The Theif and Cobbler: Help out a fellow deviant

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Trinityinyang
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Okay, here's the scoop.
:icontygerbug:, real name Garret Gilchrist, is looking to go to a screening of Richard William's workprint of Thief and the Cobbler. It's not a very well known film so I'll go over what it's about for those who don't know. 

Thief and the Cobbler is an painstakingly ambitious animated film directed by Richard Williams (animation director of Who Framed Roger Rabbit). He worked on Thief and the Cobbler for 25 painstakingly years (1964-1993). Even with the combined talents of animators of the Golden Age, it is still unfinished. It probably never will be. 

It tells a legend of a kingdom with three Gold Balls (Yes, balls) that brings peace to the kingdom. Without it, the kingdom will fall into ruins. But then, should the Gold Balls ever went missing, a unlikely hero, a simple cobbler, would save the day. It has some similarities with Aladdin. A peasant and princess falling in love with each other and an evil vizier who's trying to take over the kingdom. Then you have a nameless thief (who's like another version of Coyote from Looney Tunes) with his own plans to take the golden balls for his own interests.

As interesting the story is, the movie is better known for it's incredible animation. It has incredibly detailed backgrounds, complex animation, scenes where everything including the background is in motion, being almost animated on 'ones' (Meaning you make all 24 drawings for each second). Considering there are 24 frames per second, it was a very time consuming process. Note that, this was before it was done BEFORE computers. Did I mention the villain was voice by Vincent Price?

If you want my opinion, it's like a Sistine Chapel of animation. The narrative is kind of typical and thin, but boy are the visuals so DAMN good to look at. Even if you don't really get the story, the animation alone will hold your attention throughout the whole film.

Sadly, Richard Williams lost control of the film and it's been butchered into an Aladdin musical rip-off and modified to suit the mainstream audience. But despite the 'enhancements', it flopped.   

If you're interested, the whole movie could be found here. 

Garret Gilchrist spent years editing the film to make it complete as possible. The link above is his work as of now. He gathered storyboards, artwork, footage, etc. from different animators who has worked on the film over the course of 25 years. It became renowned in the animation community. One critic called it 'the most important fan edit in history'. In the end, it helped spread awareness of the film. I know it made me aware of the film. 

But anyway, about the event that Garret Gilchrist wants to go to:

Samuel Goldwyn Theater on
Tuesday December 10, 2013 at 7:30 
8949 Wilshire Blvd Beverly Hills CA 90211

Richard Williams will be there in person where he will screen his own workprint of the film publicly for the first time. After working on the film for so long, it would mean a great deal to Garret Gichrist if he could go there. On a personal level, I too want him to go there. I'm thankful for him bringing me something amazing I never knew existed. Though he's all the way in the east coast and he's in a tough financial situation as of now. He's currently trying to raise $1200 for a ticket, food and housing. Since the event is on December 10, which isn't a lot of time left. I want to help guarantee his trip to the screening. Maybe you guys could lend a hand or two. If there's anyone who's willing to donate, click the link below:


For more info:

Thank you very much. Have a good day.
© 2013 - 2024 Trinityinyang
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nukefox1's avatar
nukefox1

Amazing work I'll spread the word