Appeal

When an animated character has appeal, it does not mean that it has to be cute or beautiful, it can even be ugly but with a strong appeal. A successful appeal includes an easy to read design, clear drawing and personality development, so it will attract the attention of the target audience. That means, for example, (fig.1) Jafar from “Aladin” is a very ungly character but with appeal in animation, audience can understand that he is a villian (evil yellow eyes, long triagular chin, dark clothes, etc.). Another example is (fig.2) Rapunzel from “Tangled” we can see that she has a dynamic personality (holding a frying pan) and that she is a good character (big eyes, purple dress).

fig.1

fig.2

Solid Drawing

It is a principle that applies weight, volume solidity, perspective and the illusion of three dimensions of a character, object or background in animation. We have to be able to transform and draw them from different angles and positions.

Tinkerbell here has an approach to a 3D picture because they put perspective, good proportions and good line quality, even though it is just a pencil drawing without shading.

Exaggeration

Exaggeration is the usage of actions of a character expressed over the top and in not symmetric proportions. We usually find exaggeration in a cartoon style animation where it does not follow the rules of physical shape and it looks less realistic. It helps the audience to understand the mood of the character especially when it is emotion of surprise (fig.1) and also it makes the animation more interesting and exciting. However, we can use exaggeration at an extent, so we do not confuse the audience.

Fig.1

This video is from Tom and Jerry Tales where animators create many poses of exaggeration.

Timing

Timing in animation takes long time to understand and expertise how it is used. To become better in timing it needs to make experiments and correct the mistakes. For example, the basics are: fewer frames make the action faster and vivid, and more frames make it slower. A variety of quick and slow timing in a sequence add interest to the action. Many animation are done on twos (1 picture in 2 frames, 12 frames per second) and sometimes ones are used when the camera moves, and also when we have fast dialogue. However, there is timing in establishing mood, emotion, and reaction on a character.

Dope sheets:

They are papers used in a traditional way, animators use them to arrange timing in the scene.




















In this video is Richard Williams explaining timing and spacing. He gives an example of a person yawning.

Secondary Action

This is an action, which enriches and supports the primary action, adding more movement to the scene. However, this movement is intended to go unnoticed, and should not conflict or compete with the primary action of a scene. An example would be Luxo Jnr., by Pixar in 1984, where the lamp shade is jumping across the screen as the primary action, and then the wire trailing it as the secondary action.

Arcs Part 2

In the video Lion King - Circle of Life, there are many examples of arcs. Such as when the animals bow or move their tails, or even the elephant's nose is moving.

Arcs

Arcs in animation are used all the time in all actions, with few exceptions such as movements of a mechanical device. They are movements which follow an arc even a circular path or curves. Also, they give a natural feel and better flow to the animation.

This diagram shows a bouncing ball and the semi-circular path that follows.

Arcs in walk cycles. This picture shows different arcs in an action. First, it is the head and the main body, and its hand moving in front and back.