In continuation
of Ram Mohanji's enlightening session about the principles of animation,
day 2 of Anifest India '08, Santosh Sawant demonstrated the practical
usage of these principles.
Beginning
with the bouncing ball which Sawant christened 'the guru of animation,'
Sawant set-off with his drawing pad and flash as the software
for a few basic exercises that an animator could do to understand
the use of the principles of animation.
First
assignment- bouncing ball:
Through this assignment, one gets to learn about some very important
elements that should be present in animation, namely:
1.
Path
2. Volume
3. Weight
4. Timing and
5. Spacing
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"A
ball is not just a circle, it has volume." If placed and
drawn correctly in different positions, it creates the illusion
of movement.
Stretch
and squash give an idea of the weight of the ball. While animating,
it is necessary to ensure that the volume of the ball remains
the same throughout. Also one should use anticipation and settling
down poses in the beginning and end of the animation.
"Experimenting
is very important, as you learn while you draw. You are your own
guru," Sawant said as he stressed on the importance of practice.
"The principles are told to you, it is up to you to use them."
After
completing the animation of a bouncing ball, he showed how characteristics
like a head, legs and ears can be added at each key frame to make
the character of a jumping rabbit. In this way, one can make many
different characters using the basic guidelines.
Second
assignment-The wave principle:
Raising his hand and waving it in the air, Sawant explained that
his hand was creating a pattern which was like the infinity sign.
This also helps animate an object back and forth.
Using
his character, Stubby - a pencil, he showed the working of the
wave principle by first drawing a line of action following the
infinity sign and animating it, after which the character of the
pencil was made around the line. Here, he pointed out the importance
of keeping the material in mind, as the metal ring on the pencil
would move differently than the more elastic eraser on the top
of the pencil.
In
the next assignment, using the wave principle, he demonstrated
the animation of a person walking sneakily; right from the basic
step of drawing the line of action to animating the head, legs,
hands and ears.
Excerpts
from the Q&A:
There
are two ways of doing animation, one is progressive and one is
pose by pose. Which one is better?
It depends on individual choice and preferences. However, it also
depends on the kind of animation. If it is stop motion, it would
be
key to key animation. Progressive animation does not allow for
planning but it is good for learning.
Could
you explain the concept of time more clearly?
No one till date has really understood time. (He drew a sketch
of a wheel and its axes when turning, and drew the 'ladder') It
is preferable to have a slow-fast-slow movement but you can understand
time in your own way by just experimenting.
By
drawing simple stick figures and rough sketches and animating
them, Sawant demonstrated quickly but powerfully, the application
of the principles of animation and proved that the best thing
is to keep it simple. Amidst enthusiastic applause from the audience,
Sawant concluded his presentation with the call, "Now go
to your drawing boards and start animating."
anikita.shah@animationxpress.com
