ANI 201 Animation I
Summary
ANI 201 –Animation 1 For Majors – Fall 2019
Class Time: 10:10 – 11:40, M, W Room 527
Instructor: Lisa Barcy
Office: CDM rm. 502
Office Hours: Mon., Wed., 11:45 – 12:45, 3pm – 4pm, Fridays by appointment (best to email me first.)
Contact: 312-362-5982
Email: lbarcy@cdm.depaul.edu
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, often done on campus.
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.
Textbooks and Materials:
Required: The Animators Survival Kit by Richard Williams?
What You Need To Bring To Class Each Day:
-Your assignments in progress – failure to bring anything to work on each day will result in no credit for the day
-Your finished assignments posted on time to D2L before or on the due date.
-A flash drive or external drive for backing up your work, I suggest 16 GB, min.
-Various art supplies on an as needed basis. (e.g., clay, paper, glue, X-acto knife, etc.)
-A lot of enthusiasm, energy, and the ability to receive constructive feedback.
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. Always check D2L and the syllabus first, before emailing about due dates. I expect correspondence to be as professional as possible, even if you are writing me from your smart phone.
The Grading Breakdown in percentages:
1. Quizzes on screening and or reading material (3 @ 5 points each) 15
2. 2D Clay Stop-Motion 10
3. Drawn Morph Animation (TVPaint) 10
4. Drawn Cycle (TVPaint) 10
5. Alternative Animation Technique 10
6. Collaged Photoshop Character 5
7. After Effects Animation (walk/interaction) 15
- Storyboards for final (must be in PPT) 5
9. Final Project – Theme is TBA 20
Total: 100
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 – Fall 2019 Subject to change- always check back for updates ?
WEEK ONE
Wed. 9.11
Intro to class, animation facilities and resources. Intro to first two assignments – 2D stop-motion and drawn morph. Intro to drawn animation in TVPaint – basic morphs.
Assignments: 15 seconds (360 frames) of 2-dimensional clay animation, shot in 818 on Dragonframe. Due on Wednesday of Week 3.
Morphs Due Wed. of week 2 – You will have class time to work on these.
WEEK TWO
Mon. 9.16
Demo on Dragonframe stop-motion software. Work on morphs in class.
Read: Pages 1-35 of The Animators Survival Kit. Quiz due next Wed.
Wed. 9.18
Morph assignment due today – View and critique. Basic timing concepts that apply to all media. More stop-motion techniques.
WEEK 3
Mon. 9.23
Animating cycles in TVPaint. More Stop-Motion demos/ film screening this as time allows.
Assignment: Stop-Motion due at the beginning of Week 3. Must be exported to MP4, post to D2L. ONLINE QUIZ #1 Due Wed.
Wed. 9.25
Online Quiz #1 due today. 2D Stop-Motion assignment due today– View and critique. Anticipation, timing, and recovery. Work on cycles in class. Using reference images, or video.
Assignment: TVPaint Cycle Due Wednesday, Wk. 4 – Export to MP4 and post on D2L
Reading: The Animator’s Survival Kit – Richard Williams pp. 46 – 79. Quiz #2
WEEK 4
Mon. 9.30
Work on animation cycles in class and complete for Wednesday.
Wed. 10.2
View cycles and critique.
Intro to alternative materials and techniques, particle animation, found objects, found images, direct animation, hybrid techniques.
Assignment: Create a 10 second (min.) animation using one of the alternative techniques discussed in class. Due:
Read: Chapter 10, A Survey of Stop-Motion Techniques – The Animation Bible, also pg. 278 - 279 for demo on flat puppets (handed out in class)
WEEK 5
Mon. 10.7
Lab time to work on alternative technique animation– individual meetings.
Intro to After Effects if time.
Wed. 10.9
Intro to After Effects
Intro to creating digital puppets in Photoshop, for use in After Effects. Things to consider when designing a character.
Assignment: For next Wednesday, begin a silhouetted character/puppet in Photoshop.
ONLINE QUIZ #2 Due today
WEEK 6
Mon. 10.14 – SCHOOL CLOSED FOR HOLIDAY
Wed. 10.16
View Alternative technique animation and critique
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.
Read and View: The Animator's Survival Kit, (book) pp. 102-122 (video) parts 5 and 6. All about walks.
WEEK 7
Mon. 10.21
Finished Photoshop Puppet due.
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. 10.23
1st complete Jointed walk due. Revise walk and add an arm swing and exaggeration/breaking of joints. Export and post on D2L for Monday.
Read: The Animator’s Survival Kit, pp 217 – 245, 258 - 272
WEEK 8
Mon. 10.28
View revisions to walks.
Intro to final project.
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 – Wednesday Nov. 20, 8:30 a.m – 10:45
ATTENDANCE MANDATORY
MAKE YOUR TRAVEL PLANS ACCORDINGLY
Wed. 10.30
First draft of storyboards for Final Project due today. 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.
Revised storyboard due Monday. 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. Begin Animating! Regular attendance for the remainder of the quarter is expected.
ONLINE QUIZ #3 Due tonight!
WEEK 9
Monday 11.4
Revised storyboard due – Must be a PDF, one slide per page. Continue working of final animation - individual meetings.
Wed. 11.6
Continue working of final animation - individual meetings. Bringing your work into Premiere, editing and exporting it.
WEEK 10
Mon. 11.11 and Wed. 11.13
Work on finals, individual meetings to check on progress. Regular attendance is expected.
WEEK 11
11.18
Last official class before finals are due. Work on finals, individual meetings
Due this Wednesday - No one is still animating or rendering or exporting. No exceptions – if you’re hard drive dies and you didn’t back up your work it is not an excuse for not having work completed on time.
FINAL CRITIQUE – Wednesday Nov. 20, 8:30 a.m. – 10:45
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!
College Policies
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.
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: cdm.depaul.edu/enrollment.
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
Emergency Plan. An emergency can occur at any time, suddenly and without warning. Proper planning is essential to minimize the impact of any emergency on the university community, operations and facilities. The following link provides detailed information on Emergency Evacuation and Fire Alarm safety: https://resources.depaul.edu/emergency-plan/emergency-evacuation/Pages/Evacuation.aspx. The University will use the DPU Alert to announce school closing or other emergencies. In the event of an emergency evacuation, the primary outdoor assembly area for CDM will be Grant Park (Southeast corner of Jackson and Michigan Ave).
Preferred Name & Gender Pronouns. Professional courtesy and sensitivity are especially important with respect to individuals and topics dealing with differences of race, culture, religion, politics, sexual orientation, gender, gender variance, and nationalities. I will gladly honor your request to address you by an alternate name or gender pronoun. Please advise me of this preference early in the quarter so that I may make appropriate changes to my records. Please also note that students may choose to identify within the University community with a preferred first name that differs from their legal name and may also update their gender. The preferred first name will appear in University related systems and documents except where the use of the legal name is necessitated or required by University business or legal need. For more information and instructions on how to do so, please see the Student Preferred Name and Gender Policy at http://policies.depaul.edu/policy/policy.aspx?pid=332
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: csd@depaul.edu.
Lewis Center 1420, 25 East Jackson Blvd. Phone number: (312)362-8002
Fax: (312)362-6544
TTY: (773)325.7296
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.
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.
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.
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 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