Daniel Crew
Student No: 08171181
MA Animation
Media Discourse and Reflection
Case Study: The use of Nostalgia in Contemporary Animation
Word Count: 2560
Case Study 2000 - 2500 words
In this accompanying essay to my video pieces I have investigated the relevance of nostalgia in
animation and its emotional impact on the audience. Initially I explored the idea of the 'nostalgic
trigger', what constitutes a trigger in animation and its audience universality. Use of these triggers
allow an animator to manipulate the emotions of an audience through different levels of nostalgic
memory representation and applicability. Using relevant psychological theories, (that I have
referenced in my short video series) I have deconstructed two film examples of animation and the
creative processes of two distinct directors who both use nostalgia:
The Toy Story series (Lassater, Unkrich, Brannon 1995- 2010) as a whole demonstrates a good
understanding of complex viewer nostalgia. The series engages with memories of childhood and the
semiotics of the toy but also becomes a self referential trigger of nostalgia. The third film specifically
is emotionally built around audience knowledge of the characters from previous instalments,
manipulating this bond between character and viewer strengthens the film's traumatic sections. The
firm underlying theme of childhood throughout the film also successfully provokes much emotion
across different audience members.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit (Zemeckis, Williams 1998) explores the humanity within cartoons and
conceptualises the affinity between the audience and the animated avatar. Although there is the
continuous theme of the new overriding the old, the birth of automobiles taking over street cars for
example, the film often engages the audience 'relationship' with animation. The film draws on the
viewer's 'blissful' childhood aspiration to walk amongst cartoon characters. Here cartoons are not
constrained to the drawn page, they are presented as actors with real lives, jobs and ambitions.
Brad Bird and Hayao Miyazaki are both highly acclaimed directors of animation. Their films are rich
with an understanding of nostalgia, often including several moments of emotional nostalgic
interaction with the audience. Miyazaki favours an older Japan, he often explores the negativity of
modernisation, romanticising older technology and craftsmanship. Many of his films are inspired by
various Japanese folk tales and historical cultural figures. His film's unique moments of narrative
include character experiences of nostalgic bliss simultaneously engaging audience pleasure. The
subtle nature of these scenes and their ability to stir a longing for that moment in the viewer adds to
the films emotional power. Brad Bird uses similar designs in his work, often recalling memories from
his own childhood to engage the nostalgia of the audience. His movies reflect his personal interest
and affection for the 1950s, for example the iconography in The Iron Giant (Bird 1999) illustrates
both the 1950's Cold War and B-Movie nostalgia. In a similar vein to Miyazaki, it is the subtle use and
manipulation of these universally memories that engages an audience and invites a personal
investment in the presented nostalgia.
This case study aims to be a further my understanding of the use of nostalgia within the animation
field.
The Toy Story franchise finds a universal representation of nostalgia by having its narrative revolve
around toys. The majority of its target audience have playful childhood experiences with toys and
Pixar's character designs reflect an informed attempt at audience universality. The toys are not
specific products of any era they are a cowboy doll, a spaceman action figure, a dinosaur etc. These
'generalisations' become relatable by allowing the characters to represent specific toys that different
audience members may have played with. The use of subtle generalisation provokes nostalgia by
exploiting universal emotions that can also be specifically interpreted by one viewer. In addition to
this physical signifier of childhood there is also the psychological effect of the characters on the
audience. The toys represent a significant development cycle of children, they contribute to a child's
growth and understanding of self. In Mythologies(Barthes 1973) Barthes comments on this:
"toys always mean something, and this something is always entirely socialized, constituted by the
myths or the techniques of modern adult life: the Army, Broadcasting, the Post Office, Medicine. . ."
The audience emotionally accepts the characters of Toy Story as the nostalgia for memories of play
and discovery creates an emotional attachment. Showing the toys caring about the happiness of
their owner, exploits this emotional attachment and transforms them into parental representations
to the audience. (Barthes 1973)
The important significance of the Toy Story trilogy is how the directors chose to use this affinity for
the established characters of the franchise. The fifteen year gap between the third instalment and
first allowed for a new way of manipulating the viewer. The viewer's nostalgia associated to the first
two films could be threatened by the events of the new narrative; seeing a beloved character in
these situations could affect the established equilibrium of the series and create abject emotions.
