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At 4/9/14 04:21 AM, dylan wrote:
Fours, just like ones and twos, have their place in animation.

We shall agree to disagree, then, good sir. I don't believe fours have any place in animation at all. The videos you posted are gorgeous works of art. What they lack is the professionalism that would come if they animated on 2s. As they are now they are choppy and not as nice as they'd be if they were complete and finished to the highest standard. Online you can get away with it, but do we really want to do animation "you can get away with" or do we want to do great, complete animation? Set those clips next to brilliant animation done on 2s and there's just no contest which is better.

http://vimeo.com/6873432#at=0
http://vimeo.com/24270906
http://vimeo.com/8611712
http://vimeo.com/29411830

At 4/7/14 10:30 PM, MocaNico wrote: So here we are! Less than a month away from NATA 2014! Are you guys joining this year? I know I will!

What's NATA?

It's very odd, but seems decently crafted. If your heart isn't in it, I doubt you'll finish it properly, but if you can muster up the enthusiasm, why not?

What all would even need done? Slap some music in there and you're good to go.

Well it looks like a good start! Some of the art is compelling, and I'd be interested in seeing more and learning the story that's taking place.

As far as the animation goes, it's pretty clear you don't have a lot of experience just yet. The jump is essentially weightless, and kind of breaks all the rest of the groove you've built to that point. You need to add the principals in there severely if you want it to move correctly. Squash and stretch, anticipation, follow through, just general timing... All these things are best learned through much more simple exercises rather than full figures. Generally that's why we start with things like the bouncing ball.

Anyway, hope that helps a bit. Try animating the jump using just a ball until you get the timing and squash and stretch perfect. It will be a lot easier, then you can translate it into the full character. Good luck!

If you know of any animations that achieve what you're looking for, give watching them one frame at a time a try. You may find out exactly what gives it the appearance you want. Then you can apply the technique to your own work. There's probably not going to be an easy way, though. It will probably come down to animating it frame by frame, as mentioned. Good luck!

At 4/5/14 07:26 PM, dylan wrote:

Flash and Toon Boom are much more analogous than a spoon and a hammer. It's more like a spoon versus a fork. Again, I'm not recommending that people use Excel to animate.

Good points all around. In the end, it really depends on how far you want to take it I guess. You're right, as a beginner it doesn't hurt to try Flash + all Adobe for a few months and see if you want to continue. But then, if you do, I'd still recommend a real animation program for long-term. And again, that's just because I blew 10 years with Flash and am paying for it now having to essentially start over with the other programs. Flash, for actual animators, just doesn't have a future. But you're right, it works fine for the present/trial basis. :)

At 4/4/14 02:50 PM, dylan wrote: I don't know about that. I get that it's all the rage to hate on Flash these days, but there are some great benefits to using the program above using another vector based software like Toon Boom.

I didn't know it was all the rage to hate on Flash. I have used it for 10 years now and discovered personally that Toon Boom is far superior in every way for animating. Believe me, this is not me being on some band-wagon, this is the conclusion I've drawn after a decade of personal use.

First, interactivity. Flash has actionscript, which, while not strictly in the realm of animation, can add a lot to your final product. You've got pay buttons, links, and any other type of interactivity you might need to add to your short. From my understanding, Toon Boom doesn't have an alternative, and even recommends going through Flash for something as simple as a play button. This is solved by making your final piece a quicktime, but what's the point of working in a vector based software if you're just going rasterize in the end? May as well learn TVPaint or Photoshop at that point.

Absolutely, if you want interactivity, you need a piece of software that does that. If you want animation, though, you don't need interactivity and might as well use a better program specifically made to do animation.

Second, for frame-by-frame at least, you honestly don't need all the bells and whistles provided by TB. It's not a reason in itself to choose Flash, but the only real addition when it comes to TB seems to be the ability to rotate the view. For this kind of work, Flash is a perfectly fine piece of software.

While you may not need the bells and whistles of TB, if you are doing frame by frame animation what you DO need (or is at least very nice to have) is a set of drawing tools that don't ruin what you're trying to create. Flash is TERRIBLE at drawing, even at the lowest "correction" settings. Literally it is a night and day difference. (And even then, TB is inferior to drawing in TV Paint or Photoshop.)

On the reverse of that, if you choose Flash over Toon Boom, you get access to Photoshop, After Effects, Illustrator, Audition, etc. all for free. If you ever plan on having any part of your pipeline in another Adobe Program, Flash is the easiest, cheapest way to go.

Cheapest is not always the best. In fact, it's RARELY the best. Why use inferior software for something you're going to dedicate SO much time to?

In the end, they're both just pieces of software. 90% of both TB and Flash are designed to do exactly the same thing. It's not like choosing one over the other is going to drastically change one's ability to create content. I'm not saying that Flash is an inherently better choice than Toon Boom, but there's certainly no reason to actively discourage the use of Flash. Like all programs, it's a tool that has its own uses along with its own flaws.

