A Celebration of Animation explores the best-of-the-best cartoon characters from the 1920s to the 21st century. All the greats gracing this book are sure to trigger memories of carefree Saturday mornings or after-school hours in front of the TV.

One of the world's leading cartoon artists shows readers how to capture the retro look of Sponge Bob, Dexter, and other popular comics, revealing how to recapture the 1950s in cartoons.

Cartoons are fun to look at, but they take a lot of work to create. Aspiring artists learn how to draw memorable details that make cartoon characters come alive on the page. Different techniques are introduced, such as creating a sense of motion and emphasizing different features to give characters distinct personalities. Readers are presented with a variety of cartoons to try their hand at drawing—from a sporty grandma to a creepy villain. Each cartoon is shown through step-by-step instructions of the whole drawing process, as well as full-color illustrations of the finished product.

Animation—Art and Industry is an introductory reader covering a broad range of animation studies topics, focusing on both American and international contexts. It provides information about key individuals in the fields of both independent and experimental animation, and introduces a variety of topics relevant to the critical study of media—censorship, representations of gender and race, and the relationship between popular culture and fine art. Essays span the silent era to the present, include new media such as web animation and gaming, and address animation made using a variety of techniques.

Animation was once a relatively simple matter, using fairly primitive means to produce rather short films of subjects that were generally comedic and often quite childish. However, things have changed, and they continue changing at a maddening pace. One new technique after another has made it easier, faster, and above all cheaper to produce the material, which has taken on an increasing variety of forms. The Historical Dictionary of Animation and Cartoons is an introduction to all aspects of animation history and its development as a technology and industry beyond the familiar cartoons from the Disney and Warner Bros. Studios. This is done through a chronology, an introductory essay, photos, a bibliography, and over 200 cross-referenced dictionary entries on animators, directors, studios, techniques, films, and some of the best-known characters.

First Published in 1998. Understanding Animation is a comprehensive introduction to animated film, from cartoons to computer animation. Paul Wells' insightful account of a critically neglected but increasingly popular medium: * explains the defining characteristics of animation as a cinematic form * outlines different models and methods which can be used to interpret and evaluate animated films * traces the development of animated film around the world, from Betty Boop to Wallace and Gromit. Part history, part theory, and part celebration, Understanding Animation includes: * notes towards a theory of animation * an explanation of animation's narrative strategies * an analyis of how comic events are constructed * a discussion of representation, focusing on gender and race * primary research on animation and audiences. Paul Wells' argument is illustrated with case studies, including Daffy Duck in Chuck Jones' Duck Amuck, Jan Svankmajer's Jabberwocky, Tex Avery's Little Rural Riding Hood and King Size Canary ', and Nick Park's Creature Comforts. Understanding Animation demonstrates that the animated film has much to tell us about ourselves, the cultures we live in, and our view of art and society.