 As with all his films , McCay financed Lusitania himself . The cels were an added expense , but greatly reduced the amount of drawing necessary in contrast to McCay 's earlier methods . The cels used were thicker than those that later became industry standard , and had a " tooth " , or rough surface , that could hold pencil , wash , and crayon , as well as ink lines . The amount of rendering caused the cels to buckle , which made it difficult to keep them aligned for photographing ; Fitzsimmons addressed this problem using a modified loose @-@ leaf binder . 
