我們經常在電視上或影院裡看到動畫片，但很少思考製作一部動畫片需要多少人的努力。從歷史悠久、員工眾多的大公司到名不見經傳的小型製作室，我們選出了5家最佳動畫工作室。此排名基於這些公司所取得的成就，相信大家也會認同。
5. Nickelodeon Animation Studio
第五名 尼克羅迪恩動畫工作室
If a pantheon were erected in honor of all the truly great cartoons of our childhood, Nickelodeon would have a spot reserved for it by all the Generation Y adults still coping with their nostalgia. Beginning in 1990 as Games Animation, Nickelodeon hit it big from the get-go with original programs like Doug, Rugrats and The Ren and Stimpy Show. The television network dipped into live-action game shows too with Legends of the Hidden Temple and Figure It Out, but it was the animated series, given the name Nicktoons by the studio, that stood out as a testament to the quality of the channel among both kids and adults.
如果要建造一座神殿來紀念我們童年時代的優質動畫，尼克羅迪恩一定享有一席之地。所有千禧一代的成年人仍有懷舊之情。1990年成立之初，尼克羅迪恩主要進行遊戲動畫製作，推出的原創動畫《道格》《淘氣小兵兵》《萊恩和史丁比》大受歡迎。這家電視網絡公司也將其業務範圍擴展到真人遊戲秀，比如《神秘的古廟》和《尋找答案》。然而令尼克羅迪恩備受矚目的還是它的動畫連續劇，工作室為其取名為尼克卡通，無論對孩子還是大人而言，該電視頻道都稱得上是高質量、高水準。
We』ve already compiled a list of the very best shows in Nickelodeon’s illustrious history, including many of the best animated series the studio has offered. Of those series, a few that have stood out include SpongeBob SquarePants, Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, Invader Zim and Avatar: The Last Airbender. In 1998, the company would make its first foray into cartoon features, releasing its theatrical film The Rugrats Movie. Since then, other Nicktoon favorites have made their big screen debuts including Hey Arnold!: The Movie and both SpongeBob releases.
我們整理了尼克羅迪恩輝煌動畫史上最優秀的節目清單，包括許多最佳動畫系列，其中最為出色的是《海綿寶寶》《天才小子吉米》《外星入侵者》和《降世神通：最後的氣宗》。1998年，公司首次進軍動畫電影領域，發行院線電影《淘氣小兵兵》。此後，尼克卡通又成功發行了幾部深受大眾喜愛的動畫電影，如《大頭仔天空》和前兩部《海綿寶寶》。
4. DreamWorks Animation
第四名 夢工廠動畫
Always the bridesmaid, never the bride. That’s been DreamWorks Animation’s story since stepping on the scene back in 1994. Don’t get us wrong – they』ve left an indelible mark on the animated film and television world in that short time. By now, we’re all familiar with their logo of a young boy fishing from his seat on a crescent moon. Ever since that logo first appear more than two decades ago, audiences have received that kind of creativity and while it’s never failed to impress, the reactions have always been just slightly short of that which comes from our top three ranked choices on this list.
「總是配角，從未主角」，這是自1994年問世以來，夢工廠動畫的真實寫照。不要誤會，他們確實於短時間內在世界動畫電影和電視界留下了不可磨滅的印記。如今，大眾都很熟悉夢工廠的標誌——一個坐在月牙上垂釣的小男孩。自從20多年前這個標誌首次亮相，觀眾們就一直感受到了其非凡的創造力。不過，雖然夢工廠給觀眾留下了深刻印象，但比起榜單上排名前三的動畫製作公司，其反響總是稍遜一籌。
DreamWorks began as a business venture between Spielberg, former Disney executive Jefferey Katzenberg and music executive David Geffen. After recruiting some heavy-hitting animators to join their squad, the team went to work, releasing their first feature Antz in 1998. Since then, the studio has consistently turned out one of the best track records for cartoon features and television, including films such as the Shrek franchise, the Madagascar franchise, the Kung Fu Panda franchise, both How to Train Your Dragon films and Trolls.
夢工廠由史匹柏、迪士尼前執行官傑弗裡·卡岑伯格和音樂執行官戴維·格芬投資創立。聘請了一些重量級的動畫大師加入後，該團隊開始投入運營，於1998年推出了首部故事片《小蟻雄兵》。自那時起，公司在動畫電影和電視領域屢創佳績，其中包括《怪物史萊克》系列、《馬達加斯加》系列、《功夫熊貓》系列，以及《馴龍高手》系列和《魔發精靈》。
3. Studio Ghibli
第三名 吉卜力工作室
Hailing from Koganei, Tokyo in Japan, Studio Ghibli has not only the honor of being one of the most beloved producers of anime in the world, it’s also the company of co-founder and acclaimed director Hayao Miyazaki. If every family-friendly anime feature or Pixar movie of the last two decades has won over its audience with its heartfelt tales of virtue, it’s only because their creators have stood on the shoulders of giants like Miyazaki who have continually crafted some of the most imaginative and visually captivating pictures cinema has ever seen. It’s on those shoulders that Studio Ghibli’s reputation has rested and so far its founders haven’t faltered.
