Cartooning


Researched by Kevin H.
2004-05

  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    • Why I Chose This Topic
    • Dedication
    • My Family
    • My Interests
    • Products I Created
    • Self-Evaluation
    • Thanks for Helping

Research Summary

Animation is the use of many still pictures to create the illusion of moving pictures. This is possible by creating a series of drawings and projecting them quickly in the correct order.

The persistence of vision: The persistence of vision makes animation a possibility. The fundamental of persistence (of vision) keeps the same image in the eye for about 1/10 of a second. Throwing picture after picture in front of the eye is how animators “entertain” you with their work. Paul Roget (inventor of the thaumatrope) learned that the eye sustains images when projected 2 or more at a time.


Goods and bads: Animation is a fun and safe job, plus the world could see your cartoons. But it is hard to make a cartoon good enough, plus it is long and hard work. You might have trouble thinking up ideas.

Pay: Cartoonists/animators can make $50 to $50,000 per job depending on their work assignment and quality.

History: The history of cartooning goes back to the Stone Age. Their drawings were made by scratches on rocks or “art” from the cavemen. Many people think that the word “anime” came from Japan, but it actually came from France and was adopted by the Japanese.

Jobs/types:

Director: While the background artists are making the settings, the director looks over the exposure sheets, filled with the track reader’s breakdown of all the sounds in the cartoon. With every thing in order, it’s up to the animators.

Animators: There are two types of animators, the key-animator and the in- between-animator. The key-animator does all the important stuff, and the in between-animator fills in all the blanks.

Storyboard artists: Now storyboard artists basically make a gigantic comic strip using a pencil, paper, and a script of the cartoon. The storyboard will decide most of the cartoon, and if it’s interesting to watch. They bring it to the director and scene planners. They can change the storyboard to make sure the plot and structure move from one spot to the next. Using storyboards saves a great deal of money.

Training and education: To develop your skills earlier, you should take all the high school art classes that you can. Photography classes will also help you out. Literature and English classes will help you gain creative writing skills. In addition to being creative, cartoonists must understand contemporary life, so you should take history classes too. If you want to be an animator, you should put together a portfolio (collection) of your best work and send it to an advertising agency. Cartoonists don’t really need a college education, but they need some kind of actual training.

Basic Skills:

Visual thinking: generating and working out ideas.

Tips and exercises: lines and shape language, thick and dark lines create tension and draw our attention.

Abilities: able to explore, improvise, recycle, respond, analyze, and simplify. All these skills are needed to be a good cartoonist.

Who I Interviewed And What I Learned

For my interview I talked to Bill Belford. Bill has been involved with animation for six years. He is an instructor and works at Perry Technical Institute. Bill said he got into animation because it’s cool and he enjoys it. To get his job, Bill earned a Bachelor’s Degree In Graphic Design. He also says that the most that has changed in the field of animation is nearly life like computer gaming. Also the levels of realism technology. He enjoys making ideas come alive the most.

Bill says a problem is that the training and knowledge required limits the number of people suited for careers in animation. Bill predicts even higher levels of realism, also easier-to-use software. He says that the biggest change is that the technology will change at an even faster past. It’s getting harder to keep up.

Then Bill told me about the history of animation. True animation cannot be achieved without understanding a fundamental of the eye: the persistence of vision. First demonstrated by Paul Roget, in 1828 he invented the thaumatrope. It was a disc that had a bird on one side, a cage on the other, attached to a string or very thin pole. When spun the bird would appear to be in the cage. Proving that the eye keeps images when exposed to 2 or more pictures, at one time. Later in 1860, Pierre designs, inserted a strip of parchment (paper) containing drawings, into a cylinder (a drum like form). The drum would spin on a spindle; someone would gaze through slits in the top of the cylinder. The drawings magically came to life, infinitely looping in an acrobatic feat. After that I thanked Bill, and left.
Bibliography

Belford, Bill. E-mail interview. November, 2004.

Bourne, Kitlay. The Animation Book. New York: Crown Publisher, Inc, 1979.

Cosgrove, Holli R. “Cartoonists.” Career Discovery Encyclopedia. 2000.

Cosgrove, Holli R. “Cartoonists and Animators.” Encyclopedia of Careers and Vocational Guidance. 2000.

McLoud, Scott. “Cartoons.” The World Book Encyclopedia. 2002.

Schultz, Ron. Looking Inside Cartoon Animation. Santa Fe: John Muir Publications,1992.

Top of page

Menu of 2005 SOAR Projects

Back to the Selah Homepage