What is Animation?

What is Animation?

Animation is the sequence of images being put together in order to create an illusion of moving characters and objects. 

Different types of animation: 

Drawn Animation

Drawn animation is where each frame is drawn by hand; the sequence is then put together after all of the drawings are shown in order. An example of a hand drawn animation could be Tom and Jerry. Before computer generated images were introduced, a five-minute Tom and Jerry cartoon would have taken 7,200 hand drawn and painted frames.

Stop Motion/Model Animation

This is where objects and/or puppets and clay models are captured at one frame at a time. Stop motion animation is similar to hand drawn animation, however it is used with objects as opposed to drawings. All the frames will then be put together and played back to create the illusion of the characters and objects moving on their own. An example of a stop motion animation could be Pingu, which is based on a clay penguin and lives with his family. The pieces of clay are then moved slightly per frame and then played back to create an illusion of him moving. 

Computer Generated Animation

Computer generated animation refers to the movement of images created by a computer. An example of a computer generated animation could be A Bug's Life which is based on bugs that are created through computer generated imagery.