Beloved American film director, production designer, video game designer, animation instructor, and animator Don Bluth has been working on his first children’s book, set to be released Christmas 2023. Don Bluth is best known for directing such animated movies including Banjo The Woodpile Cat (1979), Secret of the NIMH (1982), An American Tail (1986), The Land Before Time (1988), All Dogs Go To Heaven (1989), Thumbelina (1994), and Anastasia (1997). He was also involved with the creation of the Dragon’s Lair video games.
Don Bluth’s first children’s book is entitled Yuki – Star Of The Sea. He drew, wrote, and painted the whole story himself. Bluth first attempted to color the artwork digitally, but in the end he felt it just was not looking quite right, or the way he wanted it to. So back to traditional painting he went, preferring to use gouache as the medium. Gouache is similar to acrylic paint.
The description of the story is described as this:
Yuki, star of the sea, is a delightful story of a little whale who loves adventure. Who always gets in trouble. Against mama Orca’s warnings, he swims too close to the shore where he is captured and taken into a world of entertainment. There he does tricks in a tank in Mexico. Hundreds of people buy tickets to see this fabulous little whale. Hollywood cashes in on Yuki’s popularity and contracts him to play a part in a film about a whale who is homesick and longs to go home. So well does Yuki play the part that it makes him homesick too. Ah, but Hollywood won’t let him go. Yuki has become a great star. He is worth millions.
Children from all over the world write letters to the director of the film begging him to return Yuki to the sea. Finally the director caves in. The whale is put in a plane and flown back to Iceland’s cold bay and there he is welcomed into the arms of his family – and friends.
There will be 32 pages with 34 gouache paintings.
Here are pictures of some of the characters from Yuki – Star Of The Sea:
In announcing this new book comes the other announcement of creating a new company called Don Bluth Studios, LLC. The goal of this company is to create new characters, new ideas, and new cartoons. According to the website, fully animated ideas will be pitched to television networks and online streaming services. They want to be as transparent as possible, showcasing and updating the public with concept art, pencil tests, model sheets, animatics, and more.
Last year, Don Bluth published an autobiography, sharing the story of his life and the many stories of his years in animation. You can purchase the book by clicking here on Amazon or wherever books are sold.
What do you think of Don Bluth’s newest, and first ever, children’s book? Do you think you will check it out when December comes? Are you excited to see what new animations will be shared by the new Don Bluth Studios, LLC? Let us know what you think!
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