notes flash cards

Optical toys

(Mid-1800s) Most employed rotating "phase drawings" of things in motion to produce a crude sense of animation (Phenakistoscope & Zoetrope)

Solidity - Solid Drawing

Animators need to understand three-dimensional space when drawing characters. Structurally volume, weight, and balance are important. Without a good structure, the character or prop will look unrealistic. It can be tempting to draw the arms and legs in identical positions which is called twinning, but this is not a good practice as the figure will look unrealistic. Digital technology can help with this, but there is no substitute for having a foundation of anatomy and knowledge of the mechanics of solid drawing.

Bitmap Brush Tool

As previously mentioned, the Bitmap Brush tool uses pixels to create lines and brush strokes unlike the Vector-based tools the Vector Brush and the Pencil. When you are working with a bitmap-based image such a as a photograph, the bitmap brush gives you the ability to add or remove pixels on the drawing. Take Note: When you make changes with the Bitmap Brush tool you are making destructive edits.

Steps to know: Import Assets (Camping.psd file)

1.At the top right side of screen select the Library tab. 2. Select File. 3.Select Import. 4.Select Images. 5. In the Import Images dialog box select Browse to navigate to Camping.psd. 6.Under Layer select Create Single Layer Named. 7.Under Import Options select Keep As Original Bitmap. 8.Under Rules select Fit. 9.Under Transparency select Straight. 10.Select OK. 11.In the Multilayer Image Import Settings dialog box next to Create Select Group as Layers. 12.Next to Transparency verify straight is selected 13.Select OK

Steps to know: Extend Exposure

1.In the Timeline select the Last frame on top layer. 2.Select Shift. 3.Select the Last frame of the bottom layer. 4.Right Click and select Extend Exposure (or F5 on the keyboard). Take Note: To change the length of a scene drag the red brackets on the Timeline or select Scene > Scene Length enter Number of Frames desired and select OK.

Steps to know: Add a Custom Resolution

1.Next to Camera Size dropdown arrow select the + sign. The New Resolution dialog box launches. 2.Next to Resolution Name enter desired name. 3.Enter Width. 4.Enter Height. 5.Select from the Field of View choices: o Horizontal Fit o Vertical Fit o Custom FOV 7.Enter Frame Rate. 8.Select Create. The new Camera size will be added. Take Note: Novice animators should choose 12 frames and move to 24 for production Select Create. The new Camera size will be added

Steps to know: Create My First Project

1.Open Harmony Premium. 2.In the Welcome Screen next to Name enter My First Project. 3.Verify location is correct. 4.Next to Camera Size select the dropdown. 5.Select HDTV_1080p24 (standard definition for high definition television at 24 frames per second). 6.Select Create. Take Note: Spaces are replaced by an underscore character as follows: My_First_Project Importing Images Sometimes instead of drawing the scene directly in Harmony Premium you may wish to import a file from another program such as Adobe Photoshop. You will use the Library feature to Import these files. As previously mentioned the Library allows you to reuse and share elements inside the software. All elements of a scene can be stored here.

Gertie the Dinosaur

1914 o Winsor McCay o Cartoon with a Character o McCay Split System- poses were drawn then frames added - known as keyframing

Steamboat Willie

1928 Produced by Walt Disney o Black and White Cartoon o First to use synchronized sound o Debut of Mickey Mouse

Storyboarding

A storyboard is a visual outline for your animation. A storyboard creates a concise guideline for creating the animation by showing a still image with dialog using the script. Each scene is represented with an image and any accompanying dialog. In addition, the storyboard may also include an explanation of what is occurring in the frame. The storyboard should simulate movement and give the animation team a roadmap for producing the animation. A comic book is a great example of what a storyboard looks like with each frame showing movement, dialog and explanation of the scene. In a larger production, a storyboard is typically created by a storyboard artist who specializes in creating storyboards. The process of creating a storyboard may take multiple iterations with the creative team of writers, directors, and other staff making suggestions to improve the production. The storyboard can be illustrated in a very basic style or created as an accurate representation of the animation style used for the production. Traditional style storyboards are created on paper, Toon Boom's Storyboard Pro allows you to create a Storyboard digitally for output to screen or paper.

Steps to Know: Bitmaps in Toon Boom Harmony

Bitmap images are composed as pixels. Cannot be enlarged to any size without a reduction in quality. Bitmap Images tend to look more organic since they can be drawn with traditional tools or scanned. Bitmap Images are more difficult to change once created. They are not as flexible as a vector file. Bitmap images are the best choice for photographs.

