Month: October 2015

A shelf displaying a very tiny percentage of a collection of sketchbooks made over the years.

“There are moments in our lives, there are moments in a day, when we seem to see beyond the usual. Such are the moments of our greatest happiness. Such are the moments of our greatest wisdom.” — Robert Henri

Art is all about observation, imagination or some combination of both. Sometimes, if you’re lucky the universe throws you a gift — a brief exaltation of brilliance or insight. Without recording the evidence of such experience, there is no hope of unique education, expression or contribution. An artist should never be without his sketchbook. Yet, I still witness artists (even students!) not carry a sketchbook or notepad of any kind. In this day and age, it’s pretty much unacceptable.

During my Disney training, former supervising animator, Ron Husband, shared with us pages and pages of these marvelous progression thumbnail drawings he did in his sketchbook — all done from his imagination and memory. To see more of the artist’s work, visit here.)

My own home is littered with sketchbooks, notepads, loose paper, post-its, and whatever else I can record a drawing, a note or tape something into. I make very sure that there’s a surface and a pen everywhere — the studio, living room, kitchen, bedroom, and even the glove compartment of the car. I have stickies or taped notes on our walls, bedside tables and even bathroom mirrors! (My understanding wife has yet to mind — she knows the price of living with a crazy artist!) When I travel, I carry not only my pen-ready smartphone, but at least one empty sketchbook, which sometimes gets filled by the time I return from my trip. And I absolutely love airports — they’re a treasure trove of ideas, personalities and cultural diversity.

The prolific Woody Allen, seen here with his pile of notes collected in his bedside table drawer. From Robert B. Weide’s marvelous 2012 documentary on the iconic American director.

Why be so obsessive? The reason is simple; your best ideas don’t come to you when you want them to. It’s the dreaded, cruel truth of being a creative and there’s nothing worse than having a revelation or a novel idea and you not being ready to receive it and record it. You can and will forget. I guarantee it.

Draw everywhere, on anything. On the left, a tiny digital sketch I made on the smartphone. On the right, a doodle on a dry-erase white board.

It’s not uncommon for me to wake up from a dream, frantically searching for my pen and paper. Sometimes it’s so fleeting I can barely record anything or make them legible enough for deciphering later. But at least I tried. At least I was ready. Yes, it’s true that half those “magical” ideas are more hair-brained than hot. But the point is, you don’t want to be ungrateful (and unready), when you’re being gifted something important or, even possibly, amazing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7L46vZG-6Lg

The tragically forgetful Lenny, played by Guy Pearce, in Christopher Nolan’s breakout movie, Memento.

These marvelous story sketches of Dumbo and his mother by Disney story maestro Bill Peet lay out all the action and emotions. Such poignant storytelling requires nearly perfect animation – animation that is sophisticated, layered yet unmistakably clear.

In the words of Disney great, Ham Luske:

In your work, the thought comes first — think, see and feel before you begin to draw… never make a movement or gesture without a reason.

The key thing I believe Luske was saying is that, first,  you have to have an idea to start — something to grab on to before making any attempt at expression — and second, that the expression of any such ideas must be in the form of physical action. There really is no other way to animate.

Sure, there’s a trendy movement towards subtlety in animation now, owing heavily to the dominance of ideas from live action and from directors/supervisors who are demanding more realism. But remember, it’s movement that conveys ideas in animation not talking heads.

My Dinner with Andre might be an acclaimed film, but it’s hardly visually-arresting, and mimicking such limited visual activity, for the most part,  should be avoided in animation.

Phrasing is the effort to present ideas through a series of movements. Well-planned and expertly-transitioned phrasing makes for animation that is both entertaining, beautiful and natural – you’re convinced of its believability while awed by its beauty.

Complete stillness fails in animation and especially in 3D where the technology is “too perfect”. Pixels freeze, as the character, and the light that catches it, fail to register “aliveness.” If there’s one good thing about motion capture data, is that it reveals how much movement actually exits even when a character is “still” — there is movement in non-action except that it’s just really small. Good phrasing consists of a carefully planned series of actions and non-actions that make the scene feel textured and well-balanced. In the words of master animator, Eric Goldberg:

“This pattern of movement should serve two purposes; one, to make a visual equivalent of the highs and lows found in the actor’s delivery (and) two, to express visually the thought behind the spoken words.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryH1HEYHI7Q&feature=youtu.be

The delicious introduction of the genie in Walt Disney’s Aladdin. The sharp display of timing, shape change and rhythm, make this scene a great precursor to the style of movement that would dominate the film’s humor and energy. Animation by Eric Goldberg.

Again, the focus is on finding the right visual representation of ideas through movement. After all, animation is essentially about controlling how shapes look and how they move. Those are very tangible, physical elements being used to create performance. It really is a simple as that, for such are the tools we are limited to. As an animator, neither the story nor the voice that drives the performance belong to you. Both context and content have been provided. You simply have to play the part (and do it justice).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkC9MJZOgvE&feature=youtu.be

A clip from an ABC special on the late Robin Willams, and his marvelous contribution to Aladdin’s genie.

That, of course, means that you not only have to plan well and know what you want, but you must also have a strong understanding of forces — for physicality is all about forces. In the words of Eric Larson, one of Disney’s Nine Old Men:

“Action is a manifestation of force – something caused it. This we must understand before we can interpret it in our drawings (animation).”

In general, when laying out your action, it’s good to time less activity at the start of your actions/phrases and express the high lite of the performance towards the end. This way, the dominant idea reads clearly and more powerfully. Nothing gets lost, in priority or presentation. Do this, and you will have performed your duty.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmAvWxWM4jw

Michal Makarewicz’s animation of Syndrome from Pixar’s The Incredibles, is rhythmical, textured and fun. Watching it repeatedly you can see how he builds the energy and anticipation for the final release of expression at the end, syncing perfectly with Jason Lee’s excellent voice acting. (To see more of the artist’s work, visit here.)

When there are multiple ideas in a shot, or when the scene is particularly long, find ways to expand the variation of highs and lows in emotion and the use of visual movement, in both 2d and 3d space. Use the layout, use the screen space, take advantage of the time you have to present your ideas by easing into space and time in some areas while punching into others, giving the work texture and a varying crescendo of peaks and valleys.

Variation is essential because audiences today, unfortunately, lose interest quickly. Work to alter paths to and away from camera, as well as within the broader 2D layout (frame of the camera). The best animators make use of such visual (and virtual) space astutely to create depth, impact and texture.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtgXCWY5smo

More Eric Goldberg genius; this time we see a fine textural display of setting up tempo, exit and re-entry of forms, showcasing the quick and magical transformations of the character.

A scene should set up and play out like a beautiful little tune or a short theme park ride with varying speeds, ups and downs, moments for rest, anticipation and excitement. Even naturally gentle and quiet scenes have their changing levels of visual energy. The key is giving the animation weight, both physically and emotionally.

https://youtu.be/_tndWdzDTg0

Beautiful compilation of the various stages of animation used in Blue Sky Studio’s Epic by the ever-talented Jeff Gabor . The thought, phrasing, and layering of ideas and action he puts into his artistry make him one of the best in the industry. (To see more of the artist’s work visit here.)

Phrasing can be a simple or complex concept. The idea is to give the audience as fulfilling a ride as possible regardless of its length or level of energy. When executed well, phrasing is a great way of adding complexity without confusing things and taking away from the central message of the shot.

 (Correction: Author’s apologies to Michal Makarewicz for incorrectly giving credit of his Ratatouille shot to John Kahrs in the original posting.)