English animator (1921?2013)
|
---|
Born
| Roland Frederick Godfrey
(
1921-05-27
)
27 May 1921
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Died
| 21 February 2013
(2013-02-21)
(aged 91)
|
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Nationality
| British
|
---|
Height
| 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
|
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Spouse
| Beryl Godfrey (1947?2013)
|
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Roland Frederick Godfrey
MBE
(27 May 1921 ? 21 February 2013),
[1]
known as
Bob Godfrey
, was an English
animator
whose career spanned more than fifty years.
[2]
He is probably best known for the children's cartoon series
Roobarb
(1974),
Noah and Nelly in... SkylArk
(1976?77) and
Henry's Cat
(1983?93) and for the
Trio
chocolate biscuit advertisements
[3]
shown in the UK during the early 1980s. However, he also produced a
BAFTA
and
Academy
award-winning short film
Great
(1975),
[4]
a humorous biography of
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
. Further Academy Awards nominations received were for
Kama Sutra Rides Again
(1971),
Dream Doll
(1979), with
Zlatko Grgic
,
[5]
and
Small Talk
(1994) with animator Kevin Baldwin.
[6]
Life and career
[
edit
]
Godfrey was born in
West Maitland
,
Australia
,
[7]
but his British parents returned to England while he was still a baby.
[8]
He attended school in
Ilford
,
Essex
, and Leyton Art School,
[7]
at first working at Lever Brothers as a graphic artist during the 1930s.
[9]
During the
Second World War
he served as a
Royal Marine
and was involved in the
D-Day
landings.
[10]
Early career
[
edit
]
Godfrey was taken on by the Larkins Studio in 1950
[9]
where he worked with Peter Sachs before leaving to set up Biographic with Keith Learner and Jeff Hale. Other members joined them later, including Nancy Hanna and Vera Linnecar in 1957.
[8]
The company, set up to make commercials for
ITV
, was responsible for the first animated commercial to be shown on the network.
[11]
While still working at Larkins Godfrey made
Big Parade
(1952) and
Watch the Birdie
(1954), a film inspired by a painting by
Paul Klee
, both were filmed in the basement of his flat.
1960s
[
edit
]
Godfrey subsequently made
Do It Yourself Cartoon Kit
(1961)
[12]
which satirises animation and commercial advertising.
[7]
The use of different animated forms, materials and techniques makes it one of his most exciting films to watch. The use of cutout animation for the narrator pre-dates
Terry Gilliam
's use of the technique, and the film is often mis-credited as being produced by Gilliam.
Michael Bentine
provided the narration for the film and worked with Godfrey on a number of films and commercials.
Godfrey's animated work during the later 1950s and 1960s continued to appear in TV commercials, but in 1964 he started his own company Bob Godfrey's Movie Emporium to develop his own creative projects including the children's cartoons. He was also responsible for a number of slightly risque cartoons satirising British sexual habits, such as
Henry 9 To 5
, which was also awarded a
BAFTA
in 1971. He also animated the cartoon
Alf, Bill and Fred
.
As well as animation, he produced live-action commercials and short films. A number of them starred the artist
Bruce Lacey
, who appeared in
Battle of New Orleans
and
The Hanging Tree
. His interest in live action included a number of appearances in self-directed commercials and minor film roles, including The Beatles' film
Help!
(1965) and
Casino Royale
(1967). In 1965 he animated four episodes of
The Beatles
, an animated television series featuring the pop band, which had been sub-contracted out to different studios. Godfrey also worked as an uncredited adviser on
Yellow Submarine
(1968).
1970s
[
edit
]
Kama Sutra Rides Again
(1971) was selected by
Stanley Kubrick
for screening with the UK release of his film
A Clockwork Orange
. Godfrey noted that "Everyone working in films knew Kubrick only ever phoned you to give you a bollocking, so when I realised he was calling to do me a favour I nearly dropped the phone."
[10]
[13]
In 1974 he produced
Do-It Yourself Film Animation Show
which was broadcast on BBC1 which encouraged children to do animation; each episode had established animators talking about their work and different animation techniques. Guests included
Richard Williams
and Terry Gilliam. The series has subsequently been acknowledged by a new generation of animators, including
Nick Park
, as a significant influence on them making animated films. For both
Roobarb
(1974?75) and
Noah and Nelly in... SkylArk
(1976?77),
Richard Briers
was the voice-over artist.
Godfrey was the director of the short film
Great
(1975), a humorous look at the life and works of the Victorian engineer
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
. The film combined animation with some live action sequences. Richard Briers provided the voice of Brunel. In 1976
Great
became the first British film to win the
Academy Award for Animated Short Film
.
[14]
In the
Thames Television
documentary
The Thief Who Never Gave Up
, broadcast in the late 1980s, animator
Richard Williams
credits Godfrey with giving his career its initial impetus: "Bob Godfrey helped me...I worked in the basement and would do work in kind, and he would let me use the camera...[it was] a barter system".
[15]
1980s and after
[
edit
]
Henry's Cat
, created by Stan Hayward and animated and narrated by Bob Godfrey, was first screened on 12 September 1983.
Bob Godfrey was awarded an MBE in 1986, and received the newly established Lifetime Achievement Award at the Bradford Animation Festival on 18 November 2007, with the festival including a retrospective of his films. His later films included social and political satires based on the work of
Steve Bell
, such as
Beaks to the Grindstone
and
A Journalist's Tale
. He worked with Bell again on the series
Margaret Thatcher: Where Am I Now?
[8]
He appeared on a number of programmes and documentaries on animation over the years, including the BBC 2 documentary
The Craftsmen
and the documentary series
Animation Nation
, shown on
BBC Four
in 2005. He also taught animation at West Surrey College of Art and Design (now
University for the Creative Arts
).
[16]
Bob Godfrey had a long association with the
Royal College of Art
. In 1985, under his direction and Dick Taylor, Animation became a separate course with the first students graduating in 1987. Godfrey was made a Senior Fellow in 1989. He told
The Guardian
in 2001: "I teach the basics of animation, then it's up to the individual. Great illustrators don't always make great animators. I've known people who couldn't draw at all who were great animators. You can always spot the ones with real talent. They don't listen to you."
[13]
Godfrey received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the World Festival of Animated Film ?
Animafest Zagreb
in 1992.
[17]
Death
[
edit
]
Bob Godfrey died on 21 February 2013. He was 91 years old.
[16]
[18]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Bob Godfrey, Roobarb animator, dies aged 91
, BBC News, 22 February 2013
- ^
"Bob Godfrey"
.
The British Entertainment History Project
. Retrieved
19 April
2022
.
- ^
"10 Chocolate Bars 80s Kids Loved to Eat|TOTGU"
. Archived from
the original
on 4 May 2019
. Retrieved
4 May
2019
.
- ^
Short Film Winners: 1976 Oscars
- ^
Short Film Winners: 1980 Oscars
- ^
Short Film Oscar® Winners in 1994-Oscars on YouTube
- ^
a
b
c
Paul Wells
"Bob Godfrey (1912?2013
", BFI screenonline citing the
Reference Guide to British and Irish Film Directors
- ^
a
b
c
Jez Stewart
"Bob Godfrey (1921?2013)"
, BFI Film Forever, 22 February 2013
- ^
a
b
Nick Smurthwaite
"One man and his wobbly dog"
,
The Guardian
, 20 April 2001
- ^
a
b
Stan Hayward
Obituary: Bob Godfrey
,
The Guardian
, 22 February 2013
- ^
Keith Learner
"Bob Godfrey was a brilliant cartoonist, delightfully daft and a joy to work with"
,
The Guardian
, 22 February 2013
- ^
DIY Cartoon Kit-teaser-The Bob Godfrey Collection on YouTube
- ^
a
b
Smurthwaite, Nick (20 April 2001).
"One man and his wobbly dog"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
12 March
2013
.
- ^
"Britain's first Oscar-winning animator Bob Godfrey dies at 91"
.
Reuters
.
Archived
from the original on 24 February 2013
. Retrieved
28 February
2013
.
- ^
The Thief Who Never Gave Up
on
YouTube
- ^
a
b
"
Bob Godfrey dead, age 91
Archived
7 April 2013 at
archive.today
".
blog.bcdb.com
, 4 May 2011
- ^
"Animafest 1992"
.
- ^
Hayward, Stan (22 February 2013).
"Bob Godfrey obituary"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
22 February
2013
.
External links
[
edit
]