Principles of animation
There are terms in animation that describes principles used to make a cartoon character "real". You should know these terms and have an understanding of what they are.
Squash and Stretch
-used to give characters and objects a "cartoony" feel. Without squash and stretch, an object looks stiff and moves with all the life of a rock. All animated cartoon characters have some degree of squash and stretch,
Anticipation (commonly called an "antic")
-a theatrical skill and really important if you want the audience to see the character's actions. An antic sets up an action and prepares the audience for whatever the character Is going to do. An antic is usually a minor action that contrasts (is opposite to) the intended action. A classic example Is when someone "zips out" of a scene. You will see them antic back before accelerating forwards. Every Important action should have an antic.
Secondary Action
-when a character moves, many things happen. The primary action of someone running, for example, is obviously the legs moving forward and back. To make a character look real, there will also be many secondary actions as well: body bouncing up and down, hair fluttering, arms swinging, · eye-blinks, etc.
Every secondary action adds to the realism of the main action.
Overlapping Action
-related to secondary action but not the same thing. When a figure begins an action, not every part will start at the same time. Similar with a stop: If you fall and land on your feet, your body will continue down although your feet have stopped. You body will then bounce back up while your arms may still be going down. The lack of overlapping action makes characters robot-like. Follow-through -similar to overlapping action and best illustrated by visualizing a golf swing. Once the ball is hit, forces continue to move the club and arms In the direction of the swing.
Slow-ln / Slow-Out
-things don't begin and end abubtly; they have to accelerate and decelerate or they look jerky.
Arcs
-most things move in arcs: arms, legs, etc. due to their construction.
Drag
-related to physics and best illustrated with secondary actions. A dancer may turn around quickly. His or her body may move while an arm and hand remain where they were. The end of the arm is eventually pulled around but it drags behind the body. The hand will drag behind the arm as well.
Exaggeration
-going further than real life makes an animation stand out. Exaggeration in all aspects: actions, emotions and perspective is important to give the character life.
Appeal
-a drawing should look "good'. Appeal is hard to explain except it's easy to see if a character has it or not. Most of the appeal of a character is in its design, although voice, clothing and personality are also influential.