http://animationbackgrounds.blogspot.com/ - A blog dedicated to backgrounds used in animation from current and classic films such as Mulan and Pinocchio. The work of different studios are looked at, including Chuck Jones, Fleischer studios and Disney. I Particularly enjoyed looking at Disney background artist, Peter Moehrle's, watercolour backgrounds. Overall a very interesting blog as all the different styles from different films can be seen.
www.aniboom.com - This is a video site much like youtube, but dedicated to animation films ranging from Comedy, Drama to experimental.
http://characterdesign.blogspot.com/ - This blog contains interviews with character designers as well as their work. I found it very informative to see the development process thorugh sketches from films such as Madagascar and The Nightmare Before Christmas.
http://mitchellsketch.blogspot.com/ - This blog shows sketches and characters designs by the author of the blog. It was nice to see the thought processes and character designs he had come up with and how other animators have influenced some of his designs.
www.animationnation.com - Much like the "aniboom" website, this site is also dedicated to animation videos although this one doesn't have that many- it actually looks like quite a new web site. In any case i would highly recommend watching the animation called "Animator vs Animation" under the "featured animations" tab- a very clever idea and very well done. Good site but could do with a bit more films.
www.pixar.com - Website of one of the best animation studios in the world, although their website could do with alot more. It looks very basic but does show you the process of creating a Pixar animation. It also has short films and information on up and coming feature films. The area of this site which i found most interesting was the written interviews with the different members of the team, from animators, sculptors and directors telling us how they joined the Pixar team and their journey to becoming an animator.
http://cowancollection.blogspot.com/ - This blog features work done by different animators and illustrators. What i particularly liked about this blog was the vast amount of model sheets for Disney characters. The blog also has early Disney drawings done in pencil, ink and colour as well as photos and posters. Turnarounds and different emotion sheets of characters like Goofy and Superman are looked at. A very good blog for looking at character design particularly focusing on Disney animations.
www.dreamworksanimation.com - One of my favourate sites by far. As well as the standard links to up coming films and information about the company, the site also contains a very detailed look at the process of creating an animation sequence. "Looking at technology" focuses on the process from storyboard to lighting by analysing the film Kung Fu Panda. The site also features a "behind the scenes" link and a"day in the life" section which focuses on the different roles of the Dreamworks team.
www.howtodrawmanga.com - A very good site for anyone interested or even thinking about taking up an interest in anime/manga. Tutorials for drawing faces, eyes, noses, mouths of both females and males can been accessed on this site. It also has tutorials for drawing clothes and hair. There is also an online manga to read and a blog as well as a very random cooking section. The best thing about this site is the tutorials on how to draw manga, as most other things you have to pay for.
www.imageworks.com - Sony imageworks deals with live action and animated films. In the "shows" link, image galleries and videos can be viewed showing the construction of the groundbreaking and realistic visual effects created in their films. I particularly enjoyed watching the "shot build" of New York City in the film I Am Legend, where the opening scene of Times Square is 100% digitilised. The "Shows" link is definelty the best thing about this site, as the rest of the site mainly deals with information about the company.
Friday, 20 February 2009
Out Of The Mouth Of Babes: Animated Sitcoms and Political Incorectness - Literacy Review
I came across this article, which highlights the most popular politically incorrect animated comedies, as well as focusing on the consequences these shows have on children. The article focuses on Family Guy, The Boondocks, The Simpsons and Drawn Together.
The author addresses the “I can’t believe they just said that” aspect all these shows have in common. Whilst they all have similarities, the use of politically incorrect humour is different in each show. South parks tends to make fun of much loved or disliked people and celebrities, whether it offends the audience or not. Family Guy is described in this article as having “racist and sexiest humour,” whilst The Boondocks “un political humour seems directed towards political ends”. The author explains how each show is able to get away with that type of humour because the animated world is far from reality.
Another method of creating humour can be seen in the animation series Drawn Together. The animation often uses similar characters from popular kids shows such as Pokémon or SpongeBob Squarepants and combines them with adult themes. The characters are well known and therefore a lot of viewers find it funny to see these kids characters placed in situations, which are not suitable for a younger audience.
