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K51666-Prelims.qxd 6/23/05 12:01 PM Page i Animation: The Mechanics of Motion K51666-Prelims.qxd 6/23/05 12:01 PM Page ii focal press visual effects & animation Debra Kaufman, Series Editor 3D for the Web: Interactive 3D Animation using 3ds max, Flash and Director Carol MacGillivray and Anthony Head A Guide to Computer Animation: For TV, Games, Multimedia and Web Marcia Kuperberg Animation in the Home Digital Studio: Creation to Distribution Steven Subotnick Character Animation in 3D: Use Traditional Drawing Techniques to Produce Stunning CGI Animation Steve Roberts Digital Compositing for Film and Video Steve Wright Essential CG Lighting Techniques Darren Brooker Film Animation Dan McLaughlin Producing Animation Catherine Winder and Zahra Dowlatabadi Producing Independent 2D Character Animation: Making and Selling a Short Film Mark Simon Stop Motion: Craft Skills for Model Animation Susannah Shaw Visit www.focalpress.com to purchase any of our titles. K51666-Prelims.qxd 6/23/05 12:01 PM Page iii Animation: The Mechanics of Motion Chris Webster AMSTERDAM • BOSTON • HEIDELBERG • LONDON • NEW YORK • OXFORD PARIS • SAN DIEGO • SAN FRANCISCO • SINGAPORE • SYDNEY • TOKYO Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier K51666-Prelims.qxd 6/23/05 12:01 PM Page iv Focal Press An imprint of Elsevier Linacre House, Jordan Hill, Oxford OX2 8DP 30 Corporate Drive, Burlington MA 01803 First published 2005 Copyright © 2005 Chris Webster. All rights reserved The right of Chris Webster to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form (including photocopying or storing in any medium by electronic means and whether or not transiently or incidentally to some other use of this publication) without the written permission of the copyright holder except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London, England W1T 4LP. Applications for the copyright holder’s written permission to reproduce any part of this publication should be addressed to the publisher Permissions may be sought directly from Elsevier’s Science and Technology Rights Department in Oxford, UK: phone: (ϩ44) (0) 1865 843830; fax: (ϩ44) (0) 1865 853333; e-mail: [email protected]. You may also complete your request on-line via the Elsevier homepage (www.elsevier.com), by selecting ‘Customer Support’ and then ‘Obtaining Permissions’ British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress ISBN 0 240 51666 4 For information on all Focal Press publications visit our website at: www.focalpress.com Typeset by Charon Tec Pvt. Ltd, Chennai, India Printed and bound in Italy K51666-Prelims.qxd 6/23/05 12:01 PM Page v Contents Foreword ..................................................................... ix Preface ........................................................................ x Introduction – Walking with Animators ............................ xiv Acknowledgements ....................................................... xvii Chapter 1 Basic Principles .................................. 1 Before we begin ............................................................ 3 Timing in animation ....................................................... 4 Animation Exercise 1.1 – Flip Book ............................. 8 Laws of motion ............................................................. 14 Squash and stretch........................................................ 18 Pose-to-pose and straight-ahead.................................... 24 Keys and inbetweens ..................................................... 27 Animation Exercise 1.2 – Bouncing Balls..................... 32 Overlapping action, follow-through and drag ................. 35 Overlapping Action Case Study 1 – Lifting a Weight................................................................ 41 Overlapping Action Case Study 2 – Getting Out of a Chair ....................................................... 44 Questions to Ask Yourself about Overlapping Action, Follow-through and Drag ............................. 49 Arcs and curves, and line of action................................. 50 Cycle animation ........................................................... 55 Animation Exercise 1.3 – Flag Cycle........................... 58 Animation Exercise 1.4 – Aeroplane Cycle .................. 64 Chapter 2 Figurative Animation ....................... 67 Before we begin ........................................................... 69 The four ‘A’s of animation.............................................. 69 Walks and runs............................................................. 72 Animation Exercise 2.1 – Basic Walk Cycle ................. 78 Animation Exercise 2.2 – Basic Run Cycle ................... 89 Weight and balance...................................................... 89 Questions to Ask Yourself about Weight and Balance ................................................................. 98 Anticipation.................................................................. 98 Chapter 3 Acting .............................................. 105 Before we begin ......................................................... 107 Characterization......................................................... 109 Temperament and pace .............................................. 115 Animation Exercise 3.1 – Temperament and Pace.................................................................... 117 K51666-Prelims.qxd 6/23/05 12:01 PM Page vi vi Contents Animation Exercise 3.2 – Character Types/ Two Sacks............................................................ 119 Character interaction .................................................. 121 Animation Exercise 3.3 – Character Interaction ......... 123 Planning a scene ........................................................ 124 Props and costume ..................................................... 125 Questions to Ask Yourself about Acting in Animation ........................................................ 126 Chapter 4 Design ............................................. 129 Before we begin ......................................................... 131 Storyboards................................................................ 133 Animatics................................................................... 139 Character design........................................................ 142 Design criteria............................................................ 152 Questions to Ask Yourself about Design.................... 154 Chapter 5 Animals in Motion........................... 155 Before we begin........................................................ 157 Four legs ................................................................... 158 Animation Exercise 5.1 – Basic Walk Cycle ............... 163 Animation Exercise 5.2 – Basic Run Cycle................. 167 Animation Exercise 5.3 – Advanced Action ............... 167 Questions to Ask Yourself about a Four-legged Animal in Motion.................................................. 168 Birds in flight.............................................................. 168 Animation Exercise 5.4 – Basic Flight Cycle .............. 171 Animation Exercise 5.5 – Take-off and Landing ......... 176 Questions to Ask Yourself about Birds in Flight.......... 177 Chapter 6 Sound Synchronization ................... 179 Before we begin ......................................................... 181 Bar charts .................................................................. 182 Delivering dialogue and carrying narrative.................... 189 Lip synchronization ..................................................... 189 Animation Exercise 6.1 – Lip-sync ............................ 197 Animation Exercise 6.2 – Sound Synchronization ....... 198 Questions to Ask Yourself about Sound Synchronization .................................................... 199 Chapter 7 Technical......................................... 201 Before we begin ......................................................... 203 Dope sheets............................................................... 203 Questions to Ask Yourself about Dope Sheets ................................................................. 219 Line tests.................................................................... 220 K51666-Prelims.qxd 6/23/05 12:01 PM Page vii Contents vii Layouts and field guides.............................................. 221 Questions to Ask Yourself about Layouts ................... 226 Formats ..................................................................... 226 Production processes .................................................. 229 Questions to Ask Yourself about Production Management ....................................................... 236 Appendices ....................................................... 237 Appendix 1: Glossary ................................................. 239 Appendix 2: Further reading ........................................ 245 Appendix 3: Further viewing ........................................ 249 Appendix 4: Useful contacts ........................................ 251 Index ........................................................................