Steps to Know: Vectors in Toon Boom

Can be enlarged to any size without a reduction in quality. Maintain sharp edges without quality loss, but can dynamically smooth edges with anti-aliasing. Artwork remains editable in the future to allow recoloring or changing. If you are using Cut-Out style animation the vector format is ideal. The file size is typically much smaller with vector files.

Audio Editing

Current day audio editing is handled using a separate audio editing application which is called a digital audio workstation (DAW). The sound editor will make any audio changes to audio-visually by modifying the audio waveform which represents the peaks and valley of sound. The sound editor may change volume levels, add noise reduction to the track, and possibly match the volume of effects with the soundtrack for instance.

Cutout Animation

Cut out animation is a technique that utilizes characters, various props and backgrounds that have been cut out of paper or cardboard or other materials to create an animation. These characters are then positioned for each frame of the animation to create movement. Characters can be constructed in a simple form as one piece or more complex creation by using a rivet or fastener to attach the joints of the characters. Typically, this type of animation utilizes 2D (2 dimensional) or flat objects. Traditional cut animation was recorded using a still camera. The first featured length cut animation is the "The Adventures of Prince Achmed" by Lotte Reiniger a story derived from "The Arabian Nights, that utilized hand cut paper silhouettes and was released in 1931.

Steps to know:Paperless Animation

Draw a character on a frame each different then the last Duplicate artwork, cut, rotate, copy and paste or create new elements on each frame for change Apply digital ink to images using color chart that is predetermined for characters of the movie

Drawings

Drawings themselves should be labeled with the angle required for the animation. This includes front angle, side drawings, and back angle drawings. For example, Character Grey Bunny's left arm, front view = gb_l_arm_f. Take Note: Projects without consistency and organization become more difficult to manage as the project grows. The start of the project is the ideal time to set the requirements.

Zoopraxiscope

English man Eadweard Muybridge who created the Zoopraxiscope, a motion picture projector, is credited with inspiring Thomas Edison. The Zoopraxiscope projected multiple images one after another giving the illusion of movement. Muybridge was well known for his animal locomotion studies.

Follow Through

Follow through is the principle that an animator must use on the appendages of a character such as hair, arms, clothing, etc. It stands to reason for realistic animation that these elements move when the character is moving. Physics come into play here. Clothes, for example, will move at a different speed than a body. This is drag - elements that move at a different speed than the other parts. In the image below notice the witch's clothes, hair, and dress and how they illustrate movement. These secondary elements may not even stop moving when the character does. This is an overlapping action. Drag and Overlap make the animation look realistic, not mechanical. Let's say the witch jumps off the broom physics dictates that her body will move differently than her clothes. Her dress would drag behind as a secondary action. Just like the principle of Squash and Stretch, the amount of drag will indicate its mass.

Squash and Stretch

Giving a sense of weight with objects by exaggerating the object. For instance, if you are animating a bouncing ball you could show the ball squashed when the ball hits the floor and stretched out when the ball moves off the floor. The same technique can be used when a person is hit with an object. If you use this effect the object seems suppler the less applied the more rigid the object. Used in animation to show speed momentum weight and mass. Used with facial expressions to show emotion. Squashed eyes are closed wide eyes are surprised. The volume of the object must always remain even to work well.

Guides

Guides are a commonplace tool that is used in a number of different graphics applications. Guides are used as a drawing cue and for the alignment and spacing of objects. The guides inside Toon Boom Harmony work a little differently than some other applications such as Adobe or Microsoft. They allow drawings to be created using guidelines that the drawing will align to. Toon Boom Harmony supports multiple guide types.

Bitmap and Vector

Harmony allows the creation of vector and bitmap layer modes. Toon Boom Harmony will work with vector and bitmap-based artwork. Both formats have advantages and disadvantages. The program excels at working with vector-based artwork. By using vectors, you can take advantage of the benefits that the vector format affords including easier color replacement and sizing changes without a reduction in quality. Vectors are composed of points, lines, and Bézier curves instead of pixels which bitmaps utilize. Toon Boom Harmony can automatically vectorize artwork to convert the image from a bitmap to a vector upon import of the file. Take Note: Depending on which drawing mode is selected, certain tools become available or disabled.

Dynamic Brushes

Harmony supports the ability to create dynamic brush tips. A dynamic brush allows you to brush using a pattern based on your artwork. Patterns can be created based for either single or multiple patterns almost like using a rubber stamp.

