Syllabus Beginner Workshop
During week one you and your tutor will establish a professional relationship in which
you are the animator and the tutor is your animation supervisor. In essence we want to
emulate the professional environment industry animators operate in. They work on their
shots and show their work­in­progress in dailies to the directors and animation
supervisor. The animator will get constructive notes. The key here is the animator taking
the notes to heart and not only address the notes literally, but also understand the spirit
of the note and apply that to the whole shot.
In the weeks prior to the start date of the workshop, you can pick a couple of ideas you like
and send them to [email protected]. We’ll help you pick the best suited idea and then
you can get started! That way you can present your blocking in the Week 1 meeting with
your tutor.
First Assignment
To kick off our Beginner Workshop you will plan your shot in which ED­405 is going
from a stand still to a stop. In between the start and stop ED­405 will perform a simple
action. For example ED­405 can start rolling, jump over a little ramp, land and come to a
sliding halt.
Try to keep it simple. Think of an entertaining situation your character could find him or
herself in. It doesn't necessarily have to be a funny situation. Finding entertainment in a
shot can mean a lot of things. Sometimes a dramatic scene can be very captivating.
Also try to think through whether you need props. If you are unable to model and texture
props, try to contact your fellow students to see whether they can help out. Online
resources are vast in terms of finding props. Please make sure there are no copyright
issues.
Requirements
Write up a beat sheet
A beat sheet is a list of beats, actions or actions. Break down what you have in mind in
terms of animating the shot. It is a very effective technique to wrap your head around
what you want to animate.
For example:
● character walks in happily screen left
● character sees chair
● character walks to chair
● characters sits down
● chair falls apart
● character falls down on the ground
● characters is angry
Thumbnail your shot
You can choose your prefered method: thumbnails, storyboard, a sheet full of poses,
etc. Each animator has his or her own way of drawing out their shot planning. Be clear,
add timing to the poses and try to put the character in an environment context.
Shot length should be between 100 frames and 200 frames
Keep the shot simple. It is much better to have a short, awesome shot than a long,
mediocre shot.
Maximum two characters
Same here: keep it simple. Try not to chew off more than you handle.
No camera moves
You get it by now... less is more.
Week 1
Now you will block your shot in which ED­405 is going from a stand still to a stop. In
between the start and stop ED­405 will perform a simple action. For example ED­405
can start rolling, jump over a little ramp, land and come to a sliding halt.
Animation
During the week two workshop meeting you will present your blocked animation to the
tutor. Important is to keep the poses clear and appealing. Time out the shot so it’s not
even or dull. Try to come up with interesting shape changes. Anything unexpected or
original is a big plus. Any original entertainment will set apart your shot from the rest.
Your tutor will elaborate on this a lot in the workshop.
We prefer you show in stepped mode. You can work however you want, but when it
comes to showing your work to the tutor, the shot will need to be in stepped mode. Also
stick to what you had planned. We really don’t like it when students on their own decide
to do something completely else. If you want to change your idea, you need to let your
tutor know before hand.
Posing
Think of two full body poses and pose Jack or Jill into the poses you picked. Try to pick
to different kinds of poses, for example Jack could be happy and Jill sad.
Week 2
During the week four workshop meeting you will present your polished shot to the tutor.
Paramount is that the animation looks finished and all the arcs, transitions, ease in ‘n
outs and holds look smooth. There should be no pops, rough motion or unappealing
poses left in the shot.
Three things can happen:
● Your tutor “approves” the shot and gives you the green light to move onto the
next shot. You will pick one of the two remaining approved sound clips you have
chosen.
● Your tutor feels your shot isn’t final yet and recommends you to keep working on
the polish. Essentially you’ll switch to a “two shot approach” for the total duration
of the workshop. Instead of animating three shots, you will now animate two
shots.
● Your tutor feels your shot isn’t final yet and despite his or her recommendation,
you want to move on. Ultimately it is up to you ­­ you have paid for this workshop
and you have control over whether you want to move on or not. BUT realize you
have chosen the path of failure. You will now animate three mediocre shots that
won’t look finished. Our best advice is one you have heard before: it’s better to
have two awesome shots, than three mediocre shots. Again... you decide.
Depending on whether you will move on to the next shot, in week four of the workshop
you plan the next shot you will animate.
