katiegreensmith03

[katiegreensmith03]

Aftereffects

Although I don’t have proof of the work due to a technical issue I will document down what I have done in the animation class with Irine.

On the animation course I had learnt the basics of a adobe software known after effects which is an animation software. During my first lesson I had spent some of the leasson learning the basics of aftereffects and I learnt how to move around an image on illustrator and learned how to export a illustrator image on to after effects.

we had spent another portion of the leasson on after effects in doing so I had moved a face image on after effects with some tweewing I was able to give off the illusion that the face on after effects was moving around, that their mouth, eyes, eye brows and even nose was moving. At first I had struggled getting used to the program since I made a few errors in the movements which had seemed unnatural but after a while I had learned the basics and I found the program to be very useful.

[katiegreensmith03]

The 12 rules of animation

The rules/principles of animation were a set of guidelines created by the "old men" of the Walt Disney Studios in the 1930s, the main source the creators of these rules were two men with the names Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnson. These two men had really been a recurring influence in the ways that Walt Disney had animated his films and their influence shines in many animations to this date.

Rule 1: Squash and Stretch - This is the first of the rules of animation. This rule was set in place to make characters much more realistic in the way that they move and make them seem like they in themselves feel a very similar reaction to gravity. This of course is an illusion but it makes characters more realistic and more human like. The way in which these characters move will definitely have an impact on the overall look of the animation. For example; an animated person will fall to the ground and they don’t just stay suspended in the air for long periods of time because they're seemingly being held down by the same force of gravity. It can also be used in a comedic way by adding weight to a character.

Rule 2: Anticipation - To let the audience/viewers know that a major action is going to take place animators will move a certain part of their body before doing this major action. This is where rule number 2 takes place known as anticipation.  An example of this effect can actually be seen in Bambi; a film by Disney. Thumper will move his leg a couple of times before leaping onto the ice. This gives off the effect that the character is hesitant about their movements and adds to the effect of being more lifelike. It prepares the audience for a bit of action. 

Rule 3: Staging - Every pose and movement have a clear intention and every emotion on their face is clear, this is so a character's primary intention is clear. 

Rule 4: Straight ahead pose to pose - The technique involves drawing key poses that you would like to show in an animation to fill in the blanks, this is generally used for slow and dramatic scenes with more emotion. 

Rule 5: Follow through and overlapping actions - A character won't just stay immobile during a scene and will move/react to situations even if they're just listening. They will visibly move even if it is just their hair/clothing moving when a subject has stopped moving.

Rule 6:  Slow in and slow out- The idea that your body will do something slowly at first then move quickly in the middle and then slowly again as you stop doing an action. Slow ins and slow outs often soften the motion of a character and make them seem more realistic. An example of this is the way a ball jumps up and down before slowing and stopping.

Rule 7: Arc - The idea that your body moves in a sort of circular motion; this idea is more visible when watching Mickey's movements in Fantasa where he moves his hands to preform actions in a sort of circler motion. Arcs are generally used to add a sort of natural approach to animation. Other examples are the way bees/birds move up whilst taking flight. 

Rule 8: Secondary action - This is something that adds a bit more dimension to a character, such as one character may be walking towards a character and stomping, this is one action whereas the character will be doing something with their hands in another action. This makes their emotions much more clear and intentional. All these actions together encourage each other.

Rule 9: Timing - The 9th rule of the 12 rules of animation is timing, this in its most basic form is more drawings in between animations, this can slow and smooth the animation whereas few scenes between movements can cause faster paced actions, this can be used to create a scene.

Rule 10: Exaggeration - The next rule of animation is known as exaggeration; in simple terms is where a certain trait or feature of a character is exaggeration. This can be done for comedic purposes and sometimes adds emotion to a scene.  

Rule 11: Solid drawing - This is used to add weight, more volume and adds to the illusion of a character being 3D.

Rule 12: Appeal – Characters need to appeal to the audience for example characters with less symmetry tend to not connect with the audience. Characters who connect with the audience tend to be looked at more than those with complicated faces.

Sources/Citations: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcryIdriSe4 http://minyos.its.rmit.edu.au/aim/a_notes/anim_principles.html http://www.creativebloq.com/advice/understand-the-12-principles-of-animation