Computer Animation Production System

Computer Animation Production System (CAPS)Formerly| CAPS

|

Type| Animation
Computer animation
Predecessor| Walt Disney Feature Animation
Pixar
Founded| 1989; 37 years ago (1989)
Defunct| 2006; 20 years ago (2006)

The Computer Animation Production System (CAPS) was a proprietary collection of software, scanning camera systems, servers, networked computer workstations, and custom desks developed by Walt Disney and Pixar in the late 1980s. Although outmoded by the mid-2000s, it succeeded in reducing labor costs for ink-and-paint and post-production processes of traditionally animated feature films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios (formerly known as Walt Disney Feature Animation). It also provided an entirely new palette of digital tools to animation filmmakers.

## Contents

* 1 History and evolution
* 2 Awards
* 3 Technical capabilities
* 4 Decline and eventual replacement
* 5 Disney animated projects produced using CAPS
* 5.1 Feature films
* 5.2 Short films
* 6 References

## History and evolution

The Computer Graphics Lab at the New York Institute of Technology developed a "scan and paint" system for cel animation in the late 1970s. It was used to produce a 22-minute computer-animated television show called Measure for Measure. Industry developments with computer systems led Marc Levoy of Cornell University and Hanna-Barbera Productions to develop a video animation system for cartoons in the early 1980s.[1]

The first usage of the CAPS process was Mickey standing on Epcot's Spaceship Earth for "The Magical World of Disney" titles. The system's first feature film test was in the production of The Little Mermaid in 1989 where it was used in a single shot of the rainbow sequence at the end of the film.[2] After Mermaid, films were made completely using CAPS; the first of these, The Rescuers Down Under, was the first feature film produced entirely using a digital ink-and-paint and compositing pipeline. Later films, including Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame took more advantage of CAPS' 2-D and 3-D integration.[3][4]

In the early days of CAPS, Disney chose not to discuss the system in public, being afraid that "the magic would go away" if people found out that computers were involved.[5] Computer Graphics World[6] magazine, in 1994, was the first to have a look at the process.[7]

CAPS was designed to run on specialized hardware developed by Pixar, including the Pixar Image Computer. After Vicom Systems—which had acquired Pixar’s hardware division in April 1990—declared bankruptcy the year after, the system continued to be used by Disney for over a decade.[8][9][10]

## Awards

In 1992, the team that developed CAPS won an Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Scientific and Engineering Award. They were:[11]

* Randy Cartwright (Disney)
* David B. Coons (Disney)
* Lemuel Davis (Disney)
* Thomas Hahn (Pixar)
* James Houston (Disney)
* Mark Kimball (Disney)
* Dylan W. Kohler (Disney)
* Peter Nye (Pixar)
* Michael Shantzis (Pixar)
* David F. Wolf (Disney)
* Walt Disney Animation Studios Department

## Technical capabilities

CAPS was a digital ink and paint system used in animated feature films, the first at a major studio. Using CAPS, enclosed areas and lines could be easily colored in a computer environment using an unlimited palette. This replaced the expensive process of transferring animated drawings to cels using India ink or xerographic technology, and painting the reverse sides of the cels with gouache paint. It also allowed for sophisticated new techniques such as transparent shading and blended colors.

The completed digital cels were composited over scanned background paintings, and camera or pan movements were programmed into a computer exposure sheet simulating the actions of old-style animation cameras. Additionally, complex multiplane shots giving a sense of depth were possible. Unlike the analog multiplane camera, the CAPS multiplane cameras were not limited by artwork size. Extensive camera movements never before seen were incorporated into the films. The final version of the sequence was composited and recorded onto film.

Since the animation elements existed digitally, it was easy to integrate other types of film and video elements, including three-dimensional computer animation. CGI in hand-drawn animation had been used for some years, but it first had to be plotted onto individual sheets of punched paper, one frame at a time, cleaned up and transferred to animation cels using xerography, and was then photographed by an animation camera. With CAPS, CGI could be included directly onto the movie without the requirements of being plotted on paper first.[12]

CAPS was capable of a high level of image quality using significantly slower computer systems than are available today. The final frames were rendered at a 2K digital film resolution (2048 x 1234 pixels at a 1.66:1 aspect ratio), and the artwork was scanned so that it always held 100% resolution in the final output, no matter how complex the camera motion in the shot. Using the Pixar Image Computer, images were stored at 48-bits per pixel. The compositing system allowed complex multi-layered shots that was used almost immediately in The Rescuers Down Under to create a 400-layer opening dolly shot. DALS (Disney Animation Logistics System)[13] made use of one of the first large-scale, custom RAID systems in the film industry.

