by Angie Jones and Jamie Oliff
THOMSON
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Course Technology
Thomson Course Technology PTR, a division of Thomson Learning Inc.
25 Thomson Place ■ Boston, MA 02210 ■ http://www.courseptr.com
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Course Technology
Thomson Course Technology PTR, a division of Thomson Learning Inc.
25 Thomson Place ■ Boston, MA 02210 ■ http://www.courseptr.com
 |
| Thinking Animation Bridging Gap 2D 3D |
Angie Jones graduated from Atlanta College of Art in 1994. Her first introduction to animation was at a
San Diego studio of more than 150 traditional animators called Lightspan. As a female animator, she was
a novelty. Even rarer at this traditional studio was her willingness to create animation with a computer.
Although she was trained at a fine art school, she wasn’t afraid of the computer and for the past 12 years
she has worked on numerous productions, including Stuart Little 2, Disney’s 50th anniversary commercials,
Oddworld: Abe’s Exoddus, Garfield, Dino Crisis 3, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, X2: XMen
United, Pan’s Labyrinth, National Treasure, and Freddy vs. Jason. To find out more about her, go
to http://www.spicycricket.com.
Jamie Oliff was trained in classical animation at Sheridan College of Art and Design. He has worked in
the animation industry for more than 20 years. An award-winning director and long-time feature film animator,
Jamie’s credits include the first season of The Ren & Stimpy Show, and many feature-length animated
pictures, such as The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Mulan, Hercules, The Emperor’s New Groove,
and CGI animation on titles ranging from Kangaroo Jack to Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed and
National Treasure. He lives in Burbank, California, with his wife and two children and a biplane project
that he never finds enough time to finish.
Acknowledgments
Like most CG productions, this book required an army of people
to be realized. First, we would like to personally thank every artist who took time out of his or her day to talk with us about this book. This book is truly a collaborative effort and wouldn’t be
possible without the contributing authors: Henry Anderson, Bernd Angerer, Carlos Baena, Chris Bailey, Tony Bancroft, Mark Behm, Dave Brewster, Tom Capizzi, Brian Dowrick, Cory Florimonte, Dan Fowler,
Angie Glocka, Eric Goldberg, Ido Gondelman, Evan Gore, Scott Holmes, Cathlin Hidalgo-Polvani, Ed Hooks, Victor Huang, Ethan Hurd, Mark Koetsier, Bert Klein, Keith Lango, Laura McCreary, Darin
McGowan, Cameron Miyasaki, Mike Murphy, Floyd Norman, Eddie
Pittman, Mike Polvani, Fred Raimondi, Nik Ranieri, Leigh Rens, Keith Roberts, Troy Saliba, Joe Scott, Tom
Sito, David Smith, Roberto Smith, Javier Solsona, Mike Surrey, Richard Taylor, Alfred Urrutia, Conrad
Vernon, Roger Vizard, Don Waller, Larry Weinberg, Paul Wood, Bill Wright, and Dave Zaboski.
We also owe big thanks to Dan Patterson for building the clown model of our mascot, REDD, for this
book. Dan was kind enough to work out not just the model, but also the hair and textures for our clown
.
Dan is a patient man and showed infinite patience during our “nitpicky” adjustments to his model. Thank
you to Paul Tanner for refining the facial and making the model work smoothly in CG. To the great
Christopher “Elegance” Christman, thank you for your time spent on lighting ol’ REDD. We are also eternally
grateful to Javier Solsona for rigging the clown. Javier, you have been a great friend over the years,
and we wish to thank you so much for your hard work on this very flexible and powerful rig.
A big debt of gratitude is due to our editor, Cathleen Snyder, for all of her efforts and dedication to make
this book great, and to Kevin Harreld for all of his assistance and encouragement. Bill Hartman is a master
layout artist, and he did an amazing job with all of the charts and the very detailed timeline.
To Steve Weiss, we owe much appreciation for believing in this project and pushing us to write this book in the first place. Audrey Doyle was also a strong contributor in the initial editing phase with Steve. And Harriet
“The Bulldog” Beck—what would we have done without you? By far, you are the best attorney a couple of
animators could have. To Scott Holmes, you were our sounding board for how to approach some of the
toughest issues in the text, you are a walking textbook of the history of animation, and we are deeply
indebted to you…“Thanks buddy, now get that chopper on the road…your part is done!” To Brian
Dowrick, Floyd Norman, Mike Polvani, Troy Saliba, Joe Scott, Mike “Utah” Warner, John Riggs, and Dave
Zaboski, thanks for all of your cartoons, comics, sketches, and amazing artwork. You guys all outdid yourselves. Jerry Beck, Tom Sito, Richard Taylor, and Floyd Norman all assisted us with the historical information provided in this book, and we thank them for their extra efforts to ensure we got the facts straight, as well as Richard and Floyd’s endorsements of this book—it means a lot to us.
