This document discusses the history and principles of animation. It covers early animation techniques like the phenakistoscope and flipbooks. It explains that animation works due to persistence of vision and frame rate. A higher frame rate leads to smoother animation. The document concludes that frame rate is a key factor in animation quality, along with drawing skills. It also provides examples of optical illusions and early photography that helped develop animation techniques. Students are assigned an activity to create their first bouncing ball or stick figure animation.

1. Learning Outcomes
ITMA Lecture 06
Introduction to Animation • Why does animation work?
• Parameter: FPS
Krates Ng
Fall 2008
• Your first animation!
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The Egyptians did it first POV
• 2000 BC, found the 1st comic strip on Egyptian
wall decoration. • Persistence of Vision
• Behaviors of our eyes and brains.
• In 1824, Paul Roget examined POV
scientifically.
• Led to some interesting optical toys.
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Phenakistoscope Phenakistoscope (2)
• In 1832, invented by Joseph Plateau
• View through slots facing a mirror
• Turning disc animates images
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2. Zeotrope and Praxinoscope Thaumatrope
• Zeotrope: William Horner, 1834 • 1824, John Paris.
• Praxinoscope: Emile Reynaud, 1877 • Or 1828, Paul Roget
Zeotrope Praxinoscope
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The photography of motion
• Eadweard Muybridge (1830-1904) – Father of motion picture. Flipbook
• A series of picture held together and
flip it with your thumb.
• You can do it simply using a stack of
“Post-it”.
• Observe the images when you flip it
fast and slow.
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Frame Rate / Frame per sec. (FPS) Conclusion
• What happen to the images when you turn • Why we can see animation/movie?
the Thaumatrope fast and slow? – POV
• What happen to the images when you flip
the flipbook fast and slow? • What determines the smoothness of an
• FPS ↑  Animation smoother, less flicker animation (apart from your drawing skills)?
• But, FPS ↑  Production cost ↑ – Frame Rate in Frame Per Sec. (FPS)
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3. More Optical Illusions (1)…
References
• Chronology of animation from 1879:
www.public.iastate.edu/~rllew/chrnearl.html
• Optical toys
web.inter.nl.net/users/anima/index.htm
• History of movie
www.filmsite.org/filmh.html
Rotating Snakes
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More Optical Illusions (2)… More Optical Illusions (3)…
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More Optical Illusions (4)… History of photography/movie
• First photos were taken in 1820s by a
Frenchman, Nicephore Niepce.
• Fox Talbot in England produced the 1st
photographic negative in 1835.
• In 1889, celluloid film was introduced by
Eastman Kodak Co.
More available at:
http://www.ritsumei.ac.jp/~akitaoka/index-e.html
• 1893, Thomas Edison invented Kinetoscope.
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4. How?
Activity (1) Bouncing ball reference: http://www.idleworm.com/how/anm/01b/bball.shtml
• Produce your first
animation!
• Bouncing ball
animation
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Questions Activity (2)
• Why the ball is deformed in some pictures? • Stick Figure Animation
• Use Pivot Stick Animator to produce a stick
animation no less than 80 frames (individual) or
• How do you make the animation smoother? 120 frames (pair)
• How do you make the ball move faster?
http://www.geocities.com/peter_bone_uk/pivot.html
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