Animation Principles

Today we focus upon the 'Principles of Physical Animation'. These main priciples were developed by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston. Two of Disneys famous 'Nine Old Men'. The 'Nine Old Men' were a fundamental group of supervising animators pioneering Disney's unique style of animation.

1. Squash and stretch- Demonstrates weight and volume to a character.
2. Anticipation- Prepares the viewers for an action.
3. Staging- Directs the viewers attention to the storyline.
4. Straight Ahead Action and Pose to Pose- From the first drawing to the end drawing in sequence. And Pose to Pose uses key drawings done at intervals.
5. Follow Through and Overlapping Action- Character stops but their arms or hair need to catch up. Overlapping the character changes direction while his clothes or hair continues forward.
6. Slow In and Slow Out- Fewer drawings make the action faster and more drawings make the action slower.
7. Arcs- Natural action and better flow.
8. Secondary Action- Adds more dimension to a character. Supporting action.
9. Timing- More drawings between poses slow and smooth the action. Fewer drawings make the action faster and crisper.
10. Exaggeration- Extreme distortion of a drawing or extremely broad caricature of facial features, expressions, poses, attitudes and actions.
11. Solid Drawing (same or different as Weight)- Basic principles of drawing form, weight, volume solidity and three dimension.
12. Appeal- Easy to read design, clear drawing, and personality development that will capture and involve the audience¹s interest.