Projecting kinetoscope

In 1889 the Edison team led by his employee William Kennedy Laurie Dickson developed the Kinetoscope, a device that contained a kinetograph and allowed people to watch short films by looking through an eye hole located at the top.

Brush, Pen, and Eraser Tools

In Harmony Premium both the brush and pencil tools can brush and draw with vector-based lines. This gives the user the ability to modify lines at any time. In addition, the brush tool allows strokes using either a vector-based brush or bitmap strokes. The difference with a bitmap-based brush is it erases pixels when making changes to painted brush strokes. The brush tool creates a filled stroke width line that supports different widths. The brush properties can be modified to create different style brushes. When using a drawing tablet, you can utilize a pressure sensitivity to create variable sizing based on the pressure of the pen. Take Note: When making changes with the Vector Brush and Pencil tool you are making non-destructive edits. Meaning you can go back and make changes afterward.

Pencil and Paper

In the beginning animators began with an idea and a pencil and paper. This Traditional Animation form consisted of a sequence of multiple drawings, characters and backgrounds, each slightly different from the last. The number of drawings per second can be anywhere from 12 to 30. The standard from the NTSC (National Television System Committee) or PAL (Phase Alternating Line) is 24. 2D animation worked by tracing and then transferring the images onto celluloid which consisted of cellulose nitrate and camphor. Unfortunately, this method was dangerous as it was flammable, so it was replaced by transparent acetate sheets known as Cels. These were then hand painted frame by frame and animated separately. This method has since been replaced by 2D animation software such as Toon Booms Storyboard Pro and Harmony Premium where drawings are uploaded to be colored in the software.

Limited Animation

Introduced by the United Productions of America (UPA) this style of animation had limited detail and characters did not look realistic. A much cheaper way to animate the style caught on and many characters became quite popular such as Mr. Magoo.

Praxinoscope

Invented by Emile Reynaud in 1831 this toy was a spinning cylinder with a set of mirrors. The larger version allowed projection of these moving pictures onto a screen.

Thaumatrope

Invented by John A. Paris in 1825 this toy was a disc with a picture on each side. Holes were punched, and string added so when pulled the disc spins giving illusion of movement.

Flip Book

Invented by John Barnes Linnet in 1868 this toy had drawings on multiple pages, each one slightly different then the last. When the pages are flipped then the animation appears to move.

Rotoscoping

Invented by Max Fleischer in 1917 rotoscoping is the process of projecting a live sequence onto a glass panel and then tracing the image frame by frame onto celluloid sheets. This technique enabled motion to look realistic as it was originally taken from live footage. However, this was a very time-consuming animation method. Fleischer used this method on a character called Koko the Clown where his brother was filmed dressed as a clown. The famous dance moves of the character Betty Boop were made by filming Cab Calloway dancing then tracing those images for her animation sequence.

Zoetrope

Invented by William George Horner in 1834 this toy was a cylinder with pictures drawn around the inside. Looking through the slit's gives the illusion of motion as the wheel spins.

Transform Button

It is preferable to have the imported image fit the scene size. To do this select the Transform button from the left toolbar select Shift on the keyboard while holding the left mouse down and dragging the handle to fill the image with the correct Aspect Ratio. If you have a scene with multiple layers you will notice if you hit the play button the image is only visible on the for the first frame. To extend the exposure of the image follow these steps.

Linear Perspective

Linear Perspective uses a focal point and is used when creating buildings and architecture.

Top Menu - is one of three types of menus in Harmony Premium

Located at the top of the interface, this menu contains the core commands of the Interface. By selecting the File menu, a user could create a New project, Open an existing or Recent project, or Close and Save a project. There are options to Backup a Scene, manage Database Changes, and Remove Unused Files. Other key commands with submenus are the Import, Export, and Print options. View Menu o Camera o Colour o Drawing o Function o Library o Model o Node Library o Node o Perspective o Script Editor o Side o Timeline o Top o XSheet Take Note: Each menu is specific to that view. For example, in the Library window, the View Menu opens to give access to viewing and editing assets.

Copyright Law and Reference Material

Make sure you are cognizant of copyrights and intellectual property when taking inspiration from materials that might be copyrighted. For example, in many cases, the photographer that took the photo does not own the rights to a photograph if the photo was used in a publication. If your intent is to replicate something you will need to secure the necessary usage rights, even if your animation is a derivative of the original work. It is one thing to get inspiration from something, it's another to replicate the work in its entirety. In some cases, the Fair Use Doctrine applies to working with copyrighted materials when the content is used in teaching or student work.

