Storytelling through Animation (Charles River Media Graphics) [Paperback]

Mike Wellins (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 2005 | ISBN-10: 1584503947 | ISBN-13: 978-1584503941 | Edition: 1

As an animator, it's difficult to watch movies or animated films without thinking about the directing quality or technical aspects of the production. But when that movie pulls you in and draws you to the characters and their plights, you really experience the story. Storytelling Through Animation provides an in-depth guide to the process of conceiving, planning, and producing an animated or live action media production. It covers specific information for many forms of visuals, including traditional cel, stop motion, Flash, or 3D CG with a focus on the most critical aspect of any production- the story. The book is written for filmmakers, animators, producers, editors, directors, game creators, and anyone who has the task of telling a story visually. It teaches the principles, real-world techniques, tricks, tips, and creative and visual fundamentals key to great animated storytelling. Using detailed explanations of principles and techniques and a variety of film examples, it guides animators through every step of the production process, and teaches them how to infuse their story and develop emotional connections in every part of the production. It provides systems and checks and balances that can make projects smoother and storytelling better at any level or budget. In addition, it explores all of the concepts and techniques needed for animation, including visual theory, motion, animation techniques, and their live action counterparts, character animation, composition, production, lighting, rendering, editing, and compositing. Finally, the book helps to create critical and realistic critiquing skills for evaluating and creating emotional connections with the audience. After reading this book, animators will have the knowledge and skills needed to tell their own visual stories.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mike Wellins is a prolific Indie filmmaker and commercial director of animation. He currently works at Happy Hour Entertainment. His professional and independent work has earned him numerous awards, including an Annie for best animated commercial. His films have been featured in "The Sick and Twisted" and have appeared on Cartoon Network, MTV, and the Sci-Fi Channel. Mike has made over 60 films (long, short, live, animated, and two low-budget features), and he has spoken at the Game Developer Conference on storytelling and animation.

Product Details

• Paperback: 435 pages
• Publisher: Charles River Media; 1 edition (March 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1584503947
• ISBN-13: 978-1584503941
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #739,095 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Story of Telling a Story Using Animation, April 23, 2005

By 

John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Storytelling through Animation (Charles River Media Graphics) (Paperback)

First, this is not a book on the mechanics of producing animation. Instead it is a book that comes before that. It's about how to tell a story through animation. It's about the first steps that must be done right if the story is to be told at all.

It all begins with the story. Without a story, animation is just a bunch of pictures. How do you make the story better? How do you make it fit animation as opposed to live action?

How do you create the character? How do you make the image, the story give the character a personality? What kind of a background, a world do you design?

From here the book goes through the whole production process. Once again, this is not a book on how to use a software package to produce the animation, it's a step before that. The author is a professional at film making. In addition he interviews quite a number of professionals from the major studios to get their view of the process.

Finally the CD included with the book include film strips that you can use to evaluate just how well these guys did in following the precepts of the book.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Like sucking molasses through a straw, November 14, 2006

By 

Grant Beaudette (Missoula, MT United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Storytelling through Animation (Charles River Media Graphics) (Paperback)

I've read a lot of animation books over the years, but this is one I don't think I'll ever look at again. Most of these "one stop shop" type books that cover every single aspect of filmmaking end up not saying much no matter how long winded they are.

There's no shortage of information in this book. The problem is little, if any of it is in a form you can be readily applied to your own work. Complex thoughts with little elaboration. Highly visual ideas with no pictures explain things. Just a glut of film making tibits with little actual learning.

The CD content is better than ones in some other books I've read, but it doesn't help if the disc takes the place of illustrations in the book. That way I'm forced to be at my computer while I'm reading to get the most out of the book. Overall I think the CD added more to the price of the book than it did the content.

For my time and money, books like CGI Filmmaking: The Creation of Ghost Warrior are a much better buy.

3.0 out of 5 stars Good but lacks specifics, November 12, 2011

By 

P. Schlup (Zurich, Switzerland) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Storytelling through Animation (Charles River Media Graphics) (Paperback)

This book is well written, and follows a logical progression through examining the story, pre-production, animation, and post-production. Many of these concepts apply to the different kinds of animation mentioned in the book (cel, stop-motion, 3d), and also to traditional film.

The author clearly has a lot of experience creating animations. Unfortunately, the book doesn't live up to its promises to explain and teach specifics for each part of the creative process. It hints at ideas and details that need to be considered, but remains vague and doesn't give many examples of how a specific mood or reaction might be achieved, or how design choices affect audiences. For example, the chapter on lighting describes three-point and night lighting in some detail, but doesn't give many suggestions beyond those.

The book is a good read for a beginner who is interested in how an animated feature is made, but isn't detailed enough as a reference text for someone who has already begun the creative process.