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Hi. Welcome to the Gorilla Resources links page.
Here you will find links to some of the very best free online resources for learning animators.
If you are after something in particular try choosing from the category's on the right. Or if you prefer you can just brows below.
Enjoy :)
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So your interested in being an animator. Well just what are you getting yourself into?
In my experience people enter into the animation biz with very little knowledge of whats involved. Its not their fault though, its often because the process of making animation has become a commonly used tool for marketing animated films. When was the last time you saw an animated movie come out of California without a "Making Of" documentary to help sell and promote it? The result is a highly sugar coated version of the process, designed to make us feel good about going to see the movie.
My philosophy is simple, get the "bad" news out of the way early. So lets make one thing absolutely clear, animation is the art of making film by meticulously hand crafting every single frame, at least 12 frames a second, 720 frames a minute, 43000 frames per hour. Its a lot of work!
But is this "bad" news at all? The bottom line is that you can't make it in animation unless you pour your heart and soul into it. That means that when you do make it (finish that scene, make the audience laugh or sigh, get that job) it is far more rewarding than any other creative job I can imagine. The stakes are higher, but the rewards also greater.
The high level of commitment required also means that when you are working in animation you get to work along side and become friends with some of the most inspirational and talented people on the planet. That's job satisfaction that money can't buy.
LINKS:
Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston's Animation Tips make for a nice overview of the issues an animator is concerned with on a day to day basis.
Spline doctor Hathaway outlines his main animation principles.
Some thoughts on how you should think about computers and software when animating.
What should a student animate? An excelent post from Jean-Denis.
George Nash with a nice no nascence overview of the animation basics.
Inspiration --- Persiration --- Celebration
Animation Career Pro blog has a great list of Animation Terms but the whole site is worth a good rummage around.
An article about using your time effectively as a student from Kenny Roy on the Tricks and Tips blog.
An excellent video lecture about what it takes to get a job as an artist by Nick Campbell. He is talking specifically about motion graphics, but I think all of his advice is useful for animators as well.
So your interested in being an animator. Well just what are you getting yourself into?
In my experience people enter into the animation biz with very little knowledge of whats involved. Its not their fault though, its often because the process of making animation has become a commonly used tool for marketing animated films. When was the last time you saw an animated movie come out of California without a "Making Of" documentary to help sell and promote it? The result is a highly sugar coated version of the process, designed to make us feel good about going to see the movie.
My philosophy is simple, get the "bad" news out of the way early. So lets make one thing absolutely clear, animation is the art of making film by meticulously hand crafting every single frame, at least 12 frames a second, 720 frames a minute, 43000 frames per hour. Its a lot of work!
But is this "bad" news at all? The bottom line is that you can't make it in animation unless you pour your heart and soul into it. That means that when you do make it (finish that scene, make the audience laugh or sigh, get that job) it is far more rewarding than any other creative job I can imagine. The stakes are higher, but the rewards also greater.
The high level of commitment required also means that when you are working in animation you get to work along side and become friends with some of the most inspirational and talented people on the planet. That's job satisfaction that money can't buy.
LINKS:
Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston's Animation Tips make for a nice overview of the issues an animator is concerned with on a day to day basis.
Spline doctor Hathaway outlines his main animation principles.
Some thoughts on how you should think about computers and software when animating.
What should a student animate? An excelent post from Jean-Denis.
George Nash with a nice no nascence overview of the animation basics.
Inspiration --- Persiration --- Celebration
Animation Career Pro blog has a great list of Animation Terms but the whole site is worth a good rummage around.
An article about using your time effectively as a student from Kenny Roy on the Tricks and Tips blog.
An excellent video lecture about what it takes to get a job as an artist by Nick Campbell. He is talking specifically about motion graphics, but I think all of his advice is useful for animators as well.
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Controlling the speed at which things happen down to a minute level is something that is only possible through the art of animation. It is our special magic trick that no other artist can do (except perhaps for musicians). Sadly some students breeze over timing without really developing an intimate feel for controlling it. The human brain is hard wired to notice movement, it is an intensely powerful tool that is crucial when affecting your audience. Every competent animator must master the craft of timing the action they animate to impact on the viewer.
LINKS:
Jason Ryan's "Ramp Up" Video tutorials on Timing and Spacing, all the other stuff on this page is gold too.
Keith Lango's excellent explanation of timing, spacing, favouring and eases.
The Hand Drawn Nomad (Matt Williames) has some great notes on timing and spacing. Link1. Link2. Link3.
Kevin Koch on The missing Animation Principle: Spacing
Victor Navone's blog post on 3 Speeds. Victor Navone's comprehensive overview of timing in Maya. Part1. Part2.
Notes on rhythm in timing from the blog of Carlos Baena.
