Ray Harryhausen started this short back in the early 1950s as part of a series of stop-motion animation shorts using fables as the starting point in order to develop the techniques in a more immediate and cost-effective manner. He had about three to four minutes shot when he quit because larger, better paying, projects called. He kept the footage and most of the models, however, and some younger animators learned about the short a few years ago and got Harryhausen's permission to complete it themselves. So out came the models and completed footage. Ironically (considering the looong, slooow pace of the project) the model they found largely missing was the tortoise! I suspect the original got tired of waiting around for the boss to come back and started off again, ponderously but patiently, on his way to his finishing line.
The completed project works exceptionally well and is largely seamless, with little indication as to where the original footage is versus the newer work. Given the fact that film ages, this means that the current animation team did a great job in making things mesh together. The short also fits the style of the other shorts in the series that Harryhausen completed so many years ago (I think there are five others) and I can only hope that some enterprising soul decides the whole series should be released on DVD and/or VHS. Fascinating in many ways. Well worth watching. Recommended.
