Animator Call Out WISH: “We animated a Disney movie in real time!”

If you thought the animation in the latest trailer for Disney’s upcoming animated film WISH looked unfinished, you’re not alone. Others have been posting similar comments, including people from the animation industry.

Harry Patridge, an independent animator whose works include Starbarians and the excellent Saturday Morning Watchmen parody, tweeted a response to Disney’s WISH trailer on Twitter (X), saying, “We animated a Disney movie in real time!”

"We animated a Disney movie in real time!" https://t.co/fvmmKD225f pic.twitter.com/SSBRjpslq3

— Harry Partridge (@HappyHarryToons) September 28, 2023

Harry followed this up, saying WISH managed to employ the worst aspects of 2D and 3D animation:

You can have the rich lighting of 3D or the verve and expressiveness of hand-drawn, or the worst of both worlds!

— Harry Partridge (@HappyHarryToons) September 28, 2023

Maybe Disney should have kept WISH as a 2D project.

WISH does have a lot going for it as far as settings and lead characters are concerned. So, it’s a bit disheartening when it feels like Disney is taking shortcuts with the type of medium that made the company famous.

Had I not known this was Disney’s next big animated film, I would have mistaken it for another Disney+ kids’ show. The colors are flat in parts of the trailer, and the character models look unfinished. However, this could be due to Disney’s attempt to mix 2D-like linework with 3D items, backgrounds, and characters.

The apparent story involves a king who decides what wishes to grant is also drawing fire. Some are taking guesses regarding the type of by-the-numbers plot that may be lurking in Disney’s newest feature. Honestly? I would be willing to put money on some of these predictions being right, considering how unimaginative Hollywood writers have gotten over the past decade:

Let me guess, the king is the bad guy because in his back story he stole the wish granting abilities for some mystic being "probably female" and is selfishly decideding on who gets their wish granted. And it's up to the young girl to set things straight. A'm I in the ballpark?

— Wes (@blackcore112) September 28, 2023

I can’t wait to see some part toward the climax where the king is disempowered and reduced to a fat, ugly, bald guy so Disney can triumphantly show us how terribly pitiful men are and how infallible “Let everyone have everything, don’t listen to anyone older than you!” girl is.

— Infinitale: Chronicles #1 | For Sale on Amazon! (@InfinitaleComic) September 28, 2023

Some parts of the trailer look pretty good, but this is such a jarring art style that it may take some time to get used to, like when Into The Spider-Verse arrived. But can Disney innovate this artistic choice enough to make it unique and not look like the company is trend-chasing? Let us know in the comments section below.

[Source: Twitter]