Objects and Layers

[Objects / Layers]  [Timelines / Sequences]  [Lessons / Exercises]

An Introduction to how to map out your animations.  More illustrations are ahead in the sections.

Objects and Layers are inseparable...  Actually objects are separable only by layer.  Find out what I mean by reading ahead into this area.  By the time you are done with this part of it, you should then be ready to start applying what you know about objects and layers to your timelines and sequences.  

Objects

You're quite capable of imagining your drawings actually moving.  So why go through the hassle of actually performing the great task of copying it into a flipbook?  Because you can. 

That's right.  You should do it just because you're able to, and I'm going to show you just how able you are.  But first, follow me through a series of steps.  Some will seem familiar, others not.  Please concentrate on the areas that seem unfamiliar.  These are probably the points that will help you the most.  

An example of how a computer draws flipbooks

First of all, you should understand that the terms "Object" and "Layer" come from computer programming.  They're terms used when designing animation in certain software (the kind like these people use).  Only for now, I'm applying it to things that you draw on paper.  It works the same way.  

1.  What is an Object?

Section:  Definition of Objects

An "Object" can be just about anything in a flipbook.  Some are more animate than others.  You can draw an object the same for 80 pages, and then flip it, and this will look the same as if you were not flipping the pages.  Why would anybody do this?

So you need to be able to identify objects, as such that they are able to be distinguished.  

2.  Objects can move.

Section:  Motion of Objects

Though it is important to identify that an object is capable of moving, it is also necessary to distinguish whether it moves on its own, something else is causing it to move, or it is merely sitting still and you are the one that's moving.  Each of these characteristics will cause you to understand why things move.  

Because the art of animation is the illustration of intelligence in a seemingly unintelligent world.  While you are sitting there, staring at a notebook, there is something that is triggered by your brain to make you believe or imagine that you're seeing something moving.  

3.  Objects can change chape.

Section:  Morphing

Though it is important to identify that an object is capable of moving, it is also necessary to distinguish whether it moves on its own, something else is causing it to move, or it is merely sitting still and you are the one that's moving.  Each of these characteristics will cause you to understand why things move.  

Because the art of animation is the illustration of intelligence in a seemingly unintelligent world.  While you are sitting there, staring at a notebook, there is something that is triggered by your brain to make you believe or imagine that you're seeing something moving. 

3.  Objects affect eachother.

Section:  Object Dependency. 

Could you imagine the excitement of the people who made the first flipbooks, once they realized that the same effect could probably be achieved with photographs?  Those people knew movies were going to exist, well before they did.  And I wonder if they had any idea what kind of impact it would have on us. 

Let's face it.  The world isn't perfect, and the only reason we have a concept of "perfection" is because we see it in our minds.  Let's find a way to share our personal perfection with eachother, shall we?

So establish an object.  Let's start with a simple one.  A square.  Now picture that square, turning into different shapes.  It could turn into a triangle, or it could split into two separate squares.  You should try this as an exercise.

Understanding Objects

Alright now, you've heard mentioned the terminology known as "Objects" thrown around quite a bit, by this point.  What if I said to you that an object is anything on screen that keeps a consistent set of characteristics.  Would you know what that meant?

What if that "screen" meant somewhere in the sector of a page within a flipbook timeline?  I wonder if you would understand those terminologies.

Being capable of comprehending terminologies in the context they're being used is what makes it possible for you to use the skills unlocked by those ideas.  If you were into Zen literature, you will find that it's full of that.  Flipbook Island is applied zen.  

Objects of Space Wars

Here are a few objects from the Space Wars! flipbook that you can see whenever you would like to draw one.  

You can draw these units...  You can also animate them!  That's the whole point of it being a flipbook. 

Homewerks:

Get in there and fight some action in a sequence. 

You can easily gravitate one object towards another. 

Just be mindful of what you're trying to describe. 

Only things with meaning actually get seen and heard. 

The tree that falls and is not heard had hardly any meaning.

-Obi Tzu Applegate

The galaxy that vaporized and was never noticed is hard to imagine having ever existed." -LS Aristotle

New Terminology:  "unit" is a self-contained animation loop within an animation sequence.  The conept of "loop" relates back to the music concepts of Midi.  

Pro Wrestler

Here are the objects in the Pro Wrestler flipbook.  You can draw one on your own as well.  As you can see in this stage (or set, if you would like to refer to that page...), there are three faces of the Pro! Wrestlers you might encounter as you traverse across the world of animating professional wrestlers.  

So here we go.  In addition to just that, there is also a stage up there on which you can add your wrestlers.  That is a mighty good set, wouldn't you say?  It could include information about the wrestler, as well as a Life Meter. 

It is up to you to determine what moves cause how much life to detract from the top rings.  You can choose.  

As you can see at the bottom, there is a little tiny sequence built in over there, for the average contest.

See the world as a series of sequences.  It will help you think better about your life, and assist you in understanding why things happen the way that they do.  

Flarfball: Objects Lesson

Layering is a key aspect of drawing flipbooks.  The real secret is to draw the flipbook in parts, and not to draw the entire picture one page at a time.  Planning each layer in your timeline makes it possible to draw a complicated flipbook.  Getting better at this will greatly increase your flipbook ability.

These are the objects of Flarfball.  As you can see, the parts are clearly identified as having certain dimensions which stay the same over the course of the animation.  Animate the bouncy element underneath the trampoline after drawing all of the other action, accounting for the "sinking" feature of the person that is bouncing on it (indicated by the indentation to the underside of the trampoline).

Also mentioned in this page is the concept of the circlehead.  That's a method of drawing characters that involves drawing a circle, which is the head of the character, drawn as the first layer.  It becomes a reference point to the location and position of that character, as it changes throughout all of the animation's frames.  The additional parts to the circle are what make it into a character, and not just a circle, but those can be added later once that "layer" of the circlehead has been drawn.

That's a technique that can help you out with yours.

Tank Object and Sequence

In this illustration, a tank rolls over a hill.  Note that its scope changes position over the course of the animation.  First, identify the parts of the object that change over the course of the sequence.  Just the top, right?  The bottom just moves linear, the top part rotates.  In the upper four frames of the illustration, we see what the thank looks like in its completion over the course of this short bit of time.  Note how the second row of animations display that the bottom of the tank rotates as well.  Below that, we see what the tank appears like as its upper part pivots 180˚.  This part illustrates how to make a thin cylinder turn from sideways to facing, in just a few frames.

note:  The tank later became known as the "Paco Bell Cannon" when it was announced that one of the rules of drawing flipbooks via the Analog Basic illustration method involves never demonstrating anything actually destructive.  Paco Bell Cannon plays one song constantly and serves Mexican food.

Object Dependency

Use Existing Objects

Breakdancing Robot For Beginners

So anyway, I try to make it ineresting by showing you various different ways of animating things.  You can make a robot dance any way you want, but the kind of important thing to remember is that ultimately, people have to identify it as a robot.  Therefore I offer the following visual suggestions in standardizing the appearance of "the bot."

First, his head must be square.  I like him to have very simple eyes.  Usually I use 2 or 3 shades of gray:

(prismacolors)
warm grey 20%, 30%.
cool grey 30%, 40%.

Now you have your own super disco breakin' robot.
It costs you only a couple bucks to buy a rhodia.
And you can make it do anything.  So get started.

Intermediate

 Advanced

Layering is an advanced Concept.