Ralph Bakshi opened Bakshi Productions, Inc. in 1971 and has produced, directed and written feature films and television for over thirty years. Resulting from your requests over the years, we are now making Bakshi's Private Collection of Artwork available directly from us. Along with the films you will find original production art (cels, animation drawings, development sketches, backgrounds, Character designs etc.) , fine art as well as other collected treasures from the studio.

While we always strive for absolute perfection in the quality of our goods, we realize we are human and if something slips through you are not happy with please let us know! Enjoy the store and come back often to see what new pieces we have for you.

WHAT ARE CELS?
Traditionally, animated films were created by each motion or movement of every character drawn on animation paper. Each image is then inked and hand painted on a transparent material called a cel ? short for celluloid acetate. This cel or cels, whether it is one layer with one character, or multiple layers with multiple characters, are then placed over a painted background and photographed by an animation camera to create one single frame of the film. This process is repeated until the entire film is completed. These cels with their painted backgrounds create the illusion of an entirely different world.

WHAT ARE ORIGINAL PRODUCTION CELS?
Original production cels are the actual cels used to create an animated film or television show. Each one has been hand drawn and painted by an artist, and has then been photographed by an animation camera over a painted background.

This is very different from what are called LIMITED EDITION cels or SERIGRAPH cels. Limited Edition cels are hand drawn and painted re-creations of a favorite image or scene. Serigraph cels are silk-screened re-creations. Bakshi Productions offers only the real, original production cels used in each of the films. There are no reproductions of any sort.

These production cels are preciously collected and becoming more and more valuable as we progress into a future of animation on computers. Animation cels are valued from a hundred dollars, to thousands of dollars. Time and beauty only accentuate this.

WHAT ARE ORIGINAL PRODUCTION DRAWINGS?
Original production drawings are also one of a kind pieces of art from an animated film. Before the image is drawn and painted on cel, the entire film is drawn in pencil by animators. This is the stage at which the artist creates the first true feel of the character and begins to bring it to life through experimentation. These are also highly sought after because they are the original drawings, and considered ?the backbone? of any animated creation. They also can cost much less than an original production cel because they are not painted.

A FEW POINTERS IN WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN CHOOSING YOUR ARTWORK
First and foremost, the image has to appeal to you. It jumps out at you, you have to have it. Looking at it illicits some sort of emotional response, reminds you of something, recalls a memory, brings a world of dream and fantasy to your every day life - like a photograph of ancient ancestors that would be impossible to have.

For those who prefer a few guidelines: here are some pointers that many collectors (NOT ALL) use:

• Artwork that depicts a characteristic pose, expression, or emotion common with the film it is from.
• A character that is facing as close to forward as possible with their eyes open.
• The closer up the character is to you in frame is desirable - either a full body pose or a close up of the face.
• As far as the particular characters go and which to chose from a film to collect, there are a few ways to go about it. Some people like to collect the more obscure characters who show up rarely in the film and are therefore more difficult to find. Others like the main characters. Obviously, it is up to you which characters you like.

We hope this helps a bit. Any questions you might have, please feel free to e-mail us at shop@ralphbakshi.com.