Do you like traditional or computer animation better?

[RetroReviews]

I grew up in the '80s so traditional animation was really all there was until toy story in 1996 was the first computer animated movie I remember for me I like the traditional because it's hand-drawn animation it takes more effort more skill as required versus simply point-and-click on a computer to me 2D animation is something the animators literally themselves bring to life. Computer animation just feels so manufactured like yuck like a soup that's supposed to be hot and it's barely lukewarm it's like no thanks I'm just going to spit it out 🤮 what are your thoughts?

[CupcakeTheDestroyer]

I think it’s a little elitist to say that hand drawn animation is inherently better than CGI animation. I’ll grant you that the early days of experimenting with it were not without flaws (lots of uncanny valley moments for sure) but the tool is only as good as the artisan who uses it. There are plenty of examples of well-done CGI that carry unique moments, combining the right digital textures and movements — so much goes into creating an image and we’re constantly growing with it. I like traditional hand drawn animation and its artistic qualities, the work of James Baxter and his preference for hand-drawn speaks for itself, but that doesn’t mean he hates computers and refuses to work with them.


Animation is as much an art form as painting or writing, it’s all about the story you want to tell. If you just want to make a little movie that might get you some cash? Yeah, the work is going to feel a little soulless and CGI is cheaper and less time-consuming compared to hand-drawn animation. Anything made to make money isn’t going to be as good as something made with genuine heart and passion, the 80’s are definitely filled with shows and movies just like that, pretty much every major cartoon series of the 80’s was just made to sell toys and you can tell in the character designs — how all the ninja turtles are exactly the same physically except for their masks, it was done that way so they wouldn’t have to make multiple molds to streamline toy production. There are plenty of amazing CGI movies to watch and enjoy, Pixar is notorious for telling stories that pull at the heartstrings and look at the detail in their last Incredibles movie — you can see the individual hairs on Bob’s arm! You know how hard that is to do? How much programming is involved to create a level of realism that you don’t even think about? Pixar’s influence on the animation community is notable, you mentioned it yourself with Toy Story and so many studios tried and failed to follow in those footsteps with the standards they made in their movies. Then you have people that make something new, like Klaus. It’s a beautifully animated holiday movie and entirely CGI, despite not looking like it. There’s also films like The Book of Life that has a beautiful animation style throughout the movie, Rango has some amazing character realism while keeping animated features and actions considering all the characters are realistic animals, and then there’s the Spiderverse movies, a film that’s incredibly stylized and combines 2d and 3d animation to make some incredible sequences to watch. The product is only as good as the artist who made it, don’t go shitting on newer stuff just because you’re nostalgic.

[RetroReviews]

Thank you for the response you have a lot of interesting points. And I don't think any of your points are wrong but a couple things you said is really my point you said it might feel a little soulless and it's like that's my big hang up it feels like just so manufactured and there's no heart in it. And my thing is with HD like what you said with you can see the individual hairs on the person's arm question is do real people really want to see that individual hairs? And with HD you can see people's wrinkles better and their bloodshot eyes better and their pores in their face but do I want to see that and the answer is no I don't. I appreciate the hard work that it takes with hand-drawn animation because for them to do that you know the heart's in it you can feel the love. One of the last movies that I really liked with hand drawn animation was The Prince of Egypt. . But yeah watching today's CGI is like having a glob of silly putty in my mouth I can't wait to get it out yuk 🤮 . I'm not shitting on newer stuff just because I'm being nostalgic. To give you another example a person that only knew about the newer transformers movies. I showed them a few episodes of The Generation 1 '80s cartoon. They was like wow in the cartoon they actually have a personality where they're like an actual character and there's a dynamic between the characters. I was like you got it... that's why I like it. Love those Dynamics between characters and relationships and just love that raw original work. Not something reimagined rehashed and rehashed again slap some impressive CGI effects and call it a movie. Personally for me the transformers and the movies to me they tried to make the robots to complex cuz I'm like looking at it I'm like what am I even looking at here it looks like a jumbled garbled up mess

[CupcakeTheDestroyer]

Your point references the writing of the story, not the medium in which it is told. Purely in terms of animation based on skill level, the modern cgi transformer movies are more well done than those of the 1980’s, but the writing is different. Today’s writing is a WHOLE other issue, and you’d be surprised how little you would miss those wrinkles and hairs in media that doesn’t have it. Look at Jimmy Neutron, for example. Hideous, all of it. Even the people made to be pretty are hard to look at directly. Everyone and everything looks like it’s plastic.

[RetroReviews]

The newer technology and better more high-def details does not impress me at all. I mean to me the 80s and 90s had some of the best movies there was I would take a lot of them over today stuff because it wasn't all about impressive CGI it was about characters and the interaction and dynamic of those characters and a story to go along with it. So I will take that hand-drawn Generation 1 animation any day over the far superior CGI they got going on now because as far as characters and story the older stuff those holds my attention it just comes down to that the newer stuff just just does not hold my attention it's I find it boring. Cuz that's the thing with modern movie Makers they've fell in love with the technology so much I believe that character development and storytelling has taken a back seat and like oh let's just overload the senses and give him a bunch of eye candy that'll be cool right? Like Terminator 2 is my favorite movie of all time that movie had a mixture of practical effects and CGI right they did practical whenever they could and CGI when they had to. I just liked it when you could say about a movie hey that was a pretty cool effect but now the whole freaking movie is in effect it's like sensory overload it's like effects effects effects after another after another. It's like enough already. So that's why I think I'm numb to today's stuff cuz it's just like same old same old blah blah blah. Give me something real

[CupcakeTheDestroyer]

It sounds like your issue is more with the writing rather than the presentation. In which case, I agree. Modern storytelling is no longer about building a captivating, long tale to keep you watching for hours and hours, studios have noticed that as technology in social media specifically has advanced and online videos are now the go-to for information, attention spans have dropped. It’s no longer entertaining to watch an extra hour of the director’s cut because it becomes boring for the audience watching it. You want the stories that build on the characters to tell the plot, and I can appreciate those too. But neither of us can control the all-powerful influence that is entertainment marketing and how executives focus the hardest on streamlining stories to tell them to the lowest common denominator of a certain audience.

[RetroReviews]

That's a big part of it but also for me it is the presentation too it's really the whole package. Rambo 2 is one of my favorite movies you appreciated when you ser Stallone climbing that Hill covered in mud along with his AK-47 covered in mud as he was fending off the enemies waiting on the chopper to come in as he was dragging up a pow with him. They shot that movie in Mexico just simulate the jungles of Vietnam. That's my thing it's like go on location somewhere put these actors in a real environment not just in front of a green screen.

[CupcakeTheDestroyer]

That is indeed location filming, a majority of scenes meant to be in American forests are often shot in Canada where the greenery is more immersive

[SandandWaves]

I like the older animation, looks better. I mostly have the older one's, I can't really pinpoint why because I don't know how to describe what am thinking. I like the new animations too but only because I like what the movie is about. The older animation, just feels better to watch being an animaton movie because the now one's just seem like am watching a non animation movie, somehow, so it pretty much takes away the whole animation view.

[Nikki1989]

Neither. Even when I was a child, I thought videos were juvenile at best.

[Nikki1989]

*video games

[RetroReviews]

Well the question wasn't about video games it was about cartoons or movies that kind of animation. maybe you just looked at the picture of the transformer and thought video game?