Animation

 Animation

Types of Animation

• Traditional Animation - Also referred to as cell animation. Requires the animator to every frame by hand to create an animated scene. Usually done on a light table that allows the artist to see the previous drawing through the top layer of paper. Traditional animation is still done today on computers with special tablets
• 2D Animation - Refers to vector-based animations similar to the ones used in Flash. This style has been growing in popularity because the technology is so accessible. Vector-based animation gives the artist the option to create rigs for the characters and move single body parts at a time rather that constantly redrawing the characters. It gives more flexibility to beginners in animation because they don’t have to rein so heavily on drawing skills
• 3D Animation - Also known as computer animation and is currently the most commonly used form of animation. The process is very different from the traditional style but both require the artist to share the same principles of movement and composition in animation. This has less to do with drawing and more to do with moving a character in a program. 3D animators muscly on physics to create realistic animations. The animator creates keyframes or specific movements and lets the computer fill in the rest.
• Motion Graphics - Unlike previously mentioned types of animation, motion graphics and not driven by characters or storylines. It focuses on the ability to move graphic elements, shapes, and text. This process is commonly used for things like television promotions, explainer videos, and animated logos. The skillset necessary for the other types of animation doesn’t apply to motion graphics because there’s no need to mimic body movement or facial expressions. Advertisements rely heavily on motion graphics and present plenty or career opportunities.
• Stop Motion - Very similar to traditional animation because it combines a series of still images that are slightly different to show movement. The largest difference is that stop motion uses photography and captures real objects. With stop motion, the artist takes a photo of an object or scene and slightly moves the objects before taking another photo. The artist repeats this process until the scene is completed and uses each photo as a frame in the animation, similar to a flip book with photos.

No matter which type of animation, the artist must consider the advantages and disadvantages of each to choose the one that suits them best.

12 Principles of Animation

1. Squash and Stretch - Gives your character and objects the illusion of gravity, weight, mass and flexibility
2. Anticipation - Has the effect of making the objects action more realistic 
3. Staging - A lot like composition in artwork
4. Straight ahead action and pose to pose - Straight ahead action involves drawing frame by frame from start to finish. If you’re looking for fluid, realistic movements, straight ahead action is your best bet
5. Follow through and overlapping action - Different parts of the object will stop at different rates. Similarly not everything on an object will move at the same rate
6. Slow in and slow out - It will start moving slowly, before gaining momentum and speeding up
7. Arc - Most object follow an arc or path when they’re moving, and your animation should reflect that arc
8. Secondary action - Used to support or emphasise the main action going on within a scene. doing secondary actions help ass more dimension to your characters and objects
9. Timing - Looking at the laws of physics, if you move an object quickly or slowly than it would naturally move in the real world, the effect won’t be believable. Using the correct timing allows you to control the mood and reaction of your character and objects
10. Exaggeration - Add some exaggeration to your characters and objects to make them look more dynamic
11. Solid Drawing - You need to understand the basics of drawing. This includes knowing how to draw in three dimensional space and understanding form and anatomy, weight and volume, and lights and shadows
12. Appeal - Your characters, objects and the world in which they live need to appeal to the viewer. This includes having an easy to read design, solid drawing, and a personality.

Animation Genres

• Fairytale/Fantasy
• Anime
• Horror
• Action
• Historical
• Sports
• Thriller

American and Japanese animation 

Hallmarks of Japanese animation are distinctively large eyes with numerous reflective highlights and detailed colour, as well as small noses and mouths drawn with minimal lines; even certain styles that favour unrealistically broad, generous mouths depict them using few lines. The style itself uses many angles and flowing attenuated lines. Other features such as eyelashes, hair, and clothing are depicted in greater detail. Colour often appears with more variants and shading, with greater attention paid to non-outlines highlights and shadows that add more depth.

Japanese animation very often makes use of exaggerated angles, prospectives, and zooms to intensify the mood of a scene and show actions to extreme effect.

In Japan, anime can be for children or adults, and some Japanese imports have surprised some parents who discover Japanese animation’s more mature nature. What is appropriate for children and adults can differ between two cultures; appropriate for a 10-year-old in Japan may not be considered appropriate for an American 10-year-old. 

American animation either falls into attempts at         comic-book-style realism or grossly exaggerated, comically cartoonish characters with rounded, highly exaggerated features. There are usually fewer details, with more focus on using tricks of style to imply the detail in a subtler, more understated fashion. Less attention is paid too shading than to solid block colours, except in dramatic scenes that require it.

American animation tents to use straight-on camera shots, less concerned with cinematic angles and dramatics than with clearly depicting the events, though there are expectations to that rule.

IN America, animated cartoons and films have long been considered more of a medium for children, and most animation produced in America is targeted for that audience.

While American animation may seem to lack in the colour detail, it includes a great deal of original animated motion - some of it used cyclically but still animated painstakingly frame by frame. In contrast, anime employs shortcuts, such as long scenes in which only the mouth of a character and maybe a few strands of hair move during the delivery of key information or when depicting rapid motion with a character frozen in an action pose against a swift-moving, stylised background that does not require extensive animation. They often use dramatic still shots against patterned backgrounds, with a few moving emotive symbols accompanying a monologue. This is why American animators sometimes label Japanese anime as ‘lazy’. Both styles reuse shots and sequences, but this practice is a stylistic element indicative of Japanese animation.

Beyond that, the differences aren’t really so great. Both seem to tell a story in an animated medium, using digital as well as traditional methods. Both use exaggeration to emphasise the emotion in character actions, as well as other techniques like anticipation, well-timed music, and squash and stretch to accentuate drama or humour. Both follow the basic principles of animation and require a dedication to the craft.