Norman McLaren

Japanese: マクラレン - まくられん（英語表記）Norman McLaren

Canadian animation filmmaker. Born in Scotland, UK. While studying at art school in Glasgow, he was strongly influenced by the works of abstract animation pioneers Oskar Fischinger and Len Lye, but because he could not afford a camera, his first works were drawn directly onto waste film that had already been exposed to light. After working in the film department of the British Post Office, he was invited to the National Film Board of Canada, which was established in 1939, to become head of the animation department. Using techniques such as cine calligraphy, which is drawn directly onto film, to create images that give the impression of infinite spatial movement by connecting hundreds of original drawings through zooming and overlapping, to special effects using stop-motion photography of people and optical processing, he produced over 70 beautiful and entertaining abstract short films, including Improvisation in Line and Colour (1955).

[Takuya Mori]

Documents List of Director's Works

Love on the Wing (1938)
Ridiculous! Fiddle-de-dee (1947)
Blinkity Blank (1955)
Thrush: A Little Bird's Fantasy Le merle (1958)
Canon (1964)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

カナダのアニメーション映画作家。イギリスのスコットランドに生まれる。グラスゴーの美術学校在学中に、抽象アニメーション映画の先駆者オスカー・フィッシンガーやレン・ライらの作品に強い影響を受けたが、撮影機が買えなかったため、感光済みの屑(くず)フィルムに直接描いたのが処女作となった。イギリス郵政省の映画部門を経て、1939年に設立されたカナダ国立映画局に招かれ、アニメーション部門の主任となった。フィルムに直接描くシネ・カリグラフをはじめ、何百枚もの原画をズーミングとオーバーラップでつないだ無限の空間移動を感じさせる画面、人間のこま撮りや光学処理による特殊効果など、これらの技法によって『線と色の即興詩』（1955）など美しく楽しい抽象短編映画を70本余り制作した。

［森　卓也］