Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life

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Additionally, what felt like a rather long portion of the book (in a good way), was chapter ten, titled, “How to Get It on the Screen”. I particularly enjoyed the midsection of this chapter because it involved music. As a music lover and aspiring animator, it has been rather difficult for me to find any sources that can go over both topics and not just one or the other. One bit of information that felt most useful to an animator is that animation is “better supported by a free tempo type of music than by the rigid beat” (Thomas & Johnson, 1981, p. 294). The use of animation to inspire music to better fit the mood of the story and characters by not having prescored music is interesting and opens many doors for animators. It allows for animators to be loose and more experimental with their animating. The chapter, in all, was really inspiring, as both an artist and musician. In essence, it is used to direct attention to the most important aspects of a scene. 4. Straight Ahead and Pose to Pose Animation This was the situation when Walt Disney entered the field, and he was not an immediate success. In fact, it is even surprising that he was able to get a toehold in this tough business of limited contracts and tight money. But Walt was a fighter and had great determination; he was no aesthetic artist living in a dream world. As he said, “'I have been up against tough competition all my life. | wouldn't know how to get along without it." Any man with Walt's talents but without his spirit and tenacity would never have made it. ” Willian (July 5, 2006). "Slow In and Out". Blender. Archived from the original on February 16, 2009 . Retrieved June 28, 2008. The most complete book on the subject ever written, this is the fascinating inside story by two long-term Disney animators of the gradual perfecting of a relatively young and particularly American art from, which no other move studio has ever been able to equal .

Mattesi, Mike (2002). Force: Dynamic Life Drawing for Animators, Second Edition. Focal Press. ISBN 978-0-240-80845-1. A movement that prepares the audience for a major action the character is about to perform such as a change of expression or getting ready to jump. 3. Staging Willian (July 5, 2006). "Squash and Stretch". Blender. Archived from the original on February 16, 2009 . Retrieved June 27, 2008. Rotating a joint on a moving limb or throwing an object along a parabolic trajectory are examples of how this technique can be applied. 8. Secondary ActionThe book answers everybody's question about how the amazingly lifelike effects of Disney character animation were achieved, including charming stories of the ways that many favorite animated figures got their unique personalities. From the perspective of two men who had an important role in shaping the art of animation, and within the context of the history of animation and the growth of the Disney studio, this is the definitive volume on the work and achievement of one of America's best-known and most widely loved cultural institutions. Nostalgia and film buffs, students of popular culture, and that very broad audience who warmly responds to the Disney "illusion of life" will find this book compelling reading (and looking!). The 1981 edition published by Abbeville Press ( ISBN 0896592332) used better quality paper and consequently possessed higher image quality than either the 1988 edition or the revised edition from 1995 ( ISBN 0-7868-6070-7) (published by Disney's Hyperion with the inverted title The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation.) [3] Legacy [ edit ] Thomas, Frank; Ollie Johnston (1997) [1981]. The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation. Hyperion. pp.47–69. ISBN 978-0-7868-6070-8. The authors, Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston , worked with Walt Disney himself as well as other leading figures in a half-century of Disney films. They personally animated leading characters in most of the famous films and have decades of close association with the others who helped perfect this extremely difficult and time-consuming art form. Not to be mistaken for just a "how-to-do-it," this voluminously illustrated volume (like the classic Disney films themselves) is intended for everyone to enjoy.

With the full cooperation of Walt Disney Productions and free access to the studio's priceless archives, the authors took unparalleled advantage of their intimate long-term experience with animated films to choose the precise drawings to illustrate their points from among hundreds of thousands of pieces of artwork carefully stored away. The book "The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation" was published in 1981 by Disney animators Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas. These principles are based on the work of Disney animators from the 1930s onward in their quest to create more realistic animation. Some have referred to the book as the "Bible of animation," and some of its principles have been adopted by many traditional studios. Allan, Robin. "Walt Disney's Nine Old Men & The Art Of Animation". Animation World Network. Archived from the original on November 2, 2013 . Retrieved October 21, 2011.The book has been referred to by some as the " Bible of animation", [2] and some of its principles have been adopted by traditional studios. In 1999, The Illusion of Life was voted the "best animation book[...] of all time" in an online poll done by Animation World Network. [3] While originally intended to apply to traditional, hand-drawn animation, the principles still have great relevance for today's more prevalent computer animation. Computer animation removes the problems of proportion related to "straight ahead action" drawing; however, "pose to pose" is still used for computer animation, because of the advantages it brings in composition. [18] The use of computers facilitates this method and can fill in the missing sequences in between poses automatically. It is still important to oversee this process and apply the other principles. [17] Follow through and overlapping action [ edit ] Follow through and overlapping action: the galloping race horse's mane and tail follow the body. Sequence of photos taken by Eadweard Muybridge. They set up a list of basic animation principles and focus on each one in turn. They go through each of the different departments, explaining what they contribute to a picture. They explain the particular challenges of the animator trying to put across different story and character points. The Illusion of Life is the most massive, formidable-looking book I have ever seen about classic Disney animation. But the text is so readable and there are so many fantastic visual aids that you can get through a decent chunk of the book in one or two days.