multi-plane camera

You’re familiar with Disney’s multi-plane camera, right? (If not, see above) It was, and still is today, a technological marvel that helped establish the Disney product as the most superior in the mind of the consumer. Although the films were dependent on the story and characters and such, the use of the multi-plane camera improved the look of the films so that they were far beyond what competitors had to offer.

Another example is CGI. When the original TRON was released, some animators at Disney refused to work on it because they felt it would eliminate their traditional way of doing things. While this did in fact occur, it also created a whole new area of animation that has seen plenty of traditionalists embrace the technique.

My point is that some people fear technology, especially if they perceive it as a threat to their way of doing things, but such fear is often unfounded. Improvements in technology can make things easier for the artist and can improve the quality of their output.

Just take a look at what technology can do today: you can have an entire multi-plane camera inside your own computer with no need for five technicians to operate it for you!

So embrace technological advancements, you really do have nothing to lose.