Learn To Animate Like Disney

3/2/2021 Learn to animate like Disney | Creative Boom
Resources / Learning
Learn to animate like Disney
Image licensed via Adobe Stock
Written by Tom May on 22 February 2021
Most of the world's biggest brands go to extraordinary lengths to protect

their secrets. Consider how Coke has kept its recipe secret for over a
https://www.creativeboom.com/resources/learn-to-animate-like-disney/ 1/23
century, while even KFC's head chef doesn't know the exact blend of 11
herbs and spices the company uses. But the one big exception is Disney. It's
generously shared the way it's bought every animation from Snow White to
Soul to life so that others can do it too.
First formulated in the 1930s, Disney's 12 principles of animation guarantee its characters
move in a realistic fashion that engages audiences' empathy. And whether you want to be a
motion designer or animator, they'll help you create sequences that will instantly grab
attention. Whatever the latest motion design trends may be, these principles remain
universal and never-changing.
We've teamed up with Created, an online academy specialising in visual design and motion
design, to introduce Disney's principles to you in this article. Then, if you want to go
further, Created has a free Motion Design Taster course, where you'll get to understand
some of these principles in more detail and test them out with a real-world brief.
Meanwhile, if you want to fully get to grips with the principles and develop an industry-
ready skillset and portfolio, mentored by leading professionals, check out Created's Motion
Design Foundation and Motion Design Professional courses.
1. Squash and stretch
Squash and stretch give animated characters and objects the illusion of gravity, weight and
flexibility. Imagine a rubber ball bouncing and reacting when it hits the ground. The ball
stretches when it travels and down and squishes on impact. Even though the effect is
exaggerated, the volume of the object should stay constant, providing a sense of realism to
balance the comic effect.
2. Anticipation
Anticipation hints at the motion that's about to happen, to prepare the viewer and make
things more realistic. Imagine a person jumping. Before they jump, they bend their knees,
take a deep breath, swing their arms back. It'd look weird if they didn't, right?
3. Staging
The essence of staging is to guide the viewer's eye to the most important object in your
scene. You can do it through lighting, for example, or camera angles. Conversely, you'll also
want to restrict the movement of less important objects.
4. Straight ahead vs pose to pose
These are two different styles of animating, each with their own pros and cons. With
'straight-ahead' action (shown above, top), you draw each frame independently: this
provides for a smoother and more realistic action. With 'pose to pose' action (shown
above, bottom), you draw the first and last frame and fill in the rest later. This approach
makes it easier to keep the proportions the same and is good for dramatic scenes.
5. Follow through
When objects in motion slow to a stop, different parts of the object stop at different times.
Similarly, not every object in a scene will always move at the same rate. Considering the
weight of each object will help you make your animation flow more realistically.
6. Slow in slow out
All objects need time to slow down and to speed up. For example, if you watch a horse
run, it speeds up at the start and slows down at the end. This is applicable to all things,
cars, humans, even boxes, as shown above. The way to represent this within animation is to
add frames to the start and the end.
7. Arc
Viewers don't necessarily know the laws of physics, but they can instinctively tell when an
animation isn't following them. So it's important to get your head around these rules. One
key rule is how objects move in an arc under the influence of gravity, such as when you
throw a ball into the air.
8. Secondary action
Secondary actions support or emphasise the main action going on in a scene. Using them
helps to add more depth to your characters and objects. They may include, for example,
subtle movements of hair, facial expressions or reactions.
9. Timing
If you give a heavy box a push, it's going to look and move differently to a lighter box being
pushed with the same force. So getting your timings right makes your actions and objects
look real. This also helps convey the mood and reactions of a character more realistically.
10. Exaggeration
While your animation needs to be rooted in physics, if it looks too real, it can come across
as boring. So put some kapow into it. One way Disney does this is by using extreme
backgrounds. Alternatively, you could explore exaggerated features or actions. The world is
your oyster.
11. Solid drawing
The foundation of any animation or motion design project is in good, solid drawings. You'll
need to know how your object looks in a three-dimensional space, as well as understand
the principles of weight, light, shadow and volume. It's a good one to crack early on.
12. Appeal
Ultimately, you've got to make your character or object appealing to the viewer. They don't
have to be the good guy, but they've got to have some form of magnetism. It is perhaps
one of Disney's most challenging principles to crack, but keeping things simple and working
with character development should help.
Go further with Created

