Chuck Jones Research Paper

Midterm Paper The Artist that I chose to do my paper on is Chuck Jones. The work he has done in the animation industry has inspired me to become the artist I am today. There are many aspects that drew me into this field from character design, bringing a character to life, the backgrounds, and etc. The way he portrayed character personalities and movements is what inspired me the most. To start off Chuck Jones is one of the most praised directors in the history of animation. “During the Golden Age of animation Jones helped bring to life many of Warner Bros. most famous characters—Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd and Porky Pig (http://www.chuckjones.com)”. Chuck Jones had an amazing sense of timing along with character movement. He was
one of the youngest directors at Warner Bros. Some of my favorite films he directed are Bully for Bugs, Duck Dodgers in the 24 ½ Century, Duck Amuck, What’s Opera Doc, and others. The way the characters were created they were believable enough to be like real people. When it comes to character design I really like Bugs Bunny he is a really sarcastic, carefree, semi heroic character with a New York Accent. What really inspired me about the creation of the characters is that they are created from these simple shapes but have these very specific details that define them. Bugs bunny is basically created from a circle and pear like shape. The smallest changes in detail can change the emotion. The simplicity behind the design of Bugs and many of the characters was amazing to see. An example of this can be found in this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlpRoyjX-mQ). This is a video of Chuck Jones demos rationing how to draw Bugs and he breaks into steps. There was a quote I like in the Chuck Amuck movie that said “He doesn’t draw Bugs Bunny, he draws a picture of Bugs Bunny. What I like about bugs bunny is that he is a heroic character. “Before he fought back he had to be provoked” (Chuck Amuck The Movie 1991). Good examples of this are in Bully for Bugs. I see Bugs as an actor where he is able change from one thing to another. In Bully for Bugs he started off as this lost traveler then once provoked become this matador willing to fight the bull. He still retained his character qualities such as his witty sarcastic personality. He fought the bull in a very comical amusing way. He used a red cape to bait the bull into running into unseen hard objects. I was really intrigued with the ways the characters moved with the music when Bugs started slapping the Bull. Here is a link to the film (http://vimeo.com/5040406).
. Something that I really like about animation is the ability to create and use your imagination. The evaporators in Duck Dodgers and 24 ½ Century is something that I saw to be really creative for getting from place to place. Here is an image of the Evaporators.
This inspired me because someone was able to make the idea of the evaporators believable through motion. What I took from this was that anything that you can think of can become believable based on how you showed it. Another Film that he directed was the Dot and the line it is an amazing film that showed simplicity at its best. This film inspired me because it showed me something so simple could do so much. The designs of the characters were simple but they portrayed emotions, spoke thru narration/motion and had their own personalities. These made me think that the art work didn’t have to be extremely elaborate to tell a great story. I thought early on in order to do anything in this field I had to be an incredible artist only. It showed me that story telling and planning played a big role in animation. Dot and the Line (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmSbdvzbOzY). What particularly inspired me most about Chuck Jones his ideas on characters.
In the film Chuck Jones: Extremes and in Betweens – A Life in Animation he talked about how Bugs Bunny was the kind of guy wanted to be, but when you woke up you were still yourself. But when it came to Daffy came to mind he could be Daffy. He believed he could be these characters which really brought them to life. Quoted from Chuck Jones: Extremes and in Betweens – A Life in Animation “This picture shows personality being worked to the end degree with one character” (Extremes and in betweens).

The believability with the characters through their personality what really inspired on the characters I should create today. The way he explains Pepe le Pew in “Chuck Jones: Extremes and in Betweens – A Life in Animation” is based on how he relates to the character. This taught me to make characters believable by basing them on how I think or things that happened to me. To recap Chuck Jones is an amazing artist his ability to direct being one of the best. There are many aspects that drove me to this field but, I would say creating a living breathing character is what I liked mostly. I like the way Chuck put his own touch on characters and the ones he created were extremely believable. I also really liked his planning, timing, and attention to detail when it came to movements. He knew exactly how much time it took keep the films extremely
funny.

Works Cited
"Bully for Bugs." Vimeo. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2013.
"Chuck Jones: Extremes and in Betweens - A Life in Animation." YouTube. YouTube, 11 Aug. 2012. Web. 16 Oct. 2013.
"Chuck Jones Shows How to Draw Bugs Bunny." YouTube. YouTube, 02 Feb. 2011. Web. 16 Oct. 2013.
"The Dot and the Line: A Romance in Lower Mathematics." YouTube. YouTube, 17 Nov. 2006. Web. 16 Oct. 2013.
“About Chuck Jones.” Official Website. Gigasavvy, n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2013.