We've worked with a few motion-based programs so far, but most recently we added Premiere Pro to the list. So, compared to the programs we've worked with, Animate and After Effects, how do we compare Premiere? Well, we can start by pointing out some similarities between these programs. These programs all do not require frame-by-frame artwork, although you could use this technique which would be more suited for Premiere and After Effects. There seems to be some big differences for Premiere, though. Animate and After Effects I look at as animation software, with Animate utilizing tweens and keyframes, and After Effects focusing on motion graphics. premiere, though, seems more useful as video editing software because it would be the best option for putting together several images or video clips and editing them together in the desired order. In this sense After Effects seems to be more similar to Premiere than Animate due to more efficiency when putting together images to make video. Efficiency is another comparison we can make between these programs. Animate seemed to be the least efficient to work with just due to the difficulty of working with tweens, but since tweens would be generated for you it also takes away the need for every other frame to be made by you. All in all though, Animate took the longest for me to work with, and was probably the most frustrating. Next is After Effects, and it was honestly kind of fun working with motion graphics, and for motion graphics the program was great, but I feel that putting together images when creating frame-by-frame animation would have been less tedious and more suitable for Premiere. Premiere has by far been the easiest program to work with, and is the best for video editing out of these three.
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We've gone into the basics and fundamentals of animation this past quarter, and began working in Adobe Animate. You may know Animate as flash. From my experience using Adobe Animate can be more efficient than the frame by frame technique using Illustrator and After Effects, but it seems much more difficult to create the exact motion/movement, with detail, that you want. While frame by frame is definitely time-consuming, and sometimes frustrating work, I feel that it has for me at least been able to come out with a better project. One tool that stood out to me when working in Animate was the shape hint tool. It in a way represented how I felt the entire time using Animate. Confusing and wrong. This isn't to say Animate can't be used to create some good animations, but in the little experience I've had, it would take a lot more time put into the program than I would care to do. Shape tweens in Animate are pretty necessary for basic animation, yet a lot of times shape hints need to be used, and even then without a thorough understanding of the tool they might still not do the trick. So, although frame-by-frame is time consuming, it gave me the final product I wanted without confusion.
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What do you think one of the most important parts of creating a video game is? If you guessed (or knew) world building you were correct. What can really make or break a game is whether or not it can make us feel like we are there, and that these characters could exist. One aspect of this is shown through idle animations. Sometimes we don't pay attention to them, but if you've payed video games before you have probably noticed a few. A character can appear more real if they try to spend their time idling by maybe tapping their foot, or jumping rope, and acting nonchalant, rather than doing nothing. This may be a more subtle form of world-building, but a good way to make a character real and appealing. Take this idle animation from Super Mario 64. It gives Mario a bit more character and personality, and since he is falling asleep waiting for the player, it makes him seem real. This isn't necessarily my favorite idle animation, as they have grown, gotten better and more complex over time, it's still quite impressive for 1996. It does the job of creating a fun atmosphere, and adding a yawn at the beginning makes Mario appear even more like he could be real. Instead of leaving characters to stand there and do nothing but stare into the abyss, isn't exactly good for your world building, even a subtle few blinks and sways can make all the difference between the shell of a character and one full of life.
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About meI am a Senior at DSA and currently taking the Advanced Game Art and Design course. I enjoy playing video games and drawing in my free time. The opinions expressed within this blog are my own, and do not reflect that of Durham School of the Arts of Durham Public Schools Archives
May 2022
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