AuthorTopic: How do you start with animation?  (Read 3398 times)

Offline hexdump

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How do you start with animation?

on: June 03, 2017, 09:05:28 pm
Hi,

I have been doing pixel art for a bit and want to get into animation. But this is a subject that really beats me down. I have read de 12 princicles of animation, but it is really dificult for me to apply to a simple character. I'm really blocked.

Could you give some advices or exercises I could do to get into this difficult art?

Thanks.

Offline eishiya

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Re: How do you start with animation?

Reply #1 on: June 03, 2017, 09:18:57 pm
Have you tried the good ol' bouncing ball exercise? A bouncing ball requires an understanding of gravity, timing, and squish+stretch. It might seem stupidly simple, but animating a bouncing ball can be done in so many ways, giving completely different impressions. It's an excellent exercise.
You can expand on this exercise by making the ball not bounce infinitely, but come to a stop after a few bounces. This requires more complex timing, and requires developing a sense for consistency between motions - consistency in momentum as well as material - it would not do to animate the ball as super-bouncy on one bounce, and like a bean-bag on another.

Once you feel comfortable animating a bouncing ball in many ways, you can add in a hand that drops (or throws) and catches the ball, which will require you to practice anticipation and follow-through in addition to the earlier principles, as well as give you the opportunity to apply the earlier principles to something more complex than a ball.
« Last Edit: June 03, 2017, 09:21:53 pm by eishiya »

Offline Schwee

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Re: How do you start with animation?

Reply #2 on: June 03, 2017, 09:22:47 pm
The bouncing ball is defintely a solid start.  Personally, the first steps I took were just drawing out what I think the movement might look like.  This was before I learned about the 12 principles of animation.  Just sketch it out with stick figures, you can even use a flip book to help gauge.  Your first animation is not going to be the best animation you ever create, so just get it out of the way!
Looking to collaborate.  Hit me up, especially if you are a GM programmer, or if you just have some sweet ideas.

Offline hexdump

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Re: How do you start with animation?

Reply #3 on: June 03, 2017, 09:47:41 pm
Hi,

Well I did the bouncing ball animation exercese. But I will try to do it again a bit more concioulsy and adding later the hand. It is a pity to be so hard to find a teacher/mentor on this kind of subjects for pixel art :/, even paid.

@eishiya what do you mean that there's so many ways to do that exercise? Do you mean applying different materials to the ball and simulation the rebounds?

Thanks for the tips.

Cheers.
« Last Edit: June 03, 2017, 09:50:27 pm by hexdump »

Offline Schwee

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Re: How do you start with animation?

Reply #4 on: June 03, 2017, 09:48:50 pm
If you post some of your sample animations, it would be much easier to give you specific critiques.
Looking to collaborate.  Hit me up, especially if you are a GM programmer, or if you just have some sweet ideas.

Offline eishiya

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Re: How do you start with animation?

Reply #5 on: June 03, 2017, 10:46:52 pm
By different ways, I mean not only different materials, but different stylization. Animation doesn't have to be realistic, and there are many ways to stylise the same basic motion. You can give the ball different personalities through its motion, its squash/stretch, etc. Play with that! Effective animation is largely about stylising motion rather than depicting realistic motion.

Offline CFKaligula

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Re: How do you start with animation?

Reply #6 on: June 04, 2017, 11:22:50 am
I think just like with pixel art try to look at some animations you like and try to recreate those and see how they work. I did this with SFIII's animations for example, I just tried to recreate what happens in every frame. This doesn't mean you have to redraw it, just copy the thing thats happening, so like an anticipation frame for example or a smear.
Example:
You get in the bowl

Offline hexdump

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Re: How do you start with animation?

Reply #7 on: June 04, 2017, 01:35:45 pm
Thanks for the answers.

By the way, what a nice animation :).

Cheers.

Offline Tycho Magnetic Anomaly

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Re: How do you start with animation?

Reply #8 on: June 04, 2017, 02:36:42 pm
CFKaligula.. lol you know what I just love the amazing art and animation in the bottom sprite, naturally, its high quality work... but that tiny stick man animation tops it for me ... it is so phenomenally nano cute.  You inspired me to make an animation specifically using tiny tiny chars like that.