With extra special appreciation to those who have inspired and supported this work, Angie and Jamie
would like to recognize: Diego Angel, Eric Armstrong, Bobby Beck, Cris Blyth, Jeremy Cantor, Kevin
Culhane, Neil Eskuri, Cory “Rocco” Florimonte, Dan Fowler, Dominic DiGiorgio, Paul Griffin, Jeannie
Hunter, Lisa Karadjian, Lorne Lanning, Joe Mandia, Craig Maras, Shawn McInerney, Sherry McKenna,
Jeb Milne, Jane Mullaney, Steven Olds, Caleb Owens, James Parris, Carlos Pedroza, Nicki Reiss, Eric Riel,
Kenny Roy, Jeremy Sahlman, Allan Steele, Craig Talmy, Elizabeth Laura Taylor, and Matthias Wittmann.
You are all an inspiration to us.
Finally, thanks to Angie’s parents for “allowing” her to draw on the walls when she was little. Jamie would
like to thank his wife and family for their love and support.
Preface: When Worlds Collide
We came to computer-generated animation from very different
backgrounds. Jamie is a classically trained animator
who had to make a major career shift after investing
25 years in the medium of traditional animation. Angie is an animator
trained in fine art and computers who wondered if it would
be necessary to start over and learn the traditional ways of animation
to survive shifts in the industry. In the end, both of us found a
way to coexist and learn from each other in a medium that is everchanging.
This book is the first of its kind. We give the reader valuable
advice and applied techniques from professionals on creating believable characters with a
computer. Interviewing more than 40 animators, story people, supervisors, and directors, all working in
CG animation today, has provided us with invaluable insight as to what it takes to survive in the volatile
and quirky world of professional animation.
The contributing authors come from a wide range of backgrounds,
such as stop-motion, traditional animation, visual effects, and computer-generated animation.
Most current books intending to teach CG character animation instruct you on how to animate using particular software. This book is different. There are many books out there that teach you how to animate in “X” software, but none of them effectively teaches you how to “think” before you animate on a computer. This book explains these rules, with an emphasis on animating with the computer while still
embracing everything that traditional animation did so well. In addition, there is a chapter concerning
studio politics intended to guide those who may come across difficult situations. We sincerely believe that
some of the examples we have provided may someday make it easier for others to overcome some prickly situations. “You can only do something well if you are willing to do it again and again and again.”
—Angie Jones and
Jamie Oliff
This book offers something for everyone. Animators of all levels and backgrounds should find some meat in the text to help them push their craft further. This book is for:
◆ Traditional animators hoping to cross over into the CG industry.
◆ CG animators who want to learn from traditional approaches.
◆ 2D/FX/Comp boutique studios that want to break into character animation.
◆ Overseas studios with the technical skill, but lacking the level of artistry to break into CG effectively.
◆ Those already working in animation, but with an interest in learning more.
Experienced animators will value the content for the times when they hit a roadblock on a shot. Less
experienced animators will find unique and applied information from the experts. Novice animators and
renegade filmmakers will value the content in this book for years to come because it is comprised of tried
and true techniques used over the years in both 2D and CG media.
Finally, this is the first book to bridge the gap between what traditional artists and animators have developed over many years and how to apply those time-tested techniques to CG animation. We hope we have created something desirable and helpful that is also fun to read. With more than 40 top animators, supervisors, directors, and story people contributing their thoughts and ideas to this book, Thinking Animation will bridge a gap that has been apparent for the past 10 years. Two legends, Floyd Norman and Richard Taylor, also help us connect these two worlds with their forewords.
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Product details
Price
|
|
|---|---|
File Size
| 16,045 KB |
Pages
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368 p |
File Type
|
PDF format |
ISBN-13
ISBN-10 | 978-1-59863-260-6 1-59863-260-4 |
Copyright
| 2007 Angie Jones and Jamie Oliff |
Table of Contents
Preface: When Worlds Collide ...............................xvi
Part I
Foundation
Chapter 1
Fleas on the Shoulders of Giants ..........................................................3
The Evolution of the Art Form .............................................................................3
Aesthetic Appeal Changes ..................................................................................................4
Broadening the Audience for Animation ............................................................................4
Unappealing Storytelling in Traditional Animation .............................................................4
The Importance of History and Trends in Animation ..........................................5
Digital Artistry Begins .........................................................................................7
Times Are Changing: 1981–1994 ........................................................................8
Roger Rabbit Pushes 2D and CG Forward .........................................................12
Popularity of the CG Medium or Story? .............................................................13
Visual-Effects Movies Broaden the Audience .....................................................16
The 1990s Shift: CG Becomes a Player ..............................................................18
A New Digital Artist Is Born ..............................................................................21
The Animated Movie Industry: Moving into the Millennium ..............................24
The Best of Both Worlds ...................................................................................27
Chapter 2
Tell Me a Story ...................................................................................31
Plot and Premise ..............................................................................................32
Here Come the Talking Animals ........................................................................36
Desire and Growth ............................................................................................37
Growth and Character Arcs ...............................................................................39
Orchestration and Back Story ...........................................................................40
Storyboards, Animatics, and Pre-Viz .................................................................43
Intention and Essence .....................................................................................................48
Handling Cuts and Camera Staging ..................................................................................49
Savor the Moment, but Not for Long! ..............................................................................52
Storyboards for Television versus Film ............................................................................54
Storytelling ........................................................................................................57
Index 1: Storytelling Strengthening ...................................................................58
Index 2: Storyboard Musts ................................................................................58
Chapter 3
The Good, the Bad, and the Just Plain Annoying ................................61
Memorable Characters ......................................................................................63
Inspiration from Your Own Experience ............................................................67
Flaws and Emotions ..........................................................................................69
Character Bio ....................................................................................................71
Stereotype versus Archetype ..............................................................................73
Believability and Credibility ...............................................................................74
Motivation .........................................................................................................76
Show, Don’t Tell ................................................................................................78
The Fine Art of Being a Bastard ........................................................................80
Design ..............................................................................................................84
2D Drawings Translated into CG .......................................................................86
Handling Textures in CG ...................................................................................90
The Rig Equals Solid Drawing ...........................................................................92
Index 3: Character Bio Questionnaire ...............................................................94
Index 4: Character Development .......................................................................95
Part II
Animation
Chapter 4
The Thursday Animator ......................................................................99
Thinking and Planning ....................................................................................101
Using Reference and Acting It Out ..................................................................103
