Origin of Cels and the Restoration Process
Interview with Peter Bortz:
Owner of several frame shops and cel restoration for over 17
years.
Origin of the Cel Animation Process:
- First
Cels were Cellulose Nitrate
- First
animations of this type were Windsor McCay 1914, Girdy the Dinosaur which
were in Black and White.
- Continued
into the color era with Snow White in 1937 and other famous films like
Fantasia.
- Song
of the South was the last film to use cellulose nitrate cels. The more
stable Acetate cel material was developed after this time.
Cel Storage and Care:
- Framing
tends to be the best way to store and display cels.
- 100%
acid free materials like cloth matting is best. Cels may have to be
re-matted over time to keep the PH neutral.
- Constant
cool temperatures are very important, especially for very fragile or old
cels
- No
direct sunlight. If framed, using glass that filters UV light is needed.
This glass is sometimes called Museum Glass. Cels need to be “suspended”
in the frame with spacers as to not put pressure on the cel itself. This
also allows it to be removed from a frame at a later time.
- Art
notebooks are good but best stored on a shelf vertically like a book.
Never flat with books stacked on top of it.
The Restoration Process:
- Restoration
is a mater of assessing the damage and using methods and materials that do
not make it worse.
- Problems
such as torn cels can never truly be repaired
- Some
scratches can be buffed out but only by hand. The material is very thin.
- Paint
matching is a problem because while some companies like Warner Bros. Used
paint right out of the tube, others like Disney mix many colors together
to make a new one.
- Cels
to be restored are often brought into a room and allowed to stabilize for
a day or two before work. Otherwise paint can detach from the cel.
Cel Values:
The record is an
original black and white cel sold during a 1980’s benefit auction. It sold for
$450,000.
References:
1 Book: Illusion
of Life, Disney book on the animation process.