Roles in an Animation Production

Many roles are required for a successful animation production. The same roles are required for a team of 100 or a team of one. There are additional roles in some productions but this list is a core set of roles that are responsible for Pre- production, Production, and Post-Production tasks.

Character Prop & Background Color Styling

Once the black and white designs are done, they are sent to color styling. The color stylist chooses the colors and ambiance for the production and balances the characters, props and effects with the location palettes. This contributes to a consistency or an emotional contrast, where needed, in the show. When the colors are approved, color models are produced, and backgrounds are painted. Color models will often be added to the model pack. The color models will be used by the colorists and the colored background will be sent for compositing.

Production

Once your script, storyboard, characters, props, and location design are completed its time to start the production phase. Over the years, along with technology, animation has advanced and there are several types of animation.

Exaggeration

Originally when Walt Disney was demanding more realism from his animators' drawings he meant more exaggeration. Realism in't always the best approach for animation. Using exaggeration reinforces the scene by emphasizing the action taking place. Using larger then accurate objects draw the viewer to the desired object and drives home the concept that is being sold to the audience.

Perspective Drawing

Perspective drawing techniques empowers the artist to transform 2D artwork into a 3D point of view. Perspective drawing requires a focal point (or a series of focal points) and creates an accurate design approach by using the X, Y, and Z-axis. Another name for the focal point is a vanishing point. One (focal) point perspective may be used when creating interior scenes. Two (focal) point perspective comes in handy when creating an exterior landscape. Advanced drawings may use three or more (focal) points when drawing buildings and designing cityscapes.

Appeal

Probably the easiest principle in animation to understand. The character drawn should be likable. It should visually possess characteristics that appeal to the audience. This applies to both the hero and the villain. It also doesn't mean good looking per se, but visually interesting. Try not to draw all the characters with the same dimensions, but use a variety of shapes that are dynamic. Do not over illustrate. This can make it difficult and time-consuming to duplicate in animation.

persistence of vision

Professional animators record 24 image frames per second so the retina fills in the movement from one screen to the next. If you are new to creating animation and are using software such as Toon Boom Harmony Premium it is recommended to start creating moving images by recording 12 frames per second.

Quick Access Menu

Quick Access Menu is available by right-clicking in any part of a view area of the Interface. These menus relate specifically to the view that is active. Take Note: Remember in Harmony Premium a red box is present on the active section of the window.

Steps to know: Rotoscoping

Record a live sequence Project onto glass panel Trace the image frame by frame onto celluloid sheets Topic 2C: Paperless Animation

Audio Recording

Recording the dialog of your characters is a crucial step in preproduction. Audio will need to be recorded for each character and sound effects. The voices can be used for the Animatic and production of the animation. Take Note: In many productions multiple recordings are taken with different inflections

Secondary Actions

Secondary action covers the gestures the character portrays. This is not the same as overlapping action. This has more to do with secondary movement such as nodding while listening to music, swinging arms while walking, etc. Secondary action tends to add dimension to a story. For example, a person eating dinner could lick their lips while eating to demonstrate the food is good or splutter and choke to indicate the food may taste bad. Do not let the secondary action distract from the main story. Take Note: The recommended frame rate for animated films is 24 frames/per second which is 1440 frames for one minute of action. One drawing per frame is called drawing on ones. One drawing every two frames is called drawing on twos and so on. Drawing on twos is the most preferred.

Steps to know: Create a New Workspace

Select Windows Select Workspace Select Workspace Select the Add button. Select the new Workspace created. Select Rename to give it a New Name. With the new Workspace highlighted select the right arrow and add to the Toolbar section. Select OK

Fred Ott's Sneeze

Shot by Edison Employee Dickson o 1894 o Black and White o 5 Second Documentary

Tool Properties View

Smoothing Options: o Centerline smoothing o Contour smoothing Transparency Options: o Antialiasing o Maximum flow o Maximum Opacity o Random Flow o Random Opacity

Staging

Staging, the process of focusing the audience on the most relevant aspect of a scene. Good animation will look at the character, camera angle and movement, lighting, size and position of objects. Imagine a story where a character had a nightmare. In animation exaggerated visual cues could portray this. Place the character center stage or at least within the rule of thirds for the scene. A closeup camera angle could show the character with perspiration dripping onto the sheets. A wide shot would show location. Never distract by having too many action items happening at once. Good staging tells a story, bad staging competes for the audience's attention and the audience will get distracted and not know what to watch.

