Michael Spur

Michael Sporn (born April 23, 1946 in New York City , † January 19, 2014 there ) was an American animator , film director and screenwriter , who became known for his film adaptations of children's books and fairy tales.

Life

Sporn began working as an animator for John Hubley and Faith Hubley in the 1970s and has been involved in the films Cockaboody , Everybody Rides The Carousel and the Letterman series, among others . He worked with Richard Williams on the animated film Raggedy Ann and Andy: A Musical Adventure in 1977 .

In 1980, Sporn founded his own animation studio, Michael Sporn Animation. In the period that followed, numerous animated films and series were made, primarily for television. He was particularly successful with his adaptations of children's books, including Morris' Disappearing Bag (1982) based on a children's book by Rosemary Wells , and Doctor de Soto based on a children's book by William Steig . Doctor De Soto received an Oscar nomination in 1985 for Best Animated Short Film . Another film adaptation of a book by William Steig was Abel's Island in 1989 , which received an Emmynomination and was broadcast by PBS as part of the Long Ago & Far Away series. Sporn received a CableACE Award for the children's film The Story of Dancing Frog, based on a book by Quentin Blake , which aired on HBO . Sporn's works by Hans Christian Andersen have been adapted several times , including The Red Shoes (1989) and The Little Match Girl (1990).

Sporn died of pancreatic cancer in Manhattan on January 19, 2014, at the age of 67 .

Filmography (selection)

• 1980: Byron B. Blackbear and the Scientific Method
• 1981: Why We Need Doctors: No Measles, No Mumps for Me
• 1982: Morris's Disappearing Bag
• 1984: Doctor DeSoto
• 1985: The Amazing Bone
• 1986: The Mysterious Tadpole
• 1987: Lyle, Lyle Crocodile: The Musical - The House on East 88th Street (TV)
• 1987: Santabear's High Flying Adventure
• 1988: Max's Christmas
• 1988: Abel's Island
• 1989: What's Under My Bed?
• 1989: The Story of the Dancing Frog
• 1989: The Hunting of the Snark
• 1989: Baby's Storytime
• 1989: The Red Shoes (TV)
• 1990: Earthday Birthday
• 1990: Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
• 1990: The Marzipan Pig
• 1990: The Little Match Girl (TV)
• 1991: The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash
• 1991: Max's Chocolate Chicken
• 1991: The Emperor 'New Clothes (TV)
• 1991: Jazztime Tale (TV)
• 1991: Ira Sleeps Over (TV)
• 1992: Nonesense and Lullabyes: Nursery Rhymes
• 1992: A Child's Garden of Verses (TV)
• 1992: Nightingale (TV)
• 1992: The Poky Little Puppy's First Christmas
• 1992: Nonesense and Lullabyes: Poems
• 1992: Monty
• 1993: The Talking Eggs (TV)
• 1993: The Country Mouse & the City Mouse: A Christmas Tale (TV)
• 1994: Whitewash (TV)
• 1995: The Land of the Four Winds
• 1997: White Fang
• 1997: The Ten Commandments
• 1997: Champagne
• 1999: Leo the Late Bloomer
• 2000: Yo! Yes?
• 2002: I, Crocodile
• 2002: The Night Before Christmas: A Mouse Tale (TV)
• 2002: Mona Mon Amour
• 2004: Happy to Be Nappy and Other Stories of Me (TV)
• 2005: The Man Who Walked Between the Towers
• 2006: Reading to Your Bunny
• 2013: Poe

Awards (selection)

• 1984: OIAF Award - Films for Children, Ottawa International Animation Festival , for Doctor De Soto
• 1985: Oscar nomination , Best Animated Short , for Doctor De Soto
• 1989: Nomination Emmy Award , Outstanding Animated Program, for Abel's Island
• 1991: CableACE Award for The Story of the Dancing Frog
• 1993: CableACE Award for Ira Sleeps Over
• 1994: Christal Heart Award, Heartland Film Festival, for Monty
• 1994: Children's Jury Award - Animated Short Film or Video Over 15 Minutes, Chicago International Children's Film Festival for Whitewash
• 1995: Christal Heart Award, Heartland Film Festival, for Whitewash
• 1996: Rights of the Child Award from the Chicago International Children's Film Festival for Champagne
• 1997: Christal Heart Award, Heartland Film Festival, for Champagne
• 2006: OIAF Award - Best Short Animation Made for Children, Ottawa International Animation Festival , for The Man Who Walked Between the Towers

literature

• Spur, Michael . In: Jeff Lenburg: Who's who in animated cartoons . Applause, New York 2006, pp. 320-322.

Web links

• Michael Sporn in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Michael Sporn's biography on michaelspornanimation.com

Individual evidence

1. ↑ William Yardley: Michael Spur, 67, Film Animator, Dies. In: The New York Times, January 23, 2014 (accessed January 24, 2014).