tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post8617284979677167069..comments2024-03-13T23:42:25.845-07:00Comments on Animondays: The Joy of AnimationDavid B. Levyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12611160893518781463noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-15147878836976066672009-01-14T19:45:00.000-08:002009-01-14T19:45:00.000-08:00Good discussion, guys...This is a big subject here...Good discussion, guys...This is a big subject here. To clarify, I'm not against craft. But, I am against over blown craft that exists just to draw attention to itself. In my eyes, the perfect blend of craft and heart (without being showy) is Dumbo. <BR/><BR/>So, how can you tell if a film was crafted effectively (or technically sound)? That's easy... if you don't notice the craft then it did its job. If you got pulled along by the characters then there was good craft. That's why writing does so much of the heavy lifting. That's why we can say that South Park is well crafted. I wouldn't say the same about Treasure Planet.David B. Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12611160893518781463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-90238683079779543822009-01-14T14:47:00.000-08:002009-01-14T14:47:00.000-08:00"Technically sound" is a VERY broad notion in anim..."Technically sound" is a VERY broad notion in animation.<BR/><BR/>I mentioned earlier that it takes a special skill to make characters like David's example here, live and move and breath.<BR/><BR/>Does this make his work less sound, or less showy?Elliot Cowanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15952897418341461593noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-76592382302885763412009-01-14T14:40:00.000-08:002009-01-14T14:40:00.000-08:00Hi Jim,As you know, we have such specialist type j...Hi Jim,<BR/><BR/>As you know, we have such specialist type jobs in NY too, but they are largely at our bigger studios on TV series or feature work... but, there are also lots of generalists in NY earning a living in freelance by working a variety of skills. And, of course, indie filmmakers get to employ their own personal mixed bag of skills... Another reason why I have happily built my career here. I wouldn't be anywhere else... although I have a soft spot for you guys in LA and the fine work you're all doing.<BR/><BR/>Hi Jamal,<BR/><BR/>I've had several conversations with master animator Dan Haskett in which he wished for a mash up between NY substance and LA technical chops. I think both descriptions are too easy a label. But, If we were to agree that NY is substance, I'd suppose I'd take that any day over straight up technique. Technique doesn't tell a story or make me care about a character. That has to be in the writing in the first place, and our best bet for substantial writing in North American animation today comes from the indie world.David B. Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12611160893518781463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-63139585029890317452009-01-14T10:25:00.000-08:002009-01-14T10:25:00.000-08:00oh and great personality in thosedrawings : )oh and great personality in those<BR/>drawings : )Jamal Ohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04098901285233202178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-34998602486042564562009-01-14T10:22:00.000-08:002009-01-14T10:22:00.000-08:00Dave,Very thoughtful post.I Enjoyed this discussio...Dave,<BR/><BR/>Very thoughtful post.<BR/>I Enjoyed this discussion very much.<BR/><BR/>It's one of the biggest things I've learned over the years. The Question of are you moving a character just to move it. (which is pretty much what your doing in advertising) or are you focusing your efforts on conveying emotion and a story.<BR/><BR/>I think many east coast artists are bred as filmmakers and are not <BR/>as technically sound as west coast<BR/>folks. The reverse applies to West coast artists, many of them are awesome technically but are not <BR/>interested in being independent filmmakers<BR/><BR/>But like Jim Suggested, imagine if<BR/>we bridged the gap!<BR/><BR/>Now that would be interesting.Jamal Ohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04098901285233202178noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-18729995030441819582009-01-14T09:12:00.000-08:002009-01-14T09:12:00.000-08:00Ahhhh, another reason why I miss New York. Here in...Ahhhh, another reason why I miss New York. Here in LA, "not caring about the technicals" is a bit of blasphemy. In order to be hired for 90% of the jobs out here, you need to be a technicalist. Character Designer, Storyboarder, etc. I think there isn't much room here for filmmakers.<BR/><BR/>But then, that could be just the scale of the work being done, or just my experience so far.<BR/><BR/>In summary, I think New York and Los Angeles should merge and form their own continent. We'll call it Animasia.Jim Mortensenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08153849272626017413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-43656361071653201782009-01-14T09:11:00.000-08:002009-01-14T09:11:00.000-08:00This comment has been removed by the author.Jim Mortensenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08153849272626017413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-61724992908937088262009-01-13T08:10:00.000-08:002009-01-13T08:10:00.000-08:00ain't I a wonderful speller?ain't I a wonderful speller?David B. Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12611160893518781463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-52230612893282278232009-01-13T06:06:00.000-08:002009-01-13T06:06:00.000-08:00You probably don't have the patience, either...(It...You probably don't have the patience, either...<BR/><BR/>(It might be good to have some patients to do it for you though).Elliot Cowanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15952897418341461593noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-40631389868801928752009-01-13T05:44:00.000-08:002009-01-13T05:44:00.000-08:00Hi Emmett,I don't have the patients to do the type...Hi Emmett,<BR/><BR/>I don't have the patients to do the type of animation Richard Williams was engaged in. I think it would be too time consuming and tedious in a way that doing simpler animation helps me avoid. <BR/><BR/>I suggest you find the fun by throwing out all the so-called rules of how to keep something consistent and work on something that lets you just cut loose. Give yourself permission to fail.David B. Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12611160893518781463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-30514344506676398012009-01-12T22:34:00.000-08:002009-01-12T22:34:00.000-08:00I'm still unsure of where the enjoyment on animati...I'm still unsure of where the enjoyment on animation comes in. So far, I don't enjoy it, until halfway through. Getting started is nerve-wracking.<BR/><BR/>Today, I attempted to animate something spontaneously. Its was actually my first in a while, and I felt really weird about it, and didn't accomplish anything. I'll be trying again every coming day. In the time I wasn't animating, I was hearing about how some animators did certain pieces, and everything they had to pay attention to. Between keeping the weight, shape, timing and everything else consistent, it seems like a struggle to have fun in all you have to pay attention to.<BR/>I find that viewing it and making it are severely different.Emmetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02550182438003731076noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-36787105023505820932009-01-12T19:39:00.000-08:002009-01-12T19:39:00.000-08:00Hi Elliot,Great point...in your spin on the shallo...Hi Elliot,<BR/><BR/>Great point...in your spin on the shallowness of a character like Capn Hook. Why should it be so obvious who is a villain? Are the great live action films this way? It seems to me that animation handicaps itself in its easy readability. <BR/><BR/>Eric Goldberg advocates a "name that tune" approach to animating a scene. He wants the audience to know the character's feelings in the least drawings possible. I am in sympathy with that idea, but not in how it is applied to things like modern Disney features. There it just seems like one more formula to me.David B. Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12611160893518781463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-42702239834355805392009-01-12T17:08:00.000-08:002009-01-12T17:08:00.000-08:00I personally do not especially enjoy animating.I d...I personally do not especially enjoy animating.<BR/>I do it because I love that moment when an audience makes an emotional connection with the character.<BR/><BR/>I think this is especially interesting when dealing with the characters David and Tim have posted.<BR/><BR/>There is a real art to taking a simple character like this and pulling a performance out of it that people connect with.<BR/><BR/>Captain Hook is a pirate with a pirate hat and a costume - he's clearly a bad guy.<BR/>The basics are there before the character even moves.<BR/>Most "commercial" animated characters are based around these archetypes.<BR/><BR/>Tim and Dave have to work twice as hard to give these fellows truth and life (or they're just very clever or lucky).Elliot Cowanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15952897418341461593noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-8307225579218686532009-01-12T09:03:00.000-08:002009-01-12T09:03:00.000-08:00LOL, ROC.LOL, ROC.David B. Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12611160893518781463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-91375661868906630662009-01-12T08:48:00.000-08:002009-01-12T08:48:00.000-08:00The joy of animating for me comes when working on ...The joy of animating for me comes when working on my night moves.roconnorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04933040935053560675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-85758119018958021362009-01-12T08:12:00.000-08:002009-01-12T08:12:00.000-08:00Hi George,I think the "animator" can also be a "fi...Hi George,<BR/><BR/>I think the "animator" can also be a "filmmaker" if they don't obsess too much about animation technique just for the sake of it. I'm more filmmaker than animator, but despite that I am acutely aware of the joy of animating. It's like nothing else.David B. Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12611160893518781463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-74351333877188433102009-01-12T08:05:00.000-08:002009-01-12T08:05:00.000-08:00This discussion reminds me of one of your previous...This discussion reminds me of one of your previous fundamental questions: are we film makers or animators? It seems like here we are saying that the over-arching film, character, and story are the most important elements in animated films that stand the test of time.Georgehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13175400614261773704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-3070064904400012982009-01-12T05:37:00.000-08:002009-01-12T05:37:00.000-08:00Tim, your clip is incredible! Thanks for posting...Tim, your clip is incredible! Thanks for posting the link.<BR/><BR/>One of the treats of having so much classic animation on DVD these days is watching a short with commentary by someone like Mark Kausler who can point out each animator's scenes as they play. There was a lot of off-model animation in those cartoons as well. And, they have clearly stood the test of time. Part of their energy comes from the freedom in each drawing.David B. Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12611160893518781463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-738814364413384768.post-22860356201554727092009-01-11T21:07:00.000-08:002009-01-11T21:07:00.000-08:00Staying on model is over-rated in my book. Especi...Staying on model is over-rated in my book. Especially for one-off shorts. I find that I am figuring out what a character "looks like" almost right up to the end. As you say, staying on-character is what counts.<BR/><BR/>Unrelated to that, I loved your stills and they reminded me of a little test I did one weekend of a boy drawing on the sidewalk on a windy day:<BR/><BR/>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ok3iJ3rLrQA&feature=channel_page<BR/><BR/>I have a lot of fun doing bits totally unattached to larger, more serious projects. Actually animating is my favorite part of the filmmaking process and I wish I could roll in it all day.Tim Rauchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17372320274473421640noreply@blogger.com