Animated feature of the early ’80s, Twice Upon a Time got a second breath of life with its Warner archive DVD release of the film. Directed by John Korty and veteran animator Charles Swenson, Twice Upon a Time was a 1983 stop motion animated fantasy comedy film that used a unique technique of cut out animation called ‘Lumage’.
It was in the early ’70s when Korty, who had made animated shorts, decided that he wanted to make a full-length animated film. His first image was that of Mumford, a silent, Chaplinesque figure who was one of the heroes of Twice Upon a Time. Harley Jessup, a production designer at Pixar, where his projects included Monsters Inc. and Ratatouille, contributed to the character design and art direction. This animated film produced by George Lucas involved prefabricated cut-out plastic pieces that the animators moved on a light table.
Korty described that this form of animation was unique as the little pieces of paper had to be animated separately with certain logic to them. For example, if one of the pieces was going to the left then the other was going to the right and they were twisting and turning. Animator Swenson too said that this was unusual and a beautiful animation technique, for each and every cut out had to be hand tracked and once a shot was started it had to be wrapped up entirely.
The film suffered primarily due to inefficient distribution and a limited release back in 1983. The movie was for everyone without a narrowed precise target audience. Moreover, Ladd Company, the studio distributing the film, was financially unstable to release the film worldwide.
Featuring content for all age groups, the screening of the film in the 80’s received huge criticism as a film for kids due to its immature animation. The effort that went behind the animation and the smart technique did not receive notable recognition. However, The Warner Archive release of Twice Upon a Time now has fabricated another chance for the film to imprint its mark on the generation that has grown up watching animation meant for all ages. In a way, it has broken the myth that animation is meant only for kids. It is creative, technical, entertaining and effective to all age groups and justifies the old phrase- ‘Old is Gold’…