Page 138 - DCAP303_MULTIMEDIA_SYSTEMS

Multimedia Systems

notes The animation industry in India is large and growing. Indian studios work on animation projects
for both, the Indian market as well as for international markets in the US and Europe.
8.1 principles of animation

It all started after the 1930s when Walt Disney noticed that the level of animation was inadequate
for some new story lines. Classes for his animators were set up under the instruction of Don
Graham. Before those classes, the animations were made with little or no reference to nature.
Out of these classes grew a new way of drawing moving human figures and animals, where the
analysis of real action became important to the development of animation. After a while, each
technique was named and they became known as the fundamental principles of animation that
are listed below:
1. Timing
2. Ease In and Out (or Slow In and Out)

3. Arcs
4. Anticipation
5. Exaggeration
6. Squash and Stretch
7. Secondary Action
8. Follow Through and Overlapping Action
9. Straight Ahead Action and Pose-to-Pose Action
10. Staging
11. Appeal
12. Personality
Simply memorizing these principles is not the point. No one will care whether or not you know
this list. It is whether or not you truly understand and can utilize these ideas that matter. If you
do, it will show automatically in your work.
1. timing
Timing is the essence of animation. The speed at which something moves gives a sense of what
the object is, the weight of an object, and why it is moving. Something like an eye blink can be
fast or slow. If it is fast, a character will seem alert and awake and if it is slow, the character may
seem tired and lethargic.
J. Lesseter’s example. Head that turns left and right.
• Head turns back and forth really slow: it may seem as if the character is stretching his neck
(lots of in between frames).
• A bit faster it can be seen as saying “no” (a few in between frames).

• Really fast, and the character is reacting to getting hit by a baseball bat (almost none in
between frames).

2. ease in and out (or slow in and out)
Ease in and out has to do with gradually causing an object to accelerate, or come to rest, from a
pose. An object or limb may slow down as it approaches a pose (Ease In) or gradually start to
move from rest (Ease Out).

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