I got to see a screening of Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis last night at the newly remodeled Sundance Kabuki Theater. It was quite the event, with complimentary hors d’oeuvres and popcorn, a man playing some lovely music on a giant standing bass, and media and press people flitting about. But the star was Marjane who was there herself, along with her co-director of the animated film.

Based on her autobiographical graphic novels, Persepolis follows Marjane’s story of growing up in Iran during the revolution, and her life outside of her homeland, when she flees. The animation closely follows the stark black and white graphic style of her comics, but has also been flourished with shades of gray and minute instances of color. There are so many striking moments, visually, graphically. Some scenes are told with only images, and ultimately end up being more powerful than if they had included dialogue.

Marjane discussed her story and her views in a brief interview on stage before the screening, and her striking firebrand of a personality really burst through. However, her sly humor also was very apparent. And despite the horrors that she faced during the revolution in Iran, and some of the horror that is depicted in in her story, Persepolis is just as much about the humor and absurdity of life and of coming of age in this modern world. I loved it, and will see it again when it is released in theaters.

Check it out! Woohoo!
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I just had a chance to check out the the animation design of Mary Blair over at the Cartoon Art Museum. I wasn’t aware of Mary as one of the first women concept designers for Disney, or her work by itself. However, you instantly recognize her style, since her designs and color styles are distinctly apparent in such classics as Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, Peter Pan, The Three Caballeros, and more. She designed the It’s a Small World ride in Disneyland! You can’t escape her work. We have all grown up with her style and whimsy, and I find myself smiling at images of her art that keep popping up in my mind. She managed to capture something iconic, full of warmth, surreal, and yet playful in her designs. I can only hope to try to emulate some her essence in my own work. Go check out the exhibit! It’s up through March 18th, 2008.

An interview with storyteller extraordinaire, Brad Bird….

Finally had a chance to see The Incredibles a couple nights ago, and have to say, was thoroughly impressed with the final product. Have to give props to a couple hard-working and very talented people I know at Pixar — Katherine Sarafian, the production manager and Paul Topolos, the one-man matte department. I’m happy to see Pixar experimenting with storylines that contain darker elements. They made a gamble with this particular film in that it doesn’t neatly fall into the same glossy package as Monsters Inc or Finding Nemo. (Both spectacular, by the way.) I always felt that animation shouldn’t be locked into the saccharine stereotype that so often is the case. (Thank you Michael Eisner…) Rather it’s just another medium to tell a story, and so far, Pixar has made stunning use of this fact. In the end, it’s all about the story…