Stop Motion and puppet animation

Stop motion is a form of animation that involves capturing one frame at a time using a camera to capture still images. These still images are then combined to create a video sequence. Stop motion allows an animator to position characters, props and backgrounds frame by frame. Stop motion can be a very slow process working this way, requiring movement of each character, props and scenery for each frame.

Textured Brushes

Textured brushes have a variety of options for creation with textured, fuzzy, and even water colored lines. The textured brushes tend to look organic in design and are very similar to brush strokes from a real brush.

Animatic: Going beyond the Storyboard

The Animatic which is also known as a Leica originates from the storyboard. In its most basic form think of an Animatic as a storyboard turned into a very simplistic flipbook with audio. The animatic shows the frames of the storyboard changing over time. This is used to evaluate the speed and rhythm of the animation of the story. If you are 100% sure of how the timing of your production plays out, then you can bypass this step, however, an animatic would be helpful. The animatic can be produced with Toon Boom Storyboard or using other software. Take Note: Animatics help with creating a pace for your production, to determine how long each scene should be.

Animator

The Animator utilizes the work done by the Rigger to animate a character in a scene. This role also involves setting camera placement and animating or staging background elements.

Art Director or Creative Director

The Art Director works in combination with the Director to help define the creative direction of a project. In many cases this means working with his or her team to define the artistic direction through continuity in a defined creative style along with the necessary technical requirements for the production.

Centerline Editor

The Centerline Editor allows you to edit a brush stroke using a single line to manipulate. This works almost identically to the way you manipulate a line with the Pencil tool without having to reshape the contour of the line.

Character Designer

The Character Designer works directly with the Art Director to create the characters in the production. In many cases the Art Director or the Director has an idea for a character, maybe even a loose sketch of the character but it's the Character Designer's role to design the actual character.

Eraser

The Eraser can remove either brush strokes and pencil lines. The Eraser also can erase artwork using the Bitmap Brush or remove pixels from a Bitmap image. There are several brush properties that can be adjusted in the Tool Properties view. Select all from the list below. Select one or more: The brush size The roundness and angle The shape of the brush The spacing Which tool includes the outer lines that represent the entirety of the line shape? Select one: Brush Pencil Pressure Curve

The Library

The Library allows you to reuse and share elements inside the software. Elements such as backgrounds, character puppets, animations, and key poses can be stored in the library. The library becomes the main storage location for all assets in a production. In addition, the library allows the storage of drawing substitutions which can be sued for swapping out a character's facial features or other body parts for a specific frame.

Pencil Editor

The Pencil Editor allows the line thickness to be adjusted after the line has already been drawn. This allow the contour to be modified in a similar fashion as the Brush Tool.

Pencil Tool

The Pencil tool is very similar to the Brush tool; however, the edges of the pencil tool have hard edges. The Pencil also uses a single center line which allows the line to be manipulated even after the line has been drawn. The Pencil does not utilize a contour line like the Brush Tool. The width of a line drawn with the pencil tool can be modified after the line has been drawn by changing the Maximum Size properties value of a selected line in the Pencil Selection panel.

Character Rigger

The Rigger is responsible for taking a character and connecting the virtual joints or bones together which are required for Cut-out animation. There is a lot of work involved in taking a character and assembling these pieces together so that an Animator can animate a character.

Slow-In and Slow-Out (Easing)

The Slow in Slow Out principle used in animation again mirrors nature. Basically, this method shows when objects start to move they begin slowly or ease into the motion as the movement continues they accelerate. When coming to a stop they decelerate which is known as slowing down or Slow Out. Remember it is good practice to have the beginning drawings closer together to demonstrate slow motion and the faster motion drawings further apart. Constant speed would reflect a more mechanical object. Objects don't go from still to fast very quickly so make sure that drawings reflect this by starting slowly and then gaining momentum by spacing drawings further apart ending close tighter again to stop. To fix choppy animation analyze the spaces between drawings and if necessary add drawings to eliminate too many gaps.

Sound Designer

The Sound Designer records and creates sounds/effects for a production. Each noise or sound effect that you hear in a production must be sourced or created.

Sound Editor

The Sound Editor assembles sounds and does the final mix down of sounds for the production. This means that the sound will be broken down in small pieces and written on the traditional exposure sheet (also known as Xsheet) for the animators use. Each frame will have its own bit of sound information which tells the animator what mouth phonem to place on the character on a particular image.

