[JEANSELLEM VIEWER] — BO MICHANEK KRING FECKNAD FILM 15 - 21.02.1974 — Categories: docs, letters, visual, press — Keywords: Galerie S:t Petri, Jean Sellem, archive — Category: docs — galerie s:t petris:t petri kyrkogata 5lund046/14 78 00"Kring tecknad film" is the theme of the exhibition presented by the young animator BO MICHANEK, 14 years old, from Kristianstad at Galerie S:t Petri from 15 to 21 February 1974.Already at the age of 10, Bo Michanek began drawing his first film, "Mårten Persson & Co". Since then he has made a number of films, which have also been shown on Swedish television.No fewer than 2,000 drawings are required for 5 minutes of animated film! Each drawing is an extensive piece of work in itself. First Bo Michanek makes a rough sketch. The sketch is then redrawn cleanly and coloured. He then transfers the drawing onto transparent paper. After this, the work on the moving figures begins.In January of this year, Bo Michanek won first prize at an international festival for his film "Zoo i fantasin", which is just over 3 minutes long. The film will be shown on the opening day at 6 pm.The exhibition is open on weekdays from 3 pm to 8 pm, and on Saturday and Sunday from 12 noon to 5 pm. — — — Category: docs — — — Category: letters — Hi!I hope this will do.I assume this is something along the lines of what you had in mind.If you would like any changes, let us know.Kind regards,Martin o Bo — — — Category: docs — — — Category: docs — — — Category: visual — — — Category: press — Opening for a 14-year-old“Kring tecknad film” is the title of the exhibition that the young animator Bo Michanek, 14, from Kristianstad is showing at Galerie S:t Petri from 15—21 February.Already at the age of 10, Bo Michanek began drawing his first film, “Mårten Persson & Co”. Since then he has made a number of films, which have also been shown on Swedish television.No fewer than 2,000 drawings are needed for five minutes of animated film!First Bo Michanek makes a rough sketch. Then he redraws the sketch cleanly and adds colour. After that he transfers the drawing onto transparent paper. He then continues working on the moving figures.In January this year, Bo Michanek won first prize at an international festival for his film “Zoo i fantasin”, which is just over three minutes long.The film will be shown on the opening day at 6 pm. — — — Category: press — <p><span style="color: rgb(17, 17, 17);">ARB. Friday 15 February 1974</span></p> — LUND14-year-old animator gives his version of the zoo"Kring tecknad film" is the theme of an exhibition being shown in Lund by the 14-year-old animator Bo Michanek from Kristianstad. The exhibition can be seen from Friday through 21 February at Galerie S:t Petri.Already at the age of 10, Bo Michanek began drawing his first film, "Mårten Persson & Co". Since then he has made a number of films, which have also been shown on Swedish television.No fewer than 2,000 drawings are needed for 5 minutes of animated film. First Bo Michanek makes a rough sketch. Then the sketch is redrawn cleanly and coloured. After that he transfers the drawing onto transparent paper. Then the work on the moving figures begins.In January, Bo Michanek won first prize at an international festival for his film "Zoo i fantasin", which is just over 3 minutes long.The film will be shown today at 6 pm.[Caption]One of Bo Michanek’s animation drawings.Exhibition around an animated filmLUND: "Kring tecknad film" is the theme of an exhibition that the young animator Bo Michanek, 14 years old, from Kristianstad is showing at Galleri S:t Petri in Lund from 15 to 21 February.Already at the age of ten, Bo Michanek began drawing his first film, "Mårten Persson & Co". Since then he has made a number of films, which have also been shown on Swedish television.In January of this year, Bo Michanek won first prize at an international festival for his film "Zoo i fantasin", which is just over three minutes long. The film will be shown at the opening today, Friday, at 6 pm. The exhibition is open on weekdays from 3 pm to 8 pm, and on Saturday and Sunday from 12 noon to 5 pm. — — — Category: press — Exhibition:Animated film by a 14-year-old"Kring tecknad film" is the theme of the exhibition that the young animator BO MICHANEK, 14 years old, from Kristianstad is showing at Galerie S:t Petri from 15–21 February 1974.Already at the age of 10, Bo Michanek began drawing his first film, "Mårten Persson & Co". Since then he has made a number of films, which have also been shown on Swedish television.2,000 DRAWINGSNo fewer than 2,000 drawings are needed for 5 minutes of animated film! Each drawing is an extensive piece of work in itself. First Bo Michanek makes a rough sketch. Then the sketch is redrawn cleanly and coloured. After that he transfers the drawing onto transparent paper. Then the work on the moving figures begins. In January of this year, Bo Michanek won first prize at an international festival for his film "Zoo i fantasin", which is just over 3 minutes long. The film will be shown on the opening day at 6 pm.The exhibition is open on weekdays from 3 pm to 8 pm, and on Saturday and Sunday from 12 noon to 5 pm. — — — Category: press — <p><span style="color: rgb(17, 17, 17);">Bo Michanek’s way of drawing made a great impression in Disney’s studios. So much so that he is welcome to return for work in five years. Here it is Ken Anderson, art director, who is studying Bo’s style.