Coonskin (1975) was shown in the first week and depicts three African/American characters, Brother Rabbit, Brother Bear and Preacher Fox who rise to the top of organised crime by encountering law enforcers, con artists and the Mafia. It was influenced by and heavily exaggerates the 1946 film Song of the South which had also come under some controversy of racism although in a very light manner. The idea of Coonskin was to attack racial stereotypes as Bakshi was against the organised criminals of the world regardless of race or colour. However black people in particular believed the opposite, they thought Coonskin was using blackface minstrels, including stereotypes from Hollywood films to exaggerate the racism.The film never made it onto the big screen and was distributed to a limited number of places as home video.
Animal Farm (1954) portrays an animal community living on a farm under the charge of a drunk farmer who no longer cares for the welfare of his livestock. They chase out the farmer and assume control of the farm and its day to day running, supposedly acquiring equality among all animals.The idea of the film is based on George Orwell's book under the same name and expresses the founding of the USSR and the reign of Stalin and his communist ideas. It represents human characteristics in animal instincts as each animal dreams of being equal and sharing the land but when the pigs take over, one of the principles of the revolution is forgotten until the animals have less freedom than before. Instead of the act of revolution being the animal's downfall, it is in fact the corrupt leadership of the pigs which destroys the equality the animals strived for.
Neither of these films are like the fantasy story-tellings of Disney but they hold a very clearing connection to world history. It helps me to understand what information is considered too sensitive for today's audience so I know what to put into my own future animations without causing controversy.
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