'Milt Kahl: The Animation Michelangelo, A Centennial Celebration' at AMPAS 4/27/09

[ALIASd]

Academy Celebrates Milt Kahl Animation’s Michelangelo

Beverly Hills, CA (March 25, 2009) — The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will present “Milt Kahl: The Animation Michelangelo, A Centennial Celebration,” on Monday, April 27, at 7:30 p.m. in the Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Animator Andreas Deja will host the evening, which will include a panel discussion, moderated by animation critic Charles Solomon. Scheduled panelists include Kathryn Beaumont, Brad Bird, Ron Clements, John Musker and Floyd Norman. The event serves as the 2009 installment of the Academy’s Marc Davis Celebration of Animation.

The evening will feature an insightful analysis of Kahl’s animation drawings, rare film interviews with Kahl himself, and clips of his work from such Disney favorites as “Mickey’s Circus,” “Pinocchio,” “Bambi,” “Peter Pan,” “Sleeping Beauty,” “The Jungle Book” and “The Rescuers.” The clips will be interspersed with commentary from those who worked beside him and were inspired by him, revealing the rigorous process and fiery personality of a true animation legend.

Renowned for his unparalleled draftsmanship as well as his exacting nature, Milt Kahl (1909-1987), one of the “nine old men” Walt Disney relied upon to bring his creative vision to the screen, was the animator to whom the other eight turned when they had trouble with a character or scene.
Throughout the ’50s and ’60s, when Kahl was responsible for the final design of many characters, he complained of being “saddled” with the animation of challenging, non-comic human characters such as Alice, Peter Pan, Wendy, and Sleeping Beauty’s Prince. But Kahl secretly relished the fact that it was his talent and drive that made these characters come alive.


Deja, one of the top animators of his generation, brought to life characters as diverse as Gaston in “Beauty and the Beast,” Scar in “The Lion King,” and Lilo in “Lilo & Stitch.” Beaumont was the voice artist for Alice in “Alice in Wonderland” and Wendy in “Peter Pan.” Bird has won the Animated Feature Film Oscar® twice, for his work on “The Incredibles” and “Ratatouille.” Clements and Musker served as co-directors and writers on “The Great Mouse Detective,” “The Little Mermaid,” “Aladdin,” “Hercules” and “Treasure Planet.” Norman preceded his lengthy television animation career with experience as an apprentice/assistant to Milt Kahl on “Sleeping Beauty,” “The Sword in the Stone” and “The Jungle Book.”

Tickets for the “Milt Kahl: The Animation Michelangelo, A Centennial Celebration” are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. They may be purchased online at www.oscars.org, in person at the Academy box office or by mail.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. All seating is unreserved.

The Academy is located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills.

For more information, call (310) 247-3600.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

[Coheteboy]

already got my tix!

[a_shy_kid]

thanks for notice!!

i shall buy tickets soon.

[ALIASd]

This event is sold out.

A stand-by line will form at 5:30 p.m. outside the venue on the night of the event.


Ticketholders: Plan to arrive and be seated at least 15 minutes before the event start time; at that point, unfilled seats will be released to patrons in the standby line.
Milt Kahl: The Animation Michelangelo | Events Presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

[Coheteboy]

This event was AMAZING... and really really long! But that's a good thing!


The night was moderated by Charles Solomon (author of many disney coffee table books) and Andreas Deja (animator: gaston, jafar, scar, hercules).

They showed a ton of samples of his work from shorts to features, and it was amazing what his range was. From Ferdinand the Bull to Shere Kahn in Jungle Book. It really was amazing.

the first group of panelists were:

-Kathryn Beaumont, voice of Alice in Alice in Wonderland and Wendy Darling in Peter Pan

-Alice Davis, Imagineer Legend, wife of Marc Davis, costume designer of Pirates of the Caribbean and It's a small World

-Milt Kahl's daughter


There was some great stories in that first section of the panel, one that came up frequently was how much the guy swore. But it was hilarious stuff.


