Which books about animation are the best? You admire animators and the animation medium, but you don't know where to start when it comes to learning more about the creative world.
From straightforward doodles to extremely intricate views, these books cover it all. You'll pick up tips from the pros if you choose to read any of these ten best animation books to aid you in your artistic animation endeavors.
Award-winning animator Richard Williams will teach you the ropes of being a successful animator. Williams's work on the beloved Who Framed Roger Rabbit movie is what made him most famous. Along with other well-known projects like the Pink Panther animations, he also directed the protracted and challenging The Thief and the Cobbler.
A better advisor than Richard Williams could not possibly exist. Published in 2001, the book is considered a must-have for any budding animator since it includes strategies, tactics, and procedures that Williams has employed—and still employs. Anybody interested in becoming an animator should read this book.
Although it was published in 1994, Preston Blair's guide is still a very helpful resource for aspiring animators. Other than Animators Survival Kit, this book about animation might be the finest.
Animating classic scenes from Fantasia, such as The Sorcerer's Apprentice and the Dance of the Hours, Bambi, and Pinocchio, was Preston Blair's job at Disney and MGM.
He worked in the Golden Age of animation from the 1930s through the 1970s. During these pivotal decades, some of our best works of art—including those including Blair's animation—were produced. In the book, Blair describes his own method of cartoon animation.
The man who brought us Droopy Dog and the Flintstones is willing to teach you tricks. Blair passed away a year after the book was published.
The 2017 book on animation by Ed Hooks provides step-by-step instructions for animating as well as highlighting the significance of intention and emotion in the process, which ultimately leads to the desired outcome.
Because it pushes you to consider your animation more carefully than just putting it on paper, this animation textbook is quite beneficial. What drives your character to act in a particular way? Each of these important issues is covered in this animated book.
We like how the focus is on the "little things," such as a character's movement and facial emotions, which give the character a unique personality rather than rendering it flat.
Buckle up, because you’re going to learn from the masters. Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston were two of Disney's "Nine Old Men," the original core of Disney animators that created some of the most well-known Disney characters and movies. Thomas and Johnston were responsible for the animation of Bambi, Pinocchio, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. In 1981, while both men were working on The Fox and the Hound, this novel was published. In this animation book, Thomas and Johnston demonstrate how they built Walt Disney Studios into not only a major animation studio but also the industry standard.
The 12 laws of animation, which they created, emphasized how crucial it is for characters to be authentic and true to who they are as animated works.
In 1981, Timing for Animation and Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston's Illusion of Life were both published. It instructs animators on how to arrange their animations correctly. Just as the title implies, timing is everything. Adding enough space to your animation with "stretch and squash," drawing length, and other fantastic techniques.
Two well-known animators were Harold Whitaker and John Halas. The "Halas and Bachelor" animation studio was established in the UK by John Halas and his spouse Joy Batchelor. There, they worked on several animated films.
They worked together on movies including Harold Whitaker's strange musical Heavy Metal (1981) and the 1954 adaptation of George Orwell's Animal Farm, which was England's first animated feature picture.