art animation: creative storytelling and abstract...

Art Animation: Creative Storytelling and Abstract Expression -‐ Chapter 2

Art Animation: Creative Storytelling and Abstract Expression Chapter 2 Creative Methods of Production and Style In an effort to inspire experimentation and creative exploration, this chapter presents an overview of a wide variety of media used in creating art animations. The medium can have a profound effect on the visual outcome of an animation and dictate the production methodology. The skills and aptitude necessary to work with each medium varies. Some media such as 3D computer animation continually evolve and require technical training and years of practice to perfect while others are much more accessible and easy to master. This chapter does not provide technical training, a list of tools, or the step-by-step procedure necessary to create animations in the various media discussed. Instead, the reader is offered a glimpse into the creative potential of a wide range of animation media, techniques and styles.

2.0 Clemens Kogler, Stuck in a Groove, 2010, Austria, 04:05 http://vimeo.com/11078489


Technique and Style

There are a wide variety of media available to use for animation. Animators usually work in the medium that they feel comfortable with or excited about, while others pick a medium that best supports the concept of the work. There are many animators that are known for a specific medium while others are recognized for their ability to animate in a wide variety of media. All animation media listed in this chapter can be used to convey an infinite number of ideas. It is important to understand the strengths and limitations of the medium because certain ideas may be easier or more difficult to express using it. For instance, if the concept involved “transformation”, it is much easier to express this using a pencil or clay whereas it would be a bit more difficult to do metamorphosis using puppet or collage animation. Each media also has its own visual aesthetic that adds to the emotive quality of an animation. If you love the shimmery quality of charcoal or direct on film techniques, it would be very difficult to obtain that “look” using computer graphics. The technical limitations must also be factored in when deciding which medium to use. Sand animation is not able to depict a lot of fine detail whereas the use of 3D computer animation allows us to zoom further and further into an object revealing many levels of granularity. Style is the mode in which you express your idea within a medium. All of the animations in this book display a unique style that often can be associated directly to the animator that created them. An interesting exercise is to search for an animator’s name on the internet and compare the style of the animator’s various animations. Developing and refining your own personal style involves years of exploration and experimentation. Being able to vary your style is also an asset when working at an animation company. Replicating animation styles is useful to develop technical skills but if you want your work to be recognized for its creativity, it is important to move beyond that and express your individuality as an artist through your own personal style.

2.1 Peter Clark, Daniel Uribe, Yeojin Shin, Memory Stream, 2014, USA, 01:00 http://cargocollective.com/danieluribe/Memory-Stream


Digital Animation Regardless of the medium employed, most animation today uses digital technology in some way. From digital pencil tests to color correcting frames, the ways in which computers assist animators are endless. For the sake of clarity, this section will deal with animation that primarily depends upon the computer for the creation and manipulation of images, as well as the ability to animate them. 3D Computer Animation 3D animation has also found a home with experimental animators as well as animators who focus primarily on narrative works. First the animator must choose a 3D modeling program and learn the technical aspects of this chosen medium. This endeavor is a lifelong pursuit as the programs are always being updated and each project presents its own set of challenges that result in learning new digital techniques. It is essential that you love problem solving and technical challenges if you want to be a 3D computer animator. The process of creating a 3D animation always begins with the development of the individual elements. Most often they are created using simple polygons, curves or surfaces and arranged to form more complex objects. The modeling programs allow an animator the ability to push and pull parts of the geometry to create intricately detailed surfaces. After objects are created, the next step is often to add textures. This can be done procedurally through the computer, using a digital paint program or by adding digital photographs. 3D modeled, articulated characters require a skeleton and joints to be constructed. This enables an animator the ability to move limbs and other complex parts. To animate the character, an animator captures the attributes such as the position, rotation and scale of the animation at a specific point in time by setting a keyframe. After major keyframes have been set (this is called blocking) the next step is to refine the movement between the keyframes by using velocity curves to employ timing principles such as ease-in and ease-out. After the movement itself is set,virtual lights and cameras are added to the scene. To complete the piece, an animator begins the lengthy endeavor of rendering, which can take many days or weeks. Often times animators render out multiple layers such as the background and characters separately therefore allowing for individual color correction and other special effects to be applied later.

