Flash Computer animation


Computer animation
This section deals with the art of computer animation. The following is some of the progress that I have been making in animation techniques. I am presently drawing up my characters for animation.

My first samples . I started out with a crane lifting a ball. The engine is a simplified four stroke engine. My latest animation demo is a Knight Walking.

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Look at my new Halloween Animation.

Animation Demos

This is a prototype cartoon that has some of the pieces of the finished product. Several issues needed to be first resolved. The GEN-I character was inspired from another Flash cartoon. I have been further studying cartoon art and discovered that there was another way.

Amy character first gen Amy character 2nd gen

Animation character GEN I Animation character GEN-II

This is my newest generation Manga character. It was drawn in pencil, scanned and then outline drawn in flash. The picture was then finished inside Photoshop. The image is basically drawn flat (no shading). In Photoshop I burned and dodged the image until it looked a bit more 3D.

The animation too the right is an example of how a character can be sketched out, scanned into the computer and converted to an animated character. The scanned image was imported into flash. Then, by drawing over this image, a computer version is drawn. This animation sequence is used in my new, "Spud," cartoon. In this instance the complete walk cycle is 12 frames per cycle.

The GEN-II Amy character is from a larger animation that I have been working on. My new story has Amy in class and the teacher informs the class that their science projects are due soon. She goes to the library to look for an idea. While in the science section of the library a book from the top shelf hits her in the head. She slips into a void where she meets several famous inventers that coach her on her science project. Some of the inventers include Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla who still do not see eye to eye on their ideas. Tesla teaches her about some of his lesser known inventions that use free energy collection and and anti-gravity. When she wakes up she discovers that she was only out for a few seconds. She then gathers up many items from the trash from her neighborhood for her science project.


NEW STUFF




I recently made an animation called Road Rage that uses maps and moving objects to express thoughts and ideas without sound. This simple version was created in an hour or so.

Another character in development project that I have going is the SPUD. The Spud is an evil criminal genius that is also a potato. This is a work in progress. In the first episode a farmer buys some genetically enhanced potato seeds. After planting them a meteor storm alters the then growing potatoes. One is seen opening his eyes and smiling. Later this potato is harvested and processed and sent to a grocery store. A customer buys the bag with this potato and then cooks it. While in the microwave the additional radiation makes the potato get bigger and grow arms and legs. Along with his super size comes super ambitions to take over the world.

In following episodes the Spud learns how to create a bank account on the internet and transfer funds form other people to his own. The next episode features the Spud creating his gang of other rotten vegetables. I have written the story boards for several more episodes.

Character development and story boarding

I am creating the character left. This character was drawn using Flash MX. Note that it is clean with smooth coloring. The character below right was drawn as a pencil sketch. When the sketch was composed as required it was then inked. The graphite pencil lines were then erased. The drawing was then colored in using alcohol markers. To use this image it now needs to be placed in a locked layer in flash and traced over and colored. This drawing can then be fine tuned to make her look as I want her look. When finished she should look exactly like her predecessor. In this case it is easier to draw using the computer.

The following pencil drawings represent some of the scenes for my animation. The next two show my character in in overalls with tools working on her science project. I intend to make this look like it it is a grungy process. The picture below left was the original sketch showing her holding a hammer and a wrench. The picture below right shows her using an electric drill on her science project.

I call this character Amy. She is a typical clean cut teenager that has an average grade point average. She is pretty good in most subjects. Her favorite classes are band and art. She really does not like science class too well, but is about to learn some things about science that will forever change how she thins of science. She has not been taught how science and everyday life are connected, and she will soon learn from some historical characters a lesson of a lifetime.

The next picture shows our character writing the code for her science project. The thing that she has created uses a computer and must be programmed. I believe that she can be dressed in cleaner clothing at this point.

The upper 1/2 of the the next picture shows our character looking at the screen of her computer. I am working out the animation details as to how I can do a special effect that I want here. As she runs through the computer program I want the screen data to reflect in her glasses. I also want her to show some emotion as the code comes together. The lower 1/2 of the following is from an earlier sequence where our character has discovered that she has entered an alternate dimension. Initially she was in the science section of her library and after a book fell and hit her in the hear she woke up in a sort of spirit world. My design for this world will be taken from a film that I have. It is an old Disney film called, "Donald Duck in Math Magic Land." The represented Math Magic land as a black space with only a very sparse amount of props. I really liked the sections with Pythagoras. If I remember there were only wall segments with a marble column or two.

The next set of pictures represents the opening sequence of my Anime. It is the teacher at the black board telling the students that they have one week left to finish and demonstrate their science projects. The picture on the left is the graphite sketch of the scene. The picture on the right is a pen & ink and marker version. My teacher character will be computer generated from this color image. This image will be cleaned up and made animate-able. The backgrounds need to be drawn separately.

As the character is developed things change. In the below pictures look at how the hair changed. Notice how the hands have fingers. She is now shifting her weight and has a S curvature trough the body. I pulled the sleeve cuffs up a bit. On the right wrist there is a bracelet. I also added glasses. My intent is to make them oversized and to have them dangle from her nose. all of these things add to the character of this person. A character may be as flat as a piece of paper, but their personality should stick out from the paper a mile.

Anime the next generation Kigurumi:

These pictures are some sketches of an idea that I have about a Cosplay / Kigurumi animation. I notice that there is a lot of art about Kigurumi the art of dressing like a Anime character. This involves costumes, a Kigurumi suit and a mask. I believe that there is a potential for new un-probed stories here. With Cosplay the player simply dresses up as their character. Kigurumi players use mask / heads and a cloth skin covering to assume a more realistic image of their character. This any player can assume any character. A drawback is that speech is not possible.