Second Assignment
As a second assignment in our Beginner Workshop you will plan your shot in which ED­
405 comes in screen, comes to a stop, does something entertaining and scoots out
leaving the screen. What exactly ED­405 does it up to you, for example he could do a
back flip or a couple of fast spins.
Try to keep it simple. Think of an entertaining situation your character could find him or
herself in. It doesn't necessarily have to be a funny situation. Finding entertainment in a
shot can mean a lot of things. Sometimes a dramatic scene can be very captivating.
Also try to think trough whether you need props. If you are unable to model and texture
props, try to contact your fellow students to see whether they can help out. Online
resources are vast in terms of finding props. Please make sure there are no copyright
issues.
Requirements
Write up a beat sheet
A beat sheet is a list of beats, actions or actions. Break down what you have in mind in
terms of animating the shot. It is a very effective technique to wrap your head around
what you want to animate.
For example:
● character walks in happily screen left
● character sees chair
● character walks to chair
● characters sits down
● chair falls apart
● character falls down on the ground
● characters is angry
Thumbnail your shot
You can choose your prefered method: thumbnails, storyboard, a sheet full of poses,
etc. Each animator has his or her own way of drawing out their shot planning. Be clear,
add timing to the poses and try to put the character in an environment context.
Shot length should be between 100 frames and 200 frames
Keep the shot simple. It is much better to have a short, awesome shot than a long,
mediocre shot.
Maximum two characters
Same here: keep it simple. Try not to chew off more than you handle.
No camera moves
You get it by now... less is more.
Week 3
Animation
Now you will block your shot in which ED­405 is going from a stand still to a stop. In
between the start and stop ED­405 will perform a simple action. For example ED­405
can start rolling, jump over a little ramp, land and come to a sliding halt.
During this week’s workshop meeting you will present your blocked animation to the
tutor. Important is to keep the poses clear and appealing. Time out the shot so it’s not
even or dull. Try to come up with interesting shape changes. Anything unexpected or
original is a big plus. Any original entertainment will set apart your shot from the rest.
Your tutor will elaborate on this a lot in the workshop.
We prefer you show in stepped mode. You can work however you want, but when it
comes to showing your work to the tutor, the shot will need to be in stepped mode. Also
stick to what you had planned. We really don’t like it when students on their own decide
to do something completely else. If you want to change your idea, you need to let your
tutor know before hand.
Posing
Think of three full body poses and pose Jack or Jill into the poses you picked. Try to
pick to different kinds of poses, for example Jack could be happy and Jill sad.
Week 4
During the week eight workshop meeting you will present your polished shot to the tutor.
Paramount is that the animation looks finished and all the arcs, transitions, ease in ‘n
outs and holds look smooth. There should be no pops, rough motion or unappealing
poses left in the shot.
Three things can happen:
● Your tutor “approves” the shot and gives you the green light to move onto the
next shot. You will pick one of the two remaining approved sound clips you have
chosen.
● Your tutor feels your shot isn’t final yet and recommends you to keep working on
the polish. Essentially you’ll switch to a “two shot approach” for the total duration
of the workshop. Instead of animating three shots, you will now animate two
shots.
● Your tutor feels your shot isn’t final yet and despite his or her recommendation,
you want to move on. Ultimately it is up to you ­­ you have paid for this workshop
and you have control over whether you want to move on or not. BUT realize you
have chosen the path of failure. You will now animate three mediocre shots that
won’t look finished. Our best advice is one you have heard before: it’s better to
have two awesome shots, than three mediocre shots. Again... you decide.
Depending on whether you will move on to the next shot, in week four of the workshop
you plan the next shot you will animate.
Third Assignment
As a third assignment in our Beginner Workshop you will plan your shot in which ED­
405 goes through a set of obstacles. The obstacle course is up to you, for example ED­
405 could be in a 80's video game or he could be in space. This is your last ED­405
assignment, so make it count. This has a great chance of ending up on your beginner
demoreel.
Try to keep it simple. Think of an entertaining situation your character could find him or
herself in. It doesn't necessarily have to be a funny situation. Finding entertainment in a
shot can mean a lot of things. Sometimes a dramatic scene can be very captivating.
Also try to think trough whether you need props. If you are unable to model and texture
props, try to contact your fellow students to see whether they can help out. Online
resources are vast in terms of finding props. Please make sure there are no copyright
issues.
Requirements
Write up a beat sheet
A beat sheet is a list of beats, actions or actions. Break down what you have in mind in
terms of animating the shot. It is a very effective technique to wrap your head around
what you want to animate.
