A Comparative Approach to the Impact of 2D and 3D Computer Animated Movies in Students’ Cognitive Process of Comprehension

Stanca-Maria Iurean

Babeș-Bolyai University of Cluj-Napoca, Faculty of Psychology and Science of Education, 7, Sindicatelor Street, 400029, Cluj-Napoca, Cluj County, Romania E-mail: stanca.maria.iurean[at]gmail.com

Abstract Nowadays, Romanian children at least, are interested in animated movies, mostly 3D computer animated movies. The current paper presents a comparative approach to the impact of 2D animations and 3D computer animated movies in students’ cognitive process of comprehension. The study took place in two preparatory classes in a public educational institution from Cluj county and it presents data collected from teachers’ observation sheets and students’ tests during the implementation of curricular activities based on 2D animations and 3D computer animated movies. Teachers’ observation sheets and students’ tests were filled during a debriefing process of the watched movies. Therefore, the data collected from the two preparatory classes indicate the way these animated movie-based activities facilitate students’ process of comprehension. The main purpose of the study was the investigation of the way preparatory school students comprehend similar contents presented through 2D animated movies and through 3D computer animated movies.

Keywords: 2D animations, 3D computer animated movies, debriefing, comprehension

1. Introduction Media is an alternative resource of information. Stories, myths and fairy tales are used as a role model by children to help them understand themselves and their surrounding. Modern animated movies for children offer information about nature, science, Universe and many other useful areas. Their stories also have an impact on personal development. Most preparatory classes children can’t read, due to the fact that they are 5-6 years old. Therefore, the best way for them to obtain information is through images or audio-video means, including animations. There are many types of . The ones considered in the current paper are 2D animations and 3D computer animated movies.

2. Theoretical framework 2.1. 2D and 3D animations Animation is a dynamic medium in which images or objects are manipulated to appear as moving images. In , images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on . Traditional animation (also called animation or hand-drawn animation) was the process used for most animated of the 20th century (White, 2006). The individual frames of a traditionally animated film are photographs of drawings, first drawn on paper (Beckerman, 2003). To create the illusion of movement, each drawing differs slightly from the one before it. 254 University of Bucharest and “1 December 1918” University of Alba Iulia

The ' drawings are traced or photocopied onto transparent acetate sheets called (Thomas and Johnston, 1998), which are filled in with paints in assigned colors or tones on the side opposite the line drawings (Laybourne, 1998). The completed character cels are photographed one-by-one against a painted background by a rostrum camera onto motion picture film (White, 2006). The traditional cel animation process became obsolete by the beginning of the 21st century. Today, animators' drawings and the backgrounds are either scanned into or drawn directly into a computer system (White, 2006; Buchan, 2013). Various software programs are used to color the drawings and simulate camera movement and effects (Culhane, 1990). The final animated piece is output to one of several delivery media, including traditional 35 mm film and newer media with digital video (Laybourne,1998; Buchan, 2013). The "look" of traditional cel animation is still preserved, and the character animators' work has remained essentially the same over the past 70 years (Wiliams, 2001). Some animation producers have used the term "tradigital" (a play on the words "traditional" and "digital") to describe cel animation that uses significant computer technology. Examples of traditionally animated feature films include Pinocchio - United States, 1940 (Solomon, 1989), Animal Farm - United Kingdom, 1954, Lucky and Zorba - Italy, 1998, The Lorax – US, 1972 and The Illusionist - British-French, 2010. Traditionally animated films produced with the aid of computer technology include The Lion King - US, 1994, The Prince of Egypt - US, 1998, Akira - Japan, 1988 (Beckerman, 2003), Spirited Away - Japan, 2001, The Triplets of Belleville - France, 2003, and The Secret of Kells Irish-French-Belgian, 2009. encompasses a variety of techniques, the unifying factor being that the animation is created digitally on a computer (Culhane, 1990; Serenko, 2007). 2D animation techniques tend to focus on image manipulation while 3D techniques usually build virtual worlds in which characters and objects move and interact (Masson, 2007). 3D animation can create images that seem real to the viewer (Serenko, 2007). 2D animation figures are created or edited on the computer using 2D bitmap graphics and 2D vector graphics (Masson, 2007). This includes automated computerized versions of traditional animation techniques, interpolated morphing (Sito, 2013), (Priebe, 2006) and interpolated . 2D animation has many applications, including analog computer animation, , and PowerPoint animation. Cinemagraphs are still photographs in the form of an animated GIF file of which part is animated (White, 2006). Final line advection animation is a technique used in 2D animation (Lowe and Schnotz, 2008), to give artists and animators more influence and control over the final product as everything is done within the same department (Masson, 2007). Speaking about using this approach in Paperman, John Kahrs said that "Our animators can change things, actually erase away the computer-generated underlayer if they want, and change the profile of the arm" (Beck, 2012). 3D animation is digitally modeled and manipulated by an . The animator usually starts by creating a 3D polygon mesh to manipulate (Masson, 2007). A mesh typically includes many vertices that are connected by edges and faces, which give the visual appearance of form to a 3D object or 3D environment (Masson, 2007). Sometimes, the mesh is given an internal digital skeletal structure called an armature that can be used to control the mesh by weighting the vertices (Masson, 2007; Sito, 2013). This process is called rigging and can be used in conjunction with keyframes to create movement (Sito, 2013). Other techniques can be applied, mathematical functions (e.g., gravity, particle simulations), simulated fur or hair, and effects, fire and water simulations (Masson, 2007). These techniques fall under the category of 3D dynamics (Lowe and Schnotz, 2008).