Shawn Kelly talks about avoiding floaty animation in 3D
Controlling the speed at which things happen down to a minute level is something that is only possible through the art of animation. It is our special magic trick that no other artist can do (except perhaps for musicians). Sadly some students breeze over timing without really developing an intimate feel for controlling it. The human brain is hard wired to notice movement, it is an intensely powerful tool that is crucial when affecting your audience. Every competent animator must master the craft of timing the action they animate to impact on the viewer.
LINKS:
Jason Ryan's "Ramp Up" Video tutorials on Timing and Spacing, all the other stuff on this page is gold too.
Keith Lango's excellent explanation of timing, spacing, favouring and eases.
The Hand Drawn Nomad (Matt Williames) has some great notes on timing and spacing. Link1. Link2. Link3.
Kevin Koch on The missing Animation Principle: Spacing
Victor Navone's blog post on 3 Speeds. Victor Navone's comprehensive overview of timing in Maya. Part1. Part2.
Notes on rhythm in timing from the blog of Carlos Baena.
Shawn Kelly talks about avoiding floaty animation in 3D
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If there is one thing students consistently underestimate, its the importance of planning. Who can blame you really, getting to see your stuff move is the exciting part. BUT! If the purpose of your animation is to raise the bar, and produce work of a standard that will get you a job, then it is inevitable that you will have to start putting some time and effort into planning. You can learn the hard way, or listen to the wise folk linked to below and save yourself a whole world of pain. Planning makes for better animation.
LINKS:
Jean-Denis Haas on the importance of having a plan.
The Spline Doctors consider different ways of planning a scene.
From the Animation Meat blog, notes and examples of thumbnailing.
Clay from the Animation Podcast steps us through his planning process.
Shaw Kelly on planning.
Spline Doctors have just put up an excellent post about the importance of getting on with your decisions when animating.
Carlos Baena has uploaded an excellent case study on how he plans a scene. (Planning Section)
If there is one thing students consistently underestimate, its the importance of planning. Who can blame you really, getting to see your stuff move is the exciting part. BUT! If the purpose of your animation is to raise the bar, and produce work of a standard that will get you a job, then it is inevitable that you will have to start putting some time and effort into planning. You can learn the hard way, or listen to the wise folk linked to below and save yourself a whole world of pain. Planning makes for better animation.
LINKS:
Jean-Denis Haas on the importance of having a plan.
The Spline Doctors consider different ways of planning a scene.
From the Animation Meat blog, notes and examples of thumbnailing.
Clay from the Animation Podcast steps us through his planning process.
Shaw Kelly on planning.
Spline Doctors have just put up an excellent post about the importance of getting on with your decisions when animating.
Carlos Baena has uploaded an excellent case study on how he plans a scene. (Planning Section)
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A crucial factor when animating is the ability to draw your audience into the world you are portraying. One of the most effective ways to do this it to make things move in a way that seems believable to them. If you want the audience to feel the impact of a boulder landing on a characters head, then you need to know how you can manipulate the medium in order to make the boulder move in a way that looks heavy and dangerous when falling.
In my teaching experience students seem to underestimate the value of this principle. Often they believe that making the boulder look more like a boulder is the best way to convince the audience of its authenticity, but this represents a basic misunderstanding of how the human brain is wired. We respond much more to movement than detail, so a skilled animator can make a simple circle with no detail move in a way that convinces us it is big and heavy, but a very detailed representation of a boulder that floats to the ground unnaturally will never convince us that it is really there. I am not saying that the movement has to be realistic, it can be a caricature or abstraction of movement that still effects us, but achieving this still requires that the animator understand how physics is affecting the object they are animating.
Animators need to constantly hone their understanding of timing, spacing, squash, stretch and arcs so as to develop an intimate understanding of how to represent the movement of objects and characters in a way that is that engaging.
LINKS:
Jean-Denis Haas explains why animating the bouncing ball is central to understanding animation principles.
AM student Sandy explains Slow in and Out, showing things speeding up and slowing down.
Dermot O'Conner explains how to show weight through the classic bouncing ball exercise
Another bouncing ball example from Larry's Toon Institute. Part1. Part2.
Squash and stretch in a jump.
The undeniable power of arcs.
Jason Ryan's video tutorial on Anticipations, Paths and Actions. (if asked for a password just type JRA)
The Animation Physics web site. This isn't just someone saying this is how I do it, this is someone saying this is how it really happens. Check out the Tutorial section for clear concise illustrated notes on how stuff moves.
The Rainplace Blog has a great series of posts on squash and stretch, its in 3 parts (Part1, Part2, Part3).
A crucial factor when animating is the ability to draw your audience into the world you are portraying. One of the most effective ways to do this it to make things move in a way that seems believable to them. If you want the audience to feel the impact of a boulder landing on a characters head, then you need to know how you can manipulate the medium in order to make the boulder move in a way that looks heavy and dangerous when falling.
