Adobe Flash Workspace

This site gives a formal overview of the Adobe Flash Professional CS5 workspace. Check it out.

Animation: Tools of the Trade

What do animators use to create their creations?  There are a variety of programs on the market and for free that are critical in the animation world.  Flash, for example, has been on the market for years and has been used for a variety of applications.  Understanding how to use Flash is increasingly essential across a wide variety of tech-related industries.  For 3D animation, Maya has positioned itself among industry leaders with animators and game designers utilizing its many features.  But these are only two examples of relevant programs.  This site that I recently discovered does an excellent job of listing and briefly describing key programs and their individual cost (notice all of the free programs available).

Check out this 3D animation for Liberty Mutual using the amazing a FREE Blender program:

Animation Powerhouses: From Disney to Pixar

On November 18, 1928, the world was in awe over a cartoon featuring a mouse which would become immortal. The animation was titled "Steamboat Willie," and it was the first cartoon with actual sound. This was revolutionary. Before this, there had only been a cartoon with sound that had been synchronized to the scenes, but never actually part of the cartoon itself. The creator was a man by the name of Walt Disney, and the mouse, with the suggestion from Walt's wife, was named Mickey. Since then, Walt and his brother Roy grew one of the largest and most successful empires in the entertainment world. But what about now...?

Disney is still Disney, but Pixar has had a tremendous part in Disney's continued success, and has been almost as revolutionary to the world of animation as the little mouse named Mickey. Let's see how...

What about some other animation "powerhouses" and a key moments? Check out this timeline.

Flipin' for Flip books

A flip book is basically a series of related pictures that vary gradually from one to the next. Alone, each picture is just that, a picture...but when they are put together in the right order they become legit animation and can be pretty awesome and creative. Check this out...

The first known flip book was created by a guy named John Barnes Linnett. He patented his creation under the name kineograph, or "moving picture." While flip books are mainly items that you might make in elementary school, they can be elaborate and amazing (like the one shown above), and they do have an important place in the history of cinema. So how do we make one?

Animation History Week

An overview of the history of animation...

But when was the first animation?

Animation B.C.
From the eight-legged boar discovered in the Altamira Caves in Spain, and the four horses painting found in the Chauvet Cave in France, the idea of motion in art has been around at least throughout the Upper Paleolithic Era of the Stone Age (since roughly 30,000 B.C.). By the time that Egypt became the big boys on the block, images depicting motion became much more elaborate and detailed as seen in the above-right image of two Egyptian wrestlers locked in battle.

But what about a goat, some trees, and simple 5,200 year old piece of pottery found in Iran? Let's Check it out...

Animation from Rome to the Renaissance

This photo of Trajan's Column is courtesy of TripAdvisor

Trajan's Column, built in 113 A.D., commemorates Emperor Trajan's victory in the Dacian Wars. The carved sequential images that "wrap" around the column are in a sense an old-school "filmstrip" of the epic battles. Could this be the first filmstrip ever?!

Several centuries later, the great Leonardo da Vinci entered the animation game with some of his elaborate sketches such as the on shown below.

Modern-Day Animation

Check out this interesting video history.

Welcome Students!

Welcome back! I hope that everyone had a great summer and is as excited as I am about our new animation class. This year, we will be exploring the world of animation from its early history, to the the high-tech methods used today. Also, we will take close look at potential career fields ranging from the movie industry to gaming. As we progress, don't hesitate to ask questions, always respect others, and be ready to learn, create, and have some fun along the way. With that, let's get started...!