http://www.jackjohnsonmusic.com/music/

This is a link to one of my most favorite musicians Jack Johnson. I think he is an excellent performer and I like what his music did to Curious George the movie. I even think his album covers look great. They all look so relaxed just like his music.

http://www.stinapersson.com/portfolio/acrylic-and-inc/

Once again here is another illustrator called Stina Persson. She uses a lot of different techniques in her illustration and the reason I like her work is because it sort of looks like fashion illustration which I quite enjoy, not the fashion side but the style in which the illustrations are done.

http://www.gezfry.com/gallery.shtml

This is a link to an illustrator/ art director who works in Tokyo named Gez Fry. I like his work because of the way he has incorporated old Japanese art into his. He uses a lot of old traditional work but makes them look really modern. I have always liked looking at others illustration because i have never ben that great at coming up with my own.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJzU3NjDikY

This is a stop motion animation by Paul Cummings & Tony Fiandaca. The first time I saw this was in my foundation course and thought it was brillient. I love the way they run about and think the letter was a great idea. The story is of two friends turned enemys having a bit of a fight.

Cinema Studies: The Key Concepts

Susan Hayward

I was reading the comedy section in Cinema Studies: The Key Concepts by Susan Hayward and found it very interesting. This book is different to all the others i have reviewed, the others look at comedy from a different angle whereas this is just straight forward about comedy. this book talks about comedy being one of the first genres and how comedy is used.

The books talk about how comedy goes against realism and points out some really good facts about comedy. A comedy movies uses all the aspects of a movie from the sound to the characters and there actions. Stereotypes and gender have also been used in comedy from the beginning and the book describes how looks have been used in comedy for example a blond women would not be smart at all which uses stereotypes and gender for the joke.

The book also goes into early silent comedy and how comic hero's such as Charlie Chaplin and Fatty Arbuckle came to be. Comedy is a violent genre but it is light-hearted and the book covers its aggressive humor. Even in the Charlie Chaplin era they stuck to the aggressive humor and even earlier then that.

The section is not to big but they do cover a lot of points on comedy. this book sticks to the basics of comedy and does not get to deep. If your looking for in depth information about comedy then this is not the book you want. The books more like a dictionary for cinema studies.

Animation: Genre and Authorship

Paul Wells

Animation: Genre and Authorship by Paul Wells is the 3rd book I am looking at. This book breaks down genre and what makes a certain genre be put in that category. The main section I am looking at in this book is the chapter Genre in Animation. The chapter begins by talking about genres in the film form and how established genres have created sub-genres and also if there can be any 'pure definition of genre'. The book list down how genre could be understood from it being a category defined by its visuals and technical consistencies to it being the framework of the movie. He also questions his own list on what genres are and asks if these definitions applies to animations. Paul Wells talks about how all movies in a certain genres usually have the same story and gives the example of Scream and its predecessors like Halloween and Friday the 13th but he states that animation can not be placed in these genres because of its ability to make anything become something else, and because of this no certain lines can define what category an animated film can go in.

Paul Wells breaks down the walls of genres in animation and get you thinking about what makes a certain genre and how close each of them are to the other. This book really goes in depth into genres and it principles and make you think if it is possible to categorise animated movies in the same way as a live action.

Animating Culture: Hollywood Cartoons from the Sound Era

Eric Smoodin

The second book that I am reviewing is Animating Culture: Hollywood Cartoons from the Sound Era. This book does not have anything to do with comedy directly but it does talk a lot about the film bill at the time. The book was written by film studies professor Eric Smoodin. The reason i chose to look at this book is because i wanted to know what the animators could get away with in there animations, what they where allowed to show and how far they could push something to make it funny. The book talks about why the film bill was made and how people where worried about the effect cartoons would have on people. The book say the main concern people had at the time was that films where only watched by 'mature' people and cartoons where watched by both 'mature and immature'. The film bill was not made for cartoons but cartoons and animations had to stick to those rules too. One of the rules talks about sexuality which was a major concern for educators and religious groups and the rules where very strict on them where as now we an get away with almost anything. The book also talks about 'Betty Boop', and Tex Averys, 'Red Hot Riding Hood' and the way they got around the bill.

The book teaches a lot about why the cartoons in this era where made in the way they where and why this was the comedy at the time. This book talks a lot about what the bill was and how and who broke the rules to allow us, the future animators, to show almost anything we want.