2.2 Benjamin Ducroz, Polycon: Stadiums Queensland, 2013, Australia, 01:16 http://www.ducroz.com/polycon-stadiums-queensland

2.3 William Joyce, Brandon Oldenburg, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, 2011, USA, 14:44 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ad3CMri3hOs


2D Computer Animation The computer is also widely used to create animation that employs painterly, photographic and graphic techniques. 2D animation is divided into two types, raster and vector graphics. The basic unit on a computer screen is a pixel and raster graphics allows the animator to manipulate these pixels to change their colors over time. Some digital paint programs allow artists to change the various elements of the painting slowly over time, each change being captured and stored as a single frame. 2D animation programs also enable to the animator to import photographs and other graphics, cut out the elements they want and then move the images over time. These images are often layered to create aesthetically interesting collages. You can also distort images, add special effects filters to them, scale, rotate and position them, change their color over time– the possibilities are endless. Some computer applications simulate traditional animation techniques whereas others have evolved to take advantage of purely digital capabilities. Vector-based animation techniques involve the manipulation of the attributes of curves and shapes. Each element of the animation exists as its own entity and it can be changed without affecting any other element in the frame. The visual look of vector-based graphics is quite distinct and can be identified by its use of hard edges and gradient or solid colored geometric shapes. Vector programs have become incredibly sophisticated and now allow the animator to create very complex shapes with textures and detail. Similar to 3D computer animation, in order to animate these objects, keyframes are used to capture the information at specific frames. It is not uncommon for a 2D animation program to include “onion skinning” which allows the animator to see a number of frames before and after the current frame they are working on. Besides the visual aesthetics, one of the primary differences between 2D and 3D computer animation is that you do not build the geometry of the objects and the render requirements are much less taxing.

2.4 Lucy Blackwell, Alive, 2006, USA, 03:02 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICCqknk9F58

2.5 Chris Casady, Whoops!, 2012, USA, 1:30s http://www.puntoyrayafestival.com/en/minfofilm.php?filmID=604


Visual Effects and Compositing Visual effects is a loosely defined term in computer animation but often refers to the simulation of natural phenomenon such as fire, explosions, smoke and fireworks. There are also an infinite number of possibilities to create non-realistic effects thus allowing the animator the ability to create fantastical worlds and dazzling abstract visualizations. Particle systems are often used to create effects that cannot be created using 3D geometry. There are often emitters that force the particles to move in a certain direction at various speeds. The emitter also controls the rate that the particles are projected outward. This controls the density of the emission. Particles are “born” and “die” and can take on a variety of forms including that of a cloud, blob, streak or a single pixel. You can also attach geometry to particles to create a cluster of objects that are controlled by the physics of the particle system calculations– imagine something like a swarm of bees. Simulated forces such as gravity, turbulence, vortex, wind, etc. act upon the particles to influence their behavior. Fluid dynamics simulation is used to replicate the extremely complex physics of water movement. Specialized software allows an animator the ability to create waves, wakes, and ripples as well as abstract and stylized forms that move like water. Water both reflects and refracts light thus creating computational intensive renders that take a long time to complete. Effects are often added to existing animations through the use of a compositing program. Multiple images are layered or connected via a node-based system and are rendered out to produce a single image stream. Compositing programs often include filters, which include color adjustment as well as distortion and stylization that affect the image over time. When combining images, it may be necessary to remove parts so that you can see through to the next level. This is accomplished using transparency masks or by “keying” out specific colors. You can also speed up and slow down the timing of the animation as well as flip, rotate, scale and reposition the layers. Compositing and visual effects are an excellent way to add additional dimensions to any animation.

