Tej Kohli Tips for Animators

Reserve colours in the palette for special purposes (as with graphic design, less can be more, so keep colours out of the animation until you need them for greater emphasis)

For computer animation, use 15 frames per second (as film reels run at 24 frames per second (fps), animators tend to use half that number, 12 fps, to save work. Some expert animators find that a rate of 15 fps strikes the balance between fluency and the number of images you need to draw.

Use shadows to put characters ‘on the ground’ (these can provide useful visual clues and cues to the reader/viewer who, in the absence of even small shadows, may believe the character is floating across the page.

Use motion blur (as with a Speed Camera, the amount of blur present in an animation can act as a further visual cue as to the amount and/or speed of movement of any particular object or character in relation to the rest of the characters present within the frames. As such it’s worth its weight in gold).

Use anti-aliased sprites for fluent animations (often used as a low-cost substitute for motion blur, which can be costly)

Lip synching (a time-consuming process but well worth the effort as it presents the animated character’s enunciations together with the appropriate mouth movements. Although for low-quality animation, it may not be worth your while).

Enhance the illusion of depth by varying the sharpness and the saturation of colours Perspective drawing creates an illusion of depth in an image, even though not all images lend themselves well to clearly identified “vanishing points” or horizons.To enhance the illusion of depth, you can paint near objects in full and strong (saturated) colours and background objects in pastel (or unsaturated) colours.

Make ‘moving holds’ (where, in animation, some part of the body is always moving slightly – otherwise the character looks as if they’re dead!)