How do we determine the right animation style for your project?
There are many factors to consider before choosing an animation style for your project. But first - what is animation? Who am I? And what am I talking about?
What is animation? Animation creates the illusion of movement. Traditional or 2D animation is done with a pencil and paper, where an artist hand draws each scene frame by frame, but animation can also be created in 3D on a computer by a 3D animator. There are many different 2D and 3D animation styles. In this article, we will go over the broad strokes to help us make an informed decision when choosing an animation style for a project.
Who am I? I am Anthony! I have had many roles in my career, but in my heart, I am a 3D generalist and an animator. I work with 3D programs to create digital content. 3D is where my expertise lies, and I can give you a peek into the 3D animation process.
First, we need a general understanding of the 3D art creation process. There are many steps to the 3D production pipeline, and we will go over just enough to follow along for creating and animating a character.
We will start with the design and concept. This is usually a piece of concept art - a sketch or plan of what our 3D character and environment will look like. This alone can set the tone of the entire project and have a big influence on the animation style we choose later.
Next, we will model and texture our character. We will likely go back and forth on how to translate our 2D ideas into 3D. Not everything will transfer 1:1; there will be compromises but also some happy accidents along the way that will give our character depth and personality.
When the model is finished, we will rig our character so we can begin to manipulate it. We will add a skeleton, controls, and systems in our character that will help a 3D animator bring the character to life. After we rig our character an animator will be able to pose and animate the character in our project!
Last in our 3D pipeline is rendering. Before we create our final rendered animation, we will have to decide how our 3D character’s materials look and feel or how the light will affect the material and the general mood and atmosphere of our rendered scene.
Now that we have a general understanding of the 3D production pipeline, let's talk about 3D animation styles. There are many types and styles to choose from, but again let's talk broad strokes.
Realistic 3D animation is straightforward to explain but difficult to achieve. With realistic 3D animation, the goal is to emulate the real world.
When creating realistic animation, you will want to have as many real-world references as possible. For humans and some animals, we may use motion capture to get a realistic base. But even in realistic 3D animation, motion capture is rarely used unmodified. We will usually have to clean up, modify, and enhance the performance.
Creating realistic 3D art and animation is one of the hardest things to do because our brains are great at noticing anything unusual; the closer we get to reality, the harder it gets to successfully execute!
Have you heard of the uncanny valley? If we try to make a character that is realistic but misses the mark, it can seem off-putting and unnatural.
Stylized or cartoon 3D animation leans into a more artistic approach. Character designs, environments, and movements are often exaggerated or simplified.
This style is commonly used in animated feature films and television. This style usually targets families and children, but it’s not limited to those groups; you can use stylized animation for any theme or demographic!
Stop motion is a technique where objects are manipulated in small increments and photographed for every frame. We can emulate this style and look in 3D, but without the technical challenges that exist in the real world. This means I don't have to worry about making a mistake and having to start over!
We can also use 3D animation technology to create 2D animations. Any artistic style in 2D can usually be recreated in 3D. We can also use 3D to manipulate 2D objects. We may want a flat 2D world with 3D characters, or the opposite. You may even want your character to look like a hand-drawn black-and-white sketch. Or you may want stylized 3D characters over a water-colored background. We can mix and match art styles. The sky is the limit!
Now that you have a broad idea of animation styles, let's choose one!
The design of the characters, environments, and visual art style of the project can greatly influence the animation style. Is this a gritty post-apocalyptic world, or are we sailing through a fantastical mushroom kingdom with animal companions? While the visual style may complement an animation style, you may want to have conflicting styles to create something interesting – like a stylized apocalypse or a realistic mushroom kingdom!
The tone of the story and the characters’ emotional states should influence your decisions about how you want them to move and interact with the world. Movement without words can convey massive amounts of information. A large percentage of human communication is nonverbal. We can convey those same emotions and expressions with our 3D characters!
The director's vision, project requirements, deadlines, and the target audience may require you to work in a particular style.
Ultimately, you will want to choose the animation style that fits the project. Look at the characters, story, and art style. How does it make you feel, and what feels right? There is usually no wrong answer.
We rarely create exactly what we set out to make. It's usually something better. No matter what decisions we make at the beginning of our journey, we will learn something new along the way!
About the Author
Anthony Solitario
CG Supervisor
Anthony serves as Falcons CG Supervisor. He has a wide range of technical and problem solving skills - he is a proficient 3d generalist and animator with 15 years of VFX experience. He is a VES member, and has a love for game engines like Unreal Engine and Unity!
