Visual Cultural and Theory: Graphic Design, Technology and Politics - Essay Example

Evolution of Animation with the Advent of Technology [The of the will appear here] [The of the id will appear here] [The of the course will appear here] [The name of the course number will appear here] How has animation changed or evolved with the advent of technology Introduction Animated Movies are becoming increasingly popular and complex with time. It takes years of planning, designing and implementing to create on animated film. While animation is considered to be a new form of art, it was present much before the common man perceives it to be. In this paper, the history of animation will be discussed and how technology has impacted its development. Animation Philip Denslow during the Fourth society for Animation Studies conference defined animation in the following words: “Animation is a: a motion picture made by photographing successive positions of inanimate objects (as puppets or mechanical parts, b: animated cartoon, a motion picture made from a series of drawing simulating motions by means of slight progressive change” (Dobson, 2009). Animation before Modern Technology Even though animation is associated today with computers and advanced technology, it began much before than anyone has every predicted. Instances of animation have been observed as early as during the prehistoric times when archeologists discovered figures drawn in a series of successive motions on cave paintings. A 5,200 year old animation has also been discovered on an Iranian bowl. Similarly, early versions of animation have been discovered in Egyptian art also. Leonardo Da Vinci, the great Italian mastermind had also experimented with animation. In his folio, the Windsor Collection, Da Vinci attempted to portray the human body in a series of sequence which imply the use of animation. However, like many other Da Vinci sketches, this one also was done much before the right technology was available. Evolution of Animation with Technology (4) The first technology to incorporate animation was television with its standard picture film. J. Stuart Blackton, the father of American animation, released the first animation film in 1906 titled Humorous Phases of Funny Faces where the image sequence were drawn on a black board and presented in succession to create the illusion of movement. Later in 1908, Fantasmagorie, a stick figure animation film was released. In this film, the images were drawn on a paper and later shot on a negative film. These were rudimentary animation film where often the animator’s hand was visible but despite this, they required great talent and creativity since they were executed in a time when computers were not available to store or modify characters. Later with the release of the cinematograph, the technique of stop motion made animation more interesting. With the release of Haunted Mansion by Blackton in 1906, animators were able to interest and inspire the viewers in the way they were able to master the technique of animation. Animation was not just used in films but also in theatres where the use of the cinematograph and the Kinteoscope and came into function. Theatre Optique by Charles-Emile Reynaud showed the earliest animations by using the modern projector. Winsor McCay in 1911 was able to take the art on a more one advanced plane with movies such as Little Nemo, Gertie the Dinosaur and the Sinking of the Lusitania. Animations became commonly known as cartoons. McCay’s cartoons were more detailed and complete with backgrounds and characters. It was during this time that Earl Hurd was able to bring forth the technique of Cell Animation. It was with the help of this technique that the process became more complex and advanced as a team of animators worked on a single film; each one responsible for one part of the scene. Later in 1915, the technique of rotoscoping was introduced which later lead to the release of classics such as Popeye the Sailor Man, Betty Boop and Super Man. However, the golden age of Animation began when Walt Disney in 1920s opened his own studio and introduced characters that are still popular. He began with Alice in the Wonderland and later went on to create evergreen cartoons such as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. These animations were revolutionary in the sense that they were complete with sound effects which make the entire experience of watching animation films more pleasurable. Following Walt Disney, Warner Brothers Cartoons was released where a number of animators were responsible for the creating animated characters. The next advancement in the history of animation occurred when Peludopolis, the first animation sound film was released by Warner Bros in 1931. Later colored animated movies were released by Disney Studios in 1932. This was a time when animated movies flourished the most as the audience became more focused. It was during this time when Tex Avery released the Looney Tunes cartoons. With the advent of television in every home, the Flintstone series was released as the first cartoon television series to be premiered on prime time during the 1950s. The 1950s was also the time when computer animation became popular. Computer animation was made popular by John Whitney Sr. who using an anti-aircraft analog computer was able to create animation using motion control photography. It was Whitney who introduced computer animation in films by animating the title sequence of Vertigo in 1958. Later with the use of the SEAC computer, the first digital image was created that laid the foundations for digital imaging. The first computer generated film, A Two Gyro Gravity Gradient was released in 1963. In the same year, the