Animation Domination

[Gowienczyk]

Is it good?

Yes.

[HeyRiles]

Somethin' like, his whole class gets murdered by a stranger and he gets blamed for it so he's put in a prison where they fight for their freedom and he finds out that now he can wield his spilled blood as a weapon and he tries to solve the mystery of who ruined his life, or something to that effect

I'll watch it dubbed as it shows up, I guess

[HeyRiles]

Toonami happened, Deadman Wonderland appears to be the bee's knees. Looking forward to more

[FlyGuyLXI]

Question for those who know the technical aspects. Is anime traditionally drawn? Or are there special computer programs that are used in the process that aren't available commercially or internationally?

[GNFfhqwhgads]

Question for those who know the technical aspects. Is anime traditionally drawn? Or are there special computer programs that are used in the process that aren't available commercially or internationally?

Either. Anime's more a style than a method.

[Bulzeeb]

I like the new Toonami intro:

"Tom's back bi*****."

[abynormal]

Question for those who know the technical aspects. Is anime traditionally drawn? Or are there special computer programs that are used in the process that aren't available commercially or internationally?

I can answer this! (had girlfriend who studied this stuff)

In the past, everything was done by hand. Pencils, inks and colors. Pretty much any anime made before 1996 or so has a certain "hand-drawn" look to it; a bit rough looking but not cheap by any means.

Around the mid-90s they started using computers to speed up and smooth out the animation process. Generally the frames are pencilled by hand like normal, but all of the inking and coloring is now done by computer. Digimon Adventure was one of the first major anime to make this shift. Most anime made since then have a much cleaner look since computers allow a much more consistent level of quality (although this means a lot of them tend to look pretty similar). Even Studio Ghibli threw out all their ink and paint and trained their artists to use computers.

What software they use I can't say, but given how many anime studios there are there has got to at least be a commercial program available.

[FlyGuyLXI]

I can answer this! (had girlfriend who studied this stuff)

In the past, everything was done by hand. Pencils, inks and colors. Pretty much any anime made before 1996 or so has a certain "hand-drawn" look to it; a bit rough looking but not cheap by any means.

Around the mid-90s they started using computers to speed up and smooth out the animation process. Generally the frames are pencilled by hand like normal, but all of the inking and coloring is now done by computer. Digimon Adventure was one of the first major anime to make this shift. Most anime made since then have a much cleaner look since computers allow a much more consistent level of quality (although this means a lot of them tend to look pretty similar). Even Studio Ghibli threw out all their ink and paint and trained their artists to use computers.

What software they use I can't say, but given how many anime studios there are there has got to at least be a commercial program available.

All good to know. Thanks for the answer.

[CJHobbes]

What software they use I can't say, but given how many anime studios there are there has got to at least be a commercial program available.

I'm 99.99999999% sure the software is commercially available. The only thing that wouldn't be is the proprietary plug-ins that studios develop for their own custom workflow. Software like Toon Boom, Retas Pro and Anime Studio can all be purchased by anyone. Along with various other freeware/open source software packages that are available. (I have no clue how good they are, just know that they're out there)

Also, some 2D shows are even done with 3D programs. I believe South Park uses Maya to create their episodes.

Though let me end with this: Drawing talent is still needed. These programs are merely tools for an efficient production workflow. These artists still hand draw all their frames, whether it be pencil/scanning or through a Wacom. When you get down to the bottom of things, if you're a good animator the program doesn't matter. It all still comes down to skill, dedication, and hard work.

Edit: Also, as GNF said, anime is more style than method. It's all produced (fairly) the same way, whether it be western or eastern animation.

Edit 2: Here's a good example of the life of a 2D animator: Video.

[Gowienczyk]

It looks like that Cartoon Network is ending both Young Justice and Green Lantern; trivializing the DCnation concept and alienating a lot of their community. Makes me wish I was a Nielsen fellow, so I could make my frustration heard.