Storyboard Artist

The Storyboard Artist works in the beginning phase of the project to sketch out how the animation and story will play out scene by scene. Typically, the director and the Scriptwriter has a direct line to the Storyboard artist. A storyboard is a visual representation of all the scenes and actions contained in the

Voiceover Actor

The Voiceover Actor is the talent who's voice that is used for the characters in the production. The actors will read the lines from the script and record their dialogue and in some cased improvised. These voices will be used later on for the animatic, the animation, and the final production compositing. Sometimes actors are recording individually and in some productions, they are recorded in a group.

The Workspace Manager

The Workspace Manager is the place you can rename modify add delete or reorder them. To prevent overwrite you have the option to save a new version.

Straight-Ahead and Pose to Pose

The animation principles Straight-Ahead and Pose to Pose cover the way to draw action. Straight-Ahead is a sequence method of drawing. Each movement follows directly after the other like the early flip book. A disadvantage of Straight- Ahead can be the final position of the drawing may not end up where it should have thus creating a do over. This is a spontaneous method of drawing animation and works best with elements that are fluid. I.e. smoke fire water etc. Take Note: The Straight-Ahead method is not recommended for new animators as there could be a high number of changes which translate into costly production time. In Pose to Pose animation the essential action elements are drawn first to verify start and end positions. Other positions are backfilled in a process called in betweening. Pose to Pose offers greater control over the action and is the best method to use for new animators. This method also allows greater control over timing and the intention of a shot.

Dubbing

The dubbing (also called post synchro) steps of the production involve bringing in actors to record their voices for dubbing into multiple languages if necessary. In some cases, actors are brought back to re-record their voice for a specific scene for any number of reasons. This is referred to as ADR (Additional Dialog Replacement.

Master Distribution

The final step is to distribute the animation to the studio or make copies for distribution for online streaming or theaters and film festivals. Fill in the correct boxes With Audio recording multiple recordings are taken in different __________. Recorded voices are sometimes used in a __________ or __________ A __________balances the__________ as well as__________and __________. For dialog a __________is done. Sound is written on a traditional exposure sheet known as a__________. 1. Effects 2. animatic 3. Xsheet 4. props 5. characters 6. color stylist 7. final production 8. inflections 9. sound breakdown 10. When recording audio actors can____? Select all that apply. 11. Select one or more: 12. Use different inflections 13. Hire other actors 14. Improvise the script 15. Rewrite the script 16. Record as a group

Stop Motion Animation

The first stop motion film was The Humpty Dumpty Circus (1898), a film by Blackton and Smith which utilized wooden toys in a depiction of circus acrobats. o The first feature length film to use stop motion is The Lost World (1925) which was based on Arthur Doyle's story. Willis O'Brien created the stop motion dinosaurs for the movie and pioneered the technique for integrating stop motion characters with live-action footage on one screen. o He went on to win an academy award for Best Visual Effects in 1950 for the film Mighty Joe Young. o In 1940 an animator named George Pal came up with a technique called "replacement animation" to avoid having to reshape a character's head he devised a way to utilize multiple replacement heads that could be attached that exhibited various facial expressions. George Pal went on to create effects for War of the Worlds (1953). o Take Note: The technique George Pal developed can be emulated through digital technology via the use of a function called "Drawing Substitutions" which allows an animator to swap out elements inside the timeline to change your character's facial expressions for instance. o o In 1964 Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer by Rankin/Bass was released which of course became an instant classic that seems to play every year during the holidays.

Arc of Rotation

The natural human movement does not follow a straight line. A moving arm tends to be bendy and soft. This mirrors most objects in nature. The path is circular because the movement is fluid. When creating characters or action in animation it will appear more natural when the path it takes moves in an arc rather than a straight line. Straight lines generally work better for something more mechanical or robotic. Set up an X and Y axis to map out a motion path. The X-axis should remain straight while the object such as a ball, for instance, will travel on the Y- axis in an arc.

Final Editing

The post-production phase comes after the rendering of the animation has been completed. If you used Toon Boom Harmony to create your animation the program does not include video editing features. The outputted video file will be edited by an editor with a true non-linear video editing software. The editor will then add video effects, transitions, filters, and titling to the production. When the editor has completed the editing audio can be then be added.