While I totally agree with you that they are both just tools with flaws and positives, Flash and Toon Boom were ABSOLUTELY not created with the same intention. Macromedia never intended Flash to be a dedicated animation program, it was just something that it could also do but it was always designed for interactive web content. Meanwhile Toon Boom is made for doing animation, specifically for animators.

At the end of the day they are all tools. However some tools are better for certain jobs than others. Can you mix cake batter with a hammer? Sure, but it wasn't designed to mix cakes. You can also hammer in a nail with a spoon, but why would you? Because the spoon is cheaper?

Anyways, it's just my opinion after 10 years of Flash work that it's not worth the energy to dedicate to that program if you're serious about animation. I do my best not to live with regrets, but I really sometimes wish someone had told me a decade ago that I should learn a good animation program instead. I'd be so much better off today. Oh well, life goes on.

Take it from someone who tried all the quick-methods to popularity: It's a waste of your time. The very best method for getting views and comments is: Do Fantastic Work.

You can certainly try the quick and dirty methods of attention-getting, as I once did, but the truth is it will never be as good as just buckling down and working hard to do amazing animation. Plus that method also improves your skill as an animator, so it's win-win.

Does it take a long time? Yes. Is it worth it? Yep!

Good luck!

You should be able to upload your scanned drawing into Toon Boom no problem, and continue the same way you've been working (but with the superior drawing tools Toon Boom offers!). Just use the file Import option and away you go.

Instead of resorting to stealing, as suggested above, I'd suggest you give Pencil a try. It's a free, open source animation program. Beyond that, you might save up for Toon Boom Studio, which is NOT that expensive at all, and designed specifically for animators (Flash is not).

http://www.pencil-animation.org/
https://www.toonboom.com/products/toon-boom-studio

If animation is your dream, invest in your future and buy some software or use legal free programs. Don't resort to being a thief. You can be better than that.

Good luck with it!

At 4/3/14 09:06 AM, dylan wrote: Flash and Toon Boom for frame-by-frame, vector-based animation.

Photoshop and TVPaint for frame-by-frame, raster-based animation.

Flash, Toon Boom, and After Effects for puppet/rigged animation.

I agree with this, minus the inclusion of Flash. Now I know Flash is popular around NG, and that's fine, but if you're serious about animation you need an ANIMATION program, not web-multimedia software. Once upon a time Flash was useful for animators, but today we have MUCH better software to use (see above: Toon Boom Animate and TV Paint). You'll do yourself a disservice in the long run to use Flash, so instead make an effort to learn one of the programs designed FOR animators, which Adobe simply doesn't produce.

A walk cycle on 12s (12 frames per step) is really only six drawings on 2s. SIX DRAWINGS! Do you really not have enough time to do six drawings? :)

Granted for a full cycle you'll need the other half, which makes 12 drawings, but the second 6 are really only copies of the first with the opposite arm and leg.

So go for doing it on 2s! It's worth your time, and honestly if you're putting something in your reel it should never be on 4s. It would have to be absolute animated genius to get away with 4s. And even then, directors are going to wonder "Why didn't he just finish the in betweens?"

Hope to see you post it when you're done!

Really nice start! There are a few poses/frames where it's really off balance, and there feels like a bit of a lack of weight. That might be solved when the lines are a bit more cleaned up, I'm not sure, but it's something to keep in mind. Can't wait to see the progress you make on it!

The "certificate" (degree) you get from any school, even a major one like CalArts, is really nothing compared to a solid portfolio and demo reel. In our industry it isn't what school you went to (or even if you did at all) but what your quality of work is like. So by all means go to any school you find for animation, but do it TO LEARN. Do not worry for a single moment about the paper they will hand you on graduation day. It means almost nothing. Instead, absorb as much information as you can and then work on your reel, making it absolutely fantastic!

Good luck!

At 4/1/14 05:10 PM, Fim wrote: Only $480,00? And no hidden fees! What a bargain

I know, right? And yet, for some reason we're not seeing the droves of enrollment I expected. So weird.

Maybe you've decided to learn animation, but don't know what animation school to attend? Rest easy, there's now a simple answer to that question. Presenting the all new online animation school from Animator Island: Animentorinstiversity.

Animentorinstiversity is the premiere online animation school for anyone who happens to have $480,000 laying around and wants to study with the greatest animators ever to animate. Don't take my word for it, though! Enroll today and go through the course and then you can decide for yourself! It's the only way to be sure if it's right for you. (It is right for you, so you should do it.)

http://youtu.be/L6UBUVZcwqA

After a bit of time drawing on the Surface Pro, I can say that it is very capable of doing some nice drawings. The sensitivity is leaps and bounds better than any other tablet I've come across. The only thing that tops it is the Cintiq, and it tops it by a lot, but the Cintiq is a very expensive piece of equipment and not a whole computer you take with you.

So far so good! You may want to add a bit more easing in, things start and stop dead very quickly. Just a few frames easing and settling will make things look much smoother. Good luck with it!

