Animation Sketchbooks

This course provides a theoretical framework, covering the principles of 2D animation and its use in creating movement through successive drawings. Regardless of your drawing skill level, in this class you will have the opportunity to turn any drawings, no matter how rudimentary, into short animated films. A variety of techniques are explored for creating metamorphosis, movement, holds, squash and stretch, depth, and resistance. Students first use the stop-motion stand to capture and view handcrafted work and then move on to shooting live action in video and translating this into animation through rotoscoping. Projects are designed to give students production knowledge covering stop motion, Adobe Photoshop^®, Flash and After Effects^®. In this one-semester class, students complete a series of film exercises, encouraging a full range of 2D animation skills and a final project. Emphasis will be upon principles that support concept development and animations that demonstrate a poetic understanding of rhythm and motion. Films illustrating drawn-animation techniques are screened regularly. Discussion and readings provide context for idea development and visual invention. Upon completion of this course, students will have a working definition of animation systems and techniques that they can later apply to any digital media: gaming, film, or art production.