The narrative is designed to play with audience nostalgia in both a subjective and objective way. The
image of an older Andy putting his toys in a bin bag is visually distressing as the audience have grown
up watching him play with the toys (Kristeva 1982). Toy Story 3 (Unkrich 2010) often revisits
moments from the previous instalments, these visual references and acknowledgments to character
traits keeps the audience engaged with the nostalgia and allows for a constant comparison to the
contemporary.
These scenes of abjection are prevalent throughout the third film and keep the audience attached to
the emotional themes in the narrative. Several moments from the first two films are inter-textually
referenced again in the narrative, with a new context and meaning. In Toy Story 3 Woody calls for
the family pet Buster in a direct reference to a similar scene in the second film (Lasseter 1999), the
visual humour in this being that the dog has become older and too tired to help the protagonists as
before. Through this sequence the audience gains an understanding of how time has affected the
Toy Story universe both visually and physically. The scene has an abject effect on the audience by
showing the aging of a recognisable character but also presenting the idea that the audience has
grown older as well. (kristeva 1982)
Every audience member has a visual and psychological memory of toys; the design of the toys
evokes visual nostalgia and the giving up of the toys evokes psychological nostalgia. Pixar uses their
knowledge of this to manipulate the audience through different nostalgic attachments to the
characters.
The possibility of the established characters being harmed or killed effects the audience
traumatically. The threat of a character being hurt in a narrative is inherently stressful to the viewer,
however in the Toy Story series there is the added sense of nostalgia also attached to them. The
trash furnace scene at the end of Toy Story 3 plays with the viewer's psychological nostalgia for the
characters by showing their acceptance of their apparent destruction. Subjecting these characters to
a 'death' in such unfamiliar circumstances 'terrorises' the audience, visually representing a
devastating end of childhood.
The psychological traumatic element of Toy Story 3's narrative implies the impact of giving up
childhood in the final scene. The act of Andy giving up his toys can be universally interpreted by each
audience member and their experience of similar emotions. The animation becomes the
embodiment of a significant nostalgic event, provoking the specific memory of each viewer and the
audience collectively.
Returning to memories of the loss of childhood has both a positive and negative effect on the
viewer. Abjectly the viewer is reminded of their past and the impossibility of returning to the
moment of 'bliss', however, the drive to experience this feeling of nostalgic pleasure is satisfied
through the return to the memory instead.(Barthes 1975) (Braunstein 2003)
Who Framed Roger Rabbit along with the newly revitalised Disney animation studios was
responsible for a new 'Golden Age' of animation in the early 1990s,(Kohen 2000) instigated by the
film's nostalgic appreciation of past animation. Its narrative updated the interpretations of iconic
children's cartoon characters for the adult viewer and new appreciations for the medium allowed
Warner Brothers and Disney to explore the art form and create new content with nostalgic
opportunities.
The film uses the familiar appearance of multiple cartoon characters to interact with the positive
and negative nostalgia of the viewer. Visually the characters evoke childhood memories of watching
and enjoying their adventures, but changes the representational context allowing the viewer to
interpret them differently. This new visual representation abjectly effects the viewer's psychological
nostalgia; the cartoons are cast out from childhood memories and reveal 'adult' roles in
entertainment. The film establishes a new level of understanding of this reality, distinguishing the
childhood play of the cartoon and the adult 'responsibilities' of the same character. (Holbrook,
Schindler 2006)
The pleasure of viewing cartoons as a child is reflected in the protagonist Roger's watching of a
Goofy cartoon in the theatre, Rogers elation and appreciation for the animation reflecting the
audience's pleasure. The scene becomes a voyeuristic look back into viewer memory of enjoying
cartoons as a child, all viewers will not have seen the specific Goofy short in the same cinema but it
provokes the audience to conjure a similar event from memory. This scene therefore becomes a
universal trigger for the audience's nostalgic pleasure, allowing the viewer to return to a specific
memory and collectively appreciate a pleasurable experience. The establishment and exploitation of
universal memory is also present in the Toy Story series; where toys and childhood are used as
mythologies to trigger emotional events, this film uses audience consumption of cartoons
characters.