Animation

The production phase is where the bulk of the work is done to complete the project. The animation production processes that are used will differ based on the animation technique used. For example Cut-out Animation would require Layout, Character and Prop Breakdown whereas the Traditional Animation method would use an X Sheet. Compositing The task of compositing involves setting up the camera to be animated for a scene by reviewing the animatic and the exposure sheet. The compositor also adds effects, lighting, and makes any adjustments to the scene and background elements.

Rendering

The rendering process involves exporting the animation as a video footage. In many cases, the person doing the compositing will also do the rendering of the animation.

Solid Vector Brush

The solid vector brush utilizes lines to form the outline of the brush which is filled with a solid color. This type of brush utilizes a contour to contain the brush fill which is more limiting with the amount of styles that can be used with it. o When using a vector brush, you can manipulate the brush strokes using the Select Tool ,Smooth Editor, Contour Editor, Envelope, and Perspective tools. The Brush tool tends to draw with a softer edge then using the Pencil tool. o Even after the brush line has been drawn, you can manipulate the contour points of the brush line to tweak the shape of the line. Select the point to manipulate with the Contour Editor Tool. You can also apply colors from the color palette. o Take Note: Solid Brush tips cannot be modified. The brush tip is limited to the following: circle, diamond, or square tips. The proportion and angle can be adjusted.

Workspaces

The workspace is a layout for the elements of the Harmony interface. When you launch Harmony, the program automatically loads the last workspace arrangement that was used. The workspace, as the name indicates, is where digital work happens. The different workspaces can be selected using the Windows > Workspace > Workspace option from the menu bar. There are five available workspace presets: o Animating o Compositing o Default o Hand-Drawn o Scripting

Tool Properties View

There are several properties that can be modified with each brush type throughout the use of the Tool Properties view. Tip Options: o Shape of Tip. By default, the shapes include circle, diamond, and square. Other shapes can be created, exported, or imported. o Maximum Size o Minimum Size o Proportion to Camera o Roundness and Angle o Hardness o Spacing o Random Size o Random Angle o Random Spacing

Full Animation

This is a much more high-quality type of animation. Great attention is applied to even the most minuscule of detail to make the movement look realistic and life like. Usually requires many drawings for smooth natural movement.

Guide View

This tool guide assists artists to draw straight lines, accurate angles, and perspective. The pencil tool or brush tool must be selected to use the Guide View in Harmony. Let's examine the Guide View by looking at the components and their function. Take Note: Snap to Alignment Guides snaps the tool or your selection to the nearest alignment guide.

Timing

Timing is essential to good animation. Again, if the laws of physics and motion are followed, it will make the story believable and add audience perception of what is going on. Having one character pick up a barbell slowly while another character rapidly lifts the weight illustrates the strength of each character. The personality of the character is affected by the timing of this action. To achieve the message that the weight is too heavy do more drawings. Seeing the Roadrunner blazing through a scene illustrates the speed of the character while emphasizing the slow drop of the anvil on the coyote draws attention to his impending doom.

The 12 Principles

To be a successful animator an understanding of the principles of animation is fundamental. In the 1980's Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston wrote a book called the 12 Principles of Animation. Based on their experiences from working as animators at Disney the two documented concepts that they felt were the guidance for realistic looking animation.

Toolbars

Toolbars are usually found at the top or side of the active window but can be repositioned anywhere by selecting drag and dropping them. Toolbars are specific to the selected active view, for example, if the Drawing View is displayed then the drawing toolbar is available. However, initially, not all items are automatically visible on a toolbar. If you wish to add some items simply right click the toolbar and place a checkmark next to the desired tool item.

Bitmap Images

Toon Boom Harmony will work with bitmap images as well. When you take a picture with your cell phone you are creating a bitmap image. Bitmaps are composed of pixels in a matrix that are used to create an image. Each pixel can be assigned a different color value. If you were to zoom in close on a bitmap image you would see the individual pixels. The quality of bitmap images is dependent on the number of pixels in an image. The larger the number of pixels the higher the quality of the image. The width and height pixel count is the resolution of the image.

Layers

Toon Boom recommends that you add one or two letters for the prop name/character. You should label your corresponding character/prop by adding L (left) or R (right). For example, Character John's Left Leg = jn_l_leg.

The Script

Turning a story into a script is the job of a screenwriter or writer. The screenwriter takes the story and adds action notes, creates the dialog for each character, and even notes where sound effects will occur. The script is then made available for the storyboard artist to create the storyboard.