## Decline and eventual replacement

Treasure Planet (2002) and Home on the Range (2004) under-performed financially in their theatrical runs. This, combined with the success of CGI-animated feature films from Pixar Animation Studios and competitor DreamWorks Animation, eventually prompted Walt Disney Feature Animation's management team to close down their traditional 2-D animation department in 2004. The CAPS desks were removed and the custom automated scanning cameras were dismantled and officially scrapped. By 2005, only one desk system remained, and that was only for reading the data for the films that had been made with CAPS.

In 2007, John Lasseter became the studio's new head of the management team and called for the 2-D animation unit's reopening. Rather than return to CAPS, however, Disney's subsequent traditionally animated feature and short film production projects How to Hook Up Your Home Theater (2007), The Princess and the Frog (2009), The Ballad of Nessie (2011), and Winnie the Pooh (2011) were produced using Toon Boom Animation's Toon Boom Harmony commercial animation computer software, which offered a more up-to-date modern contemporary digital animation system.

## Disney animated projects produced using CAPS

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### Feature films

* The Little Mermaid (1989) (ending scene)
* The Rescuers Down Under (1990)
* Beauty and the Beast (1991)
* Aladdin (1992)
* Hocus Pocus (1993)
* The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
* The Lion King (1994)
* Pocahontas (1995)
* The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)
* Hercules (1997)
* Mulan (1998)
* Tarzan (1999)
* Fantasia 2000 (1999)
* The Emperor's New Groove (2000)
* Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001)
* Lilo & Stitch (2002)
* Treasure Planet (2002)
* Brother Bear (2003)
* Home on the Range (2004)

### Short films

* Off His Rockers (1992)
* Trail Mix-Up (1993)
* Runaway Brain (1995)
* John Henry (2000)
* Destino (2003)
* Lorenzo (2004)
* The Little Matchgirl (2006)

## References

1. ↑ Bruce Wallace, Merging and Transformation of Raster Images for Cartoon Animation, Proceedings of SIGGRAPH 1981, Vol 15, No. 3, Aug. 1981, 253-262.
2. ↑ Barbara Robertson (January 2010). "The Tradition Lives On". Computer Graphics World 33 (1). https://www.cgw.com/Publications/CGW/2010/Volume-33-Issue-1-Jan-2010-/The-Tradition-Lives-On.aspx. Retrieved 11 November 2016.
3. ↑ Robertson, Barbara (July 2002). "Part 7: Movie Retrospective". Computer Graphics World 25 (7). https://www.cgw.com/Publications/CGW/2002/Volume-25-Issue-7-July-2002-/Part-7-Movie-Retrospective.aspx. "December 1991 Although 3-D graphics debuted in earlier Disney animations, Beauty and the Beast is the first in which hand-drawn characters appear in a 3-D background. Every frame of the film is scanned, created, or composited within Disney's computer animation production system (CAPS) co-developed with Pixar. (Premiere: (11/91)".
4. ↑ "Timeline". Computer Graphics World 35 (6). Oct–Nov 2012. https://www.cgw.com/Publications/CGW/2012/Volume-35-Issue-6-Oct-Nov-2012-/Timeline.aspx. "DECEMBER 1991: Beauty and the Beast is the first Disney film with hand-drawn characters in a 3D background. Every frame is scanned, created, or composited within CAPS.".
5. ↑ "Alvy Ray Smith: RGBA, the birth of compositing & the founding of Pixar". fxguide.com. 5 July 2012. https://www.fxguide.com/featured/alvy-ray-smith-rgba-the-birth-of-compositing-the-founding-of-pixar/.
6. ↑ "Visual Effects - Computer Graphics World - 3D Modeling - Animation - CGI". cgw.com. https://www.cgw.com/.
7. ↑ Robertson, Barbara (July 1994). "Disney lets CAPS out of the bag". Computer Graphics World. https://business.highbeam.com/410504/article-1G1-16175916/disney-lets-caps-out-bag. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
8. ↑ Today in Apple history: Pixar gets out of the computer game
9. ↑ Steve Jobs Spread Joy With Creation Of Pixar Studios
10. ↑ Pixar Image Computer
11. ↑ "The Academy Awards Database". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. https://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/search/getresults?query={"Sort":"3-Award Category-Chron","AwardCategory":["30","31","32","33","34","35"],"AwardShowNumberFrom":64,"AwardShowNumberTo":0,"Search":30}.
12. ↑ The Disney Animation Renaissance: Behind the Glass at the Florida Studio
13. ↑ Smith, Alvy Ray (1985-01-30). "Confidential Proposal To Walt Disney Productions" (PDF). Alvy Ray Smith personal website. https://alvyray.com/Pixar/documents/CAPS_Proposal_AlvyToDisney_30Jan85.pdf.

