The above quote sends shivers down my bones in the best of ways. When I began sculpting figures in college, I always thought to myself, wouldn't it be great to make them come to life? And I shortly after graduation, found myself at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida studying Computer Animation. Blame it on science, nature, or just fate, but I got super sick and found myself moving back home (Maryland) with no degree and a lot of debt. After working several years at a Residential Treatment Center with adolescent boys, I've found myself making art with the boys and that urge to study animation again came creeping back. Reading about the "gags" pulled on coworkers at Walt Disney Studios reminds me of some of the things I've pulled off at work with my coworkers and like Walt Disney, I've thought, what a funny story this would make, and I envision the people as characters. When the animators talk about how particular gags would be with Donald Duck, for example, I understand that, because we would gag people at my work differently, depending on who they were, and would base the level of severity of the gag on the person's personality. "Will this person get really offended or will they think this is hilarious?" Would often be the question asked. To this day, I will talk to one particular coworker who I frequently gagged (as his reactions were the best) and we laugh, and tell the stories to other coworkers, sometimes as a cautionary tale, "watch out for Johanna; she'll get you!"
The "Nine Old Men"
The development of "Character Relationship " is a very important development in animation; by doing this, a single animator works on a character and can better understand the animation from the first frame to the last. It blows my mind that this was something that wasn't done from the start; it reminds me of an "exquisite corpse," when a peice of paper is folded multiple times and passed along from one person to the next, only allowing the next person drawing to see about a centimeter of lines from the previous drawing. This process is great teamwork however, when the full picture is shown when the paper is unfolded, while there is one complete image, it is evident that each separated section is a different style, and it often does not flow; it just makes for interesting abstract art.
"This new way of working with character relationships encompassed the whole range of relations between two or more characters - from the broadest to the most delicate. It involved expression scenes that often registered the most secret thoughts and inner emotions of the characters" (164.)
The above quote makes me think of an interview I saw with a Pixar animator, who was responsible for the scene in Finding Nemo, when Dory, the forgetful fish, is crying after being asked to leave, by her only friend, Marlon, the clownfish who was in search of his son, Nemo. The relationship the animator has with Dory, is what makes her come to life.
This is described 16 minutes into the "Behind the Scenes" of Finding Nemo.
Seven Steps in Animating a Scene:
1. Think
2. Thumbnails
A: The Staging
B: The cutting and continuity
3. Mechanics of Presentation
A: Perspective
B: Scale
4. Solve Special Drawing Problems
5. Double Check Your Ideas
6. Blow Up Drawings Full Size
7. Put the “Juice” in it.
It’s incredible to me that seven steps are thought of to complete one scene; but in the same thought, the scene would not be dynamic if even one step was missing. These steps are important for any animator to remember; of course one must know why the scene is in the picture, and how it relates to the work as a whole - this is step one. The thumbnails are the storyboards; small pictures, and a general layout, camera angles, etc. Mechanics are important in regards to perspective and scale; if one is animating King Kong for example, the buildings, and King Kong himself need to be laid out in a way that the audience can look at it and say, “that is an enormous gorilla.” Problem solving is something that can’t be forgotten; if one is having difficulty with a shot, one simply can’t move on and assume it will work itself out. This is something that needs to be ironed out, and one misstep can affect the work as a whole. Double checking work is just a good habit for anyone to get into no matter what field of work they are in. Step six is probably super fun, as this is when your storyboards begin to come to life, and step seven is the magic; adding the details to bring it all together.
STORY
“A good story cannot be ruined by poor animation, but neither can a poor story be saved by the very best animation” (367.)
The idea of a good story is a very important one, and the concept can be brought back to the Seven Steps. This doesn’t just apply to animation, but to film as a whole; there are movies that hold up after years and years. The animation and graphics, and sometimes even the acting may be subpar, but since the story is so great, it is something worth re-watching.
SEQUENCES
“Never…more than 15 nor fewer than 10 sequences” (368.)
This is like a timeline of the story from start to finish. I can imagine it would be a good idea when writing the story to take a page and number from 1 to 15 and lay out your story, so that you can be sure that it remains captivating and doesn’t wander off, leaving the viewer bored beyond belief.
“Storymen” are in charge of writing characters who a”achieve maximum identity with the audience” (376.) For example, in 101 Dalmations, the puppies watch television with their mom and dad, like a “normal family.” The great thing about this is the idea of taking animals or in the case of a movie like, Toy Story, inanimate objects such as toys; and making them more humanlike, by giving them human characteristics. This type of creativity is something that I greatly admire; when a person can feel empathy for a toy, or a fish, I’d say that animation and filmmaking as a whole has achieved a great thing.
