Disney on Disney

The Illusion of Life is less textbook and more of a history of the development of Disney animation. Through the eyes of the men told that they have brought for decades under Walt Disney's leadership to the highest technical heights of America's golden animation age, it is peppered with anecdotes and quotations, and offers a deeper insight into the films of the 'classical' period than any Making -Of on DVD they could offer.
For trick filmmakers the book also provides technical advice and an introduction to the approach of the Nine Old Men to their medium. This "Disney Way" is based on drawing techniques. Specifically, the chapter on the twelve principles of character animation is one of the absolute standard texts on the cartoon. However, it is clear that the art of animation is only complete once the craft aspects were internalized extent that through them emotional statements can be expressed. Thus, the profession of animator is with the character of the actor, so actor, equated and achieved its full potential.

Now it is but in The Illusion of Life to "the history of Disney's Disney" and is therefore not absolutely objective. The severe human crises of the early years, which negatively influenced the careers of early masters like Art Babbitt or Bill Tytla are touched upon only briefly. Also the "Disney-way" is often equated with the absolute level of artistic achievement in its field, although animated, both within America and internationally through developments made at the same time, have shaped the media alike. Furthermore, it must be borne in mind that the book was written during the seventies and eighties and treated for a period of the thirties to late sixties. Thus, the chapter on effect animation and image production methods are specifically now hopelessly outdated, because the processes have long been replaced in drawn animation of digital means.

Despite these criticisms is and remains The Illusion of Life is one of the standard works on the cartoon. There are timeless ideas further, which should be heeded particularly today, because animation is becoming the completely commercialized fast goods.