The Animator's Survival Kit

Animation is one of the hottest areas of film-making today. Richard Williams is a master animator who bridges the old generation and the new. During more than 40 years in the business, Williams has been one of the true innovators, winning three Academy Awards and serving as the link between Disney's golden age of animation by hand and the new computer animation exemplified by "Toy Story". He has also been dedicated in passing along his knowledge to a new generation of animators so that they in turn could push the medium in new directions. In this book, based on his sold-out master classes in the United States and across Europe, Williams provides the underlying principles of animation that every animator - from beginner to expert, classic animator to computer animation whiz - needs. Urging his readers to "invent but be believable," he illustrates his points with hundreds of drawings, distilling the secrets of the masters into a working system in order to create a a standard work on all forms of animation for professionals, students, and fans.