Specials”?)
The entire show is a Christian sing-along featuring the Roger Wagner Chorale singing around Tennessee Ernie’s gospel read.
The whole is a very reverent piece with no attempt at lightness and comes off as very religious. This would certainly not work on television today, never mind ABC TV which is where it premiered as one episode of the Tennessee Ernie Ford series. Some of you may remember the animated Hubley titles for the show which can be found in John Halas‘ Technique of Film Animation.
Three segments feature the animated graphics with the group singing. The only real narrative tells the birth of Christ in animation. Otherwise the Roger Wagner Chorale, dressed in Dickensian outfits, gather around varied sets looking like the early 19th Century England.
(Click any image to enlarge.)
Earle’s animation was done immediately after Sleeping Beauty was completed. He’d left the studio (or was more probably left by the studio during their massive layoff at the time) and formed his own small independent studio to do work like this. I think this was probably his largest job, and it seems perfectly suited to his style.
Lots of pans and flare effects are built around sliding cells trying to imitate the look of the multiplane camera. There really is no animation here, just the sliding cels of the characters over the pans. It’s still quite attractive for what it is and holds the attention. The piece is well planned and shows off everything Earle had learned at Disney’s studio.
The following are frame grabs from many of the scenes:
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on 12 Dec 2010 at 3:29 pm 1.Oscar Solis said …
I found a small clip of this on YouTube and really enjoyed it. Wonderful design throughout. I love the fact the although the animation is limited it doesn’t detract at all from the beauty of the piece. Thanks for posting this.
on 12 Dec 2010 at 4:40 pm 2.Neal said …
I’ve got a pristine print of this one. It’s too long, and finds Eyvind Earle slipping into the “sameness” that encased the remainder of his career as an artist. Interesting curio.
on 13 Dec 2010 at 3:59 pm 3.Pierre said …
I plan on getting this DVD as it has all the elements that I’d love to see, a reverential depiction of the Christmas story and Eyvind Earle’s artwork.
If you’ll indulge me, I’ve been working every year to improve my church’s outdoor nativity scene by repairing the chipped plaster figures and in some cases retouching or completely repainting the figures.
I’ve also added a couple of prop walls, which have the benefit of adding some depth to the creche. Next year I promise to add a decent backdrop so that everyone doesn’t have to look at the stapled on pine branches on the back wall.
Little by little, I’ve managed to turn this into a fairly decent display! If anyone is interested, please take a look at the following:
http://pierreportfolio.blogspot.com/
Thanks!
Pierre