Back to Basics

At first glance this article on the Spline Doctors blog may seem like a boring page of text, but don't be fooled, click on the words that are links to see animated examples of Dr Stephen G's animation basics.

Its gold.

I particularly like the example on balance featured in the picture here. The first person who really managed to get through to me how important balance is in animation was a guy call Joe Brum who used to work with us at Oska. Its great to see his teaching re-enforced here almost to the letter. We were working so much out for our selves back in those days (the average age of the employees would have been about 24), confirmation from other sources sets your mind at ease.

4 comments:

Sam said...

A boring page of text you say? Any animators who found that boring should probably quit now, as it's the most essential condensed list of everything you ever need to know about animation.

I'm often in a hurry to get through a scene so I tend to wing it and animate on reflex a lot of the time (half blocking out, half running straight ahead). But having a checklist of all those points handy would be invaluable to honing your animation, at least until it becomes second nature.

Lisa said...

i agree - thanks for putting that up Ian!!!

by the way, what's Joe up to these days?

Ian said...

I contacted Joe some time back about being a friend of the ARC, he agreed to, but I don't think he has been by much since.

Probably of somewhere making whatever he is doing look amazingly easy.... God I'm Jelious :)

Anonymous said...

Just lifted a quote from Stephen G from Spline Doctors:

"Here's my short list Timing, Anticipation, Arcs, Posing, Squash and Stretch and Overlap. Without these you got nothing with them you might have something. I see too many assignments that generally don't include any of these. My question is why don't people use these principles or think to use them? It's rather simple I make a checklist..."

Would it be possible to get such a checklist on each lightbox and screen in the studio this year? Oh, and on the back of the toilet doors as well?