The Cartoons Of Halas And Batchelor

"Animation is the most contemporary form of human expression combining the elements of motion, story-telling, sound and space."-John Halas

Program Includes:
The Magic Canvas (1948)
Owl And The Pussycat (1952)
The Figurehead (1953)
History Of The Cinema (1957)
Automania 2000 (1963)
The Butterfly Ball (1974)
Dilemma (1981)

For over 50 years, Halas & Batchelor was the largest and most influential animation studio in Britain. From small beginnings in 1940, they made over 2000 films ranging from comedy shorts to documentaries and educational films. Perhaps their most famous work is the 1955 feature version of George Orwell's Animal Farm. They earned an international reputation for fine animation and for extending the medium to explain complex ideas with clarity and humor. In John Halas' own words: "Animation is the most contemporary form of human expression combining the elements of motion, story-telling, sound and space."

Utilizing a variety of techniques including traditional hand-drawn animation, 3-D pixilation and computer animation, this program clearly demonstrates the wide range of John Halas and Joy Batchelor's work. We are pleased to present here some of the finest examples from the Halas & Batchelor Collection.