Animation

Animation is a method of film-making in which a series of drawings are photographed. When the film is projected, the characters in the drawings appear to move. There are many ways in which this can be done, such as using drawings, computers or models, but is generally a labour-intensive process. This is a hobby for the person who enjoys attention to detail and has lots of patience.

The advent of computers has radically altered the world of animation. Now many of the more time-consuming tasks can be done by computer, and there have been huge developments in the type of animated films we are seeing. The skills of the animator are able to produce sophisticated and lifelike effects, and this allows us to immediately enter fantastic new worlds.

Of course, the artist?s skill is still the first and most important part of the process. We have all experienced feelings for animated characters, even though we know they are not real. In particular, the new wave of children?s animated movies has been extremely successful, with both children and adults alike.

The art form of animation has been around since the beginning of the last century. There are lots of different ways to explore it; you might use drawing or painting, or try your hand at clay modelling, or other mediums to make models. You could draw your inspiration from the cartoons that most of us watched when we were growing up, such as Tom and Jerry, or try to emulate such recent innovations as Wallace and Gromit.

If you are drawn to this intricate and rewarding hobby, you can have lots of fun creating your own animated features. We will be looking at the skills and equipment you might need to take you further into this fascinating art form. It?s also the place where all you budding animators out there can share information.

So get animated!

---

<< Previous Film Making | Back to Film Making | Next >> Life Casting