Where To Watch
Ray Harryhausen on the limitations of animated special effects
It takes a high-caliber talent like Harryhausen to know his weaknesses
It takes a true master to understand the constraints of a given medium. Only by working in a particular field for a long time can one truly know where it reaches a breaking point. It's no surprise, then, when a seasoned veteran begins to feel the pressure of that box they're in. An industry master might feel painted into a corner after such a long time hacking away at the same specialty.
One man who recognized the restrictions in his art form was legendary special effects wizard Ray Harryhausen. After decades of creating phenomenal stop motion animation work, Harryhausen knew when it was and wasn't a useful, believable effect. His creations weren't exactly photorealistic, but they were groundbreaking for their time. Looking back, there's a tangible quality to Harryhausen's effects that makes CGI seem cold by comparison.
In the 1977 book From the Land Beyond Beyond, the master gave his thoughts on when his animations reached their most effective conclusion.
"There are certain limitations that you have to accept with animation because of the structure of the model and the fact that you don't have muscle but rubber pulling against the armature, and that sort of thing. So you can't always do a naturalistic movement, per se. But you can simulate it. For example, you try to give the illusion that there's a shift in body weight. Otherwise they get off balance. I have this problem particularly with two-legged creatures. They always have to keep their center of gravity over their feet."
Harryhausen was so clever in his work, though, that he often found workarounds to ensure a more realistic quality. While he was often depicting fantastical creatures from far-off lands, Harryhausen grounded the fictional beasts with naturalistic movement, using math and science to make audiences accept his work.
"Sometimes you even have to go through the gesture yourself, just to plant it in your mind. As for the animals, I used to time them with a stopwatch, but I find that sometimes cumbersome and it gives you a false lead. It's better, after a lot of experience, just to feel it, because otherwise you get a stiff, mechanical illusion rather than the flowing motion that you are trying to achieve. So you keep in mind something you've seen. You have to keep those things in mind because you want it to be logical."
