#animation bible

[headlesshorsegrl]

Animators’ Guide

From King of the Hill Archives

[evandorkin]

New on The Patreon: Another episode plot from the WELCOME TO ELTINGVILLE series bible, this time it's the actual pilot. The full plot breakdown was very close to what was eventually produced, but includes a cut segment that I was going to expand into a full episode if the series was greenlit.

Post unlocked for all backers, from $1/mo up. Patreon link -

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creating Comics

[aristotelicx]

My project for the rest of the summer/year: my own pitch bible for an animated series. If you like Violet Evergarden, Cable Girls and Designer/Artist Humor, I’m sure this project would be for you 🤍🥹✨

[shwing-gum]

Current assignment are a pitch bible, having a hard time to actually be invested into, accounted by my new antidepressants, and the fact that this story was actually stolen from my own group mate to create his own ideal story. Pretty fucked up i know

But now with it being an actual assignment, might as well not taint my original idea and go on with this made up one.

Making an animation pitch bible is hard to think by tbh, i relly have to be ambitious and passionate, which in those two expect im not really so into rn.

Probs will update on here on the works, aiming to creating a male mulan version of malaysian folktale. I wanted a female character tbh but my group mate went off with a male action story.

It would be filled with magic, fantasy, myth and mainly saka, which is a jin or spirit animal that fights for thier owner. A bit controversial since malaysia is now a conservative muslim country and these hex like practices are not allowed. Dispite that i wanted to fight the norm and play and engage with my culture thats long forgotten.

[tekemassa-blog]

Getting a good idea / Research

As I said earlier, the hardest part usually is getting the story out. If you don’t have a good story why bother going trough the trouble of animation (OK OK--animation can also be a visual piece without the traditional narrative aspect, but it has to have a point). I found a good chapter of this in Maureen Furniss’s The Animation Bible - A Guide to Everything -- from Flipbooks to Flash (2008). I love how it actually gives you concrete advice how to get started. I’ll be quoting the book.

Behind every great animated work there is a great concept--but how does the concept come about? There is a mystique around art and artists that suggests “great art” comes from a streak of inspiration deep within the mind’s creative center. However, it takes more than a stroke of genius to make successful animation. The idea itself if just the first step toward achieving this goal: research, considerations of audience, value assessments, and critical review all contribute to the development of a concept for an animated work.

Getting a Good Idea Sometimes an artist is fortunate and a great project idea comes to mind quite easily. Other times, he or she has to search for a concept, perhaps suffering from the inevitable creative block that everyone experiences once in a while. Here are some recommendations for keeping good ideas coming. 

- Keep a journal: Creativity is dependent upon being able to open up emotionally and intellectually, so it is important to practice these skills on an ongoing basis. - Read books and newspapers: These resources expand an artists’s understanding of history and contemporary society, which helps in the development of interesting narratives. - Study many different subjects: A broad knowledge base brings about a wide range of concepts. - Find out what people like: Ask your grandparents what they enjoy in a film, or visit a preschool center and see what makes the children happy. - Ask two or three people to join you: A group think session will stimulate new ideas and you can throw away any concepts that don’t work after everyone has left. - Randomly open a reference book: Reading an entry in a dictionary or encyclopedia can inspire a good concept. - Write down your goals: Seeing a clear statement on paper helps to develop a creative strategy. Consider the issues related to the type of work you are envisioning, whether it’s a short-subject film for a festival, a film for your professional reel, a feature-lenght concept, or perhaps promotional work to sell products or services for a client. Think in terms of primary and secondary objectives--for example: “How can I sell a product, but also create an environmentally friendly image?” ///My note: please don’t create such image if the product really isn’t environmentally friendly./// - Create a deadline: The project has to start at some point--no matter what state it’s in. - Doodle randomly: This can warm you up and overcome a freeze in creativity. Animators should always carry a sketchbook for impromptu drawings that will provide inspiration and help in the development of ideas.  - Don’t be afraid to make mistakes: Self-censorship creates huge barriers in the creative process. - And don’t be afraid to admit you’ve made a mistake: Use your critical eye to determine what works for the current project and what needs to be stored elsewhere for future development. - Finally, don’t overlook the obvious: Eat well, exercise, use media and equipment (like chemicals and computers) safely and get enough sleep.