Kids being the “voice of reason” is another technique described and is seen in the shows “The Boondocks” and “South Park. “Although the wisdom is anything but wise and this is what creates the gag.
The article addresses certain aspects of comedy in animation but not many and without going into a lot of detail. The article starts off by saying how the four animations would be looked into deeper, but Family Guy is hardly addressed throughout the article. I did find it informative but would have liked more analysis of the animations and perhaps more examples of other animations. If you are looking for an article on how animation generates comedy, this wouldn’t be it but it does make some good and interesting points.
The author addresses the “I can’t believe they just said that” aspect all these shows have in common. Whilst they all have similarities, the use of politically incorrect humour is different in each show. South parks tends to make fun of much loved or disliked people and celebrities, whether it offends the audience or not. Family Guy is described in this article as having “racist and sexiest humour,” whilst The Boondocks “un political humour seems directed towards political ends”. The author explains how each show is able to get away with that type of humour because the animated world is far from reality.
Another method of creating humour can be seen in the animation series Drawn Together. The animation often uses similar characters from popular kids shows such as Pokémon or SpongeBob Squarepants and combines them with adult themes. The characters are well known and therefore a lot of viewers find it funny to see these kids characters placed in situations, which are not suitable for a younger audience.
Kids being the “voice of reason” is another technique described and is seen in the shows “The Boondocks” and “South Park. “Although the wisdom is anything but wise and this is what creates the gag.
The article addresses certain aspects of comedy in animation but not many and without going into a lot of detail. The article starts off by saying how the four animations would be looked into deeper, but Family Guy is hardly addressed throughout the article. I did find it informative but would have liked more analysis of the animations and perhaps more examples of other animations. If you are looking for an article on how animation generates comedy, this wouldn’t be it but it does make some good and interesting points.
Common Strategies of Animated Comedy article - Literacy Review
This article entitled “Common Strategies of Animated Comedy” by Joe Yang is the authors’ personal analysis on comedy in animation. He focuses on recent and popular shows, giving four different comedy techniques which he has observed. He interestingly gives the advantages and disadvantages of each point as well as finishing the article with tips on creating more effective humour.The four points the author focuses on are parody, bad/cheesy, gross-out and random humour. Spoofs and animations which reference well known sources are successful because of their recognisable content, but on the other hand the disadvantage is that the scriptwriters can be accused of laziness or lack of creativity- the same downfall associated with the “bad/cheesy” animated comedy. The advantages of the bad/cheesy animated film are that some viewers may find the badly drawn characters and environments funny, or the writers could create gags revolving around the badly drawn film. “Gross-out humour”, which includes violence and/or bad language, is funny when both the visual and gross out element come together. The disadvantage is overusing the gag which could result in the loss of viewers. Disregard for logic, unpredictability and the surprise it causes, is what makes “random humour” successful, although some viewers may find it hard to understand a certain joke and it could lead to confusion in the story line.
What I liked about the article was the fact that the author looks at both sides of the different points he addressed. The final section on how to create more effective humour is quite useful but like the rest of the article, I would have liked more points to be investigated as the ones he has looked at, were very interesting.
Scriptwriting by Paul Wells - Literacy Review
I looked at another book by Paul wells on Scriptwriting. The book looks at the different approaches used in comedy animation, but its main focus lies in certain characters and how their personalities can create structured gags for each episode.
The book describes the important relationship needed between the audience and the comedy taking place on screen. Creating jokes from careful observation of the world around us, would give the opportunity for the audience to recognise, relate and understand where the gag is coming from, otherwise it runs the risk of being misunderstood or even offensive. The timing and subject matter, depending on your audience, are also other important factors to consider when constructing gags.
The book mainly focuses on two characters in comedy, Johnny Bravo and Uncle Stewart in the animation “Terkle in Trouble.” The detailed analysis of Johnny Bravo cartoons show the same structure each episode follows. Johnny Bravo’s personality has been thought about very carefully- basically being a grown man with a child’s brain. His main objective in every episode is to “get the babes” with the outcome always being the same-failure in a painful way. Like Road Runner, the gag comes from how he fails rather than the failure itself-ranging from shark attacks to stampedes. It is the repetition and escalation which are described as being fundamental aspects of this minimalist and structured animation.