A significant element of Who Framed Roger Rabbit's narrative is the character of Judge Doom, his
exploitation of the viewer's expectations creates multiple moments of abjection. While the audience
has an established knowledge of the mechanics of cartoons, the character of Judge Doom
manipulates this sometimes reversing the roles between viewer and viewed. The 'dip' scene from
the film demonstrates the use of this nostalgic understanding of cartoons to induce trauma and
effect the viewer emotionally. In the scene an anthropomorphic shoe is explicitly killed in full view of
the audience, the camera does not cut away nor does the character become another form such as a
ghost or angel. The visual design of the shoe is generic enough to evoke the viewer's nostalgia for
any character they have a fondness for, this can be representational of nostalgic bliss being killed
causing trauma universally. The anthropomorphic nature of the character reflects a certain amount
of humanity reflecting a form of abject trauma through this representation of human
morality.(Kristeva 1982)
Towards the end of the film the 'human' antagonist Judge Doom is revealed to be a cartoon
character and attempts to kill the protagonists, his methods evoking memories of classic cartoon
violence. The audience is confronted with the conflicting ideas of cartoon characters and murder,
with the use of 'slap stick' methods to threaten a real life. Voyeuristic memories of cartoon violence
are reversed and the viewer is made the victim, as the existing boundaries offered by the TV screen
are broken down.
The Toy Story series and Who Framed Roger Rabbit demonstrate a use of both visual and
psychological nostalgia through common narrative elements of toys and cartoon characters. Using
these elements the creators have evoked memorable events in the audience, significant to each
viewer and universally across multiple audiences.
Throughout the deconstruction of the previous examples of animation two distinct types of nostalgic
trigger emerged: the objective nostalgia revolving around visual triggers and the subjective dealing
with psychological issues experienced by the viewer. To explore these stimuli further I also analysed
the collective works of two contemporary animation directors, Hayao Miyazaki and Brad Bird. By
this I aimed to identify their use of both visual and mental filmic elements and how they related to
manipulating viewer nostalgia.
Miyazaki's animations are visually inspired by Japanese mythology, various folk tale creatures and
spirits make appearances in his narratives. His films have a distinct historic Japanese influence but
their relatable depiction of specific elements within the culture allows the viewer to interact with
the animation imaginatively. Another often used visual aspect of Miyazaki's films is the use of older
techniques and technology. Romanticised representations of older alternatives such as Morse code
torches, water pumps and stone wall ovens , illustrate intricate mechanism sounds and sights of
character and technology interaction. Appreciation is also shown for older methods of farming,
travelling and living by having his characters experience joy and satisfaction by practicing these
methods within a more contemporary setting. For example the stone oven scene in Kiki's Delivery
Service (Miyazaki 1989) explores the sensory act of cooking, choosing to emphasise the older
techniques of baking over the use of more modern means. These visual references act as stimulus
for the viewer's memories and underlying nostalgic experiences.
Brad Bird similarly relives nostalgia visually through his own consumption of 1950s American culture.
Both significant works The Iron Giant and The Incredibles (Bird 2004) illustrate many visual
references to prevalent media of the decade. The Iron Giant is a self referential 'B-movie' from a
narrative viewpoint that allows the audience to re-familiarise themselves with memories from
childhood. The lead protagonist Hogarth reads comic books, stays up late watching films and spends
hours playing outside, all which visually provoke viewer nostalgia for similar past experiences.