Belflix animation system was developed by Ken Knowlton which later created many animated films. This system was a specialized animation language. In the 1960s and 1970s, the art of computer animation was improved by studying textures, shades, etc. Significant improvements were made in the field such as introduction of algorithms, publishing of catalogues and improvement in the overall systems. The technique of morphing was introduced by Peter Foldes in 1971 with the release of the film, Metadata. In 1973, the Antics software was created by Alan Kitching. The software made away with the use of programming for animation and made the process much easier. It was in 1977 that the concept of CGI was introduced. Before this, animation was mostly considered as a science. However in the 1970s, animators and animation companies realized the importance of commercially marketing the art. Thus movies such as Star Wars IV were released. However, it was not until 1981 that CGI system and computer-based motion was properly developed. The breakout year for CGI Technology occurred in 1991 when Terminator 2 and Disney’s Beauty and the Beast were released. Later in 1993, Steven Spielberg created the Jurassic Park where CGI technique was employed to recreate the dinosaurs. The technique of flocking was also introduced in the same period where a mathematical model was used to copy CGI effects on a group of objects. This technique was also employed in Batman Returns and Lion King. Later the technique of Motion Cap was introduced which was incorporated commercially in Titanic. This technique makes the role of the animator easier by coping movement of external objects and placing them into animated or other objects. The Matrix Trilogy marked another step into computer animation with its fully virtual cinematography that was later adopted in many movies required complicated special effects. CGI has now been accepted as the most widely used technique by filmmakers and animators both to achieve all kinds of effects including digital look alike, fusing real and animated objects in a movie etc. Evolution of Animation Devices Certain devices were also created to produce the effect of animation. Among this, the magic lantern was perhaps the first device. This can be described as an early version of the projector where the images drawn where placed in the lantern and this was projected on an adjacent surface with the help of a lamp. The lantern was mainly used to visually depict demonic tales and images. The Thuamatrope was another device was publically used for the first time in 1824 by John Paris in the Royal College of Physicians. In this device, two images were drawn in a sequence on a circular disk and a string was attached to the center. When the string was pulled, the disk moved and this presented an illusion of a moving image. Later in 1832, the Phenakistoscope was invented which could be termed as a revised version of the Thuamatrope. Here instead of two images, a series of images were drawn on a circular disk instead of just two images. The Zoetrope was a more advanced version of the Phenakistoscope where the images were drawn inside a cylindrical device. Slits were cut on the device and when the device was rotated, the viewer was able to view the animation through the slits. This device allowed more than one viewer to view the animation at a time as compared to the Phenakistoscope where the device could only be viewed in front of the mirror by one person. The first advanced in early animation occurred when in 1868; John Linnett introduced the Flip book. This book is still used by many animation students and was perhaps one of the most popular animation devices even during the modern world. In this device, a series of animation were drawn on one corner of a book and the pages were flipped rapidly through the help of the thumb. With this technique, the animators were not restricted with the size of the circle for the number of animation. The animation could extend to a longer period of time and longer animation required thicker books. With modern technology, the cinematograph was perhaps the first invention. In this invention, the technique of stop motion was introduced. In this technique, the images are moved without being recorded. Only the image of the object is recorded and the actual movement with the hand is not recorded. This gives the impression that the object is being moved with an invisible hand. The release of computers later transformed the animation world. The release of Standard Eastern Automatic Computer along with the drum scanner made the extraction of drawings from photographs more convenient and was responsible for creating the first digital image. Another analog computer animation machine that gained popular attention was Scanimate which contributed to significant video-based animation in both films and television. The 1980s was another good period for commercial animation when companies such as Silicon Graphics Inc., Quantel and Sun Microsystems Inc. began working extensively on computer animation by developing software and systems such as Paint Box, IRIS, Sun workstations and Antics computer animation system. In the same period, new animation software such as Autodesk, Alias Research, Wavefront, TDI, Side effects software etc. were released. New and improved version of such software are being continuously created and released in the market. Animators and Filmmakers both are benefiting greatly with the use of this software. Animation now has become both an art and science as new technology and techniques continue to fascinate the audience. References Dobson, N. (2009) Historical Dictionary of Animation and Cartoons, UK: Scarecrow Press   Read More