Joseph Gilland — an animation director, special effects animator, journalist, painter, author and musician — died due to cancer on Monday (November 17), surrounded by family while in hospice care. Gilland is remembered as an influential figure in both traditional hand-drawn and hybrid animation effects, exemplified in his book on classic techniques, Elemental Magic: The Art of Special Effects Animation, and as a leader during the industry’s digital transformation.
Across four decades, Gilland worked for several of the most influential animation studios in North America. His early career saw him working on short film at the National Film Board of Canada and on video game animation. The animated path took him to Productions Pascal Blais, Bardel Animation, where he designed and supervised 2D and CG effects on the TV series Silverwing, and commercial directing for clienst like Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, General Motors and Radio-Québec.
Gilland got his start in feature animation at Don Bluth Animation as an effects animator on Rock-A-Doodle, Thumbelina, A Troll in Central Park and The Pebble and the Penguin, before making his way to Disney Feature Animation (Walt Disney Animation Studios. Here, he lend his flair for effects to ’90s classics Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Hercules and Mulan, as well as related video games and in the cel animation department for the stop-motion feature James and the Giant Peach.
Gilland was elevated to head of the special effects unit at Disney’s Florida studio, and served as visual effects supervisor on Tarzan, The Emperor’s New Groove, the original Lilo & Stitch and Brother Bear.
Following his time at Disney, Gilland led the Vancouver Film School’s widely recognized animation program from 2003 to 2005. Later in his career, he focused on putting together his highly esteemed reference of traditional effects animation techniques Elemental Magic, published in 2009, and its second volume, Elemental Magic: The Technique of Special Effects Animation, published in 2012. He traveled the world teaching his class, “An Organic Approach to Special Effects Animation,” and relocated to a farm in Costa Rica, where he applied the his artistic skills to painting in between harvests of mangos, bananas and pineapples.
[Sources: CartoonBrew, J. Gilland bio, IMDb]
