I suppose this post is really about the tension between doing something on-trend and something with depth of integrity. Although it’s a tough call to move away from what the herd loves, Williams was investing in deeper mastery. 80s bands who stick to their catalogue of past hits surely grow a little dead inside at each reunion gig, where…
I suppose this post is really about the tension between doing something on-trend and something with depth of integrity. Although it’s a tough call to move away from what the herd loves, Williams was investing in deeper mastery. 80s bands who stick to their catalogue of past hits surely grow a little dead inside at each reunion gig, whereas there’s always new ground to explore and enjoy even if it doesn’t always appeal to the marketing department.
Like everything about Williams, it's a bit of a messy story that's open to different interpretations -- it depends on your view of Williams and his work.
Some at the time (especially the old guys) saw him as a maverick genius fighting to save animation. Others (especially on the cutting edge back then) saw him as artistically regressive. His unforgiving perfectionism was either a sign of high artistic standards or a toxic neurosis, or somewhere in between. His fanboyish adoration of the Disney legends, his obsessive tracing and re-tracing of Milt Kahl's animation for the tiger from The Jungle Book, taught him a lot but was joked about even by his idols. He was a complex and polarizing figure. But we do find him fascinating to research!
I suppose this post is really about the tension between doing something on-trend and something with depth of integrity. Although it’s a tough call to move away from what the herd loves, Williams was investing in deeper mastery. 80s bands who stick to their catalogue of past hits surely grow a little dead inside at each reunion gig, whereas there’s always new ground to explore and enjoy even if it doesn’t always appeal to the marketing department.
Like everything about Williams, it's a bit of a messy story that's open to different interpretations -- it depends on your view of Williams and his work.
Some at the time (especially the old guys) saw him as a maverick genius fighting to save animation. Others (especially on the cutting edge back then) saw him as artistically regressive. His unforgiving perfectionism was either a sign of high artistic standards or a toxic neurosis, or somewhere in between. His fanboyish adoration of the Disney legends, his obsessive tracing and re-tracing of Milt Kahl's animation for the tiger from The Jungle Book, taught him a lot but was joked about even by his idols. He was a complex and polarizing figure. But we do find him fascinating to research!