OUAN401:
Auteur Theory:
That the word "auteur" practically means "author". This film theory is associated with a man called Andre Bazin, a French critic. It is also associated with writers for Cahiers du Cinema in the 1950s. Film directors are artists in their own rights, they are on par with novelists and great writers as it is a very similar form of art. Films made by a true auteur follow a thematic consistency throughout their work i.e Tim Burton and so forth.
Auteur Theory in Animation:
Animations echoes large scale film production processes - very true, however a great deal more of effort is put into animation as this incorporates more artistic skill in my opinion. It offers for a filmmaker to work entirely alone, freelance etc. It could be seen as and argued to be one of the most auteuristic of film practices. However, few animators have the recognition of being an auteur as they mostly reside under a corporate identity such as Disney or Pixar.
Although Disney is a key figure or art and animation and started out as a one-man band, the companies do follow a set of stylistic processes and techniques and it is definitely easy to recognise a Disney or Pixar film as they follow a set of conventions throughout their films. It is the epitome of the American Dream (in my opinion, can be too tongue in cheek, cheesy, unrealistic ideas of life). Very politically incorrect.
Caroline Leaf is seen as a more traditional, avant garde artist/filmmaker. She uses the process and technique of scratching into the raw film with paint to create a very textured and abstract appearance.
