by Lucas David
If you’ve ever made an animation yourself, or have watched a decent amount of animation yourself, you will have noticed that some animations look more lifelike than others, especially in different art styles. In this essay, I will be breaking down one of the components of an animation that makes such a difference in its believability.
I call this aspect of creating a convincing 2D illusion “slow ins and slow outs”. To help explain it, I will compare two iconic pieces of animation. One is of a character from the cartoon Steamboat Willie
In the video above, you saw Pete the Cat turning from Mickey Mouse to the wheel of the ship. You probably also saw that Pete’s body moves completely evenly through the entire motion. When you are making an animation, this can often feel like a good idea, but in reality it creates a very machine-like movement. In real life, we have the most energy in the middle of a movement, because we have the most momentum, and we have to slow down at the end of each movement to stop. Even movements that stop suddenly slow down at the end as your muscles stop your momentum.
Above is an example of an animation with a slow in and a slow out, which is noticeably more natural than the one before it. This is because it is an animation of a living creature, and therefore should imitate the behaviors of a living creature. There are exceptions to the slow ins and slow outs rule, such as a motion being interrupted un-naturally, or a mechanical creature that moves robotically, but more often than not, successful use of slow ins and outs are key to creating a convincing animation.
Overall, animation is like acting with drawings. Every movement says something to the audience, especially with the movements of a living creature. To create convincing animation, you not only need an ability to draw, but also an understanding of what we expect movement to look like. Hopefully, this information will help you bring your animated stories to life.
The Lighthouse 