Don Bluth's Classical Animation
 
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Don Bluth's Animation Academy


THE INBETWEENER


NOW FOR THE INBETWEENER
The starting place for most artists entering the world of animation is the Inbetween Department. This is the group of artists that help the animators and animation assistants complete the action of a scene. It is a very important step in your animation career. It is the department where you will learn the basics of animation.
     An "inbetween" is one of the transition drawings between two "extreme" drawings. The extremes are called the animator's "key" drawings and demonstrate the essence of an animated action. The inbetweens fill in the action between these key drawings (still retaining their essence, yet never distracting from them). You will need to learn to work in a team and learn to imitate the animator's drawings and line quality. This is to reduce "flutter" or "flashing" of the drawings when viewed in continuity on video or projected on film. This is also to avoid any distractions when a ruff scene (a "ruff" is the first take of a scene and includes the rough, or uncleaned line quality, animation and layout) is cut into the film and viewed by an audience.
Timing Chart
     Once a scene has arrived at your desk. REVIEW it thoroughly. Check the hook up scenes on either side of yours so you know what is happening and where it is going. It will come to you bundled in the same cardboards that the animator received it, with the same xsheet. It should have timing charts on all of the extreme drawings and each drawing should have been labeled properly at the bottom. Each of the completed drawings should have it's number marked in lead on the exposure sheet. At the Bluth studios, we usually mark all the drawing numbers on the xsheet in blue pencil. The extreme numbers will be circled and after completion, blackened. Numbers representing incomplete drawings done by the animator or assistant animator will remain in blue until they are completed by the assistant or the inbetweener. This allows an easy count of drawings to be done by the inbetweener, just count the blue numbers on the xsheet. Check to see that all of the animator's and assistant's drawings are included in the packaged scene. There may be special instructions regarding the timing charts or secondary or tertiary actions of clothing, hair or the props involved with the character's action. Review the xsheet, be sure the animator's name is on the cover and on the first page of the xsheet itself. There are spaces for the animator's name, sequence and scene numbers. Be sure these are filled in with the correct information (sometimes, with so many people handling the scene, the xsheet comes apart or it gets separated from the scene, labeling everything allows us to put things back together easily).
     Confirm with the animator whether the scene is on "two's" (described above), or if there are actions that require "one's" (a drawing for every frame. This may be necessary for camera pans so the character won't flutter against the background). Once you thoroughly understand the purpose of the scene and have reviewed the work to be done with the animator (or assistant), proceed with the inbetween process. Start with the completion of any unfinished breakdown drawings. Most "Original Ruff" (or "O.R.", the more common expression for "ruff") scenes are drawn in blue. You should match your drawings with the extremes and breakdowns of the animator and the assistant. This includes using the same make and model of the blue pencil that they used. Be sure that the animation paper is from the same source as the rest of the team. These drawings will be seen in the first ruff continuity of the movie by the director, producer and many studio executives, including the studio's licensing agents and promotional partners. It is important to make each scene look as good as possible, even for the first ruff test.
TEN SIMPLE STEPS TO A GOOD INBETWEEN
  1. Look at the timing charts.
  2. Roll the extremes and plot the arcs.
  3. Turn on the backlight and put the drawings in flipping order.
  4. Now following the arcs and charts, build your foundation by drawing the shapes and the shapes between the lines.
  5. Turn off the backlight.
  6. Flip the drawings and build a solid 3 dimensional drawing on your foundation.
  7. Put the drawings in rolling order and recheck the inbetween.
  8. Turn on the backlight.
  9. Shift the drawings off the pegs to check volumes and inbetween details.
  10. Fix the final problems, using both the light and flipping.
As you will see, inbetweening is a logical process, and by following these simple steps your inbetweens should take less time, be more accurate, and be well drawn. For a more detailed look at each of these, read on.

1. CHECKING THE TIMING CHARTS
The timing chart is a guideline as to how to place your inbetweens. It is usually located in the upper right-hand corner of the extreme drawings, and in many cases there will be separate charts for different parts of the same drawing. Some animators also vary the location and style of the charts, but generally they fall into the following categories:


1/2 1/3 1/4 1/3 Favor 1/2 and 1/4
  • 1/2: drawing 3 is halfway between 1 & 5.
  • 1/3's: 3 is one-third between 1 & 7, drawing 5 is halfway.
  • 1/4's: 5 is halfway between drawings 1 & 9
               3 is halfway between 1 & 5 and 7 is halfway between 5 & 9.
  • 1/3 Favor: 3 is one-third between 1 & 5, favoring drawing 1.
  • 1/2 & 1/4: drawing 3 is halfway between 1 & 7, drawing 5 is halfway between 3 & 7.
Some Animators also call for inbetweens favoring extremes. In these cases you have to use your own judgement, based on how the chart looks, as to where to put your inbetween. But when the timing chart calls for a specific timing (i.e., halfway between the two extremes), there is only one place it can be exactly where the animator called for it. If the inbetween doesn't follow the charts, it is wrong.
2. ROLLING THE DRAWINGS TO PLOT THE ARCS
(and a few notes on "follow-thru", "drag" and "overlap")

This is the most important part of doing your inbetween. It is called FINDING AND FOLLOWING THE ARCS. The movements of most living and inanimate things follow circular paths of action called ARCS. For example, the action of a hand gesture follows a circular path. The Animator charts the positions of his drawings along this arc. He makes his key drawings, indicating where the inbetweens should be placed to keep the line of action on this curved path. Inbetweens done without following the arcs change the action radically, usually, resulting in jerky and stilted animation.
Inbetween Position Chart

     If the animator hasn't indicated the arcs you must find them yourself. To find the arcs, place the extremes you are inbetweening, plus the preceding and following extremes, in sequence on the pegs. (In our example drawings 1, 3, 7 and 9.)

