Crash Course On Independent Animation With Dan Henrick
Slide 2
Class Overview Introduction Step by Step Process in Flash and
After Effects Look at Different Examples of Technique Working with
Clients (if we have time) Start on a Collaborative Project
Discussion and Q & A
Slide 3
Dans Qualifiers for This Class There are many ways to animate;
this is just one way that makes it quick and easy. There are lots
of programs out there, but the principles are the same. Anyone can
animate, as long as they put a little time into it. The booklet is
supplement to the class so that you dont need to take notes.
Slide 4
Script and Dialogue Lets assume the script and dialogue already
recorded Ideally, you want your dialogue recorded previous to
creating storyboards Kyles short as an example Page 1 of
Handout
Slide 5
Storyboards Important to planning out your short Establishes
pacing Determines shot composition Makes it easy for clients to
give feedback Important for editing audio Page 3 of Handout
Slide 6
Slide 7
Editing Audio Purpose: Makes our dialogue manageable Allows us
to add pauses between lines Establishes an organizational system
for our short Easy to do with Audacity, GarageBand Page 4 of
Handout
Slide 8
Model Sheets Establish sizing, consistent character look
Occasionally includes directions on drawing characters Sometimes
establishes character expressions Necessary if you are on a team of
animators If youre a single animator, its very helpful but not
always necessary Page 6 of Handout
Slide 9
Slide 10
Slide 11
Starting Up Flash Title Safe HDTV 720 dpi 29.97 frame rate
Explain workspace Import first 20 audio files Naming convention,
part and version Page 7 of Handout
Slide 12
Setting up the Flash workspace Explanation of Guide Layer
Rename content layer, create 10 graphic layers Place sound in sound
layer, add labels Add frames, keyframes Repeat the process for rest
of audio files Repeat the process for other Flash files (parts)
This will facilitate pauses for animation Page 9 of Handout
Slide 13
Creating backgrounds On bottom layer, start sketching Convert
to symbol, graphic clip Name symbol a descriptive title, when it
appears Open up timeline, insert a layer Create fleshed out version
Exit symbol Page 12 of Handout
Slide 14
Creating character art Similar to background art Start with
sketch, Convert to Symbol Divide your character into layers to be
animated Extrapolate for all movable segments Page 14 of
Handout
Slide 15
Duplicate symbols DO THIS BEFORE ANIMATING Refer to storyboards
for duplicate graphics Go into library, duplicate symbols with new
names from when they appear Duplicate animated symbols will retain
animation Page 16 of Handout
Slide 16
Intro to animation Two main kinds of 2D animation 1.Hand-drawn
(drawn on a tablet counts) 2.Tween-based Page 17 of Handout
Slide 17
Hand-drawn animation Two main kinds of Hand-drawn animation
1.Straight-ahead action = Drawn chronologically, first frame to
last frame 2.Pose-to-pose animation = Keyframes drawn first, every
5 to 30 frames or so Page 17 of Handout
Slide 18
Straight-ahead action Advantages More fluid, expressive and
dynamic motion Effective for action scenes Disadvantages Hard to
compose shots Hard to maintain consistent proportions Hard to plan
Page 17 of Handout
Slide 19
Pose-to-pose Advantages Easier to plan / compose shots Better
for working in teams (animation assistants) Easier to generate an
animatic Disadvantages Can look wooden or stiff Page 18 of
Handout
Slide 20
Keyframes With in-betweens
Slide 21
Pose-to-pose within Flash Using Kyles head example, making him
blink Keyframe at last frame, lock other layers Using the Onion
Skin tool Working our way back every 2 frames Page 19 of
Handout
Slide 22
Quick mention of Frame Rate Our current frame rate is 29.97
frames per second (roughly 30 fps) We are creating new drawings for
every 2 frames (or on the twos) For broadcast 15 drawings + 2
frames per drawing = 30 fps For video games 15 drawings + 4 frames
per drawing = 60 fps Page 21 of Handout
Slide 23
Tween-based Animation Allows Flash to create the in-betweens 3
types of tweens in Flash Motion Shape Classic Page 21 of
Handout
Slide 24
Tween-based Animation Advantages Saves time creating
in-betweens Maintains consistency of characters look When done
well, barely noticeable Disadvantages Looks stiff Can be limiting
Page 21 of Handout
Slide 25
Tweens in Flash Using Kyles face again, lock all layers but
irises Hide eyelids with Show / Hide Layer tool Make sure keyframe
exists Create Tween Move irises Page 22 of Handout
Slide 26
Properties and Tweens Insert keyframe in middle of tween Show
alpha tween Show color tween Page 22 of Handout
Slide 27
Using combinations of techniques More often than not, animated
shorts are a combination of tweening and hand-drawn; straight-ahead
and pose-to-pose Page 25 of Handout
Slide 28
Quick notes on puppeting Flash tool that allows you to make
movable puppet characters Fast, but look particularly stiff Page 25
of Handout
Slide 29
Quick notes on walk cycles One of the first exercises animators
learn Seems easy, but the nuances are not Start by tracing if you
arent confident Preston Blair / Muybridge are good sources Page 25
of Handout
Slide 30
Lip-syncing 10 basic phonemes (12 if you work at Disney)
Generally done by hand Software available, like SmartMouth, but its
good to refine by hand Page 26 of Handout
Slide 31
Publishing Test Movie, Publish Settings, Publish Only good for
browser-based viewer Need After Effects for Quicktime, Vimeo,
YouTube Flashs Quicktime export function is useless Page 28 of
Handout
Slide 32
Post-production After Effects You need to import SWFS and audio
After Effects doesnt recognize SWF audio Media Encoder Page 29 of
Handout
Slide 33
Dealing with Clients Attend conferences, meet-ups, join groups
Manage expectations Learn to save time without detriment to your
final product Be realistic about deadlines Dont do spec work Page
33 of Handout
Slide 34
Collaborative Project Exquisite Corpse Everyone gets 32 frames
Draw what you like July 15 th, ideally You get a copy of the
finished piece and credit Experimental animation fest?
