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| (Source: sevencamels) |
There is no way in the world anyone will acquire this kind of expertise other than practice, practice, and more practice… In The Seascape Painter’s Problem Book by E. John Robinson, he says (I take the liberty to substitute to word “paint” for “drawing”), “Your ability to draw will be no stronger than your determination to learn”
Walt Stanchfield, Drawn to Life
When I decided I
wanted to delve into the animation industry, I knew that I was signing up for a
life-time of learning. Based on the advice of people successful in the
industry, I sensed that the skills required to get your foot inside the door go
beyond what you can learn in a classroom – that the art of understanding animation
and storyboarding depends on your desire to study the basic principles throughout your life and on your own.
So when it comes
to learning on your own, an important question, of course, comes up: what is
the best way to go about studying to become better at drawing/animation/art?
I think there are
two ways to go about this:
1. Sketch
and study real life and figure out what I find appealing
2. Seek out advice from artists I admire and learn what works for them
To this end, I
like to scout the Internet – I go from blog to blog of people recommending one
artist, who recommends another artist, and so on – and I ask my teachers at CalArts and my
classmates which blogs they follow. I really wish I'd searched the Internet more before attending CalArts. It is never too early to take education into your own hands! I have come to find that there
is simply so much good advice online, on everything from what it’s
like to be an artist to specific advice on drawing and the like.
One of the blogs I
came across, by Emma Coats, had a post called “Teach Yourself X.” The post is about the importance of learning on your own from making your own art and what you can find online. I took
inspiration from that for this post and decided I wanted to share the links of
blogs I have found helpful.
I have divided the various blogs I like into categories of tips on storyboarding, drawing, character design, etc. I will begin to share each category in separate blog posts with descriptions and links. Even so, you can learn many things from each blogger. They each go beyond the scope of the category I have put them into.
The way I use
these tips: I take notes as I read the advice and save them into categories on
my computer. For instance, I have a folder called “layout” and within that I
have folder named “specific stuff” > “point of interest” > “contrast” >
“complex vs. simple.”
This way, I can
return to the notes and keep reminding myself of these tips. I can save any new notes I take into categories as they pertain to the notes I already have, which makes these basic principles seem less overwhelming. Also, it helps me
understand how to use these basic principles consciously for what I intend to
get out of, say, a composition. For instance, I can know that if I want to
guide the eye and create a center of interest, I can use principles such as
rhythm, contrast, value, and scale because I can find all these tips under "point of interest." Then hopefully, one day, I will have absorbed all these basics and use them unconsciously in my art (all the while experimenting with finding my own solutions to creating "appealing" art in my sketchbook).
I mention my sketchbook here because it is important to note that I try to observe things in real life first and express my own "discovery" of appeal. It should feel like tips from these bloggers "ring true" to something you intuitively already know -- and not like a formula you need to memorize. As Glen Keane said in one of his interviews, students often "forget that somebody once observed something. Everything that works is based on real life." The blogs I share offer advice based on observations other artists have made, which can be very helpful. But while I study these blogs, I also make sure to "discover" my own observations by carrying a sketchbook and studying real life.
Without further
ado, here are some links to blogs I have found helpful for story-boarding:
Mark Kennedy is head of story at Disney Feature
Animation. Since 2006, he has been posting tips on his blog, The Temple of the Seven Golden Camels, that
are mainly geared toward story-boarding.
I only found this blog about a year ago – but oh how I wish I’d found it
sooner! The blog not only helps me grasp story-boarding – it also teaches me
about composition, contrast, how to guide the eye through a painting, character
design, you name it! Without a doubt, this is one of my favorite blogs out
there!
Husband and wife, Griz and Norm both work at Disney. Griz (Grizelda Sastrawinata-Lemay) is in Visual
Development and Norm (Normand Lemay) works in Story. I heard about this blog
through my teacher in Character Design at CalArts, Joe Pitt. I cannot recommend
it enough! The two of them post advice called “Tuesday Tips.” These posts offer
advice on composition, design, line quality, story-boarding, solidity, gesture
– all the things artists in animation bear in mind as they make their art
and/or storyboards. If you haven’t already, go check it out!
Emma is a CalArts alum and has worked at Pixar before
she decided to become a freelance director. She offers advice on how to get
better at story-boarding, by studying camera angles, composition, lighting,
perspective, and how to get hired in the industry. I heard about her through a
classmate – so if you have friends who are also interested in animation, don’t
be afraid to ask them where they get their inspiration!
Dave Pimentel is head of story at Disney. On his blog, he offers some tips on making interesting and clear
storyboards through visual tools such as rhythm, contrast, perspective,
overlap, tone and value.
I also like to search Youtube for informative interviews/lectures. Here is one with storyboard artist Steven Macleod that I love:
Finally, here is also
an interview with Disney story artist Lissa Treiman on what it is like to be a
story artist at Disney Feature.
I hope you find
these blog links helpful! I am going to make more posts with blog links that fall
into the categories of animation and drawing. I also want to say a huge thank
you to all the artists who share their advice and experience of the
animation industry online.
-Christine-