ClassInfo

ANI 201 Animation I

Lisa Barcy

Office: CDM 502
Winter 2015-2016
Class number: 22673
Section number: 501
MW 3:10PM - 4:40PM
CDM 00722 Loop Campus

Summary

ANI 201 ?Animation 1 For Majors
Winter 2016
Instructor: Lisa Barcy - lbarcy@cdm.depaul.edu
Office Hours: Room #502 Mondays and Wednesdays 12-3, Fridays by appointment (best to email me first.)

Course Description: This is an introductory course to the art of animation. Through weekly assignments students will immerse themselves in a variety of basic animation techniques, both handmade and digital. We will explore important aspects of animation common to every technique such as timing, arcs, drawing, storytelling and animation design. We will also view many animation films and videos, both historic and contemporary. The coursework will prepare the students to complete a final project of 15-30 seconds in the media of their choice, and lay the groundwork for intermediate studies in animation. This is a labor intensive class, where you will frequently animate in class, but will also require a great deal of effort outside of regular class time.
Course Objectives: Students will experiment with a variety of approaches to creating animations including drawing, Photoshop and After Effects, experimental materials such as sand, cut-outs or clay, and stop-motion. They will several create short animated projects in a variety of techniques as they experiment with animation as an expressive medium that can convey linear and non-linear ideas.
What You Need to Bring to Class: 

- A lot of energy, enthusiasm, and commitment to your medium
- Your assignments posted on time to D2L or the Class Vimeo page before or on the due date.
- Art supplies (depending on assignment)

- An un-ruled sketchbook ? no smaller than 9?x 6?, 50 pages, minimum.
- drawing supplies

Textbooks and Materials:
The Animation Bible by Maureen Furniss
 and The Animators Survival Kit by Richard Williams

A good sized flash drive or external drive for backing up your work, I suggest 16 GB min. (required)
Various art supplies on an as needed basis. (e.g., clay, paper, glue, X-acto knife, etc.)
Optional - A portable lightbox - You can purchase a small one for about $40 at Blick Art Materials. 
 Also a peg bar (a must if you are doing drawn animation on paper)- purchase at the DePaul bookstore.
And now the fine print:
EMAIL: I will do my best to answer email within 24-?‐hours, often sooner. Emailing your professor is a great opportunity to practice professionalism. Please consider this when you email me with questions and concerns. I expect correspondence to be as professional as possible, even if you are writing me from your smart phone.
CELL PHONE POLICY: Use of cell phones in the classroom and the lab is prohibited. Please turn your phone off before entering class. Mistakes will happen, but repeated failure to turn your phone off will result in a lowered grade for the class. No texting is allowed during class. If I have to ask you to stop texting more than once, there will be a full letter grade taken off your final grade.

CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR: If I feel that your behavior is interfering with the professionalism of our classroom (disruption, talking, napping, texting, etc.), I will adhere to the following 3-?‐step protocol: warning email and personal meeting, meeting with advisor or Student Advising, action taken to remove you from the class.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Work done for this course must adhere to the DePaul University Academic Integrity Policy, which you can review in the Student Handbook or by visiting:

http://studentaffairs.depaul.edu/homehandbook.html

LEARNING DISABILITIES: Students who feel they may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately to discuss their specific needs. All discussions will remain confidential. To ensure that you receive the most appropriate reasonable accommodation based on your needs, contact me as early as possible in the quarter (preferably within the first week of class), and make sure that you have contacted the following offices:

PLuS Program (for LD, AD/HD) 773-?‐325-?‐1677, Student Center #370
The Office for Students with Disabilities 773-?‐325-?‐1677, Student Center #370

The Grading Breakdown in percentages:
1. Sketchbook (25 full pages, min. You must post documentation of this) 5
2. Quizzes on screening and or reading material (2 @ 5 points each) 10
3. 2D Clay Stop-Motion 10
4. Drawn Morph Animation (Flash) 10
5. Drawn Cycle in Flash 10
6. Sketchbook Animation (technique of your choice) 10
7. Bouncing ball and/or pendulum (After Effects) 10
8. Collaged Photoshop Character 5
9. After Effects Animation (walk/interaction) 10
10. Storyboards for final (must be in PPT) 5
11. Final Project ? Theme is TBA 15
Total: 100



And now?The Not-So-Fine-Print

Grading and Expectations: Students are expected to come to class each week prepared to work and animate in class. You should also be prepared for any in-class discussions.
A indicates excellence, student has worked exceptionally hard and has developed on both a technical and conceptual level. Approaches work with enthusiasm and dedication.
B indicates above average work - Students conceptual approach or skills have improved. Effort is evident. Student has a genuine interest in their work. Needs some improvement either technically or conceptually.
C indicates satisfactory work. Basic requirements have all been met. Work needs improvement in two or more areas. May need to improve attitude, working methods, punctuality, or ability to plan work.

D work is unsatisfactory in some respect, key concepts are not understood or assignments are missing. Frequent tardiness may be a problem.

F is substantially unsatisfactory work, frequent tardiness, or failure to show up.
*Late Assignments are automatically marked down an extra point for every day they are late. I will accept assignments no later than two weeks after the due date, after which no credit will be given for the assignment. Failure of technology is not an excuse for late work. Back up your work.

Attendance: Chronic lateness and absence will be reflected in your final grade. I am not a stickler for being right on time, every time, I understand that delays happen, but if you frequently walk in more than 10 minutes late and miss part of a lecture you'll hear about it. If you know that you're going to be late for whatever reason you can always email me, but this does not excuse you from being late. Please note that I always take attendance, even when it looks like I haven't.

3 tardies = one absence
3 absences = an F for the course
In order to assure you are keeping up with the reading and screening assignments I may occasionally give unannounced quizzes.


ANI 201 SCHEDULE ? Winter 2016 Subject to change- always check back for updates 

__________________________WEEK TWO________________________
Mon. 1/11
Intro to drawn animation in Flash. Basic concepts that apply to all media. More stop-motion techniques.
Wed. 1/13
View Morphs so far, work in class. Animating cycles in Flash ? using guide layers. More Stop-Motion demos/ film screening this as time allows.
Assignment: Drawn Morph Animation due at the beginning of week 3. Must be fully art-worked and exported to Quicktime, post to D2L.
Read: Chapter 10, A Survey of Stop-Motion Techniques ? The Animation Bible, also pg. 278 - 279 for demo on flat puppets

__________________________WEEK THREE________________________
Mon. 1/18 - Morph assignment due today ? View and critique
Wed. 1/20 - 2D Stop-Motion assignment due today? View and critique
Anticipation, timing, and recovery. Work on cycles in class. Using reference images, basic perspective.
Assignment: Flash Cycle Due Monday, Wk. 4 ? Export to Quicktime and post on D2L
Reading: Chapters 6 and 7, Direct Filmmaking - The Animation Bible

__________________________WEEK FOUR________________________
Mon. 1/25 and Wed. 1/27
View cycles and critique. Intro to alternate materials and techniques, particle animation, found images, direct animation, hybrid techniques.
Assignment: ?Sketchbook Assignment? ? 10 sec. animation based on IRL observation that you?ve documented in your sketchbook, using the material of your choice.
Screen: Richard Williams (see link on COLweb), Parts 4 ? 6
Read: Chapter 8, Mixed Media and Drawing ? The Animation Bible

__________________________WEEK FIVE________________________
Mon. 2/1 -Lab time to animate ? individual meetings.
Wed. 2/3 -View works in progress ? putting it all together.
Assignments: Complete ?sketchbook animation? for Monday and post to D2L. Please make sure your name is on the file, i.e. LBarcy_SketchbookAni.mov

__________________________WEEK SIX________________________
Mon. 2/8
Critique Sketchbook Animation assignments. Intro to After Effects and the Bouncing Ball and Pendulum assignment.
Read: Chapter 11, Animation in Real World Contexts - the Animation Bible
Assignment: Complete first pass at the ball bounce/pendulum for Wednesday. Export to Quicktime and post for Wednesday.
Wed. ? 2/10 View bounces in progress. Adding squash and stretch effects.
Assignment: Finish bouncing ball w/ squash and stretch ? Export to Quicktime. Due Monday
__________________________WEEK SEVEN________________________
Mon. 2/15
View Bouncing ball assignments and critique.
Intro to creating digital puppets in Photoshop, for use in After Effects. Things to consider when designing a character.
Assignment: For this Wednesday, create a collaged character in Photoshop.

Wed. 2/17
View first attempt at puppets. Demo on walks. After Effects demo on parenting and creating a walk with lower extremities. Null objects. Walk key guides, how to avoid ?skating?.
Assignment: Make any necessary revisions to your character. Import your character into After Effects and ?parent? it. Have the walk (legs only) finished for Wednesday of next week. Your character must take at least 4 steps.
Over exaggerate! Break joints, have the character interact with an object.
Read and View: The Animator's Survival Kit, (book) pp. 102-122 (video) parts 5 and 6. All about walks.

