#future of animation

[blondebrainpowered]

Mouse Armor by Jeff de Boer

Etsy Mouse armor necklace and earrings available as well as other work by Jeff de Boor.

[cassettefuturism]

[amezure]

Some of my favorite dialogues from animal crossing 🌈

[mimok]

The Machine Dreams

text to video with firefly. Today, I gained access to Firefly’s text-to-video generative feature, and it feels like stepping into the future. The speed at which technology is advancing is breathtaking, and with each new tool, creative possibilities expand in ways we couldn’t have imagined just a few years ago. I tested it by generating videos using a reference image and others directly from text…

[soranker]

laios985

[spicybeefu]

What if Pokemon & Animal Crossing had a crossover game? #10 Made in Blender, Wooper design by @omuart on instagram!

[crumb-crumblet-s-crumbington]

[koppi2404]

YEAH MIKU, ROAST THAT SH*T UP GURL!(⁠ ͝⁠°⁠ ͜⁠ʖ͡⁠°⁠)⁠ᕤ🔥🔥🔥🔥💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼💪🏼

[animationstudio]

The Magic of Animation: Bringing Imagination to Life

Animation is a captivating art form that transcends the boundaries of reality, allowing us to explore fantastical worlds, meet extraordinary characters, and experience stories that touch our hearts and minds. From classic cartoons to cutting-edge CGI, animation has evolved significantly, becoming an integral part of our entertainment landscape. In this blog post, we'll delve into the magic of animation, its evolution, and its impact on storytelling and culture.

The Evolution of Animation

The journey of animation began long before the advent of computers. Early pioneers like Walt Disney and Max Fleischer experimented with hand-drawn techniques, creating iconic characters such as Mickey Mouse and Betty Boop. These early animations were painstakingly crafted, frame by frame, requiring immense patience and creativity.

With technological advancements, the animation industry witnessed a revolution. The introduction of computer-generated imagery (CGI) opened new horizons, allowing animators to create more detailed and realistic visuals. Pixar's "Toy Story," released in 1995, was the first fully CGI feature film, marking a significant milestone in the animation world. Today, studios like Disney, Pixar, and DreamWorks continue to push the boundaries, producing visually stunning films that captivate audiences worldwide.

The Art of Storytelling

At its core, animation is a powerful storytelling medium. It has the unique ability to convey complex emotions and narratives in a visually engaging way. Through animation, creators can explore themes ranging from love and friendship to heroism and adversity, often using metaphors and symbolism that resonate deeply with viewers.

Animated films and series are not just for children; they appeal to all age groups. For instance, Studio Ghibli's "Spirited Away" and Pixar's "Up" are beloved by audiences of all ages for their rich storytelling and emotional depth. Animation transcends language barriers, making it a universal form of expression that can connect with people from diverse cultures and backgrounds.

Animation Techniques

There are various techniques used in animation, each with its unique charm and style:

2D Animation: This traditional form involves creating movement in a two-dimensional artistic space. Classic examples include Disney's "The Lion King" and "Beauty and the Beast." Despite the rise of 3D, 2D animation remains popular for its distinct aesthetic and nostalgic appeal.

3D Animation: Utilizing computer graphics, 3D animation creates lifelike characters and environments. Movies like "Frozen" and "Toy Story" showcase the depth and realism achievable with this technique.

Stop Motion: This technique involves photographing objects frame by frame to create movement. Films like "Coraline" and "The Nightmare Before Christmas" are prime examples of the intricate artistry involved in stop-motion animation.

Motion Graphics: Often used in advertising and media, motion graphics combine animation and graphic design to convey information dynamically. They are ideal for explainer videos, title sequences, and promotional content.

The Impact of Animation

Animation's influence extends beyond entertainment. It plays a crucial role in education, advertising, and even healthcare. Educational animations make learning engaging and accessible, while animated advertisements capture consumer attention and convey messages effectively.

