Full Title: Paper Dreams: The Art and Artists of Disney Storyboards
Authors: John Canemaker
Publication Date: 1999
Publisher: Hyperion
Pages: 272 pages
A NOTE ON THE FROZEN REVIEW: Unfortunately, this week’s film review will not be released until next week – this being Frozen, there is of course a lot of material to get through and I want to do the best job with the article that I can (it looks set to be one of my longest yet), so I decided to take next week to work on it. In the meantime, I’ve put together a couple of book reviews for you.
John Canemaker is a name that belongs in any animation enthusiast’s library. His 1999 work Paper Dreams explores the world of Disney’s oft-overlooked story department, telling the story of how the Disney artists invented the storyboard, something which has become a staple of most film productions (animated or otherwise) ever since. It is more text-heavy than a typical “art book,” but then this one is really more of a reference work. That said, it’s still filled with plenty of excellent concept and storyboard art to support Canemaker’s engrossing text. Physically, the book is large and heavy, set in landscape with rather weak binding (you’ve got to be very careful handling this one; no picking it up from the spine). The cover is also emblazoned with a distinctive charcoal concept piece of Mickey in his crowning role from The Sorcerer’s Apprentice in Fantasia. My copy is actually signed by the author himself, but it’s second-hand, so the inscription is made out to someone named “Ken.” Strangely, my mum did consider that name for me before I was born! Spooky…
Following the introduction, our first chapter is “Tell Us A Story,” which uses the example of Kingdom of the Sun (as The Emperor’s New Groove was then known) to discuss modern story pitching. Then, in “Birth of a Board,” we find out about how Disney first came to use storyboards, way back in 1933. Undoubtedly, one of the major influences was Walt himself; the next chapter, “Walt as Storyman,” explores his famous storytelling abilities. After this, we get a series of four chapters which explore the Disney careers of various legendary story artists.
“Ted and the Boys: Animation’s First Story Department” talks us through some of the earliest; Ted Sears, Webb Smith, Albert Hurter and Pinto Colvig (the latter was also the original voice of both Pluto and Goofy). Next, in “Gangsters Galore: Short Boards,” we meet Harry Reeves, Homer Brightman, Carl Barks (still alive in his late nineties when the book was written), T. Hee, Earl Hurd, Roy Williams and Bianca Majolie. Majolie was the first woman to work in the story department, starting there in 1935 – until then, women’s roles at the studio had been solely in the ink and paint department. In “Worlds to Conquer: Feature Boards,” we are then introduced to Robert Sterner, Elmer Plummer, David Hall, Joe Rinaldi, Richard Kelsey, William Cottrell and Richard Huemer, and then a final chapter is devoted entirely to the incredible Bill Peet, appropriately dubbed “Master Storyteller.”
The final sections of the book are “Musical Boards,” which focuses a lot on Fantasia and the use of synchronised sound, as well as featuring rare concept art from the package films, and two chapters entitled “The Animator as Story Artist” and “New Boarders,” both of which take a look at the changing role of the storyboard and new arrivals in the story department during the Renaissance era. These included such big names as Joe Ranft, Chris Sanders and Brenda Chapman. These last sections also serve as an interesting snapshot of Disney history at the turn of the Millennium; there are references to many then-upcoming features, some under different titles (like the notorious Sweating Bullets). The book closes with a notes section, an index, some acknowledgements and a bit about the author.
While Paper Dreams is out of print and the binding on most copies hasn’t aged well, this is still well worth purchasing for any Disney enthusiasts, or indeed, film buffs in general. The growing role of the storyboard in film production can be traced back to its roots at Disney in this book, and it will provide you with hours of good reading (I know; I used to read it on the sly back in my first job as a library assistant). If you haven’t got this one yet, get it on your wish-list quick!
Buy it on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Paper-Dreams-Artists-Disney-Boards/dp/0786863072 – UK
https://www.amazon.com/Paper-Dreams-Artists-Disney-Storyboards/dp/0786863072 – US
Feeling Animated 
Ah, Canemaker…I’ve definitely come across him many times.
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