Looking Inside Cartoon Animation

Describes the process of cartoon animation, from script to final product.

Between the classic films of Walt Disney in the 1940s and the televised cartoon revolution of the 1960s was a critical period in the history of animation. Amid Amidi, of the influential Animation Blast magazine and CartoonBrew blog, charts the evolution of the modern style in animation, which largely discarded the "lifelike" aesthetic for a more graphic and often abstract approach. Abundantly found in commercials, industrial and educational films, fair and expo infotainment, and more, this quickly popular cartoon modernism shared much with the painting and graphic design movements of the era. Showcasing hundreds of rare and forgotten sketches, model boards, cels, and film stills, Cartoon Modern is a thoroughly researched, eye-popping, and delightful account of a vital decade of animation design.

Using artwork from DIC Enterprises' popular Inspector Gadget cartoon series, this book illustrates how cartoons are brought to life. To produce one 30-minute animated film, four months and over 40,000 cells (individually hand-drawn and painted images) are required. Color photographs and illustrations.

Step-by-step instructions using well known Looney Tunes characters to demonstrate the techniques used in drawing figures and creating action for animation.

In Cartoon Animation, acclaimed cartoon animator Preston Blair shares his vast practical knowledge to explain and demonstrate the many techniques of cartoon animation. By following his lessons, you can make any character—person, animal, or object—come to life through animated movement! Animation is the process of drawing and photographing a character in successive positions to create lifelike movement. Animators bring life to their drawings, making the viewer believe that the drawings actually think and have feelings. Cartoon Animation was written by an animator to help you learn how to animate. The pioneers of the art of animation learned many lessons, most through trial and error, and it is this body of knowledge that has established the fundamentals of animation. This book will teach you these fundamentals. Animators must first know how to draw; good drawing is the cornerstone of their success. The animation process, however, involves much more than just good drawing. This book teaches all the other knowledge and skills animators must have. In chapter one, Preston Blair shows how to construct original cartoon characters, developing a character’s shape, personality, features, and mannerisms. The second chapter explains how to create movements such as running, walking, dancing, posing, skipping, strutting, and more. Chapter three discusses the finer points of animating a character, including creating key character poses and in-betweens. Chapter four is all about dialogue, how to create realistic mouth and body movements, and facial expressions while the character is speaking. There are helpful diagrams in this chapter that show mouth positions, along with a thorough explanation of how sounds are made using the throat, tongue, teeth, and lips. Finally, the fifth chapter has clear explanations of a variety of technical topics, including tinting and spacing patterns, background layout drawings, the cartoon storyboard, and the synchronization of camera, background, characters, sound, and music. Full of expert advice from Preston Blair, as well as helpful drawings and diagrams, Cartoon Animation is a book no animation enthusiast should be without.

One of Flash’s most common uses is still animation for cartoons, games, advertising etc, and this book takes a fresh look at the topic, breaking it down pre-production, production, and post production, and looking at each section in detail. It moves on to cover topics such as storyboarding, character libraries and camera mechanics like no book on Flash has done before. It’s been written by members of the Emmy award winning ANIMAX team, who have created work for clients such as Disney, AOL, Fox, WWE, ESPN, and Sesame workshop.

Thanks to Christopher Hart's simplified process, anyone can create dynamic cartoon characters right away. He has developed the easiest-ever approach to drawing the basics like heads, bodies, and those super-important cartoon expressions. Hart helps beginners apply these fundamentals to a variety of fun types and settings including animals, under-the-sea locales, stock characters, and popular backgrounds. Each lesson is laid out in accessible steps, accompanied by Chris's personable instruction.

Step-by-step instructions offers guidance on all aspects of creating studio-grade animations via a home computer with tips on writing a script, story-boarding, establishing sequence, and editing a final product. Original.

"In exquisite and thoughtful detail, Mateu-Mestre lays out distinct approaches to drawing in the book's chapters--The Ballpoint Pen, Graphite Pencil, The Digital Way, and The Gray Scale--outlining the benefits and challenges of each, and specific digital editing techniques that can be applied to one's work in all the mediums to achieve the greatest results."--Publisher's description.

Advanced animation - Learn How to draw animated cartoons.