2.6 Alain Escalle, Le Conte du Monde Flottant (The Tale of the Floating World), 2001, France, 23:48 http://vimeo.com/groups/cinematograph/videos/5405204


Computer Programming The source of all computer images is a collection of numbers, letters and codes. Software used to create images and animation manipulates this data using algorithms. The artist is typically removed from these processes and is reliant on the capabilities of the software. There are many animators that want to take control of the visual results and not be confined to the limitations of a computer application (where the algorithms are not modifiable). These artists work directly with computer languages to write code that not only create the animation’s color, shape and textures but can also animate the elements and simulate fluid dynamics, geometric complexity, and other complicated movements. This method of creating artworks is often called “Algorithmic Art” and involves writing instructions to tell the computer how to create the art. All computer languages have syntax– a set of rules– that the artist must learn. Similar to learning a foreign language, a programmer must learn to arrange the instructions in a way that makes sense to the computer. The computer language typically uses a “graphics library” which provides basic functions (commands) that do very specific tasks such as drawRect() which draws a rectangle onto the screen. By changing the parameters of these functions you can define the attributes of the rectangle, such as the color, size, position, outline, texture, etc. To create multiple rectangles you might use a loop, a logical structure that enables the animator to repeat an instruction over and over until a certain condition exists. You could repeat drawing rectangles until a random number generator picks the number 6. It is this type of logic that enables the animator the ability to harness the computational power of computers to create expressive and stylistically unique animations.

2.7 Warren Stringer, Enterleave, 2014, USA, 04:55 http://vimeo.com/86130713


Interactive Animation We often think of animation as something that is viewed in its entirety from start to finish in a linear fashion. In the mid 1980s, interactive multimedia programs became widely available thus enabling filmmakers and animators the ability to explore nonlinearity as a component of their work. Animators were able create interfaces that enabled the viewer to make choices and jump to different parts of the animation. Today it is extremely common to see interactive animations within games and on the internet. This non-linear progression through the animation allows each viewer to experience the piece differently depending on the choices they make. By clicking, dragging, sliding, and hovering over elements on the screen or in the animation, the viewer becomes actively involved in the unfolding of meaning in the piece. Creating an interactive animation requires a combination of animation and computer programming skills. The animation can be created using any medium but the frames need to be scanned into the computer. The frames are typically made into small, animated scenes or loops that can be played using computer code. The programming skills required range from writing simple “if {button is clicked} then {go to frame number 1}” code to developing complex algorithms that control all the elements on the screen. An interactive animation can be narrative, poetic or abstract. The advantage of this medium is that the animations can have multiple endings, the viewing experience is customized based on the choices the user makes, and the structuring of time can be much more experimental.

2.8 Zelko Weiner and Ursula Hentschläger, YATOO – You Are The Only One, 2000, Austria, interactive animation, variable http://www.zeitgenossen.com/outerspaceip/


Virtual Worlds and Machinima The proliferation of video games has spawned a generation of people who draw their inspiration from imaginary virtual worlds and the characters that inhabit them. There are also online multi-user virtual worlds that allow users to create and customize avatars as well as construct their own environment. Film and animation created within these worlds are called “Machinima”. These environments have become extremely attractive to filmmakers and animators because of the freedom to stage scenes working with virtual actors and the freedom from the constraints of the real world. The performance of the characters, the staging, and setting along with the camera angles and timing is fully controlled by the Machinima animator. The resulting animations have the visual appeal of a game but instead communicate the animator’s concept.

2.9 Bryn Oh, Rusted Gears, 2011, Canada/Russia, 02:13 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3t2FQpNY0ck


Traditional Two-Dimensional Art Media Studio artists use a variety of media including graphite, charcoal, paint and pastels to transform flat surfaces into works of art. Because of the creative potential of these media, they make excellent choices when seeking a method to produce an animation. An animator should not only base their decision on the visual look of the medium and how well it helps convey the concept, but also on their level of proficiency with the medium. Pencil, Charcoal, Pastels and Marker When needing to convey an idea quickly pencils are still the medium of choice. Sketches, doodles and notes are all rapidly rendered and easy to produce. Using pencil as an animation medium enables the animator to capitalize on their years of artistic training–from childhood crayon drawings to college-level figure drawing classes. The primary difference is that with animation, thousands of drawings will need to be produced so efficient use of line is absolutely necessary. Pencils come in a variety of types, including graphite, charcoal, colored, and watercolor. The standard 2B graphite pencil is soft enough to provide variation in line quality but hard enough to make good dark, clean lines. Depending on the visual quality you seek, a harder or softer pencil might work better for you. Animators often use a Non-Photo Blue pencil to sketch the changing forms before committing to a drawing. They would then trace over the drawing with a graphite pencil or marker. Charcoal sticks are sometimes used to obtain a textured shimmery look to the animation and markers are used to create solid outlines on both cels and paper. There have also been beautiful animations created with pastels. This medium responds to the grain of the paper and shimmers similar to charcoal with the added benefit of color. When animating using traditional two-dimensional media, the paper or cels must be perfectly aligned to each other and you must be able to see through to at least three previous drawings. This is accomplished by stacking animation paper or cels onto a pegbar attached to a light table. Sometimes animators use white index cards with an “L” shaped piece of matboard attached to the table for registration. Regardless of approach, the animator continually draws a new image based on the position of the previous image in the stack until the animation is finished.

