Learning Entertainment

[C. Siemens]

Looking at other animators' drawings and animation and doing live-drawing are essentials for everyone who has an interest in the medium, no question about that.
I think it's just as valuable to take influences from other forms of entertainment as well and find ways to figure out how they can contribute to one's own chosen medium.

When people ask me who in the entertainment industry I admire the most, my personal top spot isn't taken by an animator or visual artist: I adore the work of Jim Henson. As an example, here are three of my favourite numbers from the Muppet Show which have really influenced the way I think about animation-related things:

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This is a fun little Kermit number and what blows my mind about it is that it conveys the character tap-dancing even though he's a puppet whose legs and feet you never see once while he's doing his jig. An astounding Illusion of Life.


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I love this one because of how rich it is in terms of character interaction. It's Scooter's number and he literally roped Fozzie into joining him. Fozzie really doesn't want to at first but gets into the act more and more, all nicely underlined by Rowlf playing the piano in the background. Considering it takes at least five puppeteers to make the act happen (one controlling Scooter, one Fozzie's body, one his hands, one doing Rowlf and a fifth Rowlf's hands) it's a prime example of coordinated execution to me.The Randy Newman song's fun, too, of course (although I prefer Alan Price's rendition).


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Apart from the priceless bit with Mark Hamill preceding it, this Harry Chapin song performed by Scooter never fails to pick me up when I think whatever I've done in animation so far stinks - and I think that a lot, especially now that I'm doing my first real storyboarding job. Animating really is comparable to making music because it's a group of talented individuals creating a seamless whole. It's reassuring to know that even though you may slip up sometimes the others' contributions will add to the overall performance just as much.


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Technically I'd have a fourth song to add here, Kermit's rendition of Lydia The Tattooed Lady. However, I love the Marx Bros., too; they're purefun, wit and versatility, and no one beats Groucho singing the piece.

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I've loved the song ever since seeing At The Circus for the first time and I was very tickled to learn Jim Henson included it in the Muppet Show because it's favourite novelty song, too.

Jim Henson has accompanied me through most of my life that I can remember and his work is one of the things I like more and more the older I get because I uncover so many layers in it. I really regret I could never meet him in some way.

[frankenart]

thanks for this insight and little lesson, i also try to learn alot in films,mostly really old westerns to action films of the 80s.

[Prinzenick]

What i'm worried about is how you can apply live action influences to a medium that relies on completely different rules than live action.

I mean, i absolutely love the Charlie Chaplin "Modern Times"--i remember when i first watched it, i had never, ever laughed so hard at any film! But how could you apply any of that stuff to animation?

[DNethery]

I mean, i absolutely love the Charlie Chaplin "Modern Times"--i remember when i first watched it, i had never, ever laughed so hard at any film! But how could you apply any of that stuff to animation?


Are you kidding ?!! Just look at the Disney films of the late 1930's / early 1940's . They were constantly referencing study of Chaplin's work (including Modern Times) and Buster Keaton , and Laurel & Hardy , etc.

Read the Action Analysis classes conducted at Disney .

See Michael Sporn's blog (http://www.michaelspornanimation.com/splog/index.php?s=action+analysis&submit=Search) and Hans Perk's Blog (http://afilmla.blogspot.com/search/label/AAC) (A-Film L.A.) .

[C. Siemens]

What i'm worried about is how you can apply live action influences to a medium that relies on completely different rules than live action.

I mean, i absolutely love the Charlie Chaplin "Modern Times"--i remember when i first watched it, i had never, ever laughed so hard at any film! But how could you apply any of that stuff to animation?

Mr Nethery is right, of course. Especially the idea of pantomime to communicate ideas with strong body poses (of which Chaplin was a master) still has a huge influence on animation.

As I see it, the rules applying to animation are actually not completely different from live-action. They're more exaggerated and add improbable stuff on top but for animation to be believable it has to have a certain grounding in physics, circumstances and emotions we're used to from real life. Otherwise animation would be completely abstract and wouldn't speak to us.
It's not about exactly copying life or live-action movies, it's about drawing inspiration from it and translating it into cartoon physics and the possibilities of that medium.

For example, when I look at Kermit tap-dancing it shows to me how clearly something you don't actually see on screen can be communicated by secondary elements you do see and are influenced by an invisible main action. This superb execution suspends your disbelief - you're watching at that moment Kermit the Frog, not Jim Henson's hand in a sock. Just like in good animation you're not looking at drawings of a character. You're watching the character as a real person.