Prod. 2521 - The Small One (VII) - Section 7 - Joseph buys Small One and leaves for Bethlehem

Animation by Gary Goldman, John Pomeroy, Heidi Guedel, Lorna Pomeroy, Bill Hajee and Ron Husband.

I admit to not being the greatest fan of the scenes with Joseph - the acting seems based out of drawing problems more than out of the character's emotions. Still, several of John Pomeroy's scenes with the boy and the donkey are touching, the most appealing, really. Heidi Guedel's scene does what it has to, while Lorna Pomeroy (Cook) seems to have gotten a scene that no-one else wanted.

After many years of working in the business AFTER having seen the film, I must say that I enjoyed seeing the film again a whole lot more than I expected. I may have been too much of a "Snow White-Pinocchio-Bambi-Dumbo" snob to realize that this little Christmas film has certain merits, the most important of which is that it entertains. As I mentioned a few times, the animation does the job. There are not many brilliant scenes, most is subdued bordering on lackluster, but this is a subdued Christmas film, and the underplayed animation may even help the atmosphere. I enjoyed the songs, though in retrospect I do find "Friendly Face" a bit too close to the main theme from NIMH, and another theme reminds me of the (rather obscure) intro to "I'm Looking Over a Four-Leaved Clover."("Hel-lo ev'ry old familiar face..."). As Christmas films go, it is a rather pure and simple example, and we should at least take note of its existence. Even with the Christopher Robin/Mowgli-throwing-a-stick-and-kicking-a-rock reuse that as such isn't mentioned on the draft, it is clear that "the new people" did their best. They would go on to bigger and better things. I do not mean Pete's Dragon. Anyway, that came before The Small One...

It is still viewable on YouTube: part ONE, TWO & THREE.

I would, of course, love to hear from anyone who worked on the picture about their experiences, the re-dos, the long hours, the frustrations, the triumphs and the wrap-party (if any). Is there stuff we don't know? Are there scenes cut out that you animated? And if you saw the film get made from a distance (like - another wing in the building), what was the overall feeling about the project? Don't be afraid to write: I won't bite!