kung fu fighting

After fighting to have our electricity back i can finally write to you lovely people.Now tonight i want to discuss a form of art that many dont realise actually classifies as art. This art form has also become so expensive that it seems rather ridiculous on the one hand, but when you take a look at what this art form entails its not too far fetched.

If you've tried guessing by now what art form im talking about , it isnt Kung Fu. Let me explain: A friend and i wanted to do something out of the ordinary last weekend.We decided to go to the movies and watch Kung Fu Panda 2.Turns out that to watch this movie would cost us R110. Call me crazy but thats just a little too much for a movie. This got me thinking though...

Animation is often if not always over looked and seen as just another movie.Not many people know the kind of  thought and talent that go into making just one of these movies.It can sometimes take up to two years to finish a film.Thats almost as long as a renaissance painter would have taken to finish a painting.

Webopedia's definition of animation is "A simulation of movement created by displaying a series of pictures, or frames." basically  it means that animation is a series of still pictures (that are slightly different from each other) put together to create a movement.

Like i mentioned earlier, this can take a long time to perfect and finish.As with everything it has evolved and is primarily done on the computer  (digitally) .First a concept is "born" and the story is outlined.Next   the a story board is drawn up- Planning  and roughly drawing everything .  Thirdly they will do all the voice recording .This is usually done before the animation process begins.This helps the animators time all the actions.. the time it takes for the character to open a door before speaking etc.

That is the very basic process involved in making/designing animation.There is still so much to the making of animation that i wont bore you with tonight.My next post i will be taking a closer look at some great animations and the people behind them.


cheers for now ( very loudly singing Kung Fu Fighting.... )
simone