Animated Realism

Introduction

One of the most magical and memorable experiences of my professional animation career was having the honor of meeting Steven Spielberg. I was living in the San Francisco Bay Area and working as an animator on feature animation, visual effects, and commercials. DreamWorks had recently purchased the studio I was working for, and Spielberg flew up for the day from Los Angeles to meet his new staff in Palo Alto. Although there were hundreds of us, he patiently took the time to meet us individually. In addition to briefly introducing myself to Steven Spielberg and shaking his hand, what I remember most about that remarkable day is what he said to us about animation. He talked about how in directing live-action films, often the best part ...