The second major work Tezuka produced as a reflection on the art, craft and history of animation (the first being Pictures at an Exhibition). Legend of the Forest is formally dedicated to Walt Disney, and conveys Tezuka’s ongoing theme of the importance and value of life in all its forms. Told exclusively with music and no dialogue, the progression of the plot develops in tandem with a sequence of stylistic changes which reflect a micro-history of animation: from early negative line-drawings to Windsor McCay’s comic-style simplicity, to early Disney Silly Symphony figuration, to Disney’s later fleshy renderings of the postwar modernist styles of Tex Avery and so on. The closing of Legend… also contains a self-reflective ‘battle’ of sorts between the innocent animal – drawn in full animation style- to the evil humans depicting through the limited animation technique (the use of fewer cells) which has governed TV animation around the world since the mid-50s. —MIFF
Osamu Tezuka was born in Osaka at a time when Japan was facing its greatest changes and challenges as a nation. Western culture and art, once rare, were now readily available in Japanese society. Young Tezuka was greatly influenced by the early animated films of Walt Disney, and was especially fascinated by the artistry of Disney’s animated masterpieces, Snow White and Bambi.
While in college, Tezuka began cartooning and created New Treasure Island (Shintakarajima), which sold over 400,000 copies — a staggering figure for a comic book at the time. His artwork for New Treasure Island is admired for its cinematic quality — events and emotions unfold as if the reader were watching a film. Throughout his creative career, Tezuka pioneered the East-meets-West storytelling style that greatly influenced the development of modern manga. Later, Tezuka formed his own animation studio and his innovations in this industry influenced the evolution of a homegrown anime/animation industry that… read more
