To Be Alive Original Production Model Sheet: Johnson's Wax Bees
Johnson's Wax Bees
MEDIUM: Original Production Model Sheet Print
IMAGE SIZE: 14" x 11"
PRODUCTION: To Be Alive
YEAR: 1964
SKU: CCV1139
ABOUT THE IMAGE: To Be Alive! was produced by the S.C. Johnson & Son for presentation at the Johnson Wax pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair. The film was designed to celebrate the common ground between different cultures by tracing how children in various parts of the world mature into adulthood. The film was shot over an 18-month period in various locations across the United States, Europe, Asia and Africa.
In screening To Be Alive!, it was decided to use an experimental method consisting of three separate 18-foot screens. Unlike the Cinerama process that joined three screens into a single unbroken entity, the three screens for To Be Alive! were separated by one foot of space.
In 1966, a book based on the film was released by S.C. Johnson. This text included an endorsement by Ralph J. Bunche, the Nobel Prize-winning United Nations undersecretary.
ABOUT THE MEDIUM: A model sheet is a group of character drawings illustrating different poses and expressions of a cartoon character. Because a number of artists worked on a single cartoon, these sheets were circulated to the animators to give a uniform look and feel to a character throughout a production.
