PRINCIPLES OF ANIMATION

PRINCIPLES OF ANIMATION1. Squash and

Stretch2. Anticipation3. Staging4. Straight Ahead v.

Pose to Pose5. Follow Through

and Overlapping Action

6. Slow In and Slow Out

7. Arcs8. Secondary Action9. Timing10. Exaggeration11. Solid Drawing12. Appeal

NINE OLD MEN HISTORY During the 1920’s and 1930’s, Disney had his

animators attend the Chouinard Art Instititude in Los Angeles to develop their drawing skills.

The outcome of this education was a set of twelve animation principles that Disney used in his productions.

Meet the Nine Old Men http://craigbowman.com/animation/12-principles-of-animation-part-i

The making of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OebUzEhSLBI

SQUASH

Gives the illusion of weight to an object as it moves

An object’s volume must not be changed when squashed or stretched.

Another Example

and

CC-BY-SA Lapman 2008

CC-BY-SA Lapman 2008

SQUASH AND STRETCH DEFINITION

Living flesh distorts during motion. Exaggerated deformations will emphasize motion and impact.

ANTICIPATION Prepares the audience for the action and makes the

action appear more realistic The formula for most animations is anticipation, action

and reaction.

ANTICIPATION DEFINITION

Animation can occur before an action.

STA

GIN

G

•A scene should reveal the attitude, mood, reaction or idea of the character or story. •Camera angles help frame this for the audience.

STAGING DEFINITION

The clear presentation of an idea.

STRAIGHT AHEAD V. POSE TO POSE

Begins with the first drawing and works drawing toward the end of a scene.

Planned out and charted

Key drawings done at intervals throughout the scene

Straight Ahead Animation

Pose to Pose Animation

STRAIGHT AHEAD VERSUS POSE TO POSE DEFINITION

Drawing the frames in sequence versus creating strong posed (keyframes) first and adding the inbetween frames later.

FOLLOW THROUGH AND OVERLAPPING ACTION When the main body of the character stops

all other parts continue to catch up to the main mass of the character, such as arms, long hair, clothing, floppy ears, a dress or a long tail.

Animated Example

CC-BY-SA SunCreator 2010

FOLLOW THROUGH AND OVERLAP DEFINITION

The action that follows the main action; actions do not stop at the same time.

SLOW IN AND SLOW OUT

More drawings near start and end pose.

Softens the action

CC-BY-SA Lapman 2008

SLOW IN AND SLOW OUT DEFINITION

Also known as ease in and ease out.

ARCSAll actions, with few exceptions follow an arc or slightly circular path. © Road2Animate 2010

ARCS DEFINITIONThe basis for almost all natural motion. Created using a pivot point or spline curve.

SECONDARY ACTION Action adds to the

main action and adds dimension to the character

SECONDARY ACTIONS DEFINITION

Minor actions that occur due to a major action.

TIMING Timing refers to the number of drawings or

frames for a given action On a purely physical level, correct timing

makes objects appear to abide to the laws of physics

Timing is critical for establishing a character's mood, emotion, and reaction.

TIMING DEFINITION

Amount of frames between poses.

EXAGGERATIONExaggeration is an effect especially useful for

animation, as perfect imitation of reality can look static and dull in cartoons. The exaggeration should increase understanding of the feeling of the character.

EXAGGERATION DEFINITION

Used to increase readability of emotions and actions.

SOLID DRAWING

The basic principles of drawing apply to animation as it does to academic drawing.

SOLID DRAWING DEFINITION

To get maximum feeling from the audience, animated characters must be drawn or modeled precisely.

AP

PEA

L

Appeal includes an easy to read design, clear drawing, and personality development to capture the audience’s interest

APPEAL DEFINITION

Animated characters need to have a unique personality and have a wide range of emotions.

SUMMARY The 12 Principles of Animation were

developed by the animators at Disney studios.

They serve as guidelines to make animation (drawn or computer generated) more realistic and appealing to an audience.

Let’s take a look at how these principles have been applied in an animation.

EXAMPLES OF 12 PRINCIPLES 12 Principles of Animation Examples:

http://craigbowman.com/animation/principles-of-animation-part-ii

12 Principles of Animation (7-12) Examples: http://craigbowman.com/animation/principles-of-animation-part-iii

You try to find examples of the 12 Principles of Animation by going to http://phsanimation.wikispaces.com/Megan+G+-+12+Principles+-+Squash+and+Stretch

REFERENCES"12 Basic Principles of Animation." Wikipedia, the Free

Encyclopedia. 23 Apr. 2011. Web. 24 Apr. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/12_basic_principles_of_animation>.

"Frank & Ollie'sWebsite: Principles of Physical Animation." Frank & Ollie'sOfficial Site. Web. 24 Apr. 2011. <http://frankandollie.com/PhysicalAnimation.html>.

Lightfoot, Nataha. "Animation Toolworks' Library - 12 Principles." Animation Toolworks - Home of the LunchBox DV, LunchBox Sync and Video LunchBox. Web. 24 Apr. 2011. <http://www.animationtoolworks.com/library/article9.html>.

Stefano, Ralph A. "The Principles of Animation." Evl | Electronic Visualization Laboratory. Web. 24 Apr. 2011. <http://www.evl.uic.edu/ralph/508S99/>

IMAGESArc. Digital image. Road2Animate. 30 Apr. 2010. Web. 24 Apr.

2011. <http://road2animate.com/2010/04/30/12-principles-of-animation-for-3d-animators/>.

Dikeman, Rick. Pitcher's Motion. Digital image. Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 15 Sept. 2004. Web. 24 Apr. 2011. <http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/Baseball_pitching_motion_2004.jpg>.

Lampman. Squash and Stretch. Digital image. Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 27 June 2008. Web. 24 Apr. 2011. <http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Squash_and_Stretch.svg>.

Nystrom, J-E. Animhorse. Digital image. Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 6 Mar. 2010. Web. 24 Apr. 2011. <http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e3/Animhorse.gif>.

All images courtesy Microsoft Office ClipArt, unless otherwise noted.