East Coast Experts
John Canemaker
Notes
We interviewed John Canemaker in the mid-Manhattan apartment of Marilyn Wasbotten, a high school flame of our documentary’s producer, in 2005.
Camera: Sylvie BosRau  Â
Audio: Adam Abraham
John Canemaker is the Renaissance man of animation — as animation filmmaker, animation professor at NYU, animation program presenter, and moderator, and author of many books on animation. His most very personal animated short, The Moon and the Son, won Canemaker a coveted Oscar. This multi-styled, fantasized conversation between father and son is impossible to categorize, but resonates with viewers on many different levels.
John Culhane
Notes
We interviewed John Culhane in the mid-Manhattan apartment of Marilyn Wasbotten, a high school flame of our documentary’s producer, in 2005.
Camera: Sylvie BosRau
Audio: Adam Abraham
John Culhane taught animation history in New York and is not only a storehouse of knowledge about every film and artist that passed through the history of animation, but is delightfully passionate about his love for the art of animation, and UPA in particular. In fact, he gives us so many amazing statements that it’s hard to decide which are best. You’ll see John Culhane prominently in the documentary.
John Culhane is also part of some unreleased scenes.
Amid Amidi
Notes
We interviewed Amid Amidi in home production office in Burbank, California, in 2006. Amid Amidi is one of the most notable expert on the
mid-century modern art movement in animation, has written several books, moderated and sat on many animation panels, including ours, and is the
editor of our Inside UPA limited edition collector’s book. And, Amidi was also one of the experts we taped for the UPA presentations at Ottawa 2006. His video introduced the “UPAs Directors” program.
Bill Plympton
Notes
(Click to hear a portion of his interview.)
We interviewed Bill Plympton out by the pool in a hotel he was staying at when Hair High premiered in Hollywood, in 2004
Camera: Marc Crisafuli
Bill Plympton, of course, everyone in animation knows; he is the most prolific independent animator in in the business. In our interview with Plympton, he talks about growing up in Portland, the home of a number of major animation artists, and how his circuitous journey led him to New York City where he almost single-handedly turns out shorts and features non-stop, all different, all fascinating, and all with the distinctive Plympton stamp.
Michael Sporn
Notes
(Click to hear a portion of his interview.)
We interviewed Michael Sporn in his lower Manhattan studio in 2006. Michael Sporn was not only one of the finest animators and animation creators of the present generation, but was an eloquent speaker when it comes to the subject of animation, and UPA animation in particular. We thoroughly enjoyed our interview in his NY studio, sitting at a UPA animation desk, which he purchased over 30 years ago, for a whopping twenty dollars.
John Culhane is part of some unreleased scenes.
J.J. Sedelmaier
Notes
We interviewed J.J. Sedelmaier in upstate New York in his bustling studio in 2006.
J.J. Sedelmaier is another NY animator who found inspiration in UPA animation. Although, he never worked at the UPA studios in New York, he has
worked with many of its veterans, most notably, Tissa David, who inspired many others of his generation. Sedelmaier also works quite a bit
with Tony Eastman, son of UPA writer, Phil Eastman, and, like Tony, he has animation collectables in every corner of his office.
Richard O’Connor
Notes
We interviewed Richard O’Connor in his busy New York studio in 2006.
Richard O’Connor became a fan of UPA films, long after they had had their hey day. But, seeing the freedom of style of UPA films, O’Connor was
inspired to follow his desire to pursue his dream of being an animation artist. He has become an artist, and one of the more successful NY
animators, working out of his own company, Asterisk Productions.
Steve Stanchfield
Notes
We interviewed Steve Stanchfield during a break in both our busy schedules in a quiet corner at the Zagreb festival, in 2006.
Steve Stanchfield lives off the beaten track, animation-wise, in the great lakes district of the US, and yet he is one of the premier collectors of animation films in the world, and has items other collectors drool over. Best of all, he has been generous in sharing some
of his UPA findings with us.