2.10 Frédéric Back, The Man Who Planted Trees, 1987, Canada, 30:04 https://vimeo.com/19426214


Paint When creating a painting, an artist builds up the surface by continually adding layers of color with brush strokes. This method of constructing an image using wet media lends itself perfectly to animation. If you can capture each stroke using a camera and save it as a frame in an animation, then play it back later, the image would appear to come alive. The application of brush strokes can also be used to transform one painted image into another. Painted animation can be produced using oil, acrylic, Gouache or watercolors and there is a wide range of stylistic approaches possible. The limitations and strengths of each media must be taken into account–for instance oil color dries slowly thus allowing the paint to be manipulated days after its initial application and watercolors are typically transparent thus revealing the layers of paint beneath them. Painted animation can be created using two different types of light setups or a combination of both. When using opaque colors it is best to position the lights above the painted surface. If the paint is somewhat transparent and has been thinned using a gel medium such as glycerine, you can apply the paint to the glass surface and position the lights under the surface. In both cases the camera is positioned above the surface and each tiny movement of the paint is captured one frame at a time. When using paint as a medium, the history of the gesture and the progressive manipulation of the medium are often visible thus resulting in a distinctive visual look to this type of animation. The vast array of individual personal approaches possible along with the textural quality of paint provide a richness not often found in other animation media.

2.11 Zbigniew Czapla, Toto, 2013, Poland, 12:00 (trailer only) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeizeU2LzzU

2.12 Thom Fraser, STUDIO Australia'a Arts and Entertainment Channel, 2012, Australia, 00:30 http://www.studiotv.com.au/blog/glass-painter-thom-fraser-receives-10000-as-winner-of-create-studio/


Stop Motion This technique involves manipulating or moving objects then recording the frame onto film, video or digital media. Whereas the majority of the hard work is done before you get near a camera with other techniques, stop motion is mainly done directly under a camera and lights. Clay The flexibility of clay lends itself to animation in that it can be intricately sculpted using an additive or subtractive process, deformed, melted, and easily amended. A pliable material such as Plasticine is used rather than natural clay because it does not dry over time. If the clay is used to build a character, an armature built from wire or metal, ball and socket joints is used as the foundation. Sets, props and characters as well as abstract forms can be built and animated using clay. Typically used for character animation, clay can also be used for a variety of experimental techniques. One such technique is called strata-cut animation where a clay log, packed with varying imagery is created. The log is repeatedly sliced and photographed to reveal a transformation of the image over time. Although the animation process is straight-forward, constructing the log can require a great deal of time and creativity. Some animators mix chemicals with the pliable plastic-based clay to soften the material thus enabling them to “paint” with it. This material acts like thick paint and allows the animator to make small changes to the surface with brushes and palette knives. Repeatedly changing the image and then photographing it results in work that resembles paint animation with the pliable texture of clay.

2.13 Joan Gratz, Puffer Girl, 2001, United States, 4:00 http://www.gratzfilm.com/Gratzfilm/Joan_C._Gratz.html

2.14 Izabela Plucinska, Darling, Liebling, 2013, Germany, 7:00 (excerpt) http://www.izaplucinska.com/Darling.htm


Object Animation When objects move in unexpected ways, the animator captivates the audience as they wonder how this can be happening. Throughout the history of animation, the desire to bring inanimate objects to life has driven artists to animate everything from food to dice. Object animation is typically created using items that do not look like an animal or human. The movement of the various elements can create the illusion of intention and can even provoke empathy for the objects. When animating objects it is important to factor in the limitations of the medium. Many objects remain fixed in form and scale and often cannot bend, change colors or transform into other shapes.

