The Animator's Survival Kit, Expanded Edition: A Manual of Methods, Principles and Formulas for Classical, Computer, Games, Stop Motion and Internet Animators [Paperback]

Richard Williams (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 8, 2009 | ISBN-10: 0571238343 | ISBN-13: 978-0571238347 | Edition: Second Edition

The definitive book on animation, from the Academy Award-winning animator behind Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Animation is one of the hottest areas of filmmaking today--and the master animator who bridges the old generation and the new is Richard Williams. During his fifty years in the business, Williams has been one of the true innovators, winning three Academy Awards and serving as the link between Disney's golden age of animation by hand and the new computer animation exemplified by Toy Story.

Perhaps even more important, though, has been his dedication in passing along his knowledge to a new generation of animators so that they in turn could push the medium in new directions. In this book, based on his sold-out master classes in the United States and across Europe, Williams provides the underlying principles of animation that every animator--from beginner to expert, classic animator to computer animation whiz --needs. Urging his readers to "invent but be believable," he illustrates his points with hundreds of drawings, distilling the secrets of the masters into a working system in order to create a book that will become the standard work on all forms of animation for professionals, students, and fans.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Williams is miles ahead of anyone in the world of animation."--The New York Times

About the Author

Richard Williams has won more than 250 international awards for his animation. He currently lives in Wales.

Product Details

• Paperback: 392 pages
• Publisher: Faber & Faber; Second Edition edition (December 8, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0571238343
• ISBN-13: 978-0571238347
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 9.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,846 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #4 in Books > Arts & Photography > Drawing > Cartooning
  • #5 in Books > Computers & Technology > Digital Photography & Video > Video Production
  • #22 in Books > Computers & Technology > Programming > Graphics & Multimedia

More About the Author

Richard Williams is best known as the Director of Animation and designer of the new characters for Who Framed Roger Rabbit, for which he won two Academy Awards including a Special Achievement Award.Canadian-born Williams has won three US Academy Awards, three British Academy Awards, and an Emmy among 246 international awards-- starting with his first film The Little Island in 1958.Williams has also animated title sequences for Return of the Pink Panther, The Pink Panther Strikes Again, What's New Pussycat, Casino Royale and linking sequences for The Charge of the Light Brigade, as well as countless prize-winning commercials.In 1990 he was voted by his peers as "The Animator's Animator," and in 1995 he started giving the Richard Williams Animation Masterclasses for professionals and students worldwide in London, Hollywood, New York, San Francisco, Vancouver, Sydney, Hong Kong, France and Denmark.He lives with his family in Wales and works as an independent film-maker.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Just do it!, March 17, 2010

By 

Christopher T. Donnelly - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Animator's Survival Kit, Expanded Edition: A Manual of Methods, Principles and Formulas for Classical, Computer, Games, Stop Motion and Internet Animators (Paperback)

I took about 5 days to get through this book. It is clear that Mr. Williams knows his craft. It is written well enough, beginning with simple examples and progressively getting more complicated. By the time you reach pg.300, you'll get into the more fun stuff. At times he does preach a little, and drops some names to emphasize his point, but I overlook that knowing he's trying to drive the concept home.

For example, the author spends a lot of time discussing the 'walk' and proceeds to show you as many ways of doing it as to put one to sleep. In hindsight though, it's all for a good cause. He specifically says that if the animator masters the walk cycle, the rest will fall into place. Other area's discuss dialogue, snaps and whips, as well as accents and anticipations.

Perhaps the best part was the beginning, where he takes time to talk about equipment, forms and animation charts....this goes a long way into helping us to understand the industry language when faced with later examples.

I give this book four stars, not because I found flaw with the text, but because the publisher hit a great pet peeve of mine. Included in the book is a brief CD that talks a little about Richard and his 16 DVD set....the CD was glue dotted to page 379, right on top of a series of drawings. Of course, this led to the page being a bit ripped when i went to pull it off (gently even...having faced this before). When are the companies going to learn that Cd's and security strips should be affixed to the inside cover? This one was blank....

My own area is 3d animation using Maya, but it was my investigation into 2d animation that led me to this book. I am really looking forward to drawing out some frames and will find this to be an invaluable reference in the future. Thanks Richard....great job.

Chris

18 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lets say.., August 10, 2011

By 

Juliana P - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Animator's Survival Kit, Expanded Edition: A Manual of Methods, Principles and Formulas for Classical, Computer, Games, Stop Motion and Internet Animators (Paperback)

Length:: 0:36 Mins

i made this in like 5 minutes with my ipod, so dont kill me.. i know it gets a little uncomfortable to watch when i turn the device.

this is not a "review".. its just a better "look inside", in my opinion this is a must have for every animator..

i think amazon should allow besides reviews, also accept "look inside" videos so you will really know what you are buying

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best book on animation out there, September 8, 2011

By 

Salgado Maria Eugenia "Cuantacosa" (Argentina) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Animator's Survival Kit, Expanded Edition: A Manual of Methods, Principles and Formulas for Classical, Computer, Games, Stop Motion and Internet Animators (Paperback)

I bought this book a year ago and took time to write the review so I could compare with others out there.

This is BY FAR the best book on animation out there with thousands of drawings demonstrating the basic and advanced concepts of animation. What differences these book from the others is that this one has more drawings than words.

In my opinion when trying to learn drawing and animation a drawing is better than million words.