Now, by rolling the drawings in sequence, the arcs in the action become evident. Note all of these circular paths by making light indications on the keys, or on your inbetween, in blue pencil.

OVERLAP, FOLLOW-THRU, AND DRAG
While rolling the drawings, you should watch for places where the above animation principles are being employed, and be sure that your inbetween doesn't stiffen the action.
overlap
To find overlap, follow-thru, and drag, determine the primary action. Anything attatched (if flexible) will have an overlapping action. For instance, a foot does not just inbetween when leaving the ground. The ankle (primary action) leads while the toes complete their action, then follow-thru.
In other words, appendages DRAG until the primary action changes direction. When their secondary action is spent, they overlap, follow-thru, and drag.

Drag
Drag
For example, to keep things like hair, coattails, and dress hems soft and flexible, they must drag slightly at the beginning of, or during, a move. And they must overlap at the end of a move or at a change of direction.
Fast Wag

This principle for changing direction can be applied to anything flexible. Connection to the primary action (A) changes direction first, followed by the middle section (B). The tip, depending on the length and flexibility continues on its course of action until interrupted by the pull of the main body (A & B). (Hint: Study the action of hair, ears, falls, etc., with a strip of thin paper).

Following the Animator's ruffs on all drags will contribute to loose animation.

3. TURN ON THE BACKLIGHT AND PUT THE DRAWINGS IN FLIPPING ORDER
Place the drawings on the pegs in the following order:
  • First extreme
  • Last extreme
  • On top, your inbetween
Turn on the backlight (the flourescent light behind the animation disk).
4. BUILD THE FOUNDATION OF YOUR INBETWEEN
Using the light, plot the position of the shapes and lines between the two keys. Make sure that you are following the arcs and are placing the shapes in the charted position. Finish drawing this skeleton for your inbetween by accurately placing the shapes between the shapes and the lines between the lines.
5. TURN OFF THE BACKLIGHT
6. FLIP THE DRAWINGS TO CHECK THE INBETWEEN
Grasp the drawings in the following manner:
Flip drawings to check inbetween
Flip the drawings as indicated and you should be able to see the action. This is called FLIPPING. Now flip the drawings. Does the inbetween work smoothly? Are there any lines missing? Do any of the lines jiggle or get shorter or longer? Is anything out of arc? Fix these problems.
BUILD A SOLID 3-DIMENSIONAL DRAWING ON YOUR FOUNDATION
You must now make sure your inbetween works as a 3-Dimensional drawing. Flipping all the while, check to ensure that details such as eyes are drawn in perspective and are firmly anchored to the main masses. Check to see if things such as legs and arms look solid rather than flat, that the lines wrap around the forms. Think of the drawing as a real object and try to imagine the unseen side of the form. Sculpt as you draw. Solid 3-D drawing

Look closely at the extremes as you flip and see the way the forms are described. Try to match the animator's drawing, and, most of all, try to capture that fleeting essence that will give life to your drawing.

If your drawing looks flat or warped, it is probably because it hasn't been inbetweened 3-dimensionally. This can be overcome by building your inbetween using basic shapes such as cubes, balls, and cylinders. After laying in the basic forms it is a simple matter to add the details. It is extremely important to construct your inbetween or the animated shapes will look like they are made of JELL-O®, and details will float instead of being anchored to the main masses.


This kind of problem is illustrated below in some sketches from THE ILLUSION OF LIFE:
Solid 3-D Drawing

The straight inbetween will look like this with the nose and cheeks mashed in.

In plan at left, inbetween 2 is halfway between 1 & 3.

Drawing 2 is now placed in space halfway between 1 & 3, with some of the far cheek showing and the nose where it ought to be on the head.



USING BASIC SHAPES AS AN AID IN DIFFICULT DRAWINGS
There is no substitute for good drawing, and the logical approach is to rely on basic shapes to get that good drawing. Most of the problems that come up are when a character, or a piece of that character, moves far enough so it can't be inbetweened (lines between lines) and it has to actually be drawn. All of a sudden, here's a hand that has to be drawn - FROM SCRATCH! No model! You think no hand, ear or tail ever got into that position before. The extremes were easy to draw, but the inbetweens are impossible. Using Basic Shapes
7. ROLLING AND CHECKING THE INBETWEEN
Now that you've got a good drawing that seems to inbetween properly, put the drawings in rolling order. Roll through the drawings and re-check the inbetween for all the things we have been talking about; drawings out of arc, jittering and crawling lines, changing volumes, floating details and any other inbetweening problems.
8. TURN ON THE BACKLIGHT
9. SHIFT THE DRAWINGS OFF THE PEGS TO CHECK VOLUMES AND INBETWEEN DETAILS
10. DO A FINAL CHECK OF THE INBETWEEN
Roll through and flip the drawings to do a final check of the inbetween. Fix the problems of there are any.

NOTE: Pay special attention to the inbetweening of eyes. Make sure the distance between the eye, the eyebrow, and the color separation inbetweens properly. Also keep the eyelid from wobbling or changing angle during blinks. This can be done easily, as explained earlier, by shifting the drawings off the pegs and checking the spacing and angle of the inbetween. Check the Eyes!

START THE NEXT INBETWEEN
After every five or six inbetweens, take your drawings to your Supervisor or the Animator to be checked. Also, if you get stuck on a drawing problem, ask for help. Someone experienced can usually solve your problem quickly.

By using these methods, you'll discover how simple inbetweening is. You'll easily get up to a speed of sixteen or more inbetweens every day. So let's get inbetweening. We have a fillms to make!