Animation tips

If you google animation tips, there are millions ka zillions tips out there. Usually it involves create great poses, clear action, etc.

PLUS I'd like to add some for me:
1. Learn all those acting techniques, think and choose which technique that suits your animation.
2. Think of the OBJECTIVES of your character, mind the motion, mind how you're going to animate it. Once you get the objective, the motion will come after. Always the OBJECTIVE.
3. Feel the character, study the character's background, believe the character, gain more information about the character. What would you do if you are the character?
4. ....then animate!
5. I always keep reminding myself not to do the "show off" animation. . .
6. People always tell me to bring mirror. I personally choose recording yourself is better. Your facial expression and body language always change so if you record it you get a better reference.

Well, that's all for me...at the moment.

Animation style

So, how many animation style are there? I'm thinking...
1. The most and popular one, Pixar style (cartoony almost towards realism style, cartoony realism that's how I interpret it) Examples: How to train your dragon, The incredibles, UP, Planet 51, Tales of Desperaux, Monster vs aliens. I think it's more to acting. There are 12 principles of animation applied in a right proportion. For example: not too much squash and stretch just to retain the realism and so that the acting looks real.

2. Cartoony gag style (That's how I interpret it) which I think is quite different than Pixar style. Super exagerration. I think this is just for fun. Examples: The only recent film I can think of is "Cloudy with a chance of meatballs". Check out some of those super exagerrated movements! Insane! They manage to apply 2D movement into 3D! How the heck did they do the rig and the animation? I'm curious!

3. Realistic style. Examples: Avatar. The only animated film that actually achieve the style properly. Very well polished! This style is done properly is not that bad after all.

4. Stop motion + CG. Examples: Coraline, Tim Burton's Corpse bride, Unique and stylized. It has its own characteristic.

5. and many more...!

Florian the Flower

<--- Meet Flo. Isn't he cute? =) He's the main character in our short film "Overcast"

Me and Radek are polishing the animation. The animation will be changed, well...slightly not too much as we don't have time to do it.
We're aiming to finish it at the end of May 2010. There will be time of sleeping 2 hours in a day but we're happy ;) Fingers crossed. Whoop!