Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
and, in the context of entertainment, more believable animation. It is not
important here for the movement to be correct but to
appear
to be correct
and therefore acceptable. The extreme use of this same principle, squash
and stretch in cartoon-based animation, does not simply enhance the
movement in an effort to make the action realistic; it creates a distinctive
form of movement all its own. We no longer compare the action to our own
knowledge or preconceived ideas of movement; we are more than content
to accept the action as appropriate to the form. Clearly what is appropriate
usage for one may be inappropriate for the other. If the animation used for
Bambi
were expressed in the same manner as
Ren and Stimpy
, with shifts
in volume, unnatural timing, and lack of perceptible weight, the bounds of
believability would be broken. Conversely, if the animation of Ren and Stimpy
conformed to an accurate illustration of weight and balance, timing, and the
use of volume, it would lose much of its appeal and almost all its humor. It
is the appropriate level of animated movement that creates a relevant and
appropriate performance for individual productions. The point here is: If it
looks right, it is right.
These principles, applied to animated actions, are not limited to character-
based animation. They apply equally to animated effects such as water, fire,
smoke, wave actions, and the animation of materials such as fabrics, metal,
and wood.
It is my intention in this chapter to cover each of these principles in some
detail. The principles of animation that were set out by the early Disney
animators are a good starting point in covering this topic. Those principles are:
• Timing
• Secondary action
• Slow in and slow out
• Straight-ahead action and pose-to-pose
• Squash and stretch
• Anticipation
• Staging
• Follow-through and overlapping action
• Arcs
• Exaggeration
• Solid drawing
• Appeal
Although these principles may have been useful to animators in the 1930s
and 1940s who were striving to improve not only their own work but to
raise the level of craft skills and in doing so develop the art form, they do not
necessarily reflect all forms of modern animation. Since those early pioneers
of animation first struggled with creating animated performances, the craft
of animation has moved forward a good deal, and it may be that today's
principles of animation are slightly different from those identified in the
Disney studio. At least there may be additional identifiable principles to be
