The 12 Rules of Animation!

OK, Here we go.

I've been set the task of researching the 12 rules of animation for my up coming project of 3D animation. I am to study and learn what each rule entails and find poor examples of each rule within games. This examples can be in cut scenes or the game its self.

Rule 1: Squash and stretch

The Squash and Stretch rule is very important to understand when creating objects that have to convincingly exist in your world. As in real life objects are faced with forces that influence there movement such as gravity, directional force and the mass of the object.

Rule 2: Exaggeration

 Exaggeration is a method of emphasising something to increase its significance or draw attention to it. In animation, it is used to emphasise whatever key idea or feeling you wish to portray.

Rule 3: Staging

Staging means setting the scene, attracting the viewer’s attention and focusing it on a particular subject or area of the screen before the action takes place.

Doing this can also set up a mood or feeling that you wish the viewer to understand before any action is actually taken. This could be achieved with colour, lighting, music or sound effects.

Rule 4: Anticipation

Anticipation can also be used to direct the attention to part of the screen, and it is often intermingled with staging.

Some anticipation occurs naturally. For example, in Fable 3 when you preform a power move with a melee weapon the edge of the screen becomes blurry and it over-crank's the game play. By exaggerating this moment, you can let the viewer know what is about to happen.

Rule 5: Motivation

Somewhat linked to staging and anticipation, motivation occurs when one action clearly shows that another action is about to take place.

Rule 6: Secondary Action

Like anticipation, secondary actions can be used to help to strengthen the idea or feeling you are trying to portray.

Rule 7: Overlap

Overlap is where you have one action followed by another action which starts while the first action is taking place.

It’s very important to apply this rule to make your animations flow nicely and have a natural rhythm.

Rule 8: Follow-Through

Follow-through is something that occurs in naturally and is often exaggerated. Think of a the characters in Street Fighter 5 taking a swing at the opponent. The fist doesn’t stop suddenly when it comes into contact with the opponent; it follows through and then gradually comes to a halt.

Rule 9: Balance

Balance is crucial for an animation to be truly convincing. Your characters must be drawn in poses that look real and sustainable. Balance will change according to the weight of an object; heavy objects will generally take longer to pick up speed. They will also take longer to stop moving than light objects because more resistance is needed to slow them down.

Rule 10: Timing

So much of animation is about timing. Messages or feelings that cannot be portrayed by a still picture can be communicated with the addition of timing.

A good example of this is a dramatic pause, this helps emphasise or exaggerate a scene to make it funnier, more poignant or more intense.

Rule 11: Rhythm

A good understanding of rhythm will help you work out the timing of your animations. If music is provided as part of the project, you can use this to define the rhythm of the piece.

Rule 12: Camera Movement

Camera movement can lend filmic conventions to your animation. Interesting camera angles and animated camera movement can help to represent the point of view of a character. It can add dynamism to an otherwise static scene and can give the viewer a sense of being more involved in the piece.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_d_78KtNmCk (12 rules of animation video, Panop Koonwat, Youtube, 09/01/2013)