Acting For Animation

Animators need to be open minded thinkers with sharp executing thoughts and applications of ideas and methodologies.

The workbooks and guides for animation have been great but a new world is here. 

We have progressed very far. Just like the old university’s we need a new text book. 

A new view. Something that goes beyond the normal standards.

Ed Hooks is a great trainer for acting.
Here is an excerpt from his training modules.

Why "special" acting training for animators?

Animators do not need to work on sensory exercises, physical relaxation, emotional recall or voice development, all essential for stage actors acting “in the present moment.” Animators must create an illusion of a present moment – 24 frames = 1 second. To envision and create this illusion requires an entirely different set of skills (see video).

Everything he mentioned above is true with exception of the physical relaxation component.
A calm relaxed mindset is required before even attempting to start your animation.
Ed is not saying anything revolutionary. The illusion of life "disney book" is exactly
what it says it is. How to create the illusion of life within 24 frames.


I believe this new standard involves combining neuroscience, physics & acting.

Acting for animation is the one thing that separates a good animator from a great one.

I believe you are what you value and this value drives your behaviour. 

Many styles & disciplines of animation are open to interpretation. 

After over 10 years of animating. I still get a curious nervous excitement before each shot I attempt to work on. These nerves must be interpreted as calm motivation. 

A pleasant push to go further and push the limits of your animation at each and every turn.

We are a rather unique industry which is looked upon by a majority of the mainstream as “successful”. 

I believe animation success is a culmination of intelligent study, application, testing and repetition.

In a work environment, most animators are asked for gargantuan requests in terms of delivering animation in a timely and quality driven fashion. Most, if you look at them are calm, mild mannered types….”maybe". One thing they share is the ability to control each sector of thinking and combine it all into one. They are constantly challenged everyday just like any CEO of a corporation without having to actually over see a multitude of people. The animator oversee's technical software issues combined with artistry & acting in each and every piece they work on. This connection is as real as my arm. By assessing the thought process involved in memorization techniques we can see that visuals play a huge role in the success of an animator. Memory is the key to your success in every way. If an animator thinks about acting. How is that relating to memory?. We are taking in more senses then the average person and assessing either the reality in front of us or the one in our mind. We as animators know, we must observe more closely then other people. We must take time to assess situations more then the average person. In our modern day of animation, Observation has been overlooked. 
Memory & Observation go hand in hand.
We must pull up reference images in our mind, pull up reference material to study, tape ourselves acting or take time to go out and observe people in real time.

Will Eisner the highly reputable artist, multi award winner was a master of observation. He was able to pull out acting, life, energy, every essence of what we in the general public observed but took no time to assess it. This is the beauty of what Eisner did. He could pull a thought out of an image and take it too all new highs of descriptive visuals.

By definition, rote learning or memorization from repetition = comprehension, by itself it is an ineffective tool in mastering any complex subject at an advanced level. For instance, one illustration of repetition learning can be observed in preparing quickly for exams, a technique which may be colloquially referred to as "cramming”.

There is a greater understanding if students commit a formula to memory through exercises that use the formula rather than through rote repetition of the formula. We as animators are always process driven vs repetition driven.

To achieve greater acting results on a daily basis, an animator needs to seek proven formula's within cognitive neuroscience.

To be continued......in the Ebook. Drop a request and receive a few pages free to digest at your own timeline.