Mastering 2D Animation

I've included this video here to introduce students to a current example of my work. The center section particularly provides an insight into how a traditional/digital 2D production need not have a predictable 'cartoon' approach.

This lesson outlines the actual process that all the best traditional animators take when creating their work. Every animator will have their own particular variations to it of course but what is outlined here will provide you with a solid overview of the ideal process. From it you can test it out and then eventually evolve your own personal approach as you gain further experience of what you want to do.

This is the first 'apprenticeship-style' step you will take at the 2D Academy. Here you'll learn the foundational basics of the 'bouncing ball' action in as simple a way as possible. The instructions are designed to be easy to follow, so if all goes well your final 'bouncing ball' assignment will very quickly amaze you!

Having created your first, hopefully perfect, 'bouncing ball' it is now time to add a simple effect that will make your animation even more convincing. Here you'll learn the process of adding 'shadow' to your action - both on the ball itself and to the ground beneath it. This will provide more of a sense of spherical volume for the ball and a better contact with the ground when the ball lands on it.

This is where things get really interesting! Here you will import your 'bouncing ball' pencil-test into the "ToonBoom Studio" vector-based software to ink and color it. You'll also add a ground shadow to complete this particular lecture. Its amazing what even a little coloring can do to take your pencil-drawn animation to the next level!

Here you will learn to add a colored shadow to your actual ball layer artwork. You will then import a background into the proceedings to give it all a better sense of presence and location.

You'll then learn how to modify and adjust your animated ball and shadow within your chosen background - as you then animate the ball to bounce towards us in perspective.

Finally, you'll learn how to animate your ball bouncing across the screen, erratically, from right to left and against a different background. Its surprising how this too can give a greater sense cinematic personality to your ball action - which, after all, is only comprised of 6 really simple drawings!

Once upon a time in London...

At the beginning of my career I apprenticed with some of the greatest master animators ever _ i.e. Ken Harris (Warner Brothers - 'Bugs Bunny' & 'Roadrunner'), Art Babbit (The 'Tenth Old Man' of Disney animation in the golden era) and Richard Williams (3 times Oscar winner).

They all told me that the hardest thing to create convincingly in animation was a basic 'Generic Walk' action. The went on to tell me that if I could pull off a good, solid, generic walking action then I should be able to just about animate anything! This is because the principles involved in a good generic walk pretty much apply to everything else in animation. I was totally determined therefore to learn everything I could about walks - and the principles of animated movement - from that moment onwards!

The 'golden triangle' of mentors I apprenticed with at the beginning of my career - left lower, Richard Williams; center, Ken Harris; right/lower Art Babbit. Featured in orange is another great mentor I learned from at this time (1975) - Grim Natwick (creator/animator of "Betty Boop"). The fresh-faced kid in the white circle next to Grim, daunted by all this animation greatness around him, is 'yours truly' incidentally. Great, great times indeed!)

Now, your 2 'Generic Walk' exercises:

The following set of lectures are two definitive approaches to creating your own convincing 'Generic Walk'. We start with the classic, traditional, hand-drawn approach, then we follow that up with a definitive vector animation approach, possible through the ToonBoom Studio software technology.

Nowadays, I have also come around to the belief that it is fundamentally important for a student animator to know how to animate a good and convincing walking action before anything else. This is why it is offered here, virtually at the beginning of your long journey to animation mastery.

I would strongly advise that you tackle the traditional approach first, prior to taking advantage of the valuable shortcuts that ToonBoom Studio offers. 'Knowing it by drawing it' is the best way of the principles of animated movement really sink into your brain - and this will definitely enable you to raise the game of your animation to a much higher level in the final outcome.

That said, if you do struggle with drawing it is still perfectly possible to pull off a good generic walking action using the ToonBoom Studio approach alone. The choice is entirely yours. Although ultimately, the real secret of anything is in knowing WHAT you are doing - and WHY you are doing it and doing the drawn version definitely helps in this process!

Have fun with your animated 'generic walk' assignment...

With the 2 key stride positions in place, we now move on to create the position that is half-way between them - the passing position.

The firm foundation of any good walk action is fundamentally the animation of the legs and pelvic area. Upon these everything else is built. Consequently, here we will just focus on the leg action and establishing the 2 key stride positions.

Setting-up the first full-body, key stride position, from which everything else is developed.

To make the walk action look more dynamic and natural you now need to add eccentric foot positions to the movements at the front and the back of the stride action. These are therefore not just straight in-betweens. This lecture explains the mystery!

With the animation of the legs completed (and hopefully looking great) it is now time to add body and arms to the action. This will really start to make your walk look like a walk!

Here we will complete the entire walk action - giving it a greater sense of fluidity and flexibility at the same time. We'll do this by adding the head and hands and giving them overlapping action.

As inbetweening is a crucial part of the hand-drawn animation process, I think it would perhaps benefit students if I shared some of the instruction I learned when I was also a young apprentice myself. We start with this lecture I once recorded, which covers with the basic principles of inbetweening. Then we'll dig deeper into more advanced inbetweening, including superimposition.

The art of inbetweening is a whole study in itself. Here you will observe the entire process of inbetweening two key drawings within a full-body Generic Walk cycle. Of special interest here is the invaluable technique of superimposition - which is rarely written about anywhere else, as it was really only ever demonstrated in the kind of apprenticeship studio environment that sadly no longer exists.

Here you are introduced to both the ToonBoom Studio interface and the Arnie Rig. You will also learn how to create a key stride pose with your rig and add ground lines that will help with the generic walk animation later.

Here you will create your opposite key strides in the walking action with both arms and legs - and then you will add the 2 passing positions. At the end of this section you should begin to see the first rudiments of your digital generic walk shaping up!

Now you will be adding the extreme foot positions to your generic walk leg action - as you did before with the hand-drawn version.

Here you will be effectively completing your ToonBoom Studio generic walk by adding overlapping action to the hands and head. Woo-hoo!

And now the 'cherry on the top'! Finally you will be extending your walking action along the timeline - that is, beyond just the repeated looping action you had before. Then you will match this extended walk sequence to a panning background - so your character can walk bravely forward through an environment of your own choice.

Bravo!

A simple video test like this will give you an initial idea of how the filmed element of your sequential drawing exercise is looking. Specifically, if all looks good, it will then enable you to move on to the next stage of final colored rendering.

Here is the conclusion of this recommended drawing assignment. By adding color, lighting effects and music you can transform your initial drawing sketches into what might be considered as an interesting example of moving art.