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3D terms  Cel-shaded animation is used to mimic traditional animation using computer software. Shading looks stark, with less blending of colors. Examples include Skyland - 2007, France, The Iron Giant - 1999, United States), Futurama Fox, 1999, Appleseed Ex Machina - 2007, Japan, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker - 2002, Japan, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - 2017, Japan  – Films created by screen capturing in video games and virtual worlds. The term originated from the software introduction in the 1980s demoscene, as well as the 1990s recordings of the first-person shooter video game Quake.  is used when live-action actors wear special suits that allow computers to copy their movements into computer-generated characters (Masson, 2007; Sito, 2013). Examples include Polar Express - 2004, US, Beowulf -2007, US, A Christmas Carol - 2009, US, The Adventures of Tintin - 2011, US, Kochadiiyan - 2014, India  Photo-realistic animation is used primarily for animation that attempts to resemble real life, using advanced rendering that mimics in detail skin, plants, water, fire, clouds, etc. (Parent, 2007). Examples include: Up - 2009, US, How to Train Your Dragon -2010, US, The Lorax – 2012, US, and many other recent movies.

2.2. Comprehension based on debriefing According to English Oxford Living Dictionary, comprehension is the ability to understand something. In our case, it involves understanding and interpretation of the watched animation movies. One big part of comprehension is having a sufficient vocabulary or knowing the meanings of enough words. Viewers who have strong comprehension are able to draw conclusions about what they read – what is important, what is a fact, what caused an event to happen, which characters are funny. Thus comprehension involves combining watching the movie with thinking and reasoning. To accurately understand the watched material, children need to be able to: - decode what they read; - make connections between what they read and what they already know; - think deeply about what they have seen. An important aspect in processing the given information from the watched animations is debriefing. Debriefing is a process of: 1. receiving an explanation, 2. receiving information and situation-based reminders of context, 3. reporting of measures of performance, and/or opportunities to further investigate the results of a study, investigation, or assessment of performance after participation in an immersive activity is complete. Debriefing is a short interview that takes place between researchers and research participants immediately following their participation in an experiment.

3. The impact of 2D animations and 3D computer animated movies in Students’ Cognitive Process of Comprehension – comparative study The current study presents a comparative approach to the impact of 2D animations and 3D computer animated movies in students’ cognitive process of comprehension.

3.1. Methodology The study took place in two preparatory classes in a public educational institution from Cluj county.

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It presents data collected from teachers’ observation sheets and students’ tests during the implementation of curricular activities based on 2D animations and 3D computer animated movies. Teachers’ observation sheets and students’ tests were filled during a debriefing process of the watched movies. Therefore, the data collected from the two preparatory classes indicate the way these animated movie-based activities facilitate students’ process of comprehension. The main purpose of the study was the investigation of the way preparatory school students comprehend similar contents presented through 2D animated movies and through 3D computer animated movies.

3.2. Implementation and results More specifically, two preparatory classes (preparatory A, composed of 29 children and preparatory B, composed of 27 children) watched separately two different animation movies based on the same book – The Lorax, written in 1971 by the American children’s author Dr. Seuss. Pupils from preparatory A class watched 1972 2D animation based on the book The Lorax and preparatory B class watched 2012 3D computer animated movie based on the same book by Dr. Seuss. In both productions, the action is centered on environmentalism and anti-consumerism. The differences between them are mainly given by the used animation techniques (2D and 3D) and minor plot differences, but the information provided and the message are the same. After watching the movies teachers from both classes, used debriefing questions and initiate short conversations in order to observe the comprehension level reached by the children after watching the movies. The discussions and observation sheets were based on the level of comprehension concerning: - the message of the movie; - the importance of main characters; - favorite parts of the movies, with arguments. In the observation sheets, 3 indicators (good, medium, bad) were used to measure the comprehension level. The table below presents a comparative situation between the two preparatory classes: Comprehension level (%) Good Medium Bad Preparatory A class 52% 21% 27% Preparatory B class 67% 26% 7% Table 1. Comparative comprehension level – observation sheets

Figure 1. Comparative comprehension level – observation sheets

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Data collected from the observation sheets indicate that the level of comprehension is superior in preparatory B class. The teacher from preparatory B class noticed that the impact of the movie children watched was powerful: “Children loved the characters, they were impressed by the way people can destroy nature. Through this movie, they realized what could happen in the future if we don’t take care of the nature.” The tests applied included 4 questions about the action, characters, theme and message in the watched movies. Because the tests were applied at preparatory classes, children’s tasks for each item were to circle/underline the images showing correct answers. Each right answer equals 1 point, so a pupil could get from 0 to 4 points maximum. Test results are shown in the following table and figure:

Test results (%) 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 points 0 points Preparatory A class 45% 21% 17% 14% 3% Preparatory B class 59% 27% 7% 7% 0% Table 2. Comparative comprehension level – pupils’ test results

Figure 2. Comparative comprehension level – pupils’ test results

The test results indicate again that the level of comprehension is better in preparatory B class.

4. A brief conclusion After data being triangulated, the results of the current study indicate that children tend to better comprehend the action, the plot, the theme and even the characters behavior from a modern 3D animation movie than the ones from a 2D animation. One of the reasons could be that 3D actual graphics give characters and background a very realistic form, that helps children identify with them. Another reason may be that the plot is much better detailed in these 3D animations, so that children clearly understand why and where the action begins.

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Also, songs and musical themes used in 3D computer animated movies make children sing, easily memorize and like them. There are some important aspects that must be taken into consideration, too. First of all, it is teacher’s major responsibility to analyze and extract violence and sexuality scenes from the featured movies. Although those media productions mainly address to children, those aspects must be verified. Secondly, watching this kind of animated movies takes at least one hour, so time management could become a problem, if class activities are not very well organized. In conclusion, 3D computer animated movies can become a useful resource, a comprehensive one, for many activities in preparatory classes, if teacher’s creativity and a good time management are involved.

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