Greg’s Animation Papers (The Dreaded Question)
We often get questions over at the AnimationForum regarding what software is BEST. These type of questions make me chuckle inside for the obvious reasons, it’s not about the software but about the animator. But then once in a blue moon I catch a glimpse of my former self and realize I too had this question years ago. I wanted to start on the right path, no bullshitting around.
As with most things in life, our perception changes with knowledge. The more you know, the less you care about how little you knew and how silly you were for knowing that little. Thus it’s always good to realize that it’s only because of that silliness that you got this far. I’m writing this post because of this reason alone. (Plus the next time I get asked this question I can just link them here and carry on with my daily routine)
Ok, we often start with 2D vs 3D , as an animator you will need to learn both. It’s that simple, a lot of times we use 2D for pencil tests that we later use to produce 3D animations. So learning both can only help you and goes hand in hand. If you are not a great artist, you will most likely have a easier time with 3D since you will be using Character Rigs and won’t have to worry about drawing each frame. But on the other hand you will have to worry about every frame in the timeline and making sure the animation is smooth. 3D is very time consuming because of the control you have, often finding yourself tweaking things not really visible to others. It really is easy to get lost in ones goal of perfection. Imagine spending days working on a shot only to have it require a major change that deems all your previous work worthless. Patience and a strong heart are a plus, cause things can get stressful real quick.
With the warning out of the way, I guess we’ll be starting with 2D. I will be speaking my mind and writing things down as they occur to me, starting with Flash.
(Remember: These are my personal opinions and it’s totally cool if you don’t agree with them)
Flash was the first animation software I tried, and because of that I will forever be fond of it. It opened up a new era of animation on the web. It required about a week or so learning curve which wasn’t that bad. If you commit to Flash for 10 days or so , you will feel completely comfortable with it. It has all the tools an animator needs, but it’s designed with a broader range in mind. It’s not only an animation tool but also a pretty good scripting engine and multimedia tool. The open range is not always a good thing and often distracts the animator. I myself learned a lot about game programming from learning flash when I should have been animating. So it’s easy to stray from the path. Also Flash has been releasing new versions every year but little has changed in the animation system. I hear there are now bone systems for cut out animation but overall it’s still the same vector based system. Vector meaning that the linework and colors you apply will be converted using a mathematical formula. That’s why a lot of Flash stuff has that similar flat look to it. You can zoom in without any pixelation but that really does limit us when it comes to animation. With that said, you can make animation created with flash look amazing, but it may require more work then with some of following programs.
Toonboom (TB) – TB is similar to Flash , but it’s designed specifically for the animator. Many feature cartoons are created with it’s top of the line programs such as Harmony, but forget about getting your hands on that. Available to the public is their TB Studio and TB Animate Pro. While the software is terrific at what it does, it still is Vector based at heart. Thus you still have that Flash look to your work. That’s my only con though, it has a 3D camera system and is fairly customizable. You can get TB to work the way you want , where as with Flash you have to work the way Flash works. If I had to choose between Flash and TB, I would go TB.
Plastic Animation Paper (PAP) – PAP has got to be one of my favorite apps to sketch in. While it’s missing a lot of features that would make it a full fledged animation package, it makes up for as a pencil test tool. It has a great lightbox but there is no painting, just linework (At least in the versions I had a chance to work in) Plus there currently is no updated Mac version L Their free version should be installed on your PC as it’s a great way to put down your initial ideas to see if they work.
Pencil – Pencil is a free tool for the PC, Mac, and Linux. Unlike TB and Flash, it supports bitmap layers as well as Vector layers. Meaning that you get what you draw with no computation. Pencil has a great potential and has a pretty kick ass user interface, but I found it to have a lot of bugs in it’s current build (Mac version, can’t speak for PC). Weird things such as warped movie exports, to artifacts of deleted layers showing up on the viewport. I really hope the issues get resolved since this has so much potential. Fantastic tool if it was reliable.
Anime Studio Pro – Can’t say much on this one since I have never used it, definitely Vector based.
Digicel Flipbook – Flipbook is pretty great but does have a steep learning curve in terms of style. It’s not vector based which is a plus, but its paint tools are a bit weird. Princes and the Frog was created using Flipbook so if Disney is using it you know it’s a powerful package. Like I said, it does take some getting used to and relies heavily on clean line work. It treats your frames as traditional cels. You don’t need two layers for line and fill, it’ll treat each one separately even on the same layer. I use it a lot for pencil tests but have yet created a full scene in it because my sketch lines are not clean enough.
TVP Animation (TVP) – As weird as this one may look the first time you open it, it is the most powerful in my opinion. This thing is on the level of Photoshop when it comes to it’s bitmap capabilities. If you want that painterly style this is it folks. Although it may look intimidating at first sight, it has a pretty easy learning curve and lets you do what ever you want to do. Not sure if you remember Mirage, but this is what Mirage eventually turned into. My personal recommendation for 2D would have to be with TVP. I just haven’t found any cons yet.
Ok that’s it for 2D , next will dive into 3D packages, this section should be shorter since I only worked with 3 of them so far. But in a way it’s like riding a bike when it comes to 3D. Once you know one , you kinda know them all.
Studio 3D Max – I started out in max years ago and learned a lot from it. I would recommend Max if you are interested in getting into the Video Game industry as a lot of companies use it’s built in biped system (formerly Character Studio) I personally now have a love hate relationship with it. I hate it when compared with Maya, but when I do get stuck using it I find things in it I wish were available in Maya.
Cinema 4D Studio – For some reason C4D is used a lot in commercials and news, not sure why but that’s the trend I noticed. I have nothing bad to say about it. Cinema was the first 3D app to introduce bodypaint , which was the alternative to a 3D photoshop. Allowing you to paint textures directly onto your models inside the program. It was and is pretty bad ass till today. I eventually sold my copy because at the time I wasn’t experienced enough to use it to it’s full potential.
Maya – Ohh Maya my favorite. What can I say, me and Maya are a match. I just like the way it works and how customizable it is. Every property is open to you if you know where to look for it. I have been using it for over 3 years now and I still know less then 20 percent of it. I feel I will be learning it for years to come.