2.15 Max Hattler, Shift, 2012, Germany/UK, 03:00 http://vimeo.com/album/2729769/video/42832538 Replacement Animation Many objects can be rotated and moved, but cannot otherwise change form unless you use a technique called “replacement animation”. This technique creates the illusion that a fixed form is changing in color, texture, shape, or size. Replacement animation can also give the appearance of one object changing into another. The idea is quite simple. While animating, you repeatedly replace the object with another that is slightly altered. Some animation studios are using this technique to change the expressions of the characters by repeatedly replacing the facial expression with another 3D printed expression. With the rapid proliferation of 3D printers, animators are now able to easily create a series of objects that slowly transform in shape, scale, color, texture or orientation. The basic geometry is originally created using a computer modeling programs or imported into the computer from a 3D scans of an actual object. The files are then prepared for the printing process by chopping the geometry into thousands of slices. The printer prints one of these slices at a time by spreading a layer of material and using a laser or some other method to harden the areas that define the three dimensional form. Objects that are made in this way can be used in replacement animation or many other forms of animation.

2.16 PES, Fresh Guacamole, 2012, USA, 01:40 http://www.eatpes.com/fresh_guacamole.html


Puppet Animation The history of puppetry and storytelling goes hand and hand. The behavior of an articulated puppet has the ability to communicate what words cannot. Using distinct expressions, gestures and other kinds of body language, the character can articulate deep human emotions. Puppets can be created using a wide range of media from paper maché to cloth, wood, paper, computer graphics and clay. Most often puppets are built with armatures or hinges in the joints that allow them to move in a semi-believable manner. This animation technique tends to be narrative, but surreal and poetic animations are quite possible. Puppetry has a rich history in Asia, Eastern and Western Europe as well as the Americas which has resulted in a wide variation of styles.

2.17 Ru Kuwahata and Max Porter, Something Left, Something Taken, 2010, USA, 10:13 http://vimeo.com/11723415 Shadow Puppet Puppets can be two as well as three-dimensional. Shadow puppets are often backlit silhouettes of cut-out forms that move in a human-like manner. The figures can be simple shapes, and other times elaborately detailed forms. By layering the background, props, and the silhouette figures, an animator can create the illusion of depth in this otherwise flat world. Shadow puppet animation is a derivative form of the Shadow Play theaters found in Southeast Asia and Southern Europe.

2.18 Lotte Reiniger, Magic Horse, 1953, Germany, 10:30 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myG5Xg0NaQ4


Cut Paper Paper can be cut, drawn or painted on, collaged, crumbled, pasted, hinged, and ripped making it an incredibly versatile media. A cut paper animation can be created from simple sheets of construction paper, magazine images, rice paper, drawings, or any other flat paper-like surface. The advantage of this technique is that the elements can easily be moved and stacked on top of each other. The cut paper elements can be full color or black to create a silhouette-type animation. A notable limitation is that a new shape will need to be cut out for each change in scale or form. Cut paper animation can be narrative with articulated characters, poetic with elements that do not move realistically, or can use abstract shapes.

2.19 Gaëlle Denis, Two Worlds - United Airlines Its Time to Fly, 2008, France/UK, 01:04 http://vimeo.com/23381222 Collage Magazine, newspaper, and photographic images can also be animated. Collage is a method of creating art that involves layering elements. Animators sometimes develop a collage animation by stacking images over time. The choice of images and the ways in which they relate to each other help to create the meaning. Often times collage animations juxtapose different types of photographs, drawings or objects to create meaning that transcends the intent of the original images.

