The Animation Bible: A Practical Guide to the Art of Animating, from Flipbooks to Flash

Product Information

All this is done without a computer – attendees will just need a pencil or pen and paper, and occasionally some board paper, scissors, glue and staples. Next is plasticine, as you need to put your character in front of you to get a 360° vision of it. As you hold your creation in your hands, touch it and take a look at it from all sides, it's agreat moment that feels like you've created anew life. You will find out a lot at this stage. Things that look great in 2D don't necessarily translate well or easily into the third dimension. Here I painted a close up of a tree branch. Note how the branch consists of curves and angles; adding interest to a simple branch. By adding in helpful notes things will be a lot clearer to the viewer. Art bibles are made for artists working on the same project. They are most commonly used in big animation/art studios to ensure the visual style of the project is maintained during the making of it. An art bible ensures their artists have a handy guide to use as a reference. Sometimes there’s so much information to be shared, different departments have different art bibles. If it’s a comedy, that character better be doing something funny. If it’s an action show, that character needs to be doing something active. If it’s an action show about fighting hats, you better show some fierce hat-on-hat action. Gather work you already made and analyze it. If someone has to draw in your style, what should they definitely include? Use these elements to build your art bible. See if you kept your layers if you worked digitally. You can use them as a step-by-step for an easy explanation!

It means that your characters automatically become much more than generic automatons populating the scene: they know things and feel things like sentient beings, avoiding situations that could cause pain and gravitating towards that which delights them. Secondly, you must time the actions of your on-screen elements well. Characters should react naturally, in time with any stimulus. For example, an insulted character shouldn’t wait too long to show a reaction; else, it leads an audience to become disconnected from the events unfolding on the screen. Basic format. What is it? a sitcom, a drama? How does the series end? How does the next series begin? What is your target audience? Who might buy it?Now, a tagline isn’t mandatory, but a strong one will make your pitch stand out and not easily forgotten. I’ll never forget the poster to Beverly Hills Chihuahua. It simply read, “I, Chihuahua”. Painfully simple, yet, it lives on in my mind years later. There are exceptions to this rule, however. It can be bent to good effect when creating a scene disconnected from the usual expectations of time. A dream sequence, a fevered nightmare, or a divine experience are all instances where time can be bent creatively, to the benefit of the animation as a whole. 10. Exaggeration If you like a certain style, you can steal it. I don’t mean just copying it. But you can take certain elements and incorporate them into your own style. This is not wrong, this is what I’ve learned to do in college and it’s what artists do all the time. Just don’t take it too literally! Let’s say you find an artist and you really like how they use their lines (E.g.: the kind of brushes they use). You can ‘’steal’’ their lines by applying their technique to your own original characters! Use your own premade work Though it might seem obvious, timing is key to creating good animation. This is true in two ways. Firstly, you should carefully time the story beats and dialogue within your animation. Poorly timed comedy or an off-beat series of events will subject your audience to narrative whiplash, making your animation tough to follow and enjoy.

As it sounds, slow in slow out is the concept of gradually building up momentum, then gradually dispersing it. In animation, this tends to take the form of including more frames at the start and end of a character or object’s movement, resulting in much more realistic and convincing movement. 7. Arcing A TV series bible serves a variety of functions. It can serve as a preparation for a pitch, or as a detailed guide for directors and overseas production houses. A key part of any successful TV show is its ability to grab the attention of producers, executives and investors to bring it to life - and for this you need a bible. Unsurprisingly, drawing and sketching are skills integral to animation. Therefore, it’s crucial you get them right. Great sketches act as great planning, while high-quality drawings create characters and objects with realistic, convincing physical attributes and proportions.Since one of my favourite art styles is that of Dreamworks Ice Age, I’ll show you what an art bible could look like using this movie as an example. I just love how they designed the environment. I made these examples myself by studying the trees in the movie: That is, to entice the team of execs that your show idea is worth developing after you’ve left the building. It needs to not only represent your idea and characters, but also convey your skills, passion, and personality. Optional elements are an excellent way for you to provide more depth and flavor to the animation pitch. These optional elements can come in the form of character model sheets, concept art for props and clothing, additional concept art for the setting, and the like. Aside from being able to further showcase the uniqueness of the project, it is a great chance to set the tone, genre, and personality of the animation project.