</span></p> — Young Kristianstad artist welcomed back to the USAYou are welcome to come back when you turn 18!” That was the offer received by the Kristianstad boy Bo Michanek from Disney’s studios in the USA during his visit. Bo took part in a drawing competition on the theme of Aristocats and won first prize — a trip to the USA for three people. The Kristianstad boy made an exceptionally good impression on the heads of Disney’s studios, and Bo was invited back to the “land of fairy tales”.Bo’s own opinion of the trip can be summed up in one word: Fantastic!— PAGE SEVEN — — — — Category: press — <p><span style="color: rgb(17, 17, 17);">Mårten Persson, Bo Michanek’s comic character, who has done well in international competition and received special attention.</span></p> — Young man from Kristianstad awarded for TV filmThe 12-year-old Bo Michanek from Kristianstad, illustrator and filmmaker, will make his breakthrough on television next Friday. Mårten Persson, Bo Michanek’s signature character, will then be shown in a four-minute colour film. For his elegant and accomplished drawing, Bo has received a prize in an international short-film competition, Decima Musa. In the final he competed with 47 other young people.In the Swedish qualifying competition he received a prize, becoming one of five who went on to the final.Sweden was this year the host country for the international competition. It was to select prize-winners in two classes, ages 16–20 and under 16. In Bo Michanek’s class, two first prizes were awarded, and Bo received an additional prize for his “very advanced animation technique”.On 15 October, TV 2 recorded a programme featuring, among others, Bo Michanek. On 29 October at 6.30 pm, the programme will be shown in colour on TV 2.Bo is taking part in another competition as well. It is organized by the BBC and an international organization. The theme of this competition is the future: what it will be like. Bo has made an addition to his Mårten Persson film and shows in this addition how the world is moving towards a new ice age. — — — Category: press — This is how many drawings are needed for one minute of film, even though Bo Michanek photographs each drawing twice with the film camera, which he holds in his left hand.Mårten Persson is the main character in the animated film on television, and this is what he looks like.Bosse is twelve years old — tonight TV shows his debut filmBy CHRISTINA KALLUMKRISTIANSTAD (Expressen). Donald Duck and his companions will soon have competition. Tonight the comic hero Mårten Persson appears in an animated film on television.The filmmaker is only twelve years old. His name is Bo Michanek and he comes from Kristianstad.And he is already called Skåne’s Walt Disney.With the film about Mårten Persson, Bosse was among the five best in Decima Musa, a short-film competition for children and young people.After that he received a special prize in the international competition for his free and fantastic imagination. He does not imitate others, which is as unusual as it is pleasing, the jury cheered.In the programme “Säg det med film” you can judge for yourselves.Bosse began drawing the film about Mårten Persson when he was ten years old. Around 2,000 drawings were needed for the short four-minute film.As long as Bosse and his mother Maj-Lis can remember, Bosse has been drawing. But he did not sit like ordinary children, with his tongue in the corner of his mouth, drawing large angular stick figures.No, Bosse drew people who looked like people.His mother Maj-Lis saved all the drawings, because she saw that her four-year-old had something as unusual as both depth and perspective in his drawings.Nor did he copy things — instead he drew completely freely and quite often rather strange things.And Bosse has continued to draw. At least four to five hours a day. When his friends are outside playing ball, Bosse sits at the drawing table, makes his ink lines and moves comic figures around on millimetre paper.He bought the drawing table with his own money, which he earned from an exhibition of pictures in town.Sometimes — but very rarely — Bosse goes out, says his mother.