The second section of the panel were:

-Brad Bird, director of Iron Giant, Incredibles, Ratatouille

-Ron Musker & John Clements, directors of Great Mouse Detective, Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Treasure Planet, and Princess and the Frog

-John Pomeroy, animator

-Floyd Norman, animator



Talented people in the audience included:
-Pete Docter, director of Monsters Inc and Up
-Mr. Sohn (i forget his first name), voice of Emille, director of the short in front of Up
-Richard M. Sherman
-Eric Goldberg, animator of Genie (among other things)
-Tony Baxter, imagineer

[ALIASd]

Extraordinary evening!

Great to see you too CB, next time I'll hold more seats...

It was a tremendous event filled with some truly laugh out loud moments, if Mr. Kahl's walls could talk, or fire back!

Brad Bird's impressions of him were just classic. The stories shared were as CB said hilarious.

Andreas Dejas' photo section was a mini-master class in appreciation and reverence. It was amazing and not soon to be forgotten. I'm in awe.

There were many other guests in attendence as CB noted, Peter Sohn director of 'Partly Cloudy', Tony Baxter who arrived with Disney historian and artist Stacia Martin and two friends, Pete Docter (who I shared an elevator with) and many other WDAS friends and a few Warner Brothers and DreamWorks Animation-ites.

Mr. Deja took special delight in highlighting the gorgeous programs handed out and unveiling the special "Oprah Moment" of the night: free posters of the program artwork for all! WOW, just WOW!




A few notes and some of the night's treasures:

Brad Bird told me he's "up to his neck and beyond" into his next film, '1906'. It will be his live-action feature film debut.

Mr. Deja, Mr. Musker & Mr. Clements all used the words "great" and "special" when I asked them about their upcoming, 'The Princess and the Frog'. Deja also threw in, "a really different experience". Can't wait!

Pete Docter told me that 'UP' is finished, "it's fun" and that he is "so excited to get it out there". He and Brad Bird left the event to meet up for dinner with some other pals.

Pete Docter and the master, Milt Kahl

[Neverlandtink]

How does a person get hooked up with these events? I would have loved to attend!

[Coheteboy]

Wow those are great autographs! I only filled my sketchbook as I completely left my books at my parents house in OC. Stupid me. My imagineering book would have been so much more complete.

Alice Davis was such a sweet heart and nice to chat with after the panel. Me, her and Marc Davis shared a flight from Florida to LAX back in the day and hearing her stories about friday night chinese food and saturdays at the theater... kind of sounds like a lifestyle I could get used to.

Originally Posted by Neverlandtink

How does a person get hooked up with these events? I would have loved to attend!

there's no hooking up on this one. Oscars.org has an events section with panels and exhibitions open to all. Just visit their site and check it out!

The animation panels don't come around as often though so I think you missed out this time. Just don't forget to keep checking for the next one! It'll happen when you least expect it.

[ALIASd]

We post many of them here, this one was added last month as you can see in the OP at the top of the page.

You can also sign up for the Academy's e-mail newsletter
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

[ALIASd]

Originally Posted by Coheteboy

Alice Davis was such a sweet heart and nice to chat with after the panel. Me, her and Marc Davis shared a flight from Florida to LAX back in the day and hearing her stories about friday night chinese food and saturdays at the theater... kind of sounds like a lifestyle I could get used to.

Lucky flight!

No kidding, the Chinatown dinners, theatre outings and discussions followed by The Brown Derby?! Come On! THOSE were THE days.

[ALIASd]

More on the event and an interview on Milt Kahl with Andreas Deja, Floyd Norman, John Musker and Ron Clements at:
Milt Kahl, one of Disney's 'Nine Old Men' of animation - Los Angeles Times

[Neverlandtink]

Thanks CB and ALIASd! I love that kind of stuff. Looks like a missed a great one.

[Flickering Bulb]

ugghhh!!! i wish i came across this thread back when it was posted! i'm sad to know i missed an event like this. i really enjoyed the marc davis one last year, and this one sounds like it was better. *sigh*

[ALIASd]

Video Highlights from this great event are now available at the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences site at:
Milt Kahl: The Animation Michelangelo | Events Presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences