Douglass Crockwell

From Mographwiki.net

Douglass Crockwell (1904-1968) was an experimental animator who pioneered the use of numerous animation techniques, including direct manipulation animation of paint and wax on glass, and clay stop motion animation. His work is best described as abstract and surrealist, with occasional instances of figurative elements. Something of note about his work is that it often incorporated advanced animation principles such as squash and stretch, ease in and ease out, and anticipation -- something uncommon for abstract animated cinema, especially of that era.

He was also a successful commercial illustrator known for his Norman Rockwell-esque advertising work for companies such as Welch's and cover illustrations for The Saturday Evening Post. This lasting notoriety as a popular illustrator has eclipsed his work as an experimental animator. He is virtually unknown as a filmmaker (even being absent from the Internet Movie Database) and is, at best, obscure even within the animation and experimental cinema communities.

Filmography

Fantasmagoria I (1938)
Fantasmagoria II (1939)
Fantasmagoria III (1940)
Glens Falls Sequence (1937-1946) 8 mins, 16mm, color, silent
The Long Bodies (1947), 4 mins, 16mm, color, silent
Simple Destiny Abstractions (1937-1940)

Glens Falls Sequence and Simple Destiny Abstractions are available on disc 3 of the DVD anthology set Unseen Cinema - Early American Avant-Garde Film 1894-1941. Link

Still images from Glens Falls Sequence: