What is animation? I think it’s about making stuff move in cool, compelling ways. A lot of artists want their work to live and breath, move and be observed, and animation is surely the best way of achieving this.

Animation broadly falls into two categories – story led, where by animation is a facet of cinema, and then there’s the purely visual type, an example of which is music videos or graphic work, where narrative concerns are secondary to pure visual bombast.

I’m not saying that its a clear distinction – both types share many elements. However identifying which animation you are creating is the key to creating good animation. A common pitfall with narrative animation is that the creator fails to tell a compelling story. The results often focus purely on visual, or even technical, achievements. I generally consider this sort of film overindulgant and unwatchable. There are so many student films online which fit this criteria. Animation students should try telling a story with basic means, perhaps a Punch and Judy show, to learn about storytelling in an environment where short comings can’t be deflected by technical frivolities.

Now, there’s also the purely visual form which utilises the strength of animation to switch between subject matter to create a shifting collage. Its this balance between juxtaposition and flux which makes animation so cool. Its the sort of imagery which aligns closest to the sub conscious with its organic developments and free associations. The addition of music makes it nothing short of hypnotic.

The following are links to animation which I think has merit, or else fails admirably and so is equally useful.

Jonathan Barnbrook

http://www.barnbrook.net/

Jonathan Barnbrook is better known for his graphic work than animation. All of his work has an anti-establishment flavour – particularly anti corporation, where he uses animation as a tool to twist advertising and send it back as a forthright objection about the negative effects of mass media.

Audio Bullies music video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEx2dHONdok

This is an Audio Bullies video which has a look which can be considered very modern, commercial and exceptionally MTV. But it’s not a bad example of the sort of ‘mish-mashing’ which can happen in an animation video – mixing 2D, 3D and live action elements (often not shot specifically for the purpose in the case of the Nancy Sinatra clips) to create something with verve and its own visual rhythm.

Str8nime

People often recut existing footage to play alongside their favourite songs. This amateur slicing and splicing has become increasingly common with the widespread availability of video editing software and video sharing websites like Youtube, and can often give impressive results. The natural next step is to create original content, when the recutting of material attains a style of its own. An example of such a guy is shown below.

http://www.wired.com/entertainment/hollywood/magazine/15-10/pl_screen

Its also a great example where the lack of narrative focus can prove detrimental to a films success. But on the plus side, just how much can be achieved by one guy with enough passion (he created a full length animated feature by himself – a task which’d usually require the toil of hundreds).

BBC Film Network

Some of the best animated shorts can be found here.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/

Ok, that’s it for now as this post is getting quite long. Keep your eyes peeled for more animation posts in the near future.