Animators make pictures and models come to life in order to entertain and/or to inform people. There are three main types of animation:
- drawing
- modelling
- computer graphics
The amount of involvement and creative input an animator is allowed to have in whichever project he/she is working on depends on many things. For example, an animator who is an employee of an animation studio will work for an animation director and the work will be a real team effort. A self-employed animator will get more chances to be director, producer and so on.
Animators usually follow a 'storyboard'. This is usually in the form of a series of rough sketches and it tells the story that the animator has to bring to life. The story isn't always fiction - it can be a game, a documentary, a promotional or educational film.
In drawing and modeling, the animator is aiming to produce characters, which, when photographed can produce the illusion of movement. To do this, still shots (photographs) are taken of every piece of movement and then played at normal film or video speed. As many as 25 separate drawings or model positions may need to be photographed to produce one second of movement on film.
In drawing, the animator's job is to do outline drawings of the characters, taking each one through the range of movements and expressions needed. A tracer transfers the drawings onto sheets of plastic film and a painter does the colouring of the character. Backgrounds and scenery are usually drawn and painted by other people. A camera operator then photographs the backgrounds and individual drawings. Animators need to work closely with these people, as well as with directors and producers.
Model-making animators use a wide variety of materials to make models of characters. Like drawing animators, the model-makers may just work on the characters, but they are also often involved in designing and making sets for the models. The animators have to know how much they can move things (for example, a character's arm) in order to maintain the illusion of movement.
Computer animation is a specialism in its own right. There are animators who use computer graphics programmes to draw characters and backgrounds for computer software such as games and educational programmes, as we
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