Applying the 12 Principles To 3D Animation
Twelve Principles of Animation
Animators at the Walt Disney Studios. These principles were used to guide
production and creative discussions as well to train young animators better and
Faster. These twelve principles became one of the foundations of hand-drawn
cartoon character animation. The twelve principles, as they are commonly
referred to, also helped to transform animation from a novelty into an art form.
By applying these principles to their work these pioneering animators produced
many of the earliest animated feature films that became classics: Snow White
(1937), Pinocchio and Fantasia (1940), Dumbo (1941), and Bambi (1942).
The twelve principles are mostly about five things: acting the performance,
directing the performance, representing reality (through drawing, modeling, and
rendering), interpreting real world physics, and editing a sequence of actions.
The original principles are still relevant today because they help us to create
more believable characters and situations. They can be applied to almost any
type of animation, even though they work best for comedy. But, some of these
principles require updates, and a few new additional principles are also needed
to address the new techniques and styles of three-dimensional computer
animation.
Animation techniques and styles, and the scope of productions, have changed
tremendously since the 1930s. The dominant, almost exclusive, style of
Animation then was hand-drawn pose-to-pose cartoon narrative animation.
Today we have more styles including non-linear interactive video games and
non-narrative music videos. In the 1930s some animation techniques and
capabilities were underdeveloped, camera moves and lighting for example, or
misunderstood: rot scoping or stop-motion. Consider too the new tools that
have transformed our craft: hand-held cameras, television, non-linear editing,
composting, motion capture, computer graphics and procedural tools. Other
artforms have greatly evolved since the 1930s, creating new languages and new
principles. It is time to do the same with animation, it is time to reinterpret and
expand the original principles. We also need to create new additional principles
that address today’s new animation styles and techniques. This is our collective
challenge.
Squash and stretch
The first principle from the original twelve, is used to
exaggerate the amount of non-rigid body deformations usually with the purpose
of achieving a more comedic effect. Three-dimensional squash and stretch can
be implemented with a variety of techniques: skin and muscle, springs, direct
mesh manipulation and morphing.
It can also be implemented in more experimental ways with weighting, especially
for dynamics simulations, and unusual IK systems.
The technique of
Anticipation
Helps to guide the audience’s eyes to where the
Action is about to occur. Anticipation, including motion holds, is great for
“Announcing the surprise.” In three-dimensional computer animation it can be
fine-tuned using digital time-editing tools such as time sheets, timelines, and
Curves. More anticipation equals less suspense. Horror films, for example,
Switch back and forth from lots of anticipation to total surprise.
Staging
as it is also known, is about translating the mood and
Intention of a scene into specific character positions and actions. Staging the key
Character poses in the scene helps to define the nature of the action. Three-
Dimensional animatics are a great tool for previsualizing and blocking out the
Staging before the primary, secondary and facial animation. There are many
Staging techniques to tell the story visually: hiding or revealing the center of
interest, and a chain reaction of actions-reactions are a couple of them. Staging
can also be aided with contemporary cinematic techniques such as slow motion,
frozen time, motion loops, and hand-held camera moves.
Straight-ahead action and pose-to-pose are two different animation techniques
that yield fairly different results. In the early days of hand-drawn animation
Pose-to-pose action
became the standard animation technique because it breaks
down structured motion into a series of clearly defined key poses.
Straight-ahead Action
the character moves spontaneously through the action one step at
a time until the action is finished. Motion capture and dynamics simulations,
even three-dimensional rotoscoping, are clearly the straight-ahead techniques of
three-dimensional computer animation. They can all be blended intelligently
using channels.
Follow-through and overlapping action are two techniques that help make the
action richer and fuller with detail and subtlety.
Follow-through action
consists
of the reactions of the character after an action, and it usually lets audiences
know how he or she feels about what has just happened or is about to happen.
In
Overlapping action
multiple motions influence, blend, and overlap the
position of the character. In three-dimensional computer animation a lot of the
common follow-through motions of clothing and hair, for example, can be
animated with dynamics simulations. The layers and channels in three-
dimensional computer animation software allow us to mix and blend different
overlapping motions from different areas of the character.
Slow-in and slow-out
consist of slowing down the beginning and the end of an
action, while speeding up the middle of it. A snappy effect is achieved when
motion is accelerated and retarded in this way. In three-dimensional computer
animation slow-ins and slow-outs can be fine-tuned with digital time-editing
tools. When using motion capture techniques for cartoon-style animated
characters it is essential to remind performers to do slow-ins and slow-outs. The
inverse variation of this effect, a fast-in and fast-out, is often times seen in TV
commercials and music videos where the beginning and end of the sequence
are accelerated while the middle is slowed down giving it a surreal or dreamy
feeling.
Using
Arcs
to animate the movements of characters helps achieve a natural look
because most living creatures move in curved paths, never in perfectly straight
lines. Non-arc motion comes across as sinister, restricted or robotic. In three-
dimensional computer animation we can use software constraints to force all or
some of the motion within arcs. Even motion-captured performances can be
fine-tuned with curve editors, as long as the motion is not flattened.
Secondary action
consists of the smaller motions that complement the
dominant action. In three-dimensional computer animation we can take
advantage of layers and channels for building up different secondary motions,
for example, a layer for hair, a layer for the character's hat, a layer for the cape,
and so on.
Timing
is the precise moment and the amount of time that a character spends
on an action. Timing adds emotion and intention to the character’s performance.
Most three-dimensional computer animation tools allow us to fine tune the timing
by shaving off or adding frames with non-linear time-editing.
Timing can also be controlled and adjusted by placing each character on a
separate track, and using sub-tracks for parts of the character such as head,
torso, arms and legs.
Exaggeration
usually helps cartoon characters to deliver the essence of an
action. A lot of exaggeration can be achieved with squash and stretch. In three-
dimensional computer animation we can use procedural techniques, motion
ranges and scripts to exaggerate motion. The intensity of a moment can be
increased with cinematography and editing, not just with performance.
Solid modeling and rigging
or solid drawing as it was called in the 1930s,
emphasizes the clear delineation of shape necessary to bring animated
characters to life. Solid and precise modeling helps to convey the weight, depth
and balance of the character, and it also simplifies potential production
complications due to poorly modeled characters. Animation rigs are at their best
when they are optimized for the specific personality and motion of the character.
Pay attention to silhouettes when aligning characters to the camera.
Character personality
as it was originally called, facilitates the
emotional connection between character and audience. Characters must be well
developed, have an interesting personality, and have a clear set of desires or
needs that drive their behavior and actions. Complexity and consistency of
motion are two elements of character appeal that can be easily developed with
three-dimensional computer animation. Writing down the ways in which the
character moves, how he/she reacts to different situations, and how he/she
relates to other characters can help define the main characteristics of the
character’s personality. Fine-tune the personality with the key poses and the
character turnarounds.
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