Cracking Animation [Paperback]

Peter Lord (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 9, 1999

The Aardman Studio in Bristol is one of the biggest successes in the new wave of British animation. This book sets Aardman's achievements and the history of the studio within the context of the tradition of 3-D animation. The studio's initial success with "Morph" was followed with an Oscar for "Creature Comforts" and nominations for "Adam" and "A Grand Day Out". Nick Park at Aardman has received two Oscars for his Wallace and Gromit stories, "The Wrong Trousers" and "A Close Shave". The book provides the reader with a guide to making a 3-D animated film. Peter Lord, co-founder of Aardman, explains the process of 3-D animation, with a step-by-step description of how to create characters, a story board and sets, and then an entire film.

Editorial Reviews

Review

A book that all animators will marvel at. (Computer Arts )

Like animation? You'll love this! (The Times [London] ) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Peter Lord, with David Sproxton, founded Aardman Studios in 1976.

Brian Sibley is the author of numerous books on animation and writers.

Nick Park joined Aardman Studios in 1986. His Oscar-nominated A Grand Day Out introduced the world to Wallace and Gromit. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Thames & Hudson; First Edition edition (August 9, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0500281688
• ISBN-13: 978-0500281680
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 9.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,899,186 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful book on stop-motion animation, and on how Aardman Studios make theirs, March 14, 2011

By 

Parka (Singapore) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Cracking Animation: The Aardman Book of 3-D Animation (Third Edition) (Paperback)

Length:: 1:06 Mins

This is sort of a behind-the-scenes book that looks at animation production inside the famous Aardman Studios, creators of successful Wallace and Gromit films, Chicken Run and others.

The perspective is that of Aardman Studios so this book focuses on stop-motion animation. The 3-D in the title means the physical 3D, the actual construction of stuff, as compared to computer generated 3D (only a small section is on that).

The book starts with a long but interesting history of animation, right from the day stop motion was used for films up to the recent releases for Aardman Studios.

The second part jumps into the more technical side of making animation. There are chapters on basic clay animation, model makings, set designs, animating movements and expressions and using CGI. These are all furnished with lots of great pictures and insightful commentary from the staff. It's difficult not to marvel at the ingenuity behind making these animation. There are explanation on the camera tricks used, on how to create enduring characters on paper and in clay, and other production stories.

The final part looks at film making in depth, from scripting to animating, including thoughts given to creating other related content like games and websites. Several films were used as mini case studies, such as the early Peter Lord's Adam, Curse of the Were-rabbit, Chicken Run and other lesser known films.

This is a very insightful book on stop-motion animation, and on how Aardman Studios make theirs. Recommended to fans and enthusiasts.

(There are more pictures of the book on my blog. Just visit my Amazon profile for the link.)

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Same book as Creating 3D Animation, April 28, 2011

By 

Stop Motion Maniac "Elroy Jetson" (Toonville) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cracking Animation: The Aardman Book of 3-D Animation (Third Edition) (Paperback)

This book, Cracking Animation, is the same book as Creating 3D Animation except that Cracking is a newer edition. The old edition is 224 pages and this newer edition is 240 pages because it contains the, CGI-Computer Generated Imagery and A Career in Animation chapters. I love the Aardman books because they are some of the most process detailed in Stop Motion book titles. They also do a great job of printing in their titles. Highly recommended for animators.