Cartoon a Day: Defense Against Invasion
Defense Against Invasion
1943
Directed by ?
Available on: Walt Disney Treasures - On the Front Lines
Today I felt like watching a Disney wartime educational short. "Defense Against Invasion" seems by it's title like it would be about defending your home from enemy attack, but it's really about vaccination.
Part of the film is live action, with a cast of boys who were probably picked to try and resemble the Our Gang kids visiting a doctors office. Animation kicks in as the doctor explains how vaccination works to fight diseases.
This is an interesting short as the character and scenery design seem somewhat ahead of their time. The modern look of the "factories" inside the body seems more like something out of a 1950's cartoon.
The highlight of this short for me is the animation of the germs. The movements of these black, spider-like creatures reminds me somewhat of cartoonist Gerald Scarfe's contribution to the film "Pink Floyd - The Wall." It's some creepy stuff, especially for a film that, unlike some of the other propaganda shorts, was intended for kids.
3 comments:
I love the goofy short films that were on the Front Lines set. Very different animation, but showed how it could be effectively used to present boring information.
OMG!!! OMG!!! OMG!!! I have been looking for this film for years. My dad worked for the health department and showed this film to locate schools. I would go with him at the age of 8-10 to help with the projector. He showed it to us, his family, first at home. That is when I fell in love with Peer Gynt. Thank-you! Thank-you! Thank-you for posting this.
OMG!!! OMG!!! OMG!!! I have been looking for this film for years. My dad worked for the health department and showed this film to locate schools. I would go with him at the age of 8-10 to help with the projector. He showed it to us, his family, first at home. That is when I fell in love with Peer Gynt. Thank-you! Thank-you! Thank-you for posting this.
Post a Comment