— Oh yes, I play tennis now and then, Bosse protests.His highest grade, a five, is of course in drawing. Nowadays his mother no longer nags him about the other school subjects — she understood long ago that Bosse’s artistic talent stands far above that of other twelve-year-olds. So she lets Bosse carry on.His mother paints herself, but thinks that Bosse draws even better. Bosse thinks Walt Disney is the very best. No one beats him.Bosse would very much like to — and therefore intends to — become a comic artist or filmmaker.He began making films because he thought it would be fun to bring movement to all the millions of figures he is always drawing. (With his left hand, moreover.)At the moment Bosse is working on his second film, “Spolarnas dans”. It is a cheerful ten-minute musical with both dialogue and music.In due course we will probably get to see that one too. And keep an eye on this boy — you can be sure that people will hear about him in the future.TV 2 18.30[Caption]Bosse not only has the ability to draw — he has countless ideas in his head for funny characters and events. Here are some of his horror figures.[Caption]Every movement has to be drawn again from the beginning. Even a short sequence takes several hours to produce.Photo: OLE KARUD — — — Category: press — <p>These characters were made by 12-year-old Bo Michanek. “A Swedish Disney”, say the experts.</p> — Sunday with SDS · Sunday with SDS · Sunday with SDSDraw and travel to DisneylandHello all children!Today you will find a fun surprise inside the newspaper. We are announcing a big drawing competition in which you can take part and compete for a trip to Disneyland in California! And of course one trip is not enough. No, we are giving away three trips to the children who draw the funniest, cleverest and best... well, what? Look inside the newspaper!And you can also read about 12-year-old Bo Michanek from Kristianstad, who despite his young age has already managed to make an international career as an animator. A Swedish Walt Disney, the experts say reverently.But you do not have to draw as well as Bo Michanek to take part in our competition.See pages 25–26[Caption]These characters were made by 12-year-old Bo Michanek. “A Swedish Disney”, say the experts.Sunday, 19 March 1972 — Bo is twelve and spends months drawing a few bouncy minutes[Caption]This is Bo Michanek from Kristianstad — at the age of 12 he has already made several short films and gained international recognition and distinction.[Illustration text]“Spolarna” (“The Reels”) is 12-year-old Bo Michanek’s next animated film, and it is also a musical. Spolarna is a collection of amusing fantasy characters who set things in motion and breathe life into inanimate objects such as bottles, pianos, chairs and gramophones.“It is going to be quite a commotion,” reveals Bo, who is also writing the words and music for the film.“Fantastic! He draws just like Disney!”The critics say breathlessly as they gaze in amazement at Bo Michanek’s twelve-year-old fantasy world. A world full of small, ingenious characters who jump, bounce and play their way through a few brief, hectic minutes of film. Minutes that take Bo Michanek months to draw.Bo Michanek from Kristianstad is only twelve years old, but he has already made a name for himself in international film circles.“This boy has a fine imagination and very good knowledge of film technique,” said the jury at a major short-film competition in Yugoslavia last autumn, and they created a special prize for Bo.Yes, Bo Michanek draws so well that it is difficult to believe he has drawn his film characters himself. Even more difficult to believe that he has made the films entirely on his own. But he has.Before receiving an international prize at the Decima Musa short-film competition in Yugoslavia, he had won the Swedish qualifying competition. His entry was also shown on television last autumn.“Excellent technical work,” the Swedish experts said.“He works with a two-plane technique. Very unusual for a twelve-year-old.”News of Bo even reached the BBC, Britain’s major television company, which wants him to take part in a competition there. In April, the head of the BBC’s short-film department will also come to Sweden — among other things to talk to Bo. And the organisers of the international short-film competitions in Yugoslavia have persuaded Bo to enter again this autumn.“But I don’t know whether I’ll have time,” says Bo Michanek.“It takes quite a long time to draw the 2,000 drawings needed to make a five-minute piece of film. Several months.”Bo Michanek is a very busy young man. As soon as school is over for the day, he rushes home to his mother Majlis and sits down at his large drawing table. That is where he spends most of his free time. It takes quite a lot to lure Bo away from his film cans.SDS nevertheless managed to have a chat with the young filmmaker during a break between homework and dinner.At the moment he is drawing a musical. Two thousand drawings are already finished, but another two thousand still have to be made.