Disney vs. Anime
Disney was founded on October 16, 1923, as an animation studio by brothers Walt Disney and Roy Oliver Disney, initially known as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio. It later operated under the names Walt Disney Studio and Walt Disney Productions before adopting its current name in 1986. The earliest anime that survived into the modern day, The Dull Sword, was released on June 30, 1917. However, there is some dispute regarding which title holds that honor.
The multiple differences between Disney and anime are evident in several aspects:
-
Animation Techniques: Disney prioritizes “full animation,” aiming for a high number of drawings—often 24 frames per second—resulting in fluid, expressive, and smooth movements. In contrast, anime typically uses fewer drawings per second, often reusing pages to cut production costs and employing camera movements to convey emotions.
-
Character Design: Disney characters predominantly embody childish and idealized proportions. For example, Disney protagonists usually have small waists and are characterized by softer, rounded lines. On the other hand, anime tends to feature characters with more realistic human proportions, often presenting detailed and varied designs.
-
Themes and Target Audience: Disney primarily targets children and families, focusing on light-hearted, comedic, or action-comedy plots that emphasize fun, simple storytelling, and often conclude with a moral lesson or a happy ending. Conversely, anime caters to a broader audience, including adults, exploring more mature themes with intricate plots and deep character development.
-
Societal Impact: Anime influences diverse industries, such as fashion and music, and fosters communities where individuals feel less alone in their struggles by seeing characters work through their problems. However, it can also negatively influence viewers, with some content reinforcing stereotypes—particularly the hypersexualization of female characters—and portraying them as clumsy or dependent on males for rescue. This can impact mental health by promoting unrealistic body ideals and contributing to low self-esteem among children.
Disney's societal effects include shaping global culture and entertainment through storytelling and theme parks, influencing children's perceptions of gender roles, and promoting prosocial behavior from a young age. Disney's impact also includes economic contributions, such as job creation and community support. A fun fact is that Cinderella saved Walt Disney from bankruptcy. However, issues of gender and body image are present, as Disney often links positive traits to attractive looks while assigning negative characteristics to less conventionally attractive appearances. Disney often presents female characters in traditionally girly ways, raising questions about the portrayal of women.
Disney Character Development: Disney characters typically undergo personal challenges and ultimately attain a happy ending. This narrative framework instills a "we can do it" mindset in children, encouraging them to persevere through their difficulties. However, this phenomenon, known as the "Disney Effect" or "Disneyfication," can lead to idealized expectations or stereotypes regarding life and relationships.
Animation Techniques Used in Disney: Disney employs a systematic approach to animation that includes the following steps:
-
Story Development
- Brainstorming & Scripting: Writers and artists develop a story concept, create rough sketches, and write the script and dialogue.
- Director's Vision: Directors refine the script, plan the musical score, and time each scene to establish the film's artistic and narrative direction.
-
Visual Development
- Character Design: Artists create detailed drawings of characters, subsequently sculpted and modeled in 3D software.
- Environment Design: Artists also design and paint the backgrounds and environments for the film.
-
Pre-production & Storyboarding
- Storyboarding: Artists create a sequence of rough drawings, or storyboards, to visualize the film's key moments and actions, providing a blueprint for the entire movie.
-
Character Rigging
- 3D Modeling & Rigging: Characters are introduced to the 3D world, given an internal "rig" or "bones" that allows animators to control their movement.
-
Animation
- Animation: Skilled animators draw every movement in detail, often using 3D models to bring characters and the world to life.
- Reference: To achieve realistic performances, animators utilize video references of themselves acting out scenes, capturing subtle details like facial expressions.
-
Lighting & Texturing
- Adding Depth: Lighting artists and technicians incorporate complex lighting to create mood and enhance realism.
- Textures: Textures are applied to character models and environments to add detail and visual richness.
-
Rendering
- Computer Processing: The computer processes all the 3D data to create the final images of each frame.
-
Compositing & Final Touches
- Compositing: The rendered images of characters, backgrounds, and other visual elements are combined to create the final movie scenes.
- Sound & Music: Finally, sound effects and the musical score are integrated to complete the film.
How Anime Movies Are Made:
-
Pre-Production
- Concept & Script: An idea is developed into a story, with characters, conflicts, and resolutions established.
- Storyboarding: Artists create a sequence of drawings to visually represent the story, including camera angles and actions.
- Visual Development: Backgrounds, environments, and costumes are designed to establish the film's world.
- Character Design: Characters are designed with details such as facial expressions and poses for consistency. Model sheets serve as references for animators.
- Animatics: Storyboards are timed and assembled with temporary dialogue, music, and sound effects to preview the film's timing and tone.
-
Production
- Layout: Low-resolution models are used to plan rough animation and camera movements.
- Modeling: Final 3D models of characters and objects are created.
- Rigging: Virtual skeletons are added to 3D models, enabling animators to control their movements.
- Animation:
- Key Frames: Skilled animators focus on drawing the most significant poses in a scene.
- Inbetweening: Other artists or software fill in frames between key poses to create smooth motion.
- 3D Integration: 3D environments and animated characters create dynamic scenes, with 2D characters layered on top.
- Coloring: Colors are added to both characters and backgrounds.
-
Post-Production
- Sound Design: Music, dialogue, and sound effects are recorded and integrated.
- Editing: The assembled animation, dialogue, music, and sound effects are edited together to form the final movie.
- Compositing: All the different layers are combined into one video.
- Color Grading: Final colors and lighting are adjusted to align with the director's artistic vision.
Positive and Negative Ethical Influences:
-
My Positive Ethical Influence on Disney: Disney stories promote moral development, often reinforcing positive values and moral lessons.
-
A Negative Ethical Influence: Many Disney movies depict princesses as traditional homemakers dependent on men, with negative portrayals of female villains often based on physical traits like age or weight. Essentially, if you’re not married or independent, you may be portrayed as the antagonist in a hero's journey.
-
My Positive Ethical Influence on Anime: Many protagonists in anime achieve their goals through perseverance, courage, and teamwork, reinforcing values such as fighting for dreams, protecting the innocent, and helping others. The moral takeaway is to be kind and work hard towards one's goals.
-
My Negative Ethical Influence on Anime: The normalization of violence is a concern; while many action-focused anime explore the consequences of violence, critics argue that frequent and stylized portrayals of aggression can desensitize viewers and normalize violent behavior.
By examining both Disney and anime, we can better understand their distinct cultural impacts, narrative styles, and ethical implications, as well as their contributions to the animation industry.