Lee Boot
x3358
boot@umbc.edu
Office hours 5-6pm Tuesdays or appointment: FA108-C

FA221A

Tues.,Thurs. 3:00 — 4:50pm (section 0299) 7:00 — 8:50pm (section 0300)

Laybourne, Kit, The Animation Book (Required)

Syllabus: gl.umbc.edu/~boot/Art341.html

Students best prepared to take this class are those who have had a filmmaking class, can draw reasonably well, write reasonable well, and feel comfortable using computers.

Animation. We will give life to the non-living: not necessarily (although possibly) the dead, but rather that which is inanimate–the undead? We may even re-animate the living. It’s a matter of life and death.

Successful animated works must include moving images: images that are animated and that matter to you. Creating work that gets at your own sensibilities will have a chance of affecting others. Above all, that is what this course is about.

The class is a production, or studio class and our efforts will be in that direction, however, we will look critically at the work of other artists as well as our own work in order to gain crucial insights and knowledge. Study of theory will include esthetics, creative process, group dynamics, story structure and the timeline, some film theory (animation is filmmaking), some 2D design, basic sound issues, and of course animation theory. Animation techniques we will study are 3-D stop-motion, pixillation, line-animation, cut paper and paint on glass. We will not cover cel animation, rotoscoping, or 3-D computer animation. Students will develop the skills necessary to handle the materials and shape them into an esthetic whole. Much of what you learn will be knowledge that can transfer to other materials and disciplines.

You will learn to present ideas in both storyboard and written form.

The lab is set up to do image capture using video cameras fed into computers for editing, compositing, and sound. Ultimately, each project will be put out to video tape. Each student will end up with a reel of the projects they were involved in. Students will work in groups and on their own.

This class is demanding. You can expect to spend several hours per week working outside of class time, both in and out of the lab. Often you will be working with a group, so you will have to be organized. You will spend time at home reading, writing and drawing as part of the development of the four animation assignments. Writing and drawing are essential to the process and weighted accordingly in your overall grade.

There will be clear criteria established for all assignments, but artwork cannot be graded without subjective judgement. Enrollment in the class will be taken as an agreement to trust me to judge you fairly and thoughtfully. Some factors will have very predictable results: work that is late for the critique will be dropped one grade, and one grade further for each week it is late. Excellent work will get an "A," good work will get a "B," average/adequate work will earn a "C," below average work, a "D," poor work an "E," and non-existent work, a "0." Individuals working in groups will all receive the same grade for their project (don’t worry, I’ll explain).

Two or more unexcused absences will reduce your grade. Three or more may result in failure. Three unexcused late arrivals will reduce your grade.

Students must follow the policies of the Visual Arts Department and the University Computing Service on use of the computer labs. The lab is open 24-7, but to maintain access, you must treat it well; failure to do so will result in loss of access to the lab.