Gesture Drawings and Thumbnails .................................................................109
Sharing ...........................................................................................................113
Ten Things to Think About ..............................................................................113
Listen ............................................................................................................................114
Subtext ..........................................................................................................................115
Experiment ...................................................................................................................116
Rhythm .........................................................................................................................118
Empathize .....................................................................................................................120
Simplify .........................................................................................................................121
Texture ..........................................................................................................................123
Honesty .........................................................................................................................126
Eyes ..............................................................................................................................126
Commit .........................................................................................................................128
Index 5: Ten Things to Think About ................................................................129
Chapter 5
Every Frame Counts ..........................................................................131
Spliney, Gooey, Computery, and Watery Motion ...............................................133
The Graph Editor ............................................................................................138
Stepped, Linear, and Spline .............................................................................140
Posing and Layering ........................................................................................142
Breaking the Rig .............................................................................................145
Using Breakdowns ..........................................................................................147
Animating Frame by Frame or on the Twos .....................................................149
In-Betweening .................................................................................................149
Creating Overlap and Secondary Motion .........................................................150
Creating Principal and Secondary Characters .................................................152
CG Tools .........................................................................................................153
Pushing Your CG Animation to a Higher Level .................................................156
Weight ...........................................................................................................................156
Contrasts in Timing .......................................................................................................159
Reality versus Entertainment Exaggeration? ...................................................................160
Dialogue and Lip-Synch Styles .......................................................................................161
Moving Holds ................................................................................................................162
Attention to Detail .........................................................................................................164
Motion Blur and Squash and Stretch .............................................................................165
Drawing Skills ...............................................................................................................167
The Approval Process ....................................................................................................169
The Revision Process ....................................................................................................171
The Cleanup Process .....................................................................................................173
Chapter 6
Acting the Moment Again and Again and Again ................................177
Motion Capture and Acting in CG Animation ...................................................178
Improv ............................................................................................................182
Helpful Improv Tools for Animators ...............................................................183
Charlie Chaplin, Empathy, and Acting ..............................................................186
Get Inside the Character .................................................................................189
Body Structure ................................................................................................192
Psychological Gesture and Subtext ..................................................................192
Stay in the Moment .........................................................................................194
Index 6: Acting Tools for Animators ................................................................195
Remotivating the Moment .............................................................................................195
Improv ..........................................................................................................................195
Power Centers ...............................................................................................................195
Status ............................................................................................................................195
Space, Time, and Weight ...............................................................................................195
Chaplin .........................................................................................................................196
Emotion ........................................................................................................................196
Empathy ........................................................................................................................196
Observation ...................................................................................................................196
Body Structure ..............................................................................................................196
Psychological Gesture ...................................................................................................197
Stay in the Moment .......................................................................................................197
Part III
And Now a Word from the Producer .........199
Chapter 7
When Push Comes to Stab ................................................................201
Workflow ........................................................................................................202
Dailies ............................................................................................................203
Multiple Art Direction .....................................................................................204
Mentorship Lost ..............................................................................................207
Competition ....................................................................................................212
Pigeonholing ...................................................................................................215
Core and Glitz Skills ........................................................................................216
Responsibility .................................................................................................216
Communication between Departments ............................................................219
Problem-Solving .............................................................................................223
Freelancing .....................................................................................................223
Networking .....................................................................................................225
Mass Production of CG Animation ..................................................................226
Death, Taxes, and Outsourcing .......................................................................227
Schedules and Production ..............................................................................229
Chapter 8
The End of the Beginning .............................................235
Bridging the Gap .......................................................235
Part IV
Appendixes
Appendix A Author Bios ................................241
Appendix B Traditional and CG Productions 1994–2005 ......................259
Appendix C The Digital Age of Animation Begins ................267
Appendix D Animation Hall of Funny ............................283
Appendix E Principles of Animation ...............................289
Appendix F Character Animation Terms ......................295
Appendix G Computer Animation Terms ...................................307
Appendix H Further Reading ..............................313
Appendix I Rigging Blog ...............................315
Appendix J Timeline Bibliography .........................331
Index.....................................335
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