For example:
● character walks in happily screen left
● character sees chair
● character walks to chair
● characters sits down
● chair falls apart
● character falls down on the ground
● characters is angry
Thumbnail your shot
You can choose your prefered method: thumbnails, storyboard, a sheet full of poses,
etc. Each animator has his or her own way of drawing out their shot planning. Be clear,
add timing to the poses and try to put the character in an environment context.
Shot length should be between 100 frames and 200 frames
Keep the shot simple. It is much better to have a short, awesome shot than a long,
mediocre shot.
Maximum two characters
Same here: keep it simple. Try not to chew off more than you handle.
No camera moves
You get it by now... less is more.
Week 5
Animation
Now you will block ED­405 going through a set of obstacles. The obstacle course is up
to you, for example ED­405 could be in a 80's video game or he could be in space. This
is your last ED­405 assignment, so make it count. This has a great chance of ending up
on your beginner demoreel.
During the week two workshop meeting you will present your blocked animation to the
tutor. Important is to keep the poses clear and appealing. Time out the shot so it’s not
even or dull. Try to come up with interesting shape changes. Anything unexpected or
original is a big plus. Any original entertainment will set apart your shot from the rest.
Your tutor will elaborate on this a lot in the workshop.
We prefer you show in stepped mode. You can work however you want, but when it
comes to showing your work to the tutor, the shot will need to be in stepped mode. Also
stick to what you had planned. We really don’t like it when students on their own decide
to do something completely else. If you want to change your idea, you need to let your
tutor know before hand.
Posing
Think and pose out two situations Jack and Jill can find themselves in. For example
they could hugging or Jack can open the door for Jill.
Week 6
During the week eight workshop meeting you will present your polished shot to the tutor.
Paramount is that the animation looks finished and all the arcs, transitions, ease in ‘n
outs and holds look smooth. There should be no pops, rough motion or unappealing
poses left in the shot.
Three things can happen:
● Your tutor “approves” the shot and gives you the green light to move onto the
next shot. You will pick one of the two remaining approved sound clips you have
chosen.
● Your tutor feels your shot isn’t final yet and recommends you to keep working on
the polish. Essentially you’ll switch to a “two shot approach” for the total duration
of the workshop. Instead of animating three shots, you will now animate two
shots.
● Your tutor feels your shot isn’t final yet and despite his or her recommendation,
you want to move on. Ultimately it is up to you ­­ you have paid for this workshop
and you have control over whether you want to move on or not. BUT realize you
have chosen the path of failure. You will now animate three mediocre shots that
won’t look finished. Our best advice is one you have heard before: it’s better to
have two awesome shots, than three mediocre shots. Again... you decide.
Depending on whether you will move on to the next shot, in week four of the workshop
you plan the next shot you will animate.
Fourth Assignment
As a fourth assignment in our Beginner Workshop you will plan a simple walk cycle with
Jack or Jill. You will just animate the hips, legs and feet. The upper body will stay in one
pose – an upper body pose that works well is one with hands in pocket or hands behind
the back.
Try to keep it simple. The walk will be a very straight forward kind of walk. You are
trying to get familiar with the basics of a walk. No need to add too much personality.
Requirements
Thumbnail your shot
You can choose your prefered method: thumbnails, storyboard, a sheet full of poses,
etc. Each animator has his or her own way of drawing out their shot planning. Be clear,
add timing to the poses and try to put the character in an environment context.
Shot length should be between 100 frames and 200 frames
Keep the shot simple. It is much better to have a short, awesome shot than a long,
mediocre shot.
No camera moves
You get it by now... less is more.
Week 7
This week you will block out a simple walkcycle with Jack or Jill. You will just animate
the hips, legs and feet. The upper body will stay in one pose – an upper body pose that
works well is one with hands in pocket or hands behind the back.
During the week two workshop meeting you will present your blocked animation to the
tutor. Important is to keep the poses clear and appealing. Time out the shot so it’s not
even or dull. Try to come up with interesting shape changes. Anything unexpected or
original is a big plus. Any original entertainment will set apart your shot from the rest.
Your tutor will elaborate on this a lot in the workshop.
We prefer you show in stepped mode. You can work however you want, but when it
comes to showing your work to the tutor, the shot will need to be in stepped mode. Also
stick to what you had planned. We really don’t like it when students on their own decide
to do something completely else. If you want to change your idea, you need to let your
tutor know before hand.