Uncle Stewart’s has certain defining characteristics such as being a drunk and anti-social old man. It is his ruff and rugged personality which defines the outline of the story. The importance of ensuring that the audience enjoys the violent or uncaring jokes, revolves around them having no care for the character harmed at the time of the gag.
This book is different to Paul Wells other book, “understanding animation”, in that it goes deeper into the analysis of character designs, and how their personality creates structure and gags in their animations. It is less detailed on the other aspects of comedy animation and only really highlights some of the key elements. The book is about basic scriptwriting in animation and is a good starting point for anyone with any interest in the subject.
The book describes the important relationship needed between the audience and the comedy taking place on screen. Creating jokes from careful observation of the world around us, would give the opportunity for the audience to recognise, relate and understand where the gag is coming from, otherwise it runs the risk of being misunderstood or even offensive. The timing and subject matter, depending on your audience, are also other important factors to consider when constructing gags.
The book mainly focuses on two characters in comedy, Johnny Bravo and Uncle Stewart in the animation “Terkle in Trouble.” The detailed analysis of Johnny Bravo cartoons show the same structure each episode follows. Johnny Bravo’s personality has been thought about very carefully- basically being a grown man with a child’s brain. His main objective in every episode is to “get the babes” with the outcome always being the same-failure in a painful way. Like Road Runner, the gag comes from how he fails rather than the failure itself-ranging from shark attacks to stampedes. It is the repetition and escalation which are described as being fundamental aspects of this minimalist and structured animation.
Uncle Stewart’s has certain defining characteristics such as being a drunk and anti-social old man. It is his ruff and rugged personality which defines the outline of the story. The importance of ensuring that the audience enjoys the violent or uncaring jokes, revolves around them having no care for the character harmed at the time of the gag.
This book is different to Paul Wells other book, “understanding animation”, in that it goes deeper into the analysis of character designs, and how their personality creates structure and gags in their animations. It is less detailed on the other aspects of comedy animation and only really highlights some of the key elements. The book is about basic scriptwriting in animation and is a good starting point for anyone with any interest in the subject.
Understanding Animation - Literacy review
The book “Understanding Animation,” by Paul Wells, features a section describing “the 25 ways to start laughing.” It shows the different approaches to comedy used in animation and the different audiences they appeal to. The book analysis certain animations such as Chuck Jones’s, Road Runner, as well as Warner Bros and Pixar films.
The book starts of looking at early animations and the “magical surprise” gag- a technique used to totally shock the audience into disbelief through manipulation of physical laws- the viewer observes things they would not normally see and this is where the joke took place.
Other important traits described were the importance of personality, to the point where the audience would believe that the character could have an off-screen life. Personality allows the viewer to connect with the characters emotion, through his gestures and expressions.
Comedies such as Road Runner have certain guidelines and structure, which the cartoon follows every time. Repetition is used and the content is recognisable by the audience. They know that the coyote will always fail in his attempt to catch the road runner- the humour is created by witnessing how he fails.
Black comedy, described as “the fine line between tragedy and comedy” is also addressed in the book, with the analysis of the film Hamature night. The self-conscious approach to animation is discussed with the analysis of “Bob’s Birthday,” a film about a man who ends up talking to his wife about private matters, only to be totally unaware that his guests, who are hiding for his surprise party, can hear every word.
The book shows comedy from every angle, through analysis of current and early animated films. It describes how some animators choose to have rules for each episode whilst others choose not to. Expectation, repetition, visual, literal and verbal gags are all covered in detail in this well written and informative book.
The book starts of looking at early animations and the “magical surprise” gag- a technique used to totally shock the audience into disbelief through manipulation of physical laws- the viewer observes things they would not normally see and this is where the joke took place.
Other important traits described were the importance of personality, to the point where the audience would believe that the character could have an off-screen life. Personality allows the viewer to connect with the characters emotion, through his gestures and expressions.
Comedies such as Road Runner have certain guidelines and structure, which the cartoon follows every time. Repetition is used and the content is recognisable by the audience. They know that the coyote will always fail in his attempt to catch the road runner- the humour is created by witnessing how he fails.