In healthcare, animation helps visualize complex medical concepts, making it easier for patients to understand their conditions and treatments. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies, which heavily rely on animation, are revolutionizing fields such as medicine, engineering, and architecture.

The Future of Animation

As technology continues to evolve, the future of animation looks incredibly promising. Innovations such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are beginning to impact the animation industry, streamlining processes and opening new creative possibilities. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are also set to revolutionize how we experience animated content, offering immersive experiences that blur the lines between the digital and physical worlds.

Conclusion

Animation is a magical art form that brings imagination to life, captivating audiences with its ability to tell stories in visually stunning ways. From its humble beginnings to the cutting-edge technologies of today, animation continues to evolve, pushing the boundaries of creativity and innovation. Whether it's a heartwarming tale, an educational video, or an immersive VR experience, animation has the power to inspire, educate, and entertain like no other medium. As Animation Studio looks to the future, the possibilities for animation are limitless, promising even more extraordinary journeys into the realms of imagination.

[why-animals-do-the-thing]

average United States contains 1000s of pet tigers in backyards" factoid actualy [sic] just statistical error. average person has 0 tigers on property. Activist Georg, who lives the U.S. Capitol & makes up over 10,000 each day, has purposefully been spreading disinformation adn [sic] should not have been counted

I have a big mad today, folks. It's a really frustrating one, because years worth of work has been validated... but the reason for that fucking sucks.

For almost a decade, I've been trying to fact-check the claim that there "are 10,000 to 20,000 pet tigers/big cats in backyards in the United States." I talked to zoo, sanctuary, and private cat people; I looked at legislation, regulation, attack/death/escape incident rates; I read everything I could get my hands on. None of it made sense. None of it lined up. I couldn't find data supporting anything like the population of pet cats being alleged to exist. Some of you might remember the series I published on those findings from 2018 or so under the hashtag #CrouchingTigerHiddenData. I've continued to work on it in the six years since, including publishing a peer reviewed study that counted all the non-pet big cats in the US (because even though they're regulated, apparently nobody bothered to keep track of those either).

I spent years of my life obsessing over that statistic because it was being used to push for new federal legislation that, while well intentioned, contained language that would, and has, created real problems for ethical facilities that have big cats. I wrote a comprehensive - 35 page! - analysis of the issues with the then-current version of the Big Cat Public Safety Act in 2020. When the bill was first introduced to Congress in 2013, a lot of groups promoted it by fear mongering: there's so many pet tigers! they could be hidden around every corner! they could escape and attack you! they could come out of nowhere and eat your children!! Tiger King exposed the masses to the idea of "thousands of abused backyard big cats": as a result the messaging around the bill shifted to being welfare-focused, and the law passed in 2022.

The Big Cat Public Safety Act created a registry, and anyone who owned a private cat and wanted to keep it had to join. If they did, they could keep the animal until it passed, as long as they followed certain strictures (no getting more, no public contact, etc). Don’t register and get caught? Cat is seized and major punishment for you. Registering is therefore highly incentivized. That registry closed in June of 2023, and you can now get that registration data via a Freedom of Information Act request.

Guess how many pet big cats were registered in the whole country?

97.

Not tens of thousands. Not thousands. Not even triple digits. 97.

And that isn't even the right number! Ten USDA licensed facilities registered erroneously. That accounts for 55 of 97 animals. Which leaves us with 42 pet big cats, of all species, in the entire country.

Now, I know that not everyone may have registered. There's probably someone living deep in the woods somewhere with their illegal pet cougar, and there's been at least one random person in Texas arrested for trying to sell a cub since the law passed. But - and here's the big thing - even if there are ten times as many hidden cats than people who registered them - that's nowhere near ten thousand animals. Obviously, I had some questions.

Guess what? Turns out, this is because it was never real. That huge number never had data behind it, wasn't likely to be accurate, and the advocacy groups using that statistic to fearmonger and drive their agenda knew it... and didn't see a problem with that.