I agree with Haunted, any should work and buying online is the way to go.

I help run a website that's entirely tips and tricks, if you'd find that helpful. It's http://www.animatorisland.com/ and we update every Monday. Honestly the only reason we do it is to help share animation secrets and such, and encourage other artists. We don't make money from it or anything. So I hope it's helpful to people.

Anyway, good luck with your animating! (Best tip is "Do more animation" because that's how you get to be the best.)

Toon Boom has some inexpensive programs that let you do more simplistic stuff, but also some more advanced things as well. Might want to check those out: https://www.toonboom.com/play/make-it-move

Since I moved to Animate from Flash I've been so, so much happier. Flash is terrible by comparison, and I'd never go back. (Animate is expensive, though, so check out one of the less professional programs they offer for your simpler stuff.)

Good luck!

You can find much cheaper programs than Flash (and better) other places if you look. You might want to check out the Toon Boom line of products. Simple to use (the less expensive ones) and should get you going. Plus much better in the long run than Flash! :)

https://www.toonboom.com/play/make-it-move

Totally hear ya! Yes, I was also like that at one point, too worried about not being capable of making the awesome stuff I wanted to make. What changed for me was that I realized that if I wanted to get as good as I wanted to be, I HAD to go make animation and draw. There was no other way. So as long as I was entertaining people, I didn't mind "failing" at doing really good stuff. And then I got better, which built confidence and helped a ton.

I wrote an article about it a while back, too, which might be helpful to you: http://www.animatorisland.com/tips-for-drawing-change-what-y ou-want/ It's about how if you change your goal, you will set yourself up for success regarding being better at drawing and animation. :)

Good luck, just keep at it!

At 7/3/12 03:37 AM, Aigis wrote: I think it's a bit boring for artists to just copy other people, and not try and carve out their own unique approach to art.

This doesn't just apply to anime, but anime seems to be the most widespread form of it.

I agree with this. Anime is design that's already been figured out. More interesting is design that is newly discovered. All the hard work has been done for you with Anime, leaving little to do but copy what another artist has done.

I don't mean to be rude (though this will likely come off as such) but why on EARTH would you be looking for business advice on this forum? Most of the members are teens/kids and next to none have any real business experience.

You'd do much better to take your questions to a forum/business that has experience. Much, much better.

Good luck with it!

Personal favorite is probably Futurama.

At 6/20/12 01:20 AM, Clueless-queen wrote: its kinda tough to find work in art nowadays.

That kind of depends on what TYPE of art. Because nearly every company needs good designers, marketing people, and graphic artists. The job market is almost limitless in that regard.

Animators focusing on American style anime, on the other hand, yes. Very tough if not impossible.

Most people don't go to school for that, though.

Here's a great place to solve practically any Flash-related problem: http://beta.toonboom.com/

One of the best swaps I ever made.

At 6/20/12 02:34 AM, Crev wrote: looks pretty good thanks for sharing

going to try doing the "Say No to Stickmen" article when I get the chance

Awesome, send me a PM and let me know how it goes! :)

At 6/16/12 04:55 AM, TankinnToons wrote: Sorry for the double post, but I finished my animation. Whoop whoop!

Hey Tankinn!

It turned out well! Nice work on completing it. There are two quick things I want to share that might help you in the future.

1) In regards to the PC animation, there's a principal of animating that doesn't get talked about as much as things such as squash and stretch, etc. That is "delay." Essentially what we want to do as animators is hold off on the pay-out as long as possible without breaking the animation. So if there's a gag, you want to build to that gag JUST as long as people will wait for it, to get the anticipation into their minds for the big pay off. I suppose in a way it's an offshoot principal of "anticipation" even though that's normally just a visual trick.

With your cartoon I feel like there could have been a lot more build up. As the fans start going, maybe have the PC begin to shake. Then it shakes so much that everything AROUND it starts to shake. Then maybe it starts beeping and flashing and when everything comes to a boiling point it squashes down and FWOOOOOOM! Launches into the air and out the roof, leaving behind a smoke trail.

Also I think you almost made things a little too clear. By saying at the start "my PC makes a lot of noise" you hurt the end joke. I don't think there's a person who plays high end games that hasn't once experienced a PC that starts sounding like a jet plane, so trust they know what's going on and leave out the spoiler in the title screen. Likewise if you need to label something "this is a PC" then you need to go back and redo it so people KNOW it's a PC. Don't label things, just hunker down and do better art so it's clear.

Both of those aspects could dramatically improve the cartoon. But aside from that, as I said, you did a pretty good job, so congrats!

2) Regarding the rest of this thread before you finished this piece, you may want to check out this article on Animation Motivation. It helped me a lot, and I think it could be a good thing to keep in mind as you tackle your next project: http://www.kennyroy.com/public/April_2011_Article__Staying_M otivated__Part_1.cfm?sd=53

So good luck, and keep at it! Clearly if you continue your progress you'll do well. That was a very nice piece for a first submission.