“Yes, the films involve quite a lot of work,” says Bo as we enter his drawing den on Odalvägen in Kristianstad. Bo has his own little room, filled with drawings of every kind. Neat piles of completed film sequences rise one on top of another, while freshly painted transparent sheets lie scattered between the piles waiting to dry.The musical Bo is working on is about funny little fantasy characters — “Spolarna” — who dance and bring a whole range of inanimate objects to life. It is going to be a comical farce with tables, chairs, pianos and bottles rushing about to wild music.The music is of course also composed by Bo, with his mother helping him write down the notes.“After that perhaps I’ll make a really long film,” says Bo, who has already begun making some preliminary sketches for the story of “The Tinderbox”.“But that film will require at least 30,000 drawings,” Bo sighs.“And I’ll almost certainly need help with that.”Bo does not rule out employing an entire team of animators in the future.“That’s what the big ones do...”Walt Disney, for example. And Walt Disney is one of Bo’s great favourites.“I saw The Jungle Book seven times,” Bo admits.“And I’ve seen almost all the other big Disney films as well.”It is difficult not to be influenced by the great established animators. Much of Disney can be recognised in Bo’s work. But Bo also has a style of his own. One of his own characters is called Mårten Persson.“Yes, he’s a stupid detective who has a little trouble catching criminals. He’s too fat. He eats too much chocolate,” Bo explains.Mårten Persson nevertheless succeeds in his assignments from time to time, although he has quite a few adventures along the way. It is Mårten Persson who appears in the international competitions. He has become a real celebrity.“How did you come to make animated films?”“Well, I don’t know. It just happened,” says Bo, looking as though making animated films were the most natural thing in the world.“Come on, Bo. You started by drawing comic strips,” his mother Majlis says.“There were all sorts of characters, with the most absurd speech bubbles. I really don’t know where you got it all from,” says Majlis, laughing.She then brings out thick folders of drawings — drawings from Bo’s earliest years that reveal an astonishing gift for storytelling. A quick glance at drawings from when he was seven reveals dialogue such as: “Get over here with some buns, woman. You know I like buns...”“Yes, apparently he took it from real life,” says Majlis, laughing.It is largely thanks to his mother Majlis that Bo has been able to develop his talent for drawing. When Bo began experimenting with “flip drawings” — drawings made in the margins of a book that come alive when the pages are flipped, just as when a reel of film is turned — Majlis had to accept that the whole family library was being ruined.“But now it’s quite amusing to have Bo’s characters running through the books.”“When he was at the height of scribbling in our favourite novels, it perhaps wasn’t quite so amusing.”After the “flip-book period”, Bo moved on to making real films. It is extremely painstaking work. A five-minute sequence alone consumes 2,000 drawings, and every individual drawing involves a great deal of meticulous work. First Bo makes a rough sketch, then the drawing is cleaned up and coloured and transferred to transparent paper. After that comes the work on the moving figures. If two figures in the same scene have to move, Bo draws them on separate sheets. If the legs move, they are drawn on another sheet; if the arms move, they go on yet another; and if the head is also to move, that requires another sheet again. The sheets are then combined. A single scene can therefore consist of quite a large number of sheets.Bo is also so meticulous that he redraws a static background for every scene.“You don’t have to be that meticulous, but otherwise things can so easily go wrong,” Bo explains.“I read somewhere that Disney did it that way.”Bo has also received friendly letters from older, established Swedish fellow artists explaining how he could simplify his technique. But Bo does not want to. His characters live every second. No stiff, dead background for him.Then Bo films everything. He sets up his mother Majlis’s 8 mm movie camera in front of the drawing table and photographs two frames of each drawing. With 2,000 drawings, that means an enormous amount of clicking.“Yes, once I had to photograph a Mårten Persson sequence three times before it came out. There was something wrong with the film. Twice it came back blank from the laboratory.”Talk about energy...But energy is probably the greatest factor behind Bo’s success. Another is his mother Majlis, who supports, encourages and criticises him. In fact, it was she who secretly submitted some of his horror drawings — Bo went through a phase like that too — to the local newspaper. And that was how everything got started.[Caption]Bo with his awards.[Caption]Mother Majlis helps with the music. She writes down the notes...Reportage: Ulla Hårde (text), Bert Olsson (photographs)Sunday, 19 March 1972 — — — Category: press — <p><span style="color: rgb(17, 17, 17);">Friday, 26 May 1972</span></p> — Winning cats gave young artist Bo a future opportunity at Disney StudiosNow the “future is secure” for Bo Michanek, the talented 12-year-old artist from Kristianstad. During his visit to the United States in the first half of May, he visited Disney Studios in Hollywood, where they were so impressed by Bo’s abilities that he was invited to return when he turns 18 to work at the studio. Until then, they will keep in constant contact! Disney Studios also treated him to two extra days in the United States, in order to get to know Bo properly. For Bo, it was a fantastic conclusion to a journey he had won in a drawing competition.The drawing competition had been organized by a weekly magazine and consisted of drawing the cats from the Disney film The Aristocats. Bo won, and the prize was a trip to the United States for three people, worth 15,000 kronor. His mother and aunt accompanied him on the trip, which began on 3 May and lasted a week and a half. The schedule was tightly packed and originally did not include a visit to Disney Studios.But because Bo is interested in animated film — and has himself already been successful in the field — the visit was added on their last day in Los Angeles, where the three spent most of their time. They saw the work of the animators and artists, how the films were painted, how sound was made — in short, the entire process. They met executives, the producer of The Aristocats and The Jungle Book, among others. Finally, Bo was shown a Disney film, after which his own film, “Mårten Persson & Co.”, was screened for their hosts. They thought it was so good that they asked to keep it, together with some of the drawings Bo had brought with him, for the time being.Called backThe next day, the group left Los Angeles and continued to San Francisco, where they were to spend one day before returning home. At their hotel in San Francisco, a message from Disney Studios was waiting for them. It turned out that they wanted the three of them to return to Los Angeles because they were interested in Bosse. Their return flight was paid for, the three were accommodated at the Sheraton in Hollywood, the “hotel of the stars”, and for two days they were given a more detailed tour of the studio.“They thought Bosse was talented and drew in the style they like,” says his mother, Majlis.Will keep in contact“They advised him to study people and animals and to take classes after school. We will keep in constant contact, and Bosse is to send them what he produces. When he turns 18, they want him to come back and work there.”“Fantastic,” says Bosse. “That is what I have always dreamed of.”A gigantic Winnie the Pooh and a watch like the ones worn by everyone working at Disney Studios became the most tangible souvenirs of the visit.But to return to the beginning of the journey: Bosse and his mother Majlis almost talk over one another as they describe their impressions. Bosse’s own account, in the form of diary notes from the trip, is also to be published eventually in the magazine that organized the competition.“Fantastic, tremendous — what can you compare it with?”On 3 May they set off from home, flying from Kastrup to London, where they boarded a jumbo jet.“I was a little scared at first because I had never flown before,” Bo says.“But it passed once we were up in the air.”On their first morning in Los Angeles, the three were taken to Disneyland, which was originally intended to be the main attraction. One day was not enough for the visit, so they returned once more. They also visited a dolphinarium outside Los Angeles and Universal Studios, where Bo toured Western sets and discovered how trees were made to fall on hinges, how rain and fire were created, and so on. They also went on more general sightseeing tours.Working on filmsBut the best part, Bo thought, was definitely the visit to Disney Studios. While there, he even helped arrange for the film Snow White to return to Sweden by pointing out that it had been a very long time since it was last shown. He was also allowed to see part of the film currently in production, Robin Hood.Back home again, Bo has now thrown himself into the drawings for his forthcoming film, “The Dance of the Reels”. Two thousand are finished and another three thousand remain. It will have sound as well; Bo has just bought a sound projector. Great plans for Kristianstad’s great little artist, who is certainly beginning to become genuinely famous: the first fan letters have already started pouring in.[Caption]Souvenirs from the United States are piling up in Bo Michanek’s workroom at home, where he is now busy developing a new film — much to the pride of his mother, Majlis.[Caption]Bo Michanek’s way of drawing greatly impressed the people at Disney Studios. So much so that he is welcome to return to work there in five years... Here Ken Anderson, art director, studies Bo’s style. (Photo: Per Rosenkvist)