RULES OF DIALOGUE
1. DO NOT WRITE A DIALOGUE THAT DESCRIBES WHAT YOU ARE SEEING.
2. THE WORDS AND THE THOUGHT BEHIND THEM SHOULD BE SPECIAL TO THIS ONE CHARACTER.
3. DIALOGUE MUST BE WRITTEN SO THERE IS SOMETHING TO ANIMATE.
4. DIALOGUE MUST BE WRITTEN SO THE ACTOR DOING THE VOICE CAN CONTRIBUTE SOMETHING.
All of this makes sense and it is important for a person writing to understand these rules. I was told time and time again as a sculpture student that even with work that is stationary, I do not need to beat the idea into the audience’s head. This describes rule 1. If one is animating a mouse eating cheese, this can be done rather simply, and no words need to even be used; the viewer sees mouse with cheese, there doesn’t need to be dialogue such as, “Mouse: I am eating cheese!” Because it is what they are viewing.
SIX RULES OF EXPRESSION AND DIALOGUE (p.471):
1. SHOW EXPRESSION CHANGE
2. AVOID LOOKING UP FOR A FROWN, UNLESS IT IS A SINISTER, DOMINEERING ONE.
3. DO NOT HIDE A SMILE WITH THE HEAD TILTED DOWN TOO FAR OR BEHIND A BIG NOSE OR MOUSTACHE.
4. BE SURE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT STAGING TO SHOW ALL THE EXPRESSIONS IN YOUR SCENE TO THE BEST ADVANTAGE.
5. HAVE YOU THE RIGHT EXPRESSION FOR WHAT YOUR CHARACTER IS THINKING? ARE ALL THE PARTS OF THE HEAD AND FACE RELATED TO THIS ONE IDEA?
6. AS WE WERE TOLD SO MANY TIMES BEFORE WE LEARNED: IT IS THE CHANGE OF SHAPE THAT SHOWS THE CHARACTER IS THINKING. IT IS THE THINKING THAT GIVES THE ILLUSION OF LIFE. IT IS THE LIFE THAT GIVES MEANING TO THE EXPRESSION.
These rules are exceptionally important and some were things I’d not even considered. While Rule 1 makes sense, Rule 2 makes me laugh. I can imagine it happening, and the first thought that comes to mind when I imagine it is in the old animated (and in my opinion best) How the Grinch Stole Christmas, when the grinch looks into the camera (as it were) and smiles a huge, curling smile that can only be described as “sinister” and “domineering.” Rule 6 is another one of those quotes from the book that makes me feel tingly inside, and in it the titular line, “It is the thinking that gives the illusion of life.” That right there, is what makes animation so amazing to me. The ILLUSION of life; taking something and making it alive, it’s kind of godlike, and it may sound weird to say that, but truly take a minute and think about the powers an animator hold in their hands. The power to take a cowboy doll or a fish and make him a hero? Amazing.
NINE ECONOMICAL WAYS THAT ANIMATION CAN BUILD EMOTIONS IN THE IMAGINATIONS OF THE AUDIENCE: (p. 484)
1. REAR VIEW - Used when viewing a scene from behind, allows the audience to dream along with the characters.
2. SHADOWS- Associated with suspense and drama. Shadows are great because they are still effective, but less is required in the drawing of detail.
3. SHADOWS OVER THE CHARACTER- effective to help show emotion in a more dynamic way.
4. OVERLAYS - In the example in the book, a character is running through branches in the jungle; this adds dimension to the scene.
5. DRAMATIC LAYOUT - Putting a small character in a big dark wood, for example helps show scale, and additionally creates an emotion. How is this character feeling? Are they lost? Are they scared?
6. PICTORIAL SHOT - Background is important in setting a mood, I like to think of those postcards people send and they cause you to really wish you were where they are.
7. EFFECTS ANIMATION - Use of color, and animation to express a mood is very important in captivating an audience.
8. HELD DRAWING WITH CAMERA MOVES - emotion is shown by moving the camera and not the character; the animator can dramatically zoom in to the shocked expression on the face of the character in the shot.
9. OFFSTAGE SOUNDS - The book’s example is great; the shot is of the outside of a dog pound, and there is no animation required; just the sounds of the dogs crying and howling will evoke emotion.
POINTS TO REMEMBER WHEN ANIMATING EMOTIONS: (p. 507)
1. MAKE SURE THE EMOTIONAL STATE OF THE CHARACTER IS CLEARLY DEFINED.
2. THE THOUGHT PROCESS REVEALS THE FEELING.
3. BE ALERT TO USE OF CUTTING AND CAMERA IN HELPING TO ACCENTUATE THE EMOTION.
4. ASK YOURSELF CONSTANTLY:
WHAT AM I TRYING TO SAY HERE?
WHAT DO I REALLY WANT TO SHOW?
HOW DO I WANT THE AUDIENCE TO REACT?
5. USE THE ELEMENT OF TIME WISELY:
TO ESTABLISH THE EMOTION OF A CHARACTER,
TO CONVEY IT TO THE VIEWERS,
TO LET THEM SAVOR THE SITUATION.
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