| Special Medals for Excellence in the Field of Animation: |
| As we begin day five of the Cinema Olympics, we venture down a different path. Thus far we have been concentrating our awards on what the viewing public considers to be traditional, live-action cinema, where performers act out a story in front of the camera, but some of the most exciting innovations followed another path, that of the animated film. In animated films, drawings or three-dimensional objects are photographed or drawn onto the frame to create the illusion of movement. Whether using drawings, puppets or objects moving through stop-motion photography, animators create an alternative and fantastical world that is not possible with more "realistic" settings. Today, we follow the road less traveled and present honorary medals to two master animators and their work. |
| And the first medal for outstanding film, animation goes to: The Cameraman's Revenge: (1912) Directed by Wladyslaw Starewicz, Khanzhonkov Production Company. Russia. A former bookkeeper and art student, Starewicz entered Cinema in Moscow in 1912 and immediately distinguished himself with this delightful classic of stop-motion puppet animation. Starewicz was involved with every aspect of this film, directing, writing the script, operating the camera and serving as art director and animator. This little 12 minute film is a delight and also surprisingly complex thematically. Starewicz took advantage of his early interest in entomology to "cast" his morality play with models of insects, to which he granted distinctly human characteristics. The various insects are indulging in a convoluted web of infidelity, mistrust and revenge. Following the naughty beetles through their complex web of amorous deceit is a delight as they bounce between home, artist's studios, nightclubs, hotels and theatres, all wonderfully designed. Illicit affairs, voyeurism and brawling; this was racy stuff, made all the more entertaining with the all insect cast in a world of illusion that at the same time reflected the real world and all to human concerns. The stop-motion technique is excellent throughout. The Cameraman's Revenge is one of your Blissful Chairman's favorite animation shorts and he heartily encourages everyone who hasn't seen it to seek it out (as well as the work of Starewicz in general.) Although this is the first medal for Russia (now the Soviet Union) Mr. Starewicz relocated to France after the Revolution, so it was an easy trip to receive his medal before an enthusiastic crowd in his adopted country. The locals are hoping that he will continue to his winning ways for his new Country in future Cinema Olympics competitions. |
| And the second medal goes to: The Sinking of the Lusitania (1918) Directed and Produced by Winsor McCay, Universal-Jewel. United States. Winsor McCay is one of the premier cartoonists of the day, and at the forefront in turning animated film into a legitimate art form. He started as a poster designer and scenic artist. In 1898, he began his career as a newspaper cartoonist in Cincinnati, before moving to New York, drawing comic strips for the New York Evening Telegram and then the Herald. In 1906, he started touring the vaudeville circuit, in an act that incorporated his cartoons. He soon turned his sights to film animation, and produced wonderful animated cartoons such as Little Nemo (1911) and Gertie the Dinosaur (1914). McCay was a great drawer, incorporating realistic details and bringing his forms to life. The Sinking of the Lusitania is his greatest work thus far, and a detailed work of art. This is a historical reenactment of the highest degree. The attention to detail is astounding, with the thousands of hand-drawn frames bringing to life the tragic events in an utterly moving fashion. (The animation itself is much more moving the often heavy-handed propaganda of the commentary in the titles.) We can't help but be moved as we see images of people exiting the sinking ship to meet their deaths in the frozen waters below. We watch the torpedoes strike the hull, the explosions, and the passengers doomed to die; each image a harrowing denouncement of war. The entire thing is so well done, you sometimes have to step back and remind yourself that this isn't actually newsreel footage of the real event. With World War I such a recent scar on the psyches of those in attendance, McCay's film draws a moving tribute as the crowd rises in a standing ovation, and more than a few tears are witnessed. As perhaps the leading light in the future of animation, the world's greatest cartoon artist proudly accepts this medal. |
| Following these two special medals, the United States increases its lead in the over-all count with 8. France and Great Britain follow with two each and Russia enters the race with its first medal. |