Was the Disney Multiplane camera a Mitchell?
Posted: Thu Sep 11, 2014 3:55 pm
Hello again. I have a question for the group. I'm sure we are all aware of the ground breaking multiple camera developed by Walt Disney (or he at least popularized it.) If you were around in the 50's and 60's and saw an animated movie, it was shot on a multiplane camera and almost always by Disney as well. We know that.
My thoughts have been that most older animation cameras have been Bell & Howell 2709's. The Mitchell being equally up to the task but was most likely used to shoot live motion instead.
Although I know that in the 70's and 80's the Mitchell L-Base and cameras were bought up like crazy by the Asian market for animation use due to the light-tight capping shutter.
What made me think about this subject is that I stumbled on a YouTube video of What Disney explaining the multiplane camera. I'm sure I watched it as a kid but I just re-discovered it. Toward the end of the video we see the camera operators (I guest the correct word is animators) pressing the trigger to shoot a frame on the mutiplane. Then we see it - a Mitchell Viewfinder complete with the company acorn.
Of course, this means nothing as most camera utilized the Mitchell Viewfinder no matter what the make. But still, could it be? Did they use a Mitchell Standard? I can't quite make out the body features.
And I have searched on the internet every which way for "camera make and Disney Multiplane camera" but nothing mentions the make of the camera. So, does anybody know? Screenshot is provided. Thanks in advance.
pebbles
My thoughts have been that most older animation cameras have been Bell & Howell 2709's. The Mitchell being equally up to the task but was most likely used to shoot live motion instead.
Although I know that in the 70's and 80's the Mitchell L-Base and cameras were bought up like crazy by the Asian market for animation use due to the light-tight capping shutter.
What made me think about this subject is that I stumbled on a YouTube video of What Disney explaining the multiplane camera. I'm sure I watched it as a kid but I just re-discovered it. Toward the end of the video we see the camera operators (I guest the correct word is animators) pressing the trigger to shoot a frame on the mutiplane. Then we see it - a Mitchell Viewfinder complete with the company acorn.
Of course, this means nothing as most camera utilized the Mitchell Viewfinder no matter what the make. But still, could it be? Did they use a Mitchell Standard? I can't quite make out the body features.
And I have searched on the internet every which way for "camera make and Disney Multiplane camera" but nothing mentions the make of the camera. So, does anybody know? Screenshot is provided. Thanks in advance.
pebbles