2.20 Frank Morris, Frank Film, 1973, USA, 08:53 http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x700s6_frank-film-frank-mouris-1973_creation


Cameraless Animation Techniques Traditionally, animation was created using celluloid film but the process of developing film was, and still is quite expensive. An alternative is to create the animation directly onto blank, black, or already developed film stock. This form of animation is inviting to both professional animators and beginners because of the range of possibilities. When played back, cameraless animation is fast-paced, and the content often focuses on the formal properties of color, form, texture and motion and its relationship to sound. Scratch on Film Found film footage or black film leader can be scratched, etched or sanded using pins, sandpaper, nails, knife blades or just about any sharp or rough tool. Color can be added afterwards into the lines that have been scratched off. Film stock comes in a variety of sizes but 35mm or 70mm is often preferred because it is easier to draw on the larger frame compared to the smaller 16mm or 8mm film stock. Animators sometimes use magnifying glasses that assist when drawing intricate images. 35 mm film also has an optical audio strip that can also be manipulated by drawing into this soundtrack area.

2.21 Len Lye, Free Radicals, 1958, New Zealand, 04:16 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gtqcaL7d6g Paint on Film When using blank film stock, an animator can use a wide variety of media such as paint, permanent markers, ink, hole punchers, tape, etc. The filmstrip acts as a blank canvas that can be embellished frame by frame or a single visual designs could be designed to stretch over multiple frames. In addition to drawing or painting on the frames, animators sometimes adhere small transparent objects to the filmstrip. Because aligning images from frame to frame is difficult, this is not a good medium to use if your concept requires precision.

2.22 Steven Woloshen, 1000 Plateaus, 2014, Canada, 03:21 http://www.viennashorts.com/en/program/competitions/detail/c_/Program/p/animation-avantgarde-1-2014/


Alternative Techniques and Materials When you mention animation, the average person typically assumes the technique you are referring to is either cel, computer or possibly stopmotion animation. By their very nature, animators are resourceful and over the years have discovered a wide range of materials that can be animated. Independent animators have also invented new devices and developed unconventional processes in the quest to create expressive art. These alternative techniques and materials are not seen very often on TV or at the movies but nevertheless are effective and creative options for the creative animator. Pinscreen Animation This unique animation technique makes use of a large white screen filled with pins that can be pushed from either side. Lights are positioned at an angle to cause the pins to cast shadows. When the pins are pressed in, they cast less shadows causing that area to be lighter and when the pins are out they form darker areas in the image. The process of creating an animation using a pinscreen involves precisely altering the position of groups of pins to form an image. After each repositioning of the pins, a picture is taken and when finished the images are played back in sequence. Although this is one of the most laborious methods to create animation, the results are often quite stunning.

2.23 Close-up working on pinscreen 2.24 Michèle Lemieux, Here and the Great Elsewhere,

2012, Canada, 14:27 https://www.nfb.ca/film/here_and_the_great_elsewhere


Sand Animation Any material that can be moved around a little bit at a time can be animated. Sand has been used by a number of animators to create images as well as three-dimensional forms. The grainy quality of sand instills the animation with a subtle texture that works well with many animation concepts. Sand can be animated on backlit glass, revealing the thickness of the sand as darkness and the thin areas of sand as lighter areas of the image. Sand animation can also be lit from the front to reveal the grainy quality of the material. Some animators do both.

2.25 Corrie Francis Park, A Tangled Tale, 2013, USA, 05:30 http://vimeo.com/78802560


Live Action and Animation Video recordings can be the foundation of an animation or they can be merged with other techniques to form a hybrid mixed-media animation. Rotoscoping is when an animator traces over video footage, transforming it into something other than a mere representation of realistic action. This technique enables the animator to exaggerate, distort, stylize and selectively depict various parts of the moving image. The original video footage can either remain as part of final animation or disappear completely and be replaced with the animated graphics. Live footage can be used in combination with a wide variety of animation techniques including but not limited to computer animation, hand-drawn or painted animation, and stop-motion animation.

2.26 Gaëlle Denis, City Paradise, 2004, France/UK, 05:58 http://vimeo.com/36333084 Pixilation Even real people and live locations can be used as objects that can be animated. With video you can record events and human performance, but you are tied to the realistic actions mandated by the limitations of the human body and real-world physics. Pixilation is a form of stop-motion that allows the animator the freedom to move the human body in ways it might not be able to in the real world. As an example, pixilation could be used to slide or fly a person around in an environment unaffected by the limitations of gravity and friction. An animator using pixilation could take a picture of their subject at the top of a jump. Then the subject would take a step and they would be photographed at the top of another jump. Repeating this process and playing it back would result in an animation of a person floating up in the air as they moved along. Pixilation can also be used to animate objects such as furniture, books, food, etc. to make it appear to act in impossible ways.

