The Animator's Survival Kit: A Working Manual of Methods, Principles and Formulas for Computer, Stop-motion, Games and Classical Animators (Applied Arts) [Paperback]

I was fortunate enough to attend one of Richard Williams 3 day seminars in the art of animation a few years ago. Reading this book reminds me of those 3 packed days of Richards non-stop knowledge and expertise being poured out and all of us students trying desperately to absorb every word.

Many of the nuggets of information that the hundreds of hopefuls were desperately trying to scribble down were inevitably missed at the time. Well, given that practically everything he said over those 3 days were gems of information that came straight from the masters of animation all those years ago, we were bound to miss much of what he said. That's what makes this book so invaluable - a ton of priceless information finally in a form that can be dipped into as and when it's needed.

Packed with hundreds of drawings to illustrate the theory, the information in this book is appropriate for all forms of animation be it traditional 2D cell or 3D computer animation. I am in the computer games industry and estimate that only around half a dozen out of the 340+ pages of this book aren't relevant to me. So, if you're starting to learn animation or think you're an expert, buy this book.

This is an essiental must buy book for beginners learning animation or students studying on an animation based course (particulary the BSc) I started my university course with absolutly no knowledge about animation, after playing the many Final Fantasy titles, watching the inspirational CGI and FMV sequences with the indepth story, leading onto Shrek, Ice Age, Lilo and Stitch, I did not know where to start, how to go around it and what to do! This book was extremly helpful, there is no words to describe my gratitude to Richard, teaching you everything you need to know! the history of animation, how to draw, timing of animation, from the basics- stationary figures to walking ,running jumping and skipping, to flexibility, weight, anticipation, dialogue, acting, emotion and directing, this is the start point of animation today.. with this bible you won't go wrong! If your stuck in the deep end, this book is a portable lifeguard! its just that good, don't take my word for it! try it out for yourself!

I have to say that the most fascinating part is the historical info provided by Richard, of both his own exploits and those of the master animators he learned from. These guys drew the cartoons we all grew up with and love, the Tom & Jerrys, the Road Runners, the golden age Disney films, and they discovered not only the best ways to bring inanimate oblects to life, but to give them wieght and character at the same time. Richard has distilled their pearls of wisdom so that anyone who wants to can learn the ins and outs of animation.

The drawings are nice and clear, the explanations easy to understand and you can practically animate the figures just by moving your eye across the page, they're so well done. While it undoubtedly concentrates on the 'classical' animator using pen and ink to make his mark, his character animation tips, timing sheet info and action design hints are invaluable for computer character animation. The man says himself that you have to be good enough with your chosen tool (pen or computer) to be able to stop worrying about how you're doing something and concentrate on the performance itself, what you're making your character do. Thus, most of his theory concentrates on performance and not drawing technique, a boon for the computer artists among us.

Overall I'd say this book was a damn good buy. It's well made, clear, concise, interesting and full of hints, tips and ideas that are obviously gleaned from many years experience in the trade. He himself learned from the masters and applied what they taught him, might we not do the same?