Both Bird and Miyazaki explore visual themes through nostalgia however it is their over arching
understanding of underlying nostalgia that allows viewer investment and enjoyment. Within their
narratives numerous moments of active nostalgic immersion exist. These are scenes which speak to
each viewer as an individual but are also universally applicable across many audience members. The
making of the lemon drink in Ponyo (Miyazaki 2008) is reminiscent of having a warm drink on a rainy
day, the critic's flashback in Ratatouille evokes past child- mother relationships and the playfulness
of the children in My Neighbour Totoro (Miyazaki 1988) reminds the viewer of childhood exploration
and freedom. These scenes are seemingly generic to provoke similar memories in every audience
member but their subtle articulation allows a personal engagement of specific nostalgia. Therefore
finding universal triggers and presenting them successfully is integral to the manipulation of
nostalgic emotion and viewer personal investment.
Through the completion of my case studies I have identified two types of nostalgic trigger that can
be utilised in contemporary animation. The 'objective nostalgic trigger' stimulates the viewer visually
through the representation of a nostalgic item or image, usually used to ground the audience in a
particular point in time. Whereas the 'subjective nostalgic trigger' stimulates a specific event or
memory in the viewer, this moment of positive or negative trauma is often personal to each
audience member.
The use of these triggers in animation involves an understanding of nostalgic representation and
influence of a wide audience. The subjective nostalgia is achieved through contextualising and
manipulation of the viewer's memories in relation to the objective. Pixar's toys in Toy Story
represent those of the viewer that have specific memories attached to them. By using a universal
element ( the passing of childhood) all audience memories are linked together and the animator can
provoke singular and collective nostalgic pleasure.
Nostalgia has an important interaction with the viewer as it conjures many positive and distinct
emotions, the audience has a drive to experience nostalgia. The viewer constantly seeks the
pleasure of nostalgia in texts, understanding the demand for this offers the animator opportunities
to connect with viewer emotion.
Discourse Reflection Bibliography
Films
Incredibles, The, (2004), [Film], Directed by Brad Bird, USA, Pixar Animation Studios
Iron Giant, The, (1999), [Film], Directed by Brad Bird, USA, Warner Bothers Feature Animation
Kiki's Delivery Service, (1989), [Film], Directed by Hayao Miyazaki, Japan, Studio Ghibli, Toei
Company
Ponyo on a Cliff by the Sea, (2008), [Film], Directed by Hayao Miyazki, Japan, Studio Ghibli, Toei
Company
My Neighbour Totoro, (1988), [Film], Directed by Hayao Miyazki, Japan, Studio Ghibli, Toei Company
Toy Story series, (2010), [Film], Directed by John Lassater, Lee Unkrich and Ash Brannon, USA, Pixar
Animation Studios
Toy Story 2, (1999), [Film], Directed by John Lasseter, USA, Pixar Animation Studios
Toy Story 3, (2010), [Film], Directed by Lee Unkrich, USA Pixar Animation Studios
Who Framed Roger Rabbit, (1988), Directed by Robert Zemeckis, Animation Directed by Richard
Williams, USA, Touchstone Pictures
Books/ Articles
Kristeva, J., (1982), Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection, Translated from French by L. S.
Roudiez, New York, Columbia University Press
Barthes, R., (1975), The Pleasure of the Text, Translated from Freanch by R. Miller, 1st edition
(America), New York, Hill and Wang
Barthes, R., (1973), Mythologies, Translated from French by Annette Lavers, 1st Edition France,
Paladin
Braunstein, N. (2003). Desire and jouissance in the teachings of Lacan . In J.-M. Rabatè (Ed.), The
Cambridge companion to Lacan (pp. 102-114). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Holbrook, M.B., Schindler R.M., (2006), Nostalgic bonding: Exploring the role of nostalgia in the
consumption experience, 11 JUL (2006), Wiley Online Library [first accessed 02/02/2011]
Kohen, C., (2000), Milestones of the Animation Industry in the 20th Century, Animation World
Magazine, Issue 4, USA, Animation World Network
Video Games
Metal Gear Solid, (1998). [Video Game] Kojima, H. Japan, Konami