The Great Rights

Plot

The Great Rights is a 1963 animated educational film that follows an ordinary American man who falls into a nightmare vision of a world without constitutional protections. In this dystopian reality, faceless Orwellian thugs patrol the streets, arresting citizens without cause, censoring speech, and crushing individual liberties with impunity. The protagonist witnesses the complete breakdown of civil society as basic rights like freedom of speech, assembly, and due process have vanished. When he is reminded of the existence and importance of the Bill of Rights and Constitution, he begins to understand the framework that protects American freedoms. Armed with this knowledge, the man fights back against the totalitarian forces, ultimately inspiring others to resist and helping restore the principles of democracy and individual rights.

Historical Background

The Great Rights was produced in 1963, a pivotal year in American history marked by significant social and political change. The Cold War was at its height, with the Cuban Missile Crisis having occurred just months before, creating intense anxiety about totalitarian regimes and nuclear annihilation. Domestically, the Civil Rights Movement was gaining momentum, with Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington taking place in August 1963. The film's emphasis on constitutional protections and individual freedoms reflected both the external threat of communism and internal struggles for civil rights. Educational films of this era often served as tools for reinforcing American democratic values and distinguishing the American system from Soviet totalitarianism. The timing of this film's release, just months before President Kennedy's assassination, makes it part of the last wave of optimistic educational media before the more turbulent period of the mid-to-late 1960s.

Making Of

The Great Rights was conceived as part of a broader educational initiative to teach American civic values during a period of social and political upheaval. Director William T. Hurtz brought his extensive experience from commercial animation to create a film that was both educational and engaging. The voice cast was assembled from the top tier of Hollywood voice talent, with June Foray and Daws Butler being two of the most recognizable voices in animation at the time. The animation team used UPA's signature limited animation style not just for budgetary reasons but to create a stark, modernist aesthetic that contrasted the nightmare sequences with the 'real world' segments. The script went through multiple revisions to ensure it was both historically accurate about constitutional principles while being accessible to student audiences. The film's production coincided with growing concerns about civil liberties in America, making its message particularly resonant.

Visual Style

The film employs UPA's signature modernist animation style, characterized by bold graphic design, limited animation techniques, and stylized backgrounds. The visual contrast between the nightmare world and constitutional America is achieved through color palette shifts—using muted, oppressive grays and blacks for the totalitarian sequences versus warmer, brighter colors for scenes depicting American freedoms. The animation uses geometric shapes and angular designs to create the oppressive atmosphere of the nightmare world, while employing softer, more organic forms for the constitutional America segments. The limited animation approach, while partly budgetary, creates a stark, theatrical quality that enhances the film's educational message. Character designs are deliberately simplified and iconic, making them easily recognizable and memorable for student audiences.

Innovations

The Great Rights demonstrated several technical innovations in educational animation. The film's effective use of limited animation techniques showed that complex ideas could be conveyed without full animation, making educational production more feasible on limited budgets. The visual transition techniques between the nightmare and real worlds were particularly innovative for the time, using morphing and color shifts rather than simple cuts. The film also pioneered the use of professional voice talent in educational shorts, elevating the production quality beyond typical educational films of the era. The integration of abstract visual elements to represent complex constitutional concepts was technically sophisticated for its time. The film's success in maintaining narrative coherence while switching between radically different visual styles represented an achievement in animated storytelling techniques.

Music

The musical score for The Great Rights was composed to enhance the emotional impact of the narrative, using contrasting themes for the nightmare and constitutional sequences. The nightmare world is accompanied by dissonant, atonal music using brass and percussion to create tension and oppression, while the constitutional segments feature more melodic, optimistic themes with strings and woodwinds. Sound effects are used strategically to emphasize the contrast between the two worlds—harsh, mechanical sounds for the totalitarian regime versus natural, human sounds for free society. The voice performances are clear and well-modulated for educational clarity, with the actors using their signature styles while maintaining appropriate dramatic tone. The overall audio design prioritizes clarity and emotional impact over complexity, making it suitable for classroom viewing conditions.

Memorable Scenes

• The opening sequence where the protagonist suddenly finds himself in the nightmare world, with the visual transition from normal America to the totalitarian regime using dramatic color shifts and angular designs
• The scene where faceless thugs arrest a citizen for reading a book, demonstrating the loss of freedom of speech and thought
• The climactic sequence where the protagonist, armed with knowledge of the Bill of Rights, inspires others to resist the totalitarian forces
• The final scene showing the restoration of constitutional America, with warm colors and rounded designs replacing the harsh nightmare aesthetic

What Critics Said

Contemporary reviews praised The Great Rights for its effective use of animation to convey complex constitutional concepts in an accessible manner. Educational film journals highlighted its success in engaging student audiences while maintaining historical accuracy. Animation critics noted the sophisticated visual style and effective use of contrast between the nightmare world and constitutional America. Some reviewers commented that while the message was heavy-handed by modern standards, it was appropriate for its intended educational audience. Modern animation historians view the film as an important example of UPA's influence extending beyond commercial entertainment into educational media. The film received particular praise for its voice cast and the emotional impact of its nightmare sequences, which were considered unusually intense for an educational short of its time.

What Audiences Thought

The Great Rights was primarily shown in schools and educational settings, where it was generally well-received by both students and teachers. Students reportedly found the nightmare sequences memorable and effective in demonstrating the importance of constitutional protections. Teachers appreciated the film's ability to spark classroom discussions about civil liberties and democratic values. The film's runtime of approximately 10 minutes made it ideal for classroom use, fitting easily into standard class periods. Parent-teacher associations often recommended the film for home viewing to supplement civics education. While it never achieved the popular recognition of entertainment cartoons, it became a staple in American civics classrooms throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. Some students who viewed the film during this period later recalled it as one of their most memorable educational experiences.

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