吉卜力工作室位於日本東京小金井市，它被譽為世界上最受喜愛的動漫製作公司之一，著名導演宮崎駿也是該公司的聯合創始人。如果說過去20年，每部適合家庭觀看的動漫或皮克斯電影，以其感人至深的美德故事贏得了觀眾青睞，那只是因為它們的創作者站在了像宮崎駿這樣的巨人的肩膀上，他們不斷推陳出新，創作出前所未有的、最富想像力及視覺魅力的動畫電影。正因有宮崎駿這樣的大師級人物，吉卜力工作室一直享有很高聲譽，始創者也仍初心未改。
After the success of his 1984 film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Miyazaki launched Studio Ghibli on June 15, 1985 with producer Toshio Suzuki and fellow director Isao Takahata, who would later go on to direct Grave of the Fireflies for the company. While many companies were run like businesses with an agenda, Ghibli always felt like a passion project between friends. Miyazaki and his allies would go on to release eight of the fifteen highest grossing anime films in Japanese history with notable movies such as My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, The Tale of Princess Kaguya and When Marnie Was There. Reaching to fans in the United States, Miyazaki has made a name for himself as not only the greatest animated director of his generation, but perhaps of all time.
繼1984年電影《風之谷》大獲成功後，宮崎駿於1985年6月15日與製片人鈴木敏夫、導演高畑勳共同創立了吉卜力工作室，後者隨後執導了《螢火蟲之墓》。許多公司都是如商務運作般製作動畫，但吉卜力工作室始終像朋友之間的熱情協作。日本歷史上票房最高的15部著名動畫電影中，有8部由他們團隊創作發行，其中包括《龍貓》《幽靈公主》《千與千尋》《輝夜姬物語》及《記憶中的瑪妮》。宮崎駿在美國擁有眾多粉絲，他不僅是他那一代最優秀的動畫導演，甚至可能是迄今為止最偉大的動畫導演。
2. Walt Disney Animation Studios
第二名 華特迪士尼動畫工作室
Disney is a name that has become synonymous with so many words over time that it’s hard to keep count. It’s an umbrella of imagination and adventure that covers every facet of entertainment. It’s through timeless classics that the studio first made its mark and we’re forever indebted to them for giving us so many childhood memories to cherish for a lifetime.
隨著時間推移，迪士尼這個名字已成為無數詞語的代名詞，它是一把由想像力和冒險精神織成的傘蓋，涵蓋了娛樂界的方方面面。正是這些永恆的經典作品讓迪士尼嶄露頭角。我們永遠感謝這些作品，為我們提供了如此多的童年回憶，值得珍藏一生。
Founded in 1923 by Walt Disney and his older brother Roy, the two siblings began producing silent short cartoons in their small studio in Los Angeles. It was the introduction of none other than Mickey Mouse which kickstarted the company’s career. Mickey would of course go on to become the face of the business, but it was the 1937 feature film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs which brought renowned attention to everyone on board. Since then, the company has released upwards of sixty different full-length features, each one a testament to the remarkable strength in quality Disney holds for itself. With classics like Pinnochio, Bambi, The Lion King, The Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid to name a few, along with more recent examples like Tangled, The Princess and the Frog and Frozen, we’re not in the minority in saying that Walt Disney leads by example.
1923年，華特·迪士尼和哥哥羅伊共同創立了迪士尼，兩兄弟開始在洛杉磯的小工作室裡製作無聲動畫短片。米老鼠的問世，開啟了公司的事業，米老鼠也理所當然地成為迪士尼的企業形象，但直到1937年《白雪公主和七個小矮人》上映，迪士尼才真正家喻戶曉。此後，該公司發行了60餘部動畫長片，每一部都體現了迪士尼一貫的高製作水準。工作室曾製作出《木偶奇遇記》《小鹿斑比》《獅子王》《美女與野獸》《小美人魚》等經典，最近又推出了《魔發奇緣》《公主與青蛙》和《冰雪奇緣》等動畫，就作品而言，工作室一直處於領先，持這種看法的人不在少數。
1. Pixar Animation Studios
第一名 皮克斯動畫工作室
For three decades, it’s produced stories which have exceeded the ideas of what a cartoon should be by appealing to children, their parents and pretty much every age group out there. It begins with a thought, the basis for the story. From there, regular meetings are held with trusted members of the company to transform that idea. Criticisms are tossed away for open discussion and everyone is inviting when it comes to restructuring a feature for the betterment of the final product. It’s all about creating an image of acceptance and quality with your audience.
過去30年，皮克斯動畫不僅吸引了兒童及其父母，還觸動了幾乎各個年齡段的人群，由此超越了人們對動畫的固有印象。由一個故事構想，即故事梗概開始，公司定期召開核心成員會議，完善構思。在調整某一特色以更好呈現最終作品方面，公司摒棄一味批評，鼓勵公開討論，歡迎所有成員發表意見。這一切都是為了把控作品質量，令觀眾滿意。
Every Pixar picture to date, as well as the short films that preceded them, have been the result of the writers trying to surprise themselves by being candid about their own story’s flaws. We all know the resulting filmography – the Toy Story franchise, The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Up, WALL-E, Finding Dory – the list goes on and on. Not every moment has always been a success, but the positives have far outweighed the negatives. It all began in 1986 with an investment from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. Since then, the desk lamp logo for the company has become one of the most memorable symbols in cinematic history. With releases for Cars 3, Coco, Toy Story 4 and The Incredibles 2, the anticipation only grows for what’s next.
迄今為止，每部皮克斯電影，以及之前的短片，都是編劇們坦誠面對自己故事的缺陷從而成就的驚喜之作。比如我們都知道的《玩具總動員》系列，《超人總動員》《美食總動員》《飛屋環遊記》《機器人總動員》《海底總動員2：多莉去哪兒》等——作品數不勝數。成功並非總是如影相隨，但發展道路上的積極因素遠超消極因素。1986年， 蘋果聯合創始人史蒂夫·賈伯斯對其進行了投資。此後，公司的檯燈標誌便成為電影史上最令人印象深刻的標誌之一。隨著《汽車總動員3》《尋夢環遊記》《玩具總動員4》和《超人總動員2》的上映，人們對其未來抱有更高的期待。
來源：《英語世界》
作者：特納·明頓（Turner Minton）
譯者：趙曉囡
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