My initial idea is to follow a normal student through the process of a school sponsored Cosplay fundraiser. I am still in the storyboard stage of development and need more characters. I also want to do some background development. If anyone has some ideas send them to my email address dday100@yahoo.com.

Note the three images. The left most is the original pencil, the center is pen and ink and marker and the right was drawn in Macromedia Flash MX. This character is a bit more complex than is needed for animation. I added some shadowing and is drawn in a single layer. In reality she would have been drawn in multi layers to allow for movement. The Flash image was left crude. I have been told that too much precision if not good for animation or cartooning. Unlike Cosplay the characters start with padding and shaping devices. A one-piece suit is added to create a uniform skin effect. The costume id then worn over this as usual. A head with mask is then worn over this to complete the look. The finished character then looks like a doll rather then a person. You can then end up with a figure starting with any person.

Once again I would like to make an animation featuring this art form as it's basis. The fill like all of my other work will be 'G' rated and will be posted on my web. I just got to get the time and motivation to create it.

By the way my art school has just offered the first Anime class that they have ever offered. I just signed up for it. My normal mode of drawing is mechanical drafting and am now just learning how to draw.


Some delays can be helpful
There have been many delays in the construction of this animation. I am still working out what I want to express. I have been taking several pencil and color pencil classes. I have also been looking more carefully at how others have made commercial cartoons and discovered some rather strange things.

Other ideas
I was recently in the hospital for two weeks with nothing to do all day. I brought a sketch pad and a mechanical pencil. I sketched out a story with a small Indian girl that lives in an area where tigers are a problem. She is told to keep close to her home because a tiger was spotted near by. As is the case with many children her age she gets separated from her mother and finds a baby tiger. One her way home the baby tiger wonders off momentarily into an ancient building. While inside the tiger drinks some water in a fountain not seen by the girl. When she gets home she asks to keep the baby tiger. The village elders agree until it is no longer a baby. The last seen shows an old woman telling her granddaughter this story. The grand daughter thinks that this is a silly story until the old lady produces the tiger baby from a basket and hands it to her granddaughter telling her that this is the very same tiger. She then tells her granddaughter that she was the little girl that found the baby tiger.

Another idea that I have is about a blue ant. It begins with him eating breakfast at his kitchen table. He has a piece of toast in one hand and a cup of coffee in another hand. In the next two hands he is holding a newspaper. He eats and drinks as he reads his paper. In fact the next scene had him leaving for work and he is still eating, drinking and reading. He gets in line with all of the other ants in an endless line going to work. By the way this ant is blue and walks on two legs, while all of the other ants are red and walk on all sixes. This is seen as a similar concept to people going to work on a highway. When he gets to work he sits down at his desk with his cup, toast and paper still in hand.

Not So GOOD KNIGHT

This image is a knight character that I drew in ink and markers. I am still fishing on this one. I have a series of storyboards written that involve the same knight. The first story has our knight walking down a country road. As is the case on most country roads of that day he soon steps in something rather unpleasant. Without thinking he draws his sword and begins cleaning off his boots. Soon reality sets in and he is upset that his sword has been ruined. Looking around for a solution to his dilemma he sees a sword tricking up from behind some bushes near by. He quickly switches his sword for a more elegant golden sword. After leaving the area a small boy is seen entering the area where the knight swapped his sword. The sword is sticking out of a rather large stone sitting in a clearing. The young boy reaches for the sword and it begins to come out of the stone. As he removes the sword passerby's begin to chant, "Pull it out, pull it out..." Once removed the boy hold the blade of the the sword over his head. Soon a buzzing sound is heardcoming from the area of the just removed sword. Vapor trails are then seen coming from sword and wafting across the crowd who promptly begin chanting, "Put it back, put it back..."

Another story line that I have written involve a king that summons out knight to his thrown. The knight has his page read a scroll to the knight. The knight is handed the scroll and a money bag. Since this is a silent film we are not exactly sure what the knight has been commanded to do. We see the knight kneel to the king and leave the castle. The knight walks through the village, then through the woods to the docks where a ship was waiting. The scene is then converted to map mode. The ship sails all around the known world, before making a stop in Italy. Once in Italy the knight leave the ship and walks around through the country. Along the way scenes of Rome pass by. He then see what he was looking for and makes the purchase. The return trip is done exactly the same. When he enters the throne room a screen caption reads, "Three years later." He bows to the king and hands the page his package. The page opens the box and allows the king to look in. As we see the knight leaving we here the king yelling, "What no pepperoni."

This type cartoons can be written with either no talking or very little. This means that the cartoon can be shown in an international market.

Rover

I just added a new animation clip called ROVER. Enjoy!!!

GOOD KNIGHT

This is the core of a feature length cartoon.

...and now with some painted backgrounds.

Animation is one thing. Backgrounds are another. While looking at your favorite cartoon nook at the backgrounds. Most cartoons use detailed backgrounds. Cheaper Saturday morning cartoons sometime use simple ore even just blank. Computer animations (home made) usually use backgrounds that are drawn in the animation tool itself.

The following clip is a short using a background drawn in photoshop.

Here is a Toon Boom short w/music. It is called Look Who's Walking now.

Here is a sample of a single ToonBoom scene constructed using a pencil background. It was drawn with a #2 pencil. The drawing was photographed with a Nikon D200 and compressed with Photoshop. This scene was constructed using ToonBoom 4. New Scene.

Look at my new movies Skate , Halloween and Goth Girls.

David I Day

Drop me a line at: dday100@yahoo.com