__________________________WEEK EIGHT________________________
Mon. 2/22
Continue with walk animation and complete for Wednesday. Film screening of the day.
Assignment: Finish first attempt at walks, export to Quicktime, and upload to D2L for Wed.
Wed. 2/24
1st complete Jointed walk due. Revise walk and add an arm swing. Bring in that prop I mentioned earlier and have your character interact with it. Export and post on D2L for Monday.
Visual story development through storyboarding. Developing original ideas for your final. Mining your sketchbook and personal life for stories. Making an animatic. The Cyclical Narrative.
Assignments: Begin final Boards. 10-12 panels. Please note that the storyboard is considered a part of your final project grade and is required. 1st draft due this Wed. These should be well thought out boards, not something hastily scrawled in your lined notebook 5 minutes before class. Ill-conceived, illegible, or no storyboards is an automatic 5 point deduction from the final grade. Storyboard draft due this Monday. Consider ?story? in the loosest possible sense ? don?t let the rules of linear narrative constrict your creative process. Put each image in an individual slide in PPT and post to D2L.
FINAL CRITIQUE ? March 14, 2016, from 2:30 PM to 4:45 PM

Read: Chapters 4 and 5 (on pre and post production) in The Animation Bible How does this affect your approach to your final? What advice do you think applies to your project?


_________________________WEEK NINE_________________________
Monday 2/29
Wed. 3/2
First draft of storyboards for Final Project due. In class critique - respond to each other?s boards and give constructive feedback. Be prepared to make revisions if needed. Come prepared to work on final in class next week. Begin Animating!
Wed. Revised storyboard due. Begin final animation. Discuss planning, workflow. In the next two weeks you should come to class prepared to work. We will have more of a studio environment and I will be addressing technical issues as they arise. Regular attendance is expected.
Read: Chapters 12 and 13, Computer Animation and Digital Visions -The Animation Bible

_________________________WEEK TEN_________________________
Mon. 3/7 and Wed. 3/9
Continue working of final animation - individual meetings. Bringing your work into Premiere, editing and exporting it. Strategies for adding sound (optional).
The Class Vimeo Page.
- Last official class before finals are due.
Due next week ? No one is still animating or rendering or exporting. No exceptions ? if you?re hard drive crashes and you didn?t back up your work it is not an excuse for not having work completed on time.
Post all sketchbook documentation on D2L IN PPT or hand in actual book (It will be returned.)

FINAL CRITIQUE ? March 14, 2016, from 2:30 PM to 4:45 PM

ATTENDANCE MANDATORY ? DO NOT BE LATE - NO LATE PROJECTS ACCEPTED. Everyone?s final is finished and uploaded (and not still in the queue) to our Vimeo page. View finished projects -give praise or constructive criticism, party down. Have a good break!








School policies:

Changes to Syllabus

This syllabus is subject to change as necessary during the quarter. If a change occurs, it will be thoroughly addressed during class, posted under Announcements in D2L and sent via email.

Online Course Evaluations

Evaluations are a way for students to provide valuable feedback regarding their instructor and the course. Detailed feedback will enable the instructor to continuously tailor teaching methods and course content to meet the learning goals of the course and the academic needs of the students. They are a requirement of the course and are key to continue to provide you with the highest quality of teaching. The evaluations are anonymous; the instructor and administration do not track who entered what responses. A program is used to check if the student completed the evaluations, but the evaluation is completely separate from the student’s identity. Since 100% participation is our goal, students are sent periodic reminders over three weeks. Students do not receive reminders once they complete the evaluation. Students complete the evaluation online in CampusConnect.

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism

This course will be subject to the university's academic integrity policy. More information can be found at http://academicintegrity.depaul.edu/ If you have any questions be sure to consult with your professor.

All students are expected to abide by the University's Academic Integrity Policy which prohibits cheating and other misconduct in student coursework. Publicly sharing or posting online any prior or current materials from this course (including exam questions or answers), is considered to be providing unauthorized assistance prohibited by the policy. Both students who share/post and students who access or use such materials are considered to be cheating under the Policy and will be subject to sanctions for violations of Academic Integrity.

Academic Policies

All students are required to manage their class schedules each term in accordance with the deadlines for enrolling and withdrawing as indicated in the University Academic Calendar. Information on enrollment, withdrawal, grading and incompletes can be found at http://www.cdm.depaul.edu/Current%20Students/Pages/PoliciesandProcedures.aspx.

Students with Disabilities

Students who feel they may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact the instructor privately to discuss their specific needs. All discussions will remain confidential.
To ensure that you receive the most appropriate accommodation based on your needs, contact the instructor as early as possible in the quarter (preferably within the first week of class), and make sure that you have contacted the Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD) at:
Lewis Center 1420, 25 East Jackson Blvd.
Phone number: (312)362-8002
Fax: (312)362-6544
TTY: (773)325.7296