Last night I was reading a book about Leo Lionni, a nice homage by his Italian publisher Babalibri in the form of a little book packed with photos, illustrations and testimonials of people who knew and loved him well. To my excitement, I discovered that he had created a series of five animations from his books in collaboration with Giulio Gianini. I know Gianini through his work with Emanuele (Lele) Luzzati, which I love and have previously shown here and here. So this morning I searched the internet hoping to be able to post the Lionni videos, but it seems the only way to see them is to buy the VHS or DVD from amazon (unfortunately, all reference to Gianini has been dropped from the DVD credits).
As a great consolation, and as a small personal homage to the great animator who died last spring at 82, here is the first part of the 1978 masterpiece The magic flute, yet another of his collaborations with Luzzati. You can also find a lovely memorial of Gianini at Michael Sporn's animation splog. Of course, I advise you to enjoy the other opera segments on YouTube, but watch out: the combination of music and visuals is so gorgeous ans sweet, the colors, textures and patterns so rich, you may just swoon like I did, overwhelmed by such heavenly beauty!
The suite from Rossini's opera was turned into a very special animated short by Emanuele (Lele) Luzzati and Giulio Gianini. After fighting with each other for a hundred years, three powerful kings decide to make a pact and instead launch a war against birds. Not a good idea! A very feisty magpie is going to punish them and save the day. This innovative cut-out animation was nominated for an Oscar in 1964.
The Duetto buffo di due gatti ("humorous duet for two cats", or "cat duet") is a popular encore piece for two sopranos composed mostly of excerpts from Gioacchino Rossini's opera Otello. This version was animated in 1985 by the wonderful Italian illustrator, decorator, painter, animator and stage designer Emanuele Luzzati (1921–2007). See more of his works here.
Lisa Pacletis a young and talented French/Italian filmaker and animator working in Paris. In 2003, while she was studying at Les GobelinsÉcole de l'Image, she created this flash animation. Ursonate, a conversation between two birds, is based on the Dadaist sound poem by the amazing Kurt Schwitters. Offical selection at Annecy International Animation Film Festival 2004.
