ABSTRACT
During the 1950s and 1960s, worldwide animation turned toward more streamlined characters and backgrounds, limited animation, non-objective designs and an expressionistic use of colors and sound effects. This major stylistic trend defined Modern animation. UPA played a relevant role in this process, since its films anticipated that synthesis of minimalism and reductionism typical of the 20th century by incorporating Modern painting, graphic design and poster advertising into its films. This chapter focuses on UPA worldwide influence, being it either direct, such as in the U.S. or in Canada, or indirect, such as in Western Europe. In the countries belonging to the Eastern European Bloc, as well as in the Soviet Union and in Japan, a new simplified audiovisual language was developed independently, but possibly referring to UPA innovative styles. Here, are presented a selection of international animated cartoons as illustrative examples of Modern animations, in order to determine if there had been an aesthetic influence from UPA and, by contrast, to define Modern animation. These selected films are by John and Faith Hubley, Ernest Pintoff, Tex Avery, Bruno Bozzetto, Dušan Vukotić, Jiří Brdečka, Fyodor Khitruk, John Halas and Joy Batchelor, George Dunning, Osamu Tezuka and Yōji Kuri, among others.
