Classical Animation – Ball Bounce

Ball Bounce Instructions In the hierarchy of animation, first you do the key drawings, next the breakdowns, and finally any further inbetween drawings needed to smooth out the action.

• Most objects, characters, etc. move in ARCS and NOT in straight lines.

• If something moves slowly, the tick marks are close together; if it moves quickly, the marks are further apart.

• Whether you squash or stretch, a drawing ALWAYS keeps the volumes consistent from shape to shape.

• Always TRANSITION the round drawing into the stretched drawing.

• If there is no transition from stretch to squash to stretch, this gives snap to the ball’s bounce.

As is the case with most animation, our path of action is made up of ARCS.

1. Place the laminated Path of Action template on the pegs.

2. Place one of your hole-punched sheets on top of the template.

3. LIGHTLY Trace the Path of Action, Horizon Line and tick marks to your paper.

4. This will be the “guide” your ball will follow.

TIP: Most objects, characters, etc. move in ARCS and NOT in straight lines.

Step 1 – Line of Action

Tips

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Classical Animation – Ball Bounce

Next you will plan the TIMING of the ball along the path of action. Slow-In = build momentum Slow-Out = reduces momentum

1. Fill in the missing tick marks on the same hole-punched paper from Step 1 to match the image on the right.

2. Each tick mark represents where the center of your ball will be.

Next, you’ll "rough" in the KEY drawings. (#1, #7, #13) Key drawings (or key poses) are at the beginning and at the end, and wherever the character, object, etc. changes direction. Drawing #7 is where the ball makes contact, or impacts with the ground. #7 is the "squash" drawing, i.e., where we show the illusion of weight or impact of the object.

Step 2 – Plan Timing

Step 3 – KEY Drawings

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Classical Animation – Ball Bounce

The illusion of weight is very important. To maintain the integrity of the ball, be sure to maintain the same volume in drawing #7, even though it is "squashed".

1. Remove the laminated Path of Action template from your pegs.

2. Put the guide you created with all 13 tick marks on the pegs. This is your line of action with the correct timing for each of the frames you are about to draw.

3. Place a blank sheet on top of your guide sheet. (The guide sheet will stay on the lightbox for each frame you draw. Each frame is drawn on a separate sheet of paper.

4. Trace a ball shape so that the center of your ball is the same as the first tick mark. There is NO distortion yet.

5. Draw a 1 in a circle in the bottom right. This is frame 1.

6. Take frame 1 off and replace is with a blank sheet.

7. Draw your squashed ball at the 7th tick mark. Once again, use the tick mark as the center of your ball. IMPORTANT! Keep the same volume as the ball you drew in frame 1.

8. Draw a 7 in a circle in the bottom right. This is frame 7

9. Repeat steps 3-5 to draw the final KEY frame at tick mark #13. Remember to put a number 13 in a circle in the bottom right as you did in frame 1 and frame 7.

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Classical Animation – Ball Bounce

Next, you’ll add the breakdown drawings (#6 and #8).

"Breakdowns" are really inbetween drawings which help describe the action. These drawings (known as "inbetweens" or "tweens") are the drawings between the key drawings.

The breakdowns for the bouncing ball show the illusion of speed. These are the "stretch" drawings.

TIP: Notice that the ball goes from stretch directly to squash and back to stretch (# 6, #7, #8) with no "transition drawings". This gives snap to the ball's bounce.

1. Place a new blank sheet on your guide and draw frame #6. Draw a number 6 in a circle in the bottom right.

2. Frame 6 and 8’s shape shows the speed at which the ball is traveling by stretching the

volume. Frame 6 and Frame 8 are the same shape, but different angles. One is on the way down and the other is on the way up.

3. Frame 6 and 8 are roughly the same shape as frame 7, but turned vertical. (Yes you may copy it.)

Step 4 - Inbetweens

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Classical Animation – Ball Bounce

1. Finally, draw in the rest of the inbetweens - #2 to #5; and #9 to #12.

2. Notice that as the ball falls, the shape

"transitions" from a round ball to more and more of an elliptical or stretched shape.

3. As the ball bounces upward, the

shape transitions from an elliptical shape back to a round shape.

You will now use the Scanning and Importing into Flash Instructions.

Step 5 – Draw in the Rest of the Inbetweens

What is next?

Last Edited 8/4/2014