There can be little doubt that Disney's latest offering The Princess and the Frog, which uses traditional hand-drawn animation techniques rather than the computer generated effects they have become known for in recent years since teaming up with Pixar, is going to be a big hit with frog-loving families at the cinema this Christmas holiday. The movie is already breaking box office records and has also received great reviews. As with every major film release the Disney Store has unveiled a spectacular The Princess and the Frog themed window at its flagship store on Magnificent Mile in Chicago in the USA.
Time for some 1980s nostalgia with Rupert and the Frog Song from 1984. Directed by Geoff Dunbar and written and produced by Paul McCartney this animated short follows Rupert Bear as he goes into the hills to play and finds his way into a mysterious cave where he witnesses a chorus of frogs who sing what was to become a top ten hit, We All Stand Together.
It won a UK BAFTA (British Academy Award) for Best Animated Short Film and was also released theatrically alongside Paul McCartney's movie Give My Regards to Broad Street.
Just found this classic episode from the TV series based on Kenneth Grahame's Wind in the Willows in which Toad and Badger are set adrift in Toad's hot air balloon whilst Mole is forced to come to the rescue by motorcar down below!
Created using old-fashioned stop-motion animation...such a shame that the predominance of CGI effects today have forced the virtual demise of this technique. Toad is voiced by David Jason of Only Fools and Horses and A Touch of Frost fame.