Anticipation

Used to alert the audience that something is about to happen. An example would be someone is about to run they would bend their knees and crouch down. This visual cue alerts the audience that the person is about to run. Take the image below for example, we know the character is getting ready to run and we can anticipate this just by the positions shown, even if we did not have the last image of them running.

Working with Reference Images

When creating the design for a production it is important to create a visual theme that will be used throughout the animation. By developing a consistent theme with your animation, your production will have a consistent look and feel throughout. Reference material can be used to create a framework for inspiration for the production. The reference material can be collected from many different sources including toys, films, characters, photographs, architecture, and paintings for example. If you're familiar with the concept of a mood board, a similar approach can be used when gathering materials for reference. Using reference material is a great way to set the time, period, artwork style, color palette, and overarching theme for the entire production. When you look at an iconic movie like Star Wars, where did George Lucas and his team take inspiration from? Older classic films like Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers were films that inspired

Sand animation uses different techniques for manipulating sand.

o Pouring o Palm Rubbing

Process for Cut-Out Animation

When it comes to digital Cut-Out animation the characters and props need to be rigged. Rigging involves breaking apart the characters and props into individual parts that connect in a parent/child hierarchy. Once a character has been rigged, then it can be more easily animated. Creating a Library of your digital elements for production is extremely useful and necessary for a production of any size. The library allows you to store all the assets required for the production in a centralized location that can be shared with the rest of your team. The library should be organized in a way that the rest of the team can adhere to. This includes creating the folder structure and using a consistent naming system for files. Setting up the scene for your animation gives animators the framework to animate characters. When setting up the scene, elements are positioned on the background layer to define how a character will be animated in reference to the background. In many cases, the camera view will be set up at the same time.

Post Production

When it comes to post-production you're dealing with video editing, audio editing, dubbing, and any color adjustment. The final step is the distribution of the animation.

The Phases of Production

When it comes to producing an animation, whether it is a large-scale production or 5 second short, the production process should be the same. There are three phases of production when it comes to animation and filmmaking. Each of the phases builds on the previous phase to form a complete project. Pre-Production Production Post Production

Project Setup

When launching Harmony Premium, the Welcome screen displays with the following interface items. Name: users have the option to name and Create a Scene or Open a Scene from a previous activity. Location: where project files will be stored. Select the Browse button to navigate to files and folders on your local desktop preferably so as not to lose anything. Camera Size: This covers Scene/Screen resolution and automatically fills in presets: o Width o Height o Frame Rate o Field of View depending on selection Take Note: If you wished to change the current scene resolution and frame rate select the Scene Settings dialog

Naming Conventions

When starting a large project that might involve a team of animators, artists, and production people the proper naming convention can make a huge difference in navigating content. As the project grows and the number of characters, scenery items, and other background elements continues to increase in number using a standardized naming convention allows new team members to step into a production without spending hours trying to find elements. Keep a production folder hierarchy that makes sense and is easy to navigate. Any folder directory should have subfolders that include all elements of the project such as backgrounds, character builds, colour models, animatics etc.

Sound Breakdown

When the audio has been recorded, the dialog can be broken down into smaller pieces. These pieces will be used by animators to attach to the movement of the character's mouth. By using an exposure sheet (XSheet) the animator will have the necessary information to associate the recorded dialog with the character's mouth.

Character, Prop, and Location Design

When the script has been completed character design can be started. Prior to animating a character, the actual characters need to be designed. Working with the creative director (art director) and the director to determine the visual style of your character, the props, and the background location elements. Once the style has been determined the characters can be designed, each pose, each expression, and the associated props.

Steps to know: Customize a Toolbar

With the Toolbar selected right click. In the Toolbar Manager window navigate to the Available Tools section. Select Customize Select the Right arrow in the center to add the item to the Toolbar section. Select the Left arrow in the center to remove the item Select the Up and Down arrows in the center to reposition an item in a toolbar Select OK

Paperless Animation

With the evolution of computer technology traditional animation has given way to the digital age. Instead of a pen and paper animators now work with digital technology to draw images. As with traditional animation there is still a need to draw each frame but with digital technology and programs like Toon Booms Harmony Premium the possibilities of character variation and action has increased. Another advantage is artists can animate the drawing almost instantly giving greater control over edits

Sand animation

is a unique form of animation that utilizes sand typically inside a light box to create a compelling story with sand. The animation is created by moving the sand, adding or removing sand from the box. An overhead projector or camera is generally used to capture the animation. Sand animation can be recorded with a still camera to be edited and converted into an animation sequence or with a video camera during a live performance