Analysing Key Texts - Cultural Aspects

Through out my research, there have been a number of different sources that have had a significant impact on my findings. As part of the research that will influence my practical, I have been focusing on not just character animation alone, but also some of the deeper cultural, religious and ethnic aspects that can influence the internal and external design of a character. Despite it arguably being one of the most obvious areas to look into, I decided that Walt Disney Animation Studios was a relevant area to look into. This being, because over the years, Disney has produced a number of full length feature films, the main characters of which differ not necessarily in gender, but when it comes to ethnicity and cultural background these are aspects which are definitely very profound.

One of the main things I have been analysing is the way in which Disney, visually portrays these characters who are from all different parts of the world, at different points in time. After gathering together these examples, I decided that annotating the visual design of these characters would be a good idea. It is not my intent to design one of my characters in the exact same way as Disney, I actually want the design to be very different to Disney. However I felt it important to take note of the different physical and psychological traits given to these characters, and to think about why these have beeb applied.

How Did This Influence my Work?

This made me think more about treating the topic of ethnic representation with caution. After all, it is very easy to offend people, even it is not intended, so carrying out this research did encourage me to think more deeply about the effects of stereotypes used in animation.