Want to know how to become a motion designer, or animator? The online academy
Created is the place to head. Its courses take place online, so you can fit them into your
schedule, and are led by leading professionals working in the industry. You'll work on real-
world briefs, and emerge with an interview-ready portfolio. So what are you waiting for?
Discover what Created can offer you today!
In association with
Written by
Tom May
Editor's Picks
Resources / Tools & Support
Bring your creative visions to life with advanced web design

platform Editor X
22 February 2021
Inspiration / Illustration
Ahra Kwon and her little utopias

18 February 2021
Inspiration / Art & Culture
How Daft Punk's robots were crafted, in the words of their

collaborators
5 February 2021
Inspiration / Graphic Design
Get a blast of visual inspiration from these award-winning design

projects
3 February 2021
Features / Book Club
Rejane Dal Bello on why creatives should be a Citizen First,

Designer Second
5 January 2021
Trending
Inspiration / Film
Sex Cells' music video is a masterclass in how to shoot on a £28

budget
11 March 2020
Inspiration / Photography
A long-distance relationship that didn't last, told through the

former couple's private screenshots
23 February 2021
50 of the best graphic design blogs for inspiration in 2021

15 February 2021
Resources / Assets
24 fonts that will be popular with designers in 2021

12 November 2020
Inspiration / Film
Puuung on creating the internet's most beloved cartoon couple

25 February 2021
Can logos change anything? And why do logos get changed?

23 February 2021
Newsletter
Join 30,000 creatives to enjoy a regular dose of inspiration and motivation,
delivered to your inbox every Tuesday.
Your email address
Recommended reading
Inspiration / Film
A multimedia project that tells the legacy of the San Francisco Public Defender's
Ofﬁce
22 February 2021
Resources / Assets
The story behind Studio PI, the agency founded by Sachini Imbuldeniya that
champions the underrepresented
22 February 2021
Resources / Tools & Support
Bring your creative visions to life with advanced web design platform Editor X
22 February 2021
10 recommended podcasts for creative freelancers and businesses in 2021

27 January 2021
Can logos change anything? And why do logos get changed?

23 February 2021
Fascism, football and Helvetica feature on a journey through Italy's visual

landscape
22 February 2021
Six of the best reasons to learn visual design in the 2020s

7 September 2020
Tips / Leadership
Building beauty into brands: Alan Moore on how to design a business the world
needs
22 February 2021
Get the best of Creative Boom

delivered to your inbox weekly
Your email Sign me up
Creative Boom celebrates, inspires and supports the creative community. Launched in
2009, we love to explore the very best creativity and offer interviews, tips and ideas to
help you succeed.
About
Podcast
Contact
Archive
Get Featured
Advertising & Partnerships
Terms & Conditions
Privacy Policy
Cookie Policy
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Linkedin
©2021 Creative Boom Ltd.

Registered in England and Wales #07437294.
Created by Boomerang

Learn To Animate Like Disney - Creative Boom

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

You might also like

Learn To Animate Like Disney - Creative Boom

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Learn To Animate Like Disney - Creative Boom

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

3/2/2021 Learn to animate like Disney | Creative Boom

Image licensed via Adobe Stock

Written by Tom May on 22 February 2021

Most of the world's biggest brands go to extraordinary lengths to protect

1. Squash and stretch

4. Straight ahead vs pose to pose

6. Slow in slow out

11. Solid drawing

Go further with Created

Resources / Tools & Support

Bring your creative visions to life with advanced web design

Ahra Kwon and her little utopias

Inspiration / Art & Culture

How Daft Punk's robots were crafted, in the words of their

Inspiration / Graphic Design

Get a blast of visual inspiration from these award-winning design

Features / Book Club

Rejane Dal Bello on why creatives should be a Citizen First,

Sex Cells' music video is a masterclass in how to shoot on a £28

A long-distance relationship that didn't last, told through the

Inspiration / Graphic Design

50 of the best graphic design blogs for inspiration in 2021

24 fonts that will be popular with designers in 2021

Puuung on creating the internet's most beloved cartoon couple

Can logos change anything? And why do logos get changed?

Your email address

Resources / Tools & Support

10 recommended podcasts for creative freelancers and businesses in 2021

Can logos change anything? And why do logos get changed?

Inspiration / Graphic Design

Fascism, football and Helvetica feature on a journey through Italy's visual

Six of the best reasons to learn visual design in the 2020s

Get the best of Creative Boom

Your email Sign me up

©2021 Creative Boom Ltd.

You might also like