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Walt Disney Animation Studios

List of feature films

| Released|

* Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
* Pinocchio (1940)
* Fantasia (1940)
* Dumbo (1941)
* Bambi (1942)
* Saludos Amigos (1942)
* The Three Caballeros (1944)
* Make Mine Music (1946)
* Fun and Fancy Free (1947)
* Melody Time (1948)
* The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949)
* Cinderella (1950)
* Alice in Wonderland (1951)
* Peter Pan (1953)
* Lady and the Tramp (1955)
* Sleeping Beauty (1959)
* One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)
* The Sword in the Stone (1963)
* The Jungle Book (1967)
* The Aristocats (1970)
* Robin Hood (1973)
* The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977)
* The Rescuers (1977)
* The Fox and the Hound (1981)
* The Black Cauldron (1985)
* The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
* Oliver & Company (1988)
* The Little Mermaid (1989)
* The Rescuers Down Under (1990)
* Beauty and the Beast (1991)
* Aladdin (1992)
* The Lion King (1994)
* Pocahontas (1995)
* The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)
* Hercules (1997)
* Mulan (1998)
* Tarzan (1999)
* Fantasia 2000 (1999)
* Dinosaur (2000)
* The Emperor's New Groove (2000)
* Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001)
* Lilo & Stitch (2002)
* Treasure Planet (2002)
* Brother Bear (2003)
* Home on the Range (2004)
* Chicken Little (2005)
* Meet the Robinsons (2007)
* Bolt (2008)
* The Princess and the Frog (2009)
* Tangled (2010)
* Winnie the Pooh (2011)
* Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
* Frozen (2013)
* Big Hero 6 (2014)
* Zootopia (2016)
* Moana (2016)
* Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018)
* Frozen II (2019)

|

Upcoming|

* Raya and the Last Dragon (2021)
* Encanto (2021)

Associated
productions|

* The Reluctant Dragon (1941)
* Victory Through Air Power (1943)
* Song of the South (1946)
* So Dear to My Heart (1948)
* Mary Poppins (1964)
* Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)
* Pete's Dragon (1977)
* Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
* Enchanted (2007)
* Mary Poppins Returns (2018)

People

| Executives|

* Edwin Catmull
* Roy Conli
* Roy E. Disney
* Walt Disney
* Don Hahn
* Jeffrey Katzenberg
* John Lasseter
* Jennifer Lee
* Peter Schneider
* Thomas Schumacher
* David Stainton
* Clark Spencer

|

Disney's Nine Old Men|

* Les Clark
* Marc Davis
* Ollie Johnston
* Milt Kahl
* Ward Kimball
* Eric Larson
* John Lounsbery
* Wolfgang Reitherman
* Frank Thomas

Related topics

| History|

* Disney animators' strike
* Disney Renaissance

|

Methods and
technologies|

* 12 basic principles of animation
* Xerography
* Computer Animation Production System
* Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life
* Multiplane camera

Documentaries|

* Frank and Ollie (1995)
* The Sweatbox (2002)
* Dream On Silly Dreamer (2005)
* Waking Sleeping Beauty (2009)

Other Disney
animation units|

* Disney Television Animation
* Lucasfilm Animation
* Marvel Animation
* Pixar Animation Studios
* 20th Century Fox Animation
* Blue Sky Studios
* Disneytoon Studios (defunct)
* Circle 7 (defunct)
* DiC Entertainment (divested)

Miscellaneous|

* Alice Comedies
* Laugh-O-Gram Studio
* List of Walt Disney Animation Studios short films
* List of Disney animated shorts
* List of Disney theatrical animated features
* unproduced
* live-action remakes
* Oswald the Lucky Rabbit
* Mickey Mouse (film series)
* Silly Symphonies
* Academy Award Review
* House of Mouse
* Kingdom Hearts series
* Once Upon a Time
* Descendants

* v
* t
* e

Pixar Animation Studios

A subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of The Walt Disney Company.

