Fawning Over Bambi II

In addition to the drawing classes of live deer and the anatomy workshops, Pimental and Deja emphasized the importance of the works of the classic Disney animators, and dissected scenes from the original feature.

While Deja worked on cultivating the feel of the original animation, Pimental fought to maintain a steady pacing of the story, and to keep the colors from being oversaturated. “The goal was to make it as close to the original as possible. Everybody sees what makes Bambi Bambi differently, what gives it its look. My art director, Carol Police, really did a great job breaking down stylistic things in the movie, how they use dark against light, how they use Asian influences in branches. And once we had that, that became the guide of how to make our movie.”

Pimental even insisted that traditional artistic media be used to render the backgrounds, until it was realized that replicating the oil paintings was a major feat. “We tried it, and there was just so much trouble to get colors to bleed together and capture that style. Once we went digital, there was so much more control. I was pretty adamant in the beginning about using oils, but we just weren’t getting the results.” And for inquiring minds, the antlers on the grown deer are indeed traced CG images.

For aesthetic purists, the film does a good job staying true to the vision of the 1942 classic. To the emotionally heartbroken, it provides closure for those who missed Bambi’s mother and wanted to see the fawn’s growth.

“I wouldn’t compare it to the first one, ever,” says Deja, “but for what it is, I think it came out remarkably well.” Pimental agrees. “We knew we had to try to deliver something that felt, in spirit, like it wasn’t detracting from the original. I don’t think Features, in their heyday, ever matched that pinnacle, so I knew we weren’t going to. But what I was hoping was to stay true to the source and not betray it.”