I think I’m doing some of it right. I have started keeping a journal of random things. Sometimes I think I should open a twitter account for these, because I find many of them so random and funny. Although really that might limit my expression, having to think about what other people think. That’s a good way to avoid too much censorship: write and draw in a book you know no-one else is never going to see. I’ve been told by many teachers (from fields of illustration, comics and animation especially) to keep a sketchbook at hand all the time. And the most important thing is to keep stuff coming, to produce material! I have to say I’m not so good at this. I want to think about things long and hard and (maybe that’s why) have blocks or moments of self-doubt. Sometimes I even think I can’t draw at all. But really the one’s that aren’t too afraid of doing things get the things done. So... 頑張って (ganbatte=good luck) !  Also the thing about finding inspiration and studying different things... Don’t forget that. I can easily be too hooked up to only do and think of the one thing, feeling that I have no time for anything else. Well that sure squeezes all your energy and creativity out and leaves you dry. Also the bit about sleeping, exercising and eating good - I’m working on it.

Research Research takes many forms and is an ongoing process. Its purpose is to enable an artist grow in his or her range of expression, to increase an understanding of the world, and provide models and inspiration. Research doesn’t just come from books: It also involves physical and emotional experience on a broad level. Such experience allows an animator to take on many roles. He or she should know how it feels to be a well-trained warrior taking part in a battle or a burro plodding through dusty streets. He or she should be capable of making an abstract form look excited and energized--or a character look bold and powerful--by sensing how these figures feel.

When taking on a specific project, it is important to compile a notebook of visual references, including figures, props, environments, and other images that in some manner depict or inspire the images in the animation. These references can be taken from newspapers, magazines, the Internet, or any other source of visual material--and, of course, they can be drawn. An artist’s sketchbooks are valuable sources of inspiration; they should contain quick sketches (completed in ten- and thirty-second, and one-minute poses) as well as more detailed drawings. Visual references also include motion picture works that relate to the production. These films can be viewed repeatedly to keep the artist in the proper frame of mind, and are invaluable for giving assistants and others involved with the production a sense of what is being achieved. Other sources of inspiration--music, paintings, books, sculptures, toys--should be placed within the workspace, to guide the project from beginning to end. An animator can, of course, also so more formal research, gathering facts about the topics by reading books, interviewing individuals, and making direct observations.

Suggestions for research - Observe and draw human and animal figures, still and in motion, and study the skeletal and muscle structures that underlie them; an animator should carry a notebook at all times and draw in it constantly. - Learn the basics of physics to better understand the possibilities of motion and visual effects. - Become familiar with technology, including at least basic study of computer languages and programming. - View works of art (including animated productions), both presentational and abstract. - Read about animation aesthetics, history and theory. - Understand the history of art and its relationship to culture; learn about the experiences of other artists through lectures or personal interviews. - Become familiar with a wide range of storytelling traditions. - Take improvisational acting and dancing courses to enhance your ability to feel and move. - Study music and figures in motion to develop timing and rhythm. - Investigate the way in which audiences learn and make sense of information in different stages in life (especially through childhood development). - Study world cultures, sociology, psychology, and history to better understand human experience. 

Wow. Lots of stuff to do. Richard Williams also stresses in his book The animator’s survival kit the importance of live drawing. I have been thinking of taking classes immediately when I go back to Finland. Also the other stuff here is something that I’ve been interested in anyway, so why not keep looking into it more seriously. Although the hardest thing here would be the dancing lessons.

[wheatsale]

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