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The Thief and the Cobbler was supposed to be the greatest animated feature film ever created! The film is master animator Richard Williams life’s work, a highly revered legend in the animation industry.Williams labored on his dream project for over 30 years. Sadly, his masterpiece suffered a similar fat such as The Magnificent Ambersons and the unfinished Don Quoxite by Orson Welles. Imagine how much it sucks to have your life’s work taken away from you because of money and then released to the public in a form totally different from that you intended. I call this artist’s hell. That’s the tragic and sad story behind The Thief and the Cobbler.

When he began production in 1964, Williams wanted The Thief and the Cobbler to be his masterpiece, and a milestone in the art of animation. Because its complicated animation and independent funding, The Thief and the Cobbler was in and out of production for over three decades. Williams worked for years as a producer of incredible TV commercials. Every cent he earned went into the gradual independent production of The Thief.

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Today’s show is a collection of assorted tales about art and stuff. First, I share the true story of a Jewel performance I attended at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. In the second segment Minion Mike Garvey nominates the great Terry Gilliam for the Man vs. Art Pantheon of Awesomeness! In the third segment Minion Jim Richardson shares his thoughts on the 2011 CTN EXPO and on his quest to get hired by Disney. In the fourth segment I give some advice on things visual artists can do to sharpen their creativity.The Final segment is a bit I wrote called “Every Artist’s Dream.” It’s a tongue in cheek look at what we all fantasize about when we’re sitting at the coffee shop scribbling away in our sketchbooks!

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Interview with Mark Kirkland three time Emmy Award winning Director (The Simpsons).
Multi Award winning Filmmaker, Writer/Director/ Antique movie camera collector and cinematographer.

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My guest today is the exceptionally talented Artist, Animator, Director, Professor, and Writer Nancy Beiman.
Nancy Beiman hails from New Jersey, likes to travel and owns a cat named Gizmo! She wasn’t the first woman to work at the Disney Studio. There were many women before her who worked on Disney films. But Nancy has earned the distinction of being the second woman to be credited on a Disney film. She has taught animation at Savannah College of Art and Design, and taught at Rochester Institute of Technology, School of Film & Animation until 2008. She now teaches at Sheridan Institute’s Animation department in Canada.

Nancy was offered a scholarship to be part of the inaugural class of the Character Animation program at CalArts straight out high school. Her classmates included John Lasseter, Jerry Rees, John Musker, Tim Burton, and Brad Bird. Nancy was the first woman to graduate from the CalArts Character Animation Program. After CalArts, She went to work at Jack Zander’s Animation Parlour in New York. She has animated Bugs and Donald, Snoopy and Goofy, friends of Fievel Mouse and Mickey Mouse, and Don Martin cartoons! She worked with Chuck Jones, Bill Melendez, Gerhard Hahn, Steven Spielberg, Walt Disney Feature Animation, the Disney Channel, Disney television movies, and Warner Bros.

Nancy Beiman entered an industry that was pretty much a boy’s club. Her raw talent and hard work, combined with an appreciation of tradition, tenacity and courage in the face of adversity served her well.

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On today’s podcast I have a nice long chat with Animation Great Tom Sito! He’s an artist, animator, director writer, teacher and historian! He has more cartoon knowledge and experience in one fingernail than any of us have collectively!