In my teaching experience students seem to underestimate the value of this principle. Often they believe that making the boulder look more like a boulder is the best way to convince the audience of its authenticity, but this represents a basic misunderstanding of how the human brain is wired. We respond much more to movement than detail, so a skilled animator can make a simple circle with no detail move in a way that convinces us it is big and heavy, but a very detailed representation of a boulder that floats to the ground unnaturally will never convince us that it is really there. I am not saying that the movement has to be realistic, it can be a caricature or abstraction of movement that still effects us, but achieving this still requires that the animator understand how physics is affecting the object they are animating.
Animators need to constantly hone their understanding of timing, spacing, squash, stretch and arcs so as to develop an intimate understanding of how to represent the movement of objects and characters in a way that is that engaging.
Jean-Denis Haas explains why animating the bouncing ball is central to understanding animation principles.
AM student Sandy explains Slow in and Out, showing things speeding up and slowing down.
Dermot O'Conner explains how to show weight through the classic bouncing ball exercise
Another bouncing ball example from Larry's Toon Institute. Part1. Part2.
Squash and stretch in a jump.
The undeniable power of arcs.
Jason Ryan's video tutorial on Anticipations, Paths and Actions. (if asked for a password just type JRA)
The Animation Physics web site. This isn't just someone saying this is how I do it, this is someone saying this is how it really happens. Check out the Tutorial section for clear concise illustrated notes on how stuff moves.
The Rainplace Blog has a great series of posts on squash and stretch, its in 3 parts (Part1, Part2, Part3).
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Drag and overlap is about taking your understanding of Basic Physics and applying it to things that are connected in some way. So if two objects in a scene are moving and are physically connected is one pushing or dragging the other? Is one heavy and the other light? Is the connection between them rigid or flexible?
Understanding how these different factors affect your animation and how to depict them is the art of animating drag and overlap.
Its worth noting that things like Drag and Overlap are often added late in the animation process as part of the Polishing process. But even so it is worth having a basic understanding of the principle at an early stage so that you can visualize how your scene will ultimately come together from the outset.
LINKS:
Jason Ryan demonstrates drag and overlap in this great video tutorial.
Yours truely with some thoughts and observations on drag.
Keith Lango on the zen of lead and follow in Maya
Keith Lango on using breakdowns to create overlap.
Cameron Fielding shows his simple techneque for animation overlap in Maya.
Mark Kennedy from the Temple of the Seven Golden Camels blog shares some notes on Follow Thru.
Another great one from Kieth about choosing the right time to offset keys.
Drag and overlap is about taking your understanding of Basic Physics and applying it to things that are connected in some way. So if two objects in a scene are moving and are physically connected is one pushing or dragging the other? Is one heavy and the other light? Is the connection between them rigid or flexible?
Understanding how these different factors affect your animation and how to depict them is the art of animating drag and overlap.
Its worth noting that things like Drag and Overlap are often added late in the animation process as part of the Polishing process. But even so it is worth having a basic understanding of the principle at an early stage so that you can visualize how your scene will ultimately come together from the outset.
LINKS:
Jason Ryan demonstrates drag and overlap in this great video tutorial.
Yours truely with some thoughts and observations on drag.
Keith Lango on the zen of lead and follow in Maya
Keith Lango on using breakdowns to create overlap.
Cameron Fielding shows his simple techneque for animation overlap in Maya.
Mark Kennedy from the Temple of the Seven Golden Camels blog shares some notes on Follow Thru.
Another great one from Kieth about choosing the right time to offset keys.
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Keith Lango on Motion Arcs for character movement (he is using Maya but this is relevant for all animation)
Keith Lango on animating "snappy" action in Maya.
Cameron Fielding shows how he animates floating holds in Maya.
Identifying where the root of your character is.
Glen Keane animates an old man getting up from his chair.
Keith Lango shows how he animates floating holds in Maya. (Zip file download)
Jason Ryan's Video tutorial on the whip action. (If asked for a password type: JRA)
Jason Ryan's Video tutorial on animating a weight lift. (If asked for a password type: JRA)
Jason Ryan's Video tutorial on animating run and dive. (If asked for a password type: JRA)
The folk at Animation Physics actually emailed me to let me know they had a new document on the physics of balance up. How cool it that!
Keith Lango on Motion Arcs for character movement (he is using Maya but this is relevant for all animation)
Keith Lango on animating "snappy" action in Maya.
Cameron Fielding shows how he animates floating holds in Maya.
Identifying where the root of your character is.
Glen Keane animates an old man getting up from his chair.
Keith Lango shows how he animates floating holds in Maya. (Zip file download)
Jason Ryan's Video tutorial on the whip action. (If asked for a password type: JRA)
Jason Ryan's Video tutorial on animating a weight lift. (If asked for a password type: JRA)
Jason Ryan's Video tutorial on animating run and dive. (If asked for a password type: JRA)
The folk at Animation Physics actually emailed me to let me know they had a new document on the physics of balance up. How cool it that!
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