#11_ Explaining Inking and painting for Animation shorts

Explaining how classic methods of Inking and painting for Animation shorts are done!  

2D Animation and Its Origins


Animation created on paper is traditionally referred to as 2D animation. This technique involves drawing individual frames by hand, which are then flipped or sequenced rapidly to create the illusion of movement. Though each drawing is static, the subtle differences between successive frames trick the human eye into perceiving continuous motion—a foundational principle of animation.

Looking back into history, one of the earliest examples of this method is J. Stuart Blackton’s pioneering film “Humorous Phases of Funny Faces” (1906), which brought chalkboard sketches to life through stop-motion. Another landmark in early animation is Winsor McCay’s “Gertie the Dinosaur” (1914), a charming and technically impressive piece that demonstrated character personality and interaction.

It was during the 1920s and 1930s that traditional animation techniques truly evolved, becoming more refined and expressive. This era marked the golden age of hand-drawn animation, giving rise to more sophisticated cartoons and iconic characters. Walt Disney emerged as a trailblazer in this field, revolutionizing the animation industry with innovations in storytelling, character development, and synchronized sound. His studio’s production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)—the first full-length cel-animated feature—set new standards and established hand-drawn animation as a legitimate art form.


Links:

The simplest examples of animated drawings are the flipbooks, which gives illusion of movement.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJuD4AlLINU

The video above was created by me on the dSource platform.

This project on 'Creating Digital-learning Environment for Design' also called 'e-kalpa' is sponsored by the Ministry of Education, Government of India as part of the National Mission in Education through Information and Communication Technology (NMEICT) and now through National Initiative for Design Innovation (NIDI).

https://www.dsource.in/course/inking-and-painting-animation

The video above was created by me on the dSource platform.







Traditional Ink and Paint Process:

In traditional animation, each cel used in a sequence is layered on top of one another, with the background placed at the very bottom. Thanks to the transparent nature of the cels, multiple characters or objects can be animated separately on individual layers, while still revealing the opaque background beneath them. This layering technique allows for greater flexibility and efficiency in animating complex scenes.

To eliminate any inconsistencies or gaps between layers, a sheet of glass is carefully lowered over the stack of artwork. The entire composition is then captured using a rostrum camera—a specialized animation camera designed to photograph layered artwork with precision.

The rostrum camera also enables dynamic visual effects such as pans, zooms, and rotations. It can even simulate transparency, motion blur, and other visual enhancements by manipulating overlays. Once all layers—including characters, overlays, and background—are fully animated, they are composited together and output as a single sequence, ready for video production.


You Tube Links of Films Made by this Technique:
• www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEFkxRExzHc

• www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJuD4AlLINU

Book:
Historical Dictionary of Animation and Cartoons
- By Nichola Dobson

Online Reading Links:
• www.justdisney.com/animation/animation.html

• animatedtv.about.com/od/thesimpsonsfaq/a/celanimation.htm

• www.awn.com/animationworld/concept-creation-digital-ink-paint

• www.celshader.com/classic/ink/ink.html

• www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traditional_animation





 




   
        
 



 




Digital Ink and Paint Process:

The inked and painted sequences of images are then animated under virtual animation cameras, to create pans, zooms, and rotation on the including overlays as well as animated transparency and blur effects. Once all the layers including overlays and background are animated under the virtual camera, they are composited and then output directly to video or onto storage media for transfer onto films. All camera actions motions (complex pan, deep zoom tilt) etc. Since the invention of these types of computer systems animation has never had so much freedom of style.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

#15_Hindi Expressive Typography Part-1

Image
Hindi Expressive Typography  I have been exploring "Hindi expressive typography" from quite sometime . I have used "Ek Mukta" font to maintain consistency thoughtout the work . The whole project is documented and made for D-source,  http://www.dsource.in/ . D source an online Resources on Design in India for Free - Design courses and Case Studies. Will soon upload the link after the completion of the project, which tells more in detail about "Hindi (Devanagiri) Expressive Typography".                              Trying to find new ways to explore my own language "Hindi". Expressing in Hindi was little difficult earlier but the moment I s...
Read more

#5_ Digital Sketching Industrial design center

Image
Click for more on Illustrations I had the most precious and unforgettable moments of my life at my design school,  IDC, Bombay . Those were the days of relentless deadlines, where day and night dissolved into a singular focus—my project and the lively atmosphere of the classroom.  This is the sketch of how IDC looks like in   2010, Oct. There wrecked lot of changes that happen after sustainability and accessibility conference. Building of ramp for people with special needs find the ramp very helpful afterwards. The vibrant activities at the Main Ground and my sneaky class bunks for sports events added a spark of adventure to those times. I cherished my bicycle rides, feeling like a free bird gliding under the green, towering, shady trees. Cycling through the Infinity Corridor at night felt magical, especially when fate led to an unexpected encounter with a professor on the very day I decided to bunk. :P Below is the digital sketch created by me for Students work website ...
Read more

[UX#19]_Self-Realization Unfolded: Lessons from Personal Kanban!

Image
      Image 1: A man sitting on this working desk surrounded by stuff around  him, looks overwhelmed and stressed out. (AI Generated) Image 2: book cover Personal Kanban   by Jim Benson &  Tonianne DeMaria Barry  The summary of this book, in short, is about  achieving efficiency and productivity with something very visual and easy to incorporate methods/ processes in your life. " Personal Kanban   resonated with me on different levels. I t made me realize how many expectations I place on myself to accomplish within a short span of time." Completing these tasks seemed very difficult without understanding the hidden effort involved and strategically adjusting my plans to accomplish a particularly cumbersome task.   I have been using Kanban boards for professional tasks, but applying the same Kanban to personal tasks helped me grasp the concept on a much more personal level.  To better understand and apply ...
Read more

[UX#25]_What & why of Product Adoption & Appropriation?

Image
  The above images are ChatGPT AI generated for exploration on the "Crossing the chasm" book concepts. My intention of doing so is to document, explore and learning Ai image bot. During my UX learning on Adoption and Appropriation from Interaction-Design.org , I gained a fresh perspective on users—particularly through the concepts of useful (usability), usable, and used . These principles form the foundation for understanding how products succeed from both a marketing perspective and in terms of ROI , based on actual user adoption. The concept of "Adoption" highlights that when users find a product useful, they naturally integrates into their workflow, leading to higher usability. However, an adopted product doesn’t have a uniform user base—it segments into different adopter categories. This is where Geoffrey Moore’s book, Crossing the Chasm , explains the adoption lifecycle, categorizing users into: Innovators Early Adopters Early Majority Late Majority Laggar...
Read more

#1_More Than Talent: Relentless Hard Work as an Art Student

Image
Relentless Hard work as an Art Student Click for Illustrations page  Pencil on paper  &    Dry pastels  During my first and second year, I remember practicing intensely, completely immersing myself in my work as if the rest of the world didn’t exist. It felt like entering a deeply meditative state.   During my first and second year, I remember practicing with deep focus, completely absorbed in my work, as if nothing else existed. It was a state of pure immersion—almost meditative. Title : Two Sisters Oil On canvas "Two Sisters" is my second oil on canvas in 3nd year of arts college. I am very excited to do this. I am thinking of painting it like Van Gogh Style. My style is quite much changed from the first one. I think its the after effects of learning great artists works and style.  I was a bit more confident in this one and put oil colors with more of freedom, actually all over the place which was quite unexpected. Half life scu...
Read more