Feature films|

| Released|

* Toy Story (1995)
* A Bug's Life (1998)
* Toy Story 2 (1999)
* Monsters, Inc. (2001)
* Finding Nemo (2003)
* The Incredibles (2004)
* Cars (2006)
* Ratatouille (2007)
* WALL-E (2008)
* Up (2009)
* Toy Story 3 (2010)
* Cars 2 (2011)
* Brave (2012)
* Monsters University (2013)
* Inside Out (2015)
* The Good Dinosaur (2015)
* Finding Dory (2016)
* Cars 3 (2017)
* Coco (2017)
* Incredibles 2 (2018)
* Toy Story 4 (2019)
* Onward (2020)

|

Upcoming|

* Soul (2020)

Short films|

* Luxo Jr. (1986)
* Red's Dream (1987)
* Tin Toy (1988)
* Knick Knack (1989)
* Geri's Game (1997)
* For the Birds (2000)
* Mike's New Car (2002)
* Boundin' (2003)
* Jack-Jack Attack (2005)
* Mr. Incredible and Pals (2005)
* One Man Band (2005)
* Mater and the Ghostlight (2006)
* Lifted (2006)
* Your Friend the Rat (2007)
* Presto (2008)
* BURN-E (2008)
* Partly Cloudy (2009)
* Dug's Special Mission (2009)
* George and A.J. (2009)
* Day & Night (2010)
* La Luna (2011)
* Hawaiian Vacation (2011)
* Small Fry (2011)
* Partysaurus Rex (2012)
* The Legend of Mor'du (2012)
* The Blue Umbrella (2013)
* Party Central (2013)
* Lava (2014)
* Sanjay's Super Team (2015)
* Riley's First Date? (2015)
* Piper (2016)
* Lou (2017)
* Bao (2018)

SparkShorts program|

* Purl (2018)
* Smash and Grab (2019)
* Kitbull (2019)
* Float (2019)
* Wind (2019)
* Loop (2020)

Series|

* Cars Toons (2008–14)
* Toy Story Toons (2011–12)
* Forky Asks a Question (2019–20)

Compilations|

* Tiny Toy Stories (1996)
* Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 1 (2007)
* Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales (2010)
* Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 2 (2012)
* Pixar Short Films Collection, Volume 3 (2018)

Other works|

* Beach Chair (1986)
* Flags and Waves (1986)
* Light & Heavy (1990)
* Surprise (1991)
* Nemo & Friends SeaRider (2016)

Television series|

* Buzz Lightyear of Star Command (2000–01)
* Monsters at Work (2021)

Television specials|

* Toy Story of Terror! (2013)
* Toy Story That Time Forgot (2014)

Franchises|

* Toy Story
* Monsters, Inc.
* Finding Nemo
* The Incredibles
* Cars

Associated
productions

* The Adventures of André & Wally B. (1984)
* It's Tough to Be a Bug! (1998)
* Buzz Lightyear of Star Command: The Adventure Begins (2000)
* Buzz Lightyear of Star Command (2000–01)
* Exploring the Reef (2003)
* Turtle Talk with Crush (2004)
* John Carter (2012)
* Planes (2013)
* Planes: Fire & Rescue (2014)
* Borrowed Time (2016)
* Mary Poppins Returns (2018)

Documentaries|

* The Pixar Story (2007)

Products|

* Pixar Image Computer
* RenderMan
* Presto Animation System

People|

* John Lasseter
* Edwin Catmull
* Steve Jobs
* Alvy Ray Smith
* Jim Morris
* Pete Docter

See also|

* List of Pixar characters
* Luxo Jr.
* List of Pixar awards and nominations
* feature films
* short films
* List of Pixar film references
* Computer Graphics Lab
* Industrial Light & Magic
* Lucasfilm Animation
* Circle 7 Animation
* Pixar Canada
* Pixar Photoscience Team
* A Computer Animated Hand
* The Works
* The Shadow King
* Kingdom Hearts III
* Walt Disney Animation Studios
* 20th Century Fox Animation
* Blue Sky Studios
* The Walt Disney Studios

* Book
* Category

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