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  How to Draw Anime

The magic of anime transforms tiny movements into big emotions. Is there a "Spirited Away" inside you, waiting to be born? This guide only shows you the tip of the iceberg, but allows you to steam ahead without a titanic budget.

Preparation and Foundation
Instructions

• STEP 1: Follow the steps in How to Draw Manga to learn the fundamentals about drawing and equipment. Add to your drawing kit: a light table (or box), a registration system to keep paper in alignment (peg bar and punch or homemade equivalent), animation paper (sturdy, but translucent when backlit) and carmine red or non-photo blue erasable color pencils (optional).

• STEP 2: Install video-editing software capable of compiling individual images into movie files such as Adobe Premiere, freeware, or bundled software like iMovie for the Mac.

• STEP 3: Anticipate audio. Unless your anime is silent, you'll need a way to record sound and transfer it to the computer. More complex soundtracks may require sound-mixing equipment or software.

• STEP 4: Develop a story idea, starting small. Try animating a single action of a single character before delving into setting, plot, sound, props and additional characters.

• STEP 5: Write a script, which can range from a few notes to a full screenplay, depending on the project.

• STEP 6: Create a "storyboard" from your script: a visual blueprint in comic book form. Each panel illustrates a change in scene or action from the camera's POV. Use the storyboard to fine-tune the plot, characters, settings and dialogue.

• STEP 7: Record a soundtrack that includes dialogue and a basic musical score. Sound effects can be added later.

• STEP 8: Make an "animatic": scan each storyboard panel, transfer the images to the video editor and sync them with the soundtrack and scene transitions at 24 frames per second. This will be a framework for previewing the anime throughout the production. It looks like a slideshow at first, but evolves as you integrate new work.

• STEP 9: Create "model sheets" - visual references for the characters in a variety of angles, poses and expressions. You'll need to draw characters over and over so streamline when possible. Repeat for all important foreground visual elements.

• STEP 10: Design basic backgrounds. Composite background and foreground elements with the image editor to test color schemes.

• STEP 11: Sketch "layouts" that show backgrounds, camera directions, lighting and major character poses for each shot - i.e. very accurate and detailed storyboards. Splice the layouts into the animatic and sync precisely with shot transitions and sound.

• STEP 12: Complete all editing now, treating the animatic as a finished anime. When you're drawing everything by hand, you don't want any wasted footage on the cutting room floor.

Main Animation

Instructions

• STEP 1: Sketch "key drawings" that correspond to the main character poses for a scene, using the animatic, layouts and model sheets as guides. Align individual drawings with the peg bar. Analyze the scene frame-by- frame to sync drawings with action and sound.

• STEP 2: Flip through key drawings manually to test basic motion, adding detail after motion has been established. Use color pencils for temporary lines. Number drawings with the corresponding animatic frame position. Add identical registration marks on each drawing to aid alignment after scanning.

• STEP 3: Create "pencil tests" by scanning drawings, saving them to disk and compiling the images into short movies. This allows you to test motion and consistency. Test synchronization by splicing pencil tests into the animatic.

• STEP 4: Draw intervening poses ("inbetweens") after approving key drawings. Use the light table to align elements and registration marks. Create pencil tests. Most scenes will show one drawing for every three frames of video. Kinetic sequences may require more drawings, static sequences fewer.

• STEP 5: Produce "clean-up" drawings by tracing previous drawings and adding final details. Create pencil tests. (You can omit this step if your drawings are already clean enough or if you prefer to clean up during the scanning process.)

• STEP 6: Repeat the main animation process for all scenes (or proceed scene-by-scene). Splice final pencil tests into the animatic.

Ink, Color and Composite

Instructions

• STEP 1: Ink your drawings on paper or after scanning. Fuse line art into closed shapes to aid the coloring process. Strive to ink with a consistent line for smooth animation.

• STEP 2: Color each drawing in the image editor. Save the completed foreground images.

• STEP 3: Draw backgrounds as described in the layouts. Backgrounds may be larger than the video frame to allow for camera movement. Scan backgrounds and paint with the image editor to ensure consistent color. Save the completed background images.

• STEP 4: For each frame of animation, superimpose the foreground elements over the background in the image editor. Use the layout as a guide and align with registration marks as needed. Save the composite image and add it to the animatic in the appropriate video frame positions.

• STEP 5: After all frames have been composited and synced to the animatic, add the final musical score and sound effects.

• STEP 6: Share your anime with the world on DVD, VCD, film, videotape and the Internet.

Overall Tips & Warnings

• Scan drawings at 300 dpi or more and save work files in a "lossless" format like TIFF or PSD to avoid compression artifacts. Set the animatic movie at 720 by 480 pixels for NTSC DVD output, but keep work files and still frames at the scanned resolution if your computer can handle it.

• Just as natural drawings from life have few straight lines, natural animations from life have few straight paths. Organic motion occurs in arcs.

• Anime uses more complex images than other animation types, complicating production. Techniques like frame rate reduction, still shots, simplified backgrounds, money shots and limited animation can compensate where appropriate. Inspect your favorite anime for labor-saving tricks - they're easy to spot when you're watching for them.

• For an in-depth look at the complex art of traditional animation, read "Cartoon Animation" by Preston Blair or "The Animator's Survival Kit" by Richard Williams.

• Don't "green-light" a project until you've gotten positive feedback on your story and character ideas.

• Animation is a collaborative process. Seek help from others where you can. Otherwise, an anime project may take years to complete.