If your attention in animated movies was always placed on the characters, you should start looking at the backgrounds. These typically static images set the mood of scenes and create an environment for the characters. Just ask Mateusz Urbanowicz, an illustrator and background animator. Originally hailing from Poland, Urbanowicz, he now works with Comix Wave Films animation studio in Tokyo, Japan.
Urbanowicz’s illustrations and backgrounds show everyday scenes of the country. They’re simple, quiet scenes of streets, houses, train stations, and trees. They capture everyday life quite well. The delicate colors and impressionistic touches makes the scenes seem to glimmer.
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(via Kotaku)
Some of Urbanowicz’s images are created using watercolors, pencils, and other traditional media. Others images are rendered digitally. The image with the lantern in the rain can also be seen as one of the backgrounds in his animated short, Right Places. You’ll need to turn on the closed captions for this one, as it doesn’t include subtitles (unless you speak Japanese, that is).
You can see more of Urbanowicz’s work on his Tumblr page, as well as on his ArtStation page.