Black comedy, described as “the fine line between tragedy and comedy” is also addressed in the book, with the analysis of the film Hamature night. The self-conscious approach to animation is discussed with the analysis of “Bob’s Birthday,” a film about a man who ends up talking to his wife about private matters, only to be totally unaware that his guests, who are hiding for his surprise party, can hear every word.
The book shows comedy from every angle, through analysis of current and early animated films. It describes how some animators choose to have rules for each episode whilst others choose not to. Expectation, repetition, visual, literal and verbal gags are all covered in detail in this well written and informative book.
Monday, 16 February 2009
Hilary - Film Review
“Hilary” is an animation made by Anthony Hodgson whilst in his second year at The Royal College of Art in 1993. It has won several awards around the world because of its unique storytelling and animation.The opening scene shows a large man playing the piano in a dark and eerie setting. Whilst playing the rather calming melody he keeps getting interrupted by the sound of a xylophone, being hit by the child sitting on the floor. The large man decides to tell the kid a bedtime story about “a fairy princess called Hilary.” The man walks up stairs whilst talking about Hilary’s best friend Linda, who was a toy mouse, which her dad had bought her after her fifth birthday. Hilary always dreamed of being away from people on the planet Mars, as her Granddad was always telling her how she was boring and should be living the young life like he did. Hilary later met a man whom her mother had disapproved of, as she never trusted anyone and taught Hilary the same. She got pregnant and gave birth to a baby girl but her life was being controlled by her husband. One day whilst hiding away from her family, Hilary found Linda the toy mouse, who said, “I thought we were going to Mars”, Hilary replies “oh yes.”
What I particularly liked about the animation was the transitions between scenes. When the man explains to the young child how Hilary dreamt of living on Mars, the door to the attic is opened and they climb out onto the surface of Mars. The granddad tells Hilary how she should live in the fast lane- this is shown by a spinning wheel which comes on screen, allowing a subtle change from one scene to another.
The action on screen ties in well with the story the man is telling. The visuals are not to overbearing to draw your attention away from the story. I also like how the voice sound changes throughout the animation, such as the echo sound heard when the man is in the fiery pit.
My only criticism would be that I had to watch the animation a few times over in order to get the full story, as the man jumps from one subject to another quite quickly. Other than that this film is definitely worth watching as all the elements from visuals, sound and storytelling, intertwine with each other very well, making it an animation to remember.
Sunday, 15 February 2009
Shaun Of The Dead - Film review
I have never really liked British comedy, as I have never actually found it funny, but Shaun of the Dead is something very different. It provides laughs in a clever way through its chaotic and gory storyline.Shaun Of The Dead is about an appliance salesman who lives with his best freind Ed, on the road to nowhere. Shaun's girlfriend, Liz, thinks she should spend more time with him rather than visiting “The Winchester” pub every day, forcing Shaun to promise changes in their lives. But the change comes when he notices people fainting on the street and other strange occurances, resulting in an unexplained outbreak of zombies. Shaun and his best friend think up a plan to rescue Liz with her flatmates, as well as his mum and stepdad to safety in the one place they know so well, The Winchester. The rescue is not a very successful one resulting in Shaun’s mum, stepdad and Liz’s flatmate, David, getting killed as well as Shaun’s best friend Ed getting bitten. They eventually get rescued by the British army but Shaun decides to keep his zombie freind Ed, in his shed playing videogames.
What I enjoyed about this film was the often casual approach Shaun and Ed had towards the zombies. When confronted by zombies in the back garden, Shaun and Ed empty out the shed and start hurling vinyl’s at the zombies’ heads. At times it was almost like a gory videogame as Shaun went around the streets armed with a cricket bat, killing zombies. As well as the traditional gory methods used to kill or avoid zombies, you also see unconventional approach to dealing with the monsters. They imitate the zombies in order to reach the Winchester pub and once inside, they end up beating a zombie with cue sticks to the rhythm of the Queen Song “Don’t Stop Me Now.”
Overall the film was gory, chaotic and comical. The contrast in personalities of the different characters and how they each dealt with the zombies in their own way worked well. I would definitely recommend this film to anyone.
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