Disney Career

Eric Goldberg is best known for his work at the Disney studios, where he has contributed as both an animator and a director. He was spotted by some Disney reps who attended a film festival in California, at which Goldberg was showing a number of show reels from his work at Pizazz Studios. They were impressed and kept contacting him for two years until, in 1990, he decided he would leave his London studio and move to America to work as an animator for Aladdin. During his time at Disney, Goldberg learned the techniques of using both 2D and 3D computer animation techniques.

• Aladdin (1992); animator of the Genie, arguably the most memorable and loveable character in the movie, thanks to the humorous animation of Goldberg mixed with the voice casting of the hilarious Robin Williams. The Genie is known for referencing a number of other movies in his gags, such as Taxi Driver and Disney's own Pinocchio; I think this only adds to his humour as kids who are watching it will find it funny anyway, but an older audience will understand the jokes more fully so they can enjoy it just as much, if not more. Aladdin is a great film, and I think the Genie if definitely my favourite character in the film. I personally don't reckon the film would have been as successful as it is without the Genie. 

Goldberg designed the Genie himself, taking a great deal of inspiration and influence from Al Hirschfeld, namely using the very curvy and free-flowing lines shown in the Genie's appearance, as opposed to going with a more boxy looking character as Disney originally wanted.

An example of Al Hirschfeld's work which inspired the design of the Genie

• Hercules (1997); supervising animator of Phil. Like the Genie, Phil is a very comedic character, though not quite as slap-stick as the Genie. Goldberg was becoming well-known for his talent in creating funny characters, also shown through his own great sense of humor, which comes across in his interviews. I think the humour in Phil comes more from his cynicism, rather than his making jokes, but that fits his character perfectly. I really like the whole film; the humour, the characters, the storyline, but I do think the animation is very well done as there are a lot of action-filled scenes which have been done very well and, as a result, they are exciting to watch.

• Fantasia/2000 (1999); Goldberg was an animator on the sections The Carnival of the Animals, which he animated entirely by himself, and Rhapsody in Blue. The Carnival of the Animals is so funny, and Goldberg has made such an entertaining animation out of the concept of a flamingo playing with a yo-yo. The bright colours in the backgrounds go perfectly against the bright colours of the flamingos, giving a real feel of light-heartedness, a fantastic clip of animation. It is also good that the main flamingo, the one with the yo-yo, is a slightly different colour, so it is easy to tell what is going on in the storyline. Rhapsody in Blue follows the lives of four characters who, during the day have to cope living busy lives in New York. During the day, all the busyness is shown in blue, purple and green colours, showing that the chaos all merges in together, the main characters and the people they're with are shown in brighter colours so they stand out more, making it easy to pick them out in crowds, and giving a really nice effect with the colour scheme. The stylised way in which the cityscape  is shown is also aesthetic to look at; it seems classic, but also modern at the same time. In the end, the characters find the release they need from their stresses. By this time it is night and the city is shown to have bright lights and gives off the fun and lively feel that a bustling city has at night.

• The Fox and the Hound 2 (2006); Goldberg returned to Disney after six years as an animator on this sequel to The Fox and the Hound (1981). It is not so much a sequel as it doesn't follow on from the ending of the first film, however it is about an adventure that Copper and Todd got up to whilst they were still friends, making it a midquel. In this adventure, Copper is interested in joining a group of singing dogs, forcing his and Todd's friendship apart. The animation is just as good as in the first The Fox and the Hound, and overall it is a pretty good film, even if it's not quite the classic of the first one.

• How to Hook Up Your Home Theatre (2007); Goldberg served as an animator in this Goofy short cartoon, in which Goofy attempts to hilariously, and disastrously, set up a home theatre system. I really like Goofy cartoons because they're always so light-hearted, and Goofy is so clumsy that it makes them even more funny.

• The Princess and the Frog (2009); Goldberg played a big part in this fairytale based on a princess kissing a frog prince. He was the animation supervisor of Tiana's (the princess) fantasy scene, as well as the character designer and supervising animator of the character Louis the crocodile. I thought it was great that Disney went back to making a hand drawn (partly) fairytale movie, as it seemed to have strayed away from them for a while. They came back with slightly more modern characters, but they go so well with the story and are so likeable, in the end making an amazing film. Goldberg also animated Louis in a nomination video What the Oscars Would Mean to Me: The Princess and the Frog (2010), after the film received a nomination for Best Animated Movie at The 82nd Annual Academy Awards.

• Winnie the Pooh (2011); Goldberg's most recent completion is the newest Winnie the Pooh film, for which he was the lead animator of Rabbit. I am really glad they went back to the classic 2D Pooh Bear animation for this film because the 3D Pooh Bear animation Disney have recently been making for the TV show My Friends Tigger and Pooh, in my opinion, really doesn't work. One thing I really love about this film is, because of the style and naive storyline, it brings me back to my childhood, as it was one of my most watched cartoons when I was a kid.

Eric Goldberg also worked for Disney in a number of roles other than being an animator, demonstrating how multi-talented he is.

• Pocahontas (1995); Goldberg co-directed Pocahontas with Mike Gabriel, who is also known for directing The Rescuers Down Under (1990), and his animation on Oliver & Company (1988) and Basil, the Great Mouse Detective (1986). Pocahontas is based on a true story which is very old, but bringing a film out about being able to resolve a conflict between two countries in a more fairytale way is good way of putting across to all generations that we must keep peace, especially like in recent years when it has seemed like all some countries are doing is fighting.
• Fantasia/2000 (1999); As well as animating The Carnival of the Animals and Rhapsody in Blue, Goldberg also wrote and directed them. He wrote Rhapsody in Blue in inspiration of George Gershwin and Al Hirschfeld, who both have greatly influenced Goldberg throughout his career. 
• The Magic Lamp 3D (2001); Goldberg wrote and directed this show of his signature character, the Genie. It was part of a combination of 3D CG animation of the Genie, and of live-action character in a stage show, and was created for Tokyo Disney Seas theme park as an attraction, called "Magic Lamp Theare".