Character animation crash course

XII
CHARAC TER ANIMATION CRASH COURSE
here they are- how they work, and why they work the way they do. There will be some
theory along the way, plus frequent referencing of classic cartoons for those wanting to
see the ideas expressed here in glorious movement and colo r. Mostly, though, it's the
nuts-and-bolts stuff that no one ever tells the serious student or the avid professional.
It is essentially the souped-up version of my animation notes, created in the 1980's
for up-and-coming animators at my former London studio, Pizazz Pictures. These
notes have been Xeroxed and copied (and, yes, plagiarized) for a couple of decades
now, passed from animator to animator as a kind of underground secret source of
information. Well, now you hold it in your hands, complete with updated material,
new chapters, new drawings (clearer ones, I hope, and ones the major stu dios won't
consider copyright infringement), and further enhancements added during my years
at Walt Disney Featu re Animation.
I've had the benefit of working with some fanta stic animators, in my formative
years, especially Richard Williams, Ken Harris, Art Babbitt, and Tissa David, whose
knowledge (and generosity with it) continues to fuel and inspire me. I've also spent
many years analyzing and dissecting the work of all of my animation heroes, attempting
to distill their awesome mastery of the medium into the miracle elixir, "Essence of
Cartoon ." I have derived so much pleasure and creative fulfillment from these people
and their craft that I hope this book honors their tradition of imparting their wisdom
to those who seek to know more.
I'm particularly concentrating on traditional cartoon animation, since it's what animators
most closely associate with my technique. However, applying these ideas to
more subtle, realistic animation can often be simply a matter of toning down the
broadness but utilizing the same principles - and, of course, these principles are just
as viable in the ever-expanding fields of computer, Flash, and paperless animation as
they are in the old-school hand-drawn world.
In the end, no one can really "teach" anyone how to animate, and I make no
attempt to do so here. The best I can do is offer insights and methods that have
helped me over the years. The rest is up to the individual - to harness the information
into something usable for his or her own creative expression. Whatever twists,
turns, and technologies continue to develop in our medium, the investment of perso
nal feelings and emotions will always be animation's future.