Allow me to introduce you to an article published last week.

This article is good. (Full disclose, I'm quoted in it). It's comprehensive and fairly written, and they did their due diligence reporting and fact-checking the piece. They talked to a lot of people on all sides of the story.

But thing that really gets me?

Multiple representatives from major advocacy organizations who worked on the Big Cat Publix Safety Act told the reporter that they knew the statistics they were quoting weren't real. And that they don't care. The end justifies the means, the good guys won over the bad guys, that's just how lobbying works after all. They're so blase about it, it makes my stomach hurt. Let me pull some excerpts from the quotes.

"Whatever the true number, nearly everyone in the debate acknowledges a disparity between the actual census and the figures cited by lawmakers. “The 20,000 number is not real,” said Bill Nimmo, founder of Tigers in America. (...) For his part, Nimmo at Tigers in America sees the exaggerated figure as part of the political process. Prior to the passage of the bill, he said, businesses that exhibited and bred big cats juiced the numbers, too. (...) “I’m not justifying the hyperbolic 20,000,” Nimmo said. “In the world of comparing hyperbole, the good guys won this one.”

"Michelle Sinnott, director and counsel for captive animal law enforcement at the PETA Foundation, emphasized that the law accomplished what it was set out to do. (...) Specific numbers are not what really matter, she said: “Whether there’s one big cat in a private home or whether there’s 10,000 big cats in a private home, the underlying problem of industry is still there.”"

I have no problem with a law ending the private ownership of big cats, and with ending cub petting practices. What I do have a problem with is that these organizations purposefully spread disinformation for years in order to push for it. By their own admission, they repeatedly and intentionally promoted false statistics within Congress. For a decade.

No wonder it never made sense. No wonder no matter where I looked, I couldn't figure out how any of these groups got those numbers, why there was never any data to back any of the claims up, why everything I learned seemed to actively contradict it. It was never real. These people decided the truth didn't matter. They knew they had no proof, couldn't verify their shocking numbers... and they decided that was fine, if it achieved the end they wanted.

So members of the public - probably like you, reading this - and legislators who care about big cats and want to see legislation exist to protect them? They got played, got fed false information through a TV show designed to tug at heartstrings, and it got a law through Congress that's causing real problems for ethical captive big cat management. The 20,000 pet cat number was too sexy - too much of a crisis - for anyone to want to look past it and check that the language of the law wouldn't mess things up up for good zoos and sanctuaries. Whoops! At least the "bad guys" lost, right? (The problems are covered somewhat in the article linked, and I'll go into more details in a future post. You can also read my analysis from 2020, linked up top.)

Now, I know. Something something something facts don't matter this much in our post-truth era, stop caring so much, that's just how politics work, etc. I’m sorry, but no. Absolutely not.

Laws that will impact the welfare of living animals must be crafted carefully, thoughtfully, and precisely in order to ensure they achieve their goals without accidental negative impacts. We have a duty of care to ensure that. And in this case, the law also impacts reservoir populations for critically endangered species! We can't get those back if we mess them up. So maybe, just maybe, if legislators hadn't been so focused on all those alleged pet cats, the bill could have been written narrowly and precisely.

But the minutiae of regulatory impacts aren't sexy, and tiger abuse and TV shows about terrible people are. We all got misled, and now we're here, and the animals in good facilities are already paying for it.

I don't have a conclusion. I'm just mad. The public deserves to know the truth about animal legislation they're voting for, and I hope we all call on our legislators in the future to be far more critical of the data they get fed.

[saffron-slash]

eyyy we're walkin' 'ere

(I'm so sad how much I had to compress this in order to upload it to this mcfreaking website)

[snuize]

Forgot I made this in a dazed state last night and got jump scared by it in my drafts

[manyphasedgod]

[classycookiexo]

This is literally so iconic

[blackeneddeatheye]

満月の夜