12 Principles of Animation

1. Squash and Stretch- its purpose is to give a sense of weight and flexibility to drawn objects. An example of this is a bouncing ball.

2. Anticipation- is used to prepare the audience for an action, and to make the action appear more realistic.

3. Staging- Its purpose is to direct the audience's attention, and make it clear what is of greatest importance in a scene.This can be done in different ways such as the placement of a character in the frame, the use of light and shadow, and the angle and position of the camera.

4. Straight ahead action / pose to pose- means drawing out a scene frame by frame from beginning to end, while "pose to pose" involves starting with drawing a few key frames, and then filling in the intervals later.

Pose to pose-

5. Follow through and overlapping action- "Follow through" means that separate parts of a body will continue moving after the character has stopped. "Overlapping action" is the tendency for parts of the body to move at different rates. A third related technique is "drag", where a character starts to move and parts of him take a few frames to catch up.

6. Slow in and slow out- The time it takes for the human body and other objects to accelerate or slow down. This principle goes for characters moving between two extreme poses, such as sitting down and standing up, but also for inanimate, moving objects, like the bouncing ball.

7. Arcs- Arcs give animation a more natural action and better flow. 8. Secondary action- Adding secondary actions to the main action gives a scene more life, and can help to support the main action. A person walking can simultaneously swing his arms or keep them in his pockets, he can speak or whistle, or he can express emotions through facial expressions.

9. Timing- refers to the number of drawings or frames for a given action, which translates to the speed of the action on film.

10. Exaggeration- is an effect especially useful for animation, as perfect imitation of reality can look static and dull in cartoons.The classical definition of exaggeration, employed by Disney, was to remain true to reality, just presenting it in a wilder, more extreme form.

11. Solid Drawing- means taking into account forms in three-dimensional space, giving them volume and weight.

12. Appeal- in a cartoon character corresponds to what would be called charisma in an actor.

Caricature

Caricature is an exaggerated rendition of an image and its features. I believe that caricature is more real than realism because an artist can evoke more feelings from his or her audience through exaggeration. These emotions that are provoked from the animation are real which then makes the caricature real. The artist can show emotions, feelings, and fear by not limiting the actions of a character. Through satirizing the artist can take something like a lamp and give it human qualities. It is these qualities given to the object that makes the object real: The “art of animation had the power to make the audience actually feel the emotions of the cartoon figure” (Thomas and Johnston 15).

Communication

One of the key principles that stood out to me from class is that based on McCluhan’s quote that “the medium is the message.” With animation being the form, it can interlace itself in the message that the writers and or animators are trying to get across. An Example of this is seen in Walt Disney’s “Education for Death.” This film is used to highlight some of the most difficult times in history. This film uses a sensitive subject such as the Holocaust and incorporates the story of a young Boy who grows up and becomes less of an individual by attending Hitler’s school for young boys to breed into a Nazi Solider. In the end, Hans and the rest of the German soldiers march off to war. They fade into indistinguishable rows with nothing on them except a swastika and a helmet perched. This concludes Hans's “education for death."

Explaining Framing

The above comic uses deliberate framing that captures the readers eyes. The above frames are small in size drawing the eyes to the faces of the characters in the first two frames. Using these square frames keep the characters contained and shows their insignificance in the story at this very point. The eyes are then drawn to a much larger frame that takes over the entire page which makes readers realize that the above two frames are frames within one larger frame. The lower and larger frame shows the silhouette of a very tall female superhero. She stands almost as tall as the clouds giving her a goddess like image. The eyes are then drawn to the next silhouette which appears to be of a young girl. The size of the female characters seem to establish a dominate appearance. The eyes are then drawn to the first male character and then to the last male character who appears the smallest and furthest away. Attention holds on this character because he is the only character in this larger frame who speaks. This use of deliberate framing gives the readers a chance to analyze the characters based on their standings then makes the reader focus in on the smallest silhouette who speaks.

Comm203 VALS

My results from the VALS were Innovators and Achievers. For the most part these two described me well. Some of the things I do not agree with. As an innovator the results categorized me as a change leader and most receptive to new ideas and technologies. Innovators are very active consumers, and their purchases reflect cultivated tastes for upscale, niche products and services. I do not think the consumer aspect is true as far as "upscale" goes. Also as an Innovator I am described as materialistic "possessions and recreation reflect a cultivated taste for the finer things in life." I honestly do not care to keep up with the latest trends or for extravagant outings and clothing. As an achiever I do not think I match any description but being goal-oriented and having a deep commitment to career and family. I am not in any way politically conservative, and my respect for authority and the status quos really dependent on how the authority and status quo is treating me as well as those around me. I do believe in consensus and compromise, but despise predictability and routine schedules. I value stability in different aspects, but I am all for taking risks, intimacy, and self-discovery. By taking this test it made me realize that I cannot be categorized as a person or a consumer. I show qualities from all the listed categories given as results for the test. I fell like the results from this test would not be helpful in appealing to me as a consumer because the results are mostly inaccurate and my opinions on matters neither sway left or right.

Creative Commons

I must agree that the copyright laws of today are a bit outdated to a certain extent. With technology flourishing as it is there are many different ways of accessing information such as the internet. There are loopholes to the system that people get around and through everyday.A large population of internet users could already be guilty of copyright infringement. With the internet being prominent in this day, the copyright laws are no match to what can be, thus being too restrictive and outdated. Copyleft or permission level license seems to be a bit more adequate with it's laws. It is legal binding and allows the creator to dictate permission as to how work is used and when it can be used. This law seems more flexible and less restrictive to users because some creators allow sharing without any consequences.

In Granfather’s Garden (2.10)

I remember him just as he was

…..Always in his garden

I would sometimes help him pick tomatoes and carrots simply for the enjoyment of spending time with him

His hat was dingy….. stainded with years of corn and cotton fields

His overalls, bleached with the decades of experience

And I enjoyed hearing their songs as I trotted behind my gradfather in his garden