2.27 Juan Pablo Zaramella, Luminaris, 2011, Argentina, 05:35 http://vimeo.com/24051768


Graffiti Even drawings on the sides of buildings can be animated. By creating an image on a building then photographing it, then spray-painting over parts of it, then repainting it, and repeating this process over and over thousands of times, you can bring images alive. This process often leaves a trace of the gestures of the artists; the areas that are painted over never return to their original state. Graffiti animation is an art form often created by a collective of artists. It is very important to get permission from the owner of the buildings before embarking on this type of animation.

2.28 Blu, Big Bang Big Boom, 2010, Italy, 09:54 http://vimeo.com/13085676 Animated Light Painting with light is an exciting technique that must be done in a dark environment. It requires a group effort with one person controlling the camera and the other doing the painting. The fundamental idea is that each frame of the animation is drawn with a brightly lit object while a camera with a long exposure captures the image. The light-painted images are drawn slightly different each time and as they are recorded. LED or other bright flashlights with colored gels can be used to create the images. It is very important that the camera is mounted on a study tripod so it does not move during the process. This method of creating animation takes practice but is a fun activity with friends and can result in stimulating visuals that shimmer and glow as they move.

2.29 Tochka: Nagata Takeshi and Monno Kazue, Pika Pika, 2007, Japan, 5:00 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGxBvW31DmE


Sculpture Animation does not have to be restricted to the screen. Many artists have created works that employ basic animation principles but apply them to three-dimensional forms that change over time. These changing forms can also be constructed using clay, metal, wood, or just about any material that can be manipulated. To create the illusion of motion the animator must construct some method of viewing the objects one at a time in rapid progression. Prior to film animation there were a number of motion devices, often used as parlor toys, which spun in a circular manner and allowed the viewer to see only one image at a time. Many had small openings or slits in the device that prevented the viewer from seeing more than one image at a time. The stroboscopic effect, which can be achieved by flashing a bright light repeatedly, also prevents people from seeing images as they move in a circular manner, similar to a small slit. If an animation artist creatively combines various techniques that facilitate the illusion of motion, they will be able to use sculptural forms to create an animated illusion that exists outside of the confines of the screen.

2.30 Gregory Barsamian, Die Falle, 1997, USA, Loop https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rAExrwhzag

2.31 Eric Dyer, The Bellows March, 2009, USA, 05:30 https://vimeo.com/21324452


Mixed Media Animation by its nature is mixed-media in that it typically integrates audio and is often enhanced or assembled using digital processes. Artistically, there are incredible opportunities to push it further and combine a wide range of media in innovative ways. Through the act of collaging an animator can layer, integrate and transform media from one fixed, recognizable form to something new and exciting. The juxtaposition of distinct media sometimes creates stark stylistic contrast and other times the combined aesthetic is quite subtle. When working with two-dimensional media such as drawing or painting, the visual results of switching between, or combining the two is seamless. A more challenging approach is to try to merge both two-dimensional and three-dimensional media. With the help of compositing software, each animated layer can be created separately and then visually stitched together. Some animators take the viewer on a visual journey by using a different media in each section of the animation, while others develop methods to combine multiple media into a seamless mix. Regardless of which method you use or the media you combine, the challenge is to create an animation that is coherent and achieves overall unity as well as enriches the concept you have chosen. Through the harnessing of the strengths and limitations of each media, interesting combinations and entirely new directions in animation can be formed.

2.32 Virgil Widrich, Fast Film, 2003, Austria, 13:50 http://vimeo.com/18666211


Animator Profile: Interview with Johan Rijpma

2.33 Johan Rijpma, Primary Expansion, 2012, The Netherlands, 1:00 https://vimeo.com/54731607

2.34 Johan Rijpma, Division, 2012, The Netherlands, 01:15 https://vimeo.com/album/2729769/video/42340098

2.35 Johan Rijpma, Decent, 2014, The Netherlands, 01:26 http://vimeo.com/92009557

art animation: creative storytelling and abstract...

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