When we hear the phrase computer animation, we think of cartoons, special effects in the big screen and all that. What you don’t know is that animation with the use of a computer was first done on a (complicated) science research that has altogether nothing to do with movies or any part of it. It was later then discovered to be a great way to enhance art some more. And the rest as they say is history, with realistic looking dinosaurs coming to life, aliens invading us and so much more. But what is a computer animation?
Animating means to give life to something and the animator would make an inert object come to life with the movement and character of someone who is truly alive. You can choose either from a computer assisted animation or a computer generated one.
In a computer assisted animation, you can either draw whatever you like using your hand or using the computer. The drawings are then placed in key frames which is the basis of the essential scenes in a story. The computer then is responsible for filling the in between frames. This type is mostly done when making cartoons.
Computer generated on the other hand is three dimensional and has to be worked on a computer and not on paper. Computer animation can be a complex subject but to those truly interested, here’s what you can do to starting your own animation. Think of your story first of all. By having a correct sequence of the story, you then have something to base it all upon. Get your background into the frame. Background is your object in the animation that has no need for any movement or it is not a character in it. Anything that you give life to in the concept story is a character and the background are all those that don’t move. Once the background has been introduced it is time to bring out every movement that all characters are supposed to do. Every pose, action must be recorded in a separate slide or drawing for each. The background has to be recopied several times according to the needs of the characters. Merge the background with the characters as you would do with any animation and make frames for each of them. Be sure to put all of them in the right order though.
The ability of animators with the help of computers in bringing objects into life and action is just amazing. Film making have become so innovated that some people would believe in this life like subjects to be real. The animators are great artist because even if they are working with computers and all that, the vision and ideas are all theirs to begi with.