Posing
Think of three full body poses and pose Jack or Jill into the poses you picked. Try to
pick to different kinds of poses, for example Jack could be happy and Jill sad.
Week 8
During the week eight workshop meeting you will present your polished shot to the tutor.
Paramount is that the animation looks finished and all the arcs, transitions, ease in ‘n
outs and holds look smooth. There should be no pops, rough motion or unappealing
poses left in the shot.
Three things can happen:
● Your tutor “approves” the shot and gives you the green light to move onto the
next shot. You will pick one of the two remaining approved sound clips you have
chosen.
● Your tutor feels your shot isn’t final yet and recommends you to keep working on
the polish. Essentially you’ll switch to a “two shot approach” for the total duration
of the workshop. Instead of animating three shots, you will now animate two
shots.
● Your tutor feels your shot isn’t final yet and despite his or her recommendation,
you want to move on. Ultimately it is up to you ­­ you have paid for this workshop
and you have control over whether you want to move on or not. BUT realize you
have chosen the path of failure. You will now animate three mediocre shots that
won’t look finished. Our best advice is one you have heard before: it’s better to
have two awesome shots, than three mediocre shots. Again... you decide.
Depending on whether you will move on to the next shot, in week four of the workshop
you plan the next shot you will animate.
Fifth Assignment
As a fifth assignment you will animate a character walk cycle starting from a stand still
and walking out of frame. This walk will have arm motion.
Try to keep it simple. Think of an entertaining situation your character could find him or
herself in. It doesn't necessarily have to be a funny situation. Finding entertainment in a
shot can mean a lot of things. Sometimes a dramatic scene can be very captivating.
Also try to think trough whether you need props. If you are unable to model and texture
props, try to contact your fellow students to see whether they can help out. Online
resources are vast in terms of finding props. Please make sure there are no copyright
issues.
Posing
Think and pose out two situations Jack and Jill can find themselves in. For example
they could hugging or Jack can open the door for Jill.
Requirements
Write up a beat sheet
A beat sheet is a list of beats, actions or actions. Break down what you have in mind in
terms of animating the shot. It is a very effective technique to wrap your head around
what you want to animate.
For example:
● character walks in happily screen left
● character sees chair
● character walks to chair
● characters sits down
● chair falls apart
● character falls down on the ground
● characters is angry
Thumbnail your shot
You can choose your prefered method: thumbnails, storyboard, a sheet full of poses,
etc. Each animator has his or her own way of drawing out their shot planning. Be clear,
add timing to the poses and try to put the character in an environment context.
Shot length should be between 100 frames and 200 frames
Keep the shot simple. It is much better to have a short, awesome shot than a long,
mediocre shot.
Maximum two characters
Same here: keep it simple. Try not to chew off more than you handle.
No camera moves
You get it by now... less is more.
Week 9
Now you will block your full body walk cycle with personality ­­ pick a mood the character is in
(happy, sad, …) and have the character walk according to the emotion you picked.
During the week two workshop meeting you will present your blocked animation to the
tutor. Important is to keep the poses clear and appealing. Time out the shot so it’s not
even or dull. Try to come up with interesting shape changes. Anything unexpected or
original is a big plus. Any original entertainment will set apart your shot from the rest.
Your tutor will elaborate on this a lot in the workshop.
We prefer you show in stepped mode. You can work however you want, but when it
comes to showing your work to the tutor, the shot will need to be in stepped mode. Also
stick to what you had planned. We really don’t like it when students on their own decide
to do something completely else. If you want to change your idea, you need to let your
tutor know before hand.
Posing
Think off and pose out two situations where Jack and Jill are scared of something and
the other should be a situation where Jack and Jill are laughing at something.
Week 10
You have an extra week of blocking for this assignment. This week you refine your
blocking based on the notes you got from the tutor.
You can also refine your posing during this week.
Week 11 and 12
During the week twelve workshop meeting you will present your polished shot to the
tutor. Paramount is that the animation looks finished and all the arcs, transitions, ease in
‘n outs and holds look smooth. There should be no pops, rough motion or unappealing
poses left in the shot.
Congratulations!
Every end is a new beginning
You have reached the end of the workshop. Hopefully you now have two or three
amazing looking shots under your belt. You might start to apply for a job or decide you
want to do more schooling. At the end of the workshop we will have a wrap up session
with all the students to say goodbye and congratulate each other and wish each other
the best!