If anyone wants to know the continuing value of hand-drawn animation in the age of CGI, this three-minute short film "Duet," my friends, is the place to start.

You aren't going to find any computer able to reproduce the pure artistry in "Duet," a short sequence of love from famed animator Glen Keane. Were you to give a class on modern animation, though, this would be a nice way to start.

"Duet" by Glen Keane. This shows the development of a romance between two people — from cell to adult form. It is sheer artistry. Like any painting in the fine arts museum, you may either like it or pass it by. No one's work holds every answer for everybody.


Glen Keane is one of the veterans of the business and has had a hand in the best animation of the past thirty years. He worked on "Paperman," a much-loved animation from a couple of years ago. If you like this short "Duet," you should click over and watch that one. Before "Paperman," Keane was the animation supervisor on "Tangled" and the supervisor of the title character of "Aladdin." He was the supervisor/character designer of Ariel, as in "The Little Mermaid."

Yes, Glen Keane brought the world Ariel the Little Mermaid.

He has been working on commercial animation since 1973, when he was in his teens. His father was Bil Keane, the legendary illustrator who drew "Family Circus." Obviously, Glen Keane inherited a lot of talent. Both of Glen's parents passed away in the past decade.


I hope we don't have to say any more than that about this man's talents. This is state of the art animation done by the best in the business at the present time while he is still at the top of his game. That doesn't mean you have to like it, nothing appeals to everyone. But even if you don't, a lot of other folks will. For someone like Keane, this must be the equivalent of random doodling, as he isn't creating an epic character like Aladdin to carry an entire film company's reputation to the next level.

An interactive version of the love story will be available on Android devices later this year.

Spending time to keep track of animation news is all worth it when you stumble upon something like this.


2020