Disney Magic, and More, at Shinbone Exhibit

You’d be hard pressed to find a child, or an adult for that matter, who doesn’t hold a soft spot for the magic of Disney movie classics, such as “Snow White” or “Bambi.” But for Clair Weeks, one of the chief animators of those and other Disney classic films, they represent just one aspect of a charmed, almost fairy-tale life.

Weeks, 79, who lives in Orange County, was associated with Disney during the Golden Age of Animation from 1936 to 1956. During that time, the studio--and Weeks--also produced “Cinderella” and “Peter Pan,” among other films.

But what Weeks remembers most fondly is the time he spent from 1956 to 1982 in India, Nepal, Thailand, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Malaysia, helping those countries to develop an animation industry.

Weeks initially got involved with the project through the U.S. State Department Agency for International Development. That agency, the United Nations Development Program and the Indian Institute of Design in Ahmedabad cooperated on a plan to send Weeks to India to teach animation.

“You might say I became an ambassador of animation. Walt was wonderful,” he said of Disney. “He gave me a one-year leave of absence and an open door. But I never returned.”

Tonight, Shinbone Alley in Studio City opens “The Clair Weeks Retrospective Collection,” featuring the drawings, model sheets, layouts and sketches of the artist’s animation work on “The Ugly Duckling,” “Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs,” “Alice in Wonderland,” “Cinderella,” “Bambi” and “Peter Pan” along with memorabilia from his travels and work in India, Nepal, Thailand, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Malaysia. The exhibit opens with an artist’s reception from 6 to 10 tonight.

“He’s truly an admired animator,” said Shinbone Alley’s owner Celeste Wilson, whose husband was also a Disney animator. “He was there at the beginning of Disney’s brilliant cycle of animated films. But he’s also done so much more for the world of animation with his foreign service work.”

The son of a missionary, Weeks lived in India through his high school years. When Disney was approached by the United States and Indian governments to select an animator to head animation development in India, Weeks jumped at the opportunity.

“I definitely had an advantage, knowing the language and culture already,” he said. “But it was really a challenge--a one-man show. I recruited students, developed administration programs, purchased equipment, taught animation techniques and produced shorts.”

Animation was sought after by developing countries, Weeks noted, because “it’s a medium that can be used for education, training, health and family planning, and, of course, as just plain entertainment. It’s a tremendous tool.”

“And it’s an exquisite fine art form, too,” said gallery owner Wilson. “And those delicate, precise drawings transform into stories and life before your very eyes.”

“The Clair Weeks Retrospective Collection” opens tonight with a reception from 6 to 10 at Shinbone Alley, 4350 Tujunga Ave., Studio City. The exhibit continues through mid-August (no exact closing date yet). Call (818) 506-0095.