What is the current animation production process?

2. Production cost

3. Pre-animation 1: script

4. Pre-animation 2: Director's Works

5. The third stage of animation: mirror image and assistant director's work.

6. The fourth stage of animation: role design and role designer's work.

7. Pre-animation 5: Mechanical modeling design and background design.

8. Pre-animation 6: Color design and color distribution.

9. Animation stage 1: composition, original painting and original painting guidance.

10, animation interim 2: animator

1 1, animation temporary 3: coloring/coloring personnel

12, animation metaphase 4: special effects and special effects personnel

13, animation metaphase 5: photography and photography effect

14, the final stage of animation: editing

15, animation stage 2: sound 1: dubbing and seiyuu

16, the third stage of animation: sound 2: music, effect sound, synthesis

17, Screening, Publicity and Marketing

The first step before the first round of homework.

Before the so-called animation production, there is often a short (or a little painful) "pre-production operation" (English: pre-production Japanese: preparation stage). Pre-production operation refers to the preparation for starting production. But what about the front line before production?

The front of the system is "planning" (Japanese: planning stage)

There are two kinds of "planning". The first is that at the annual planning meeting, the boss of an animation company (English: boss, excutive producer, Japanese: president, planner) or a slightly larger producer who has a little say sees an interesting and famous cartoon or novel, and thinks that making an animation should be quite profitable, so he calls the agent involved in the cartoon or novel to see if the right to make an animation has been sold. If not, then he started to do "short duration". If you see the word "original" at the beginning of the animation, it probably belongs to this type.

The other is the director (English: director, Japanese: supervisor) or animator under the animation company, who thinks he is daydreaming because he doesn't draw and submit the manuscript on time. In this way, it should be interesting to make an animation, so they began to write their own planning books and show them to their bosses. Fortunately, if the plan is passed, the boss or producer will look around for the money owner ... Oh, no, the sponsors will respond to the great plan together. If you see the word "original case" at the beginning of the animation, it probably belongs to this type.

After the negotiation is successful or the scheme is adopted.

Let's talk about the next step of the animation company when the original plan is passed.

Animation companies basically don't have the funds to independently produce animation works (whether TV or OVA), so when animation companies want to make original works, the most important thing is to put forward proposals to sponsors (* 1) to see if they are interested in investing. If the sponsor is not interested in the new work proposal put forward by the animation company, or thinks that the product (*2) has no market value, then this proposal 100% will never be seen again.

Compared with the original case, the animation planning of the original (*3) is usually easier to pass the sponsor. Because the original works basically have a fixed customer base (*4), the sponsors are psychologically more secure and more willing to invest in adapting the original works into animations and selling related products to recover their investment.

So in what form is this proposal presented to the sponsors?

For American production companies, they will make pilot movies first. The so-called pilot film refers to the essence of short films and is the main weapon for sponsors to persuade investment. However, in Japan, animation companies usually have no funds to make pilot films, and they often submit proposals or scripts to sponsors in paper form. Therefore, the script may be completed before the pre-production job. Because the more sponsors understand the "interesting point" of the original work, the more they can impress sponsors and get production funds.

How to calculate the second production cost?

Theoretically, the calculation program is simple.

Suppose a film and television company estimates that an animated work (a 30-minute DVD) can sell 1 1,000 sets, and then suppose that a DVD sells for 4,000 yen.

1000 sets x4,000 yuan = 4 million yuan.

That 4 million yen is the production cost. All the funds allocated to the production department are included in this 4 million yen. For example, we will introduce animation directors, role stylists, split-mirror animators, main-mirror animators, grassroots animators, music designers, color editors, packaging designers and so on.

In this way, it is very simple to calculate the cost. But in fact, how to estimate how many sets of an animated work can be sold depends on the sales experience of film and television producers, the popularity of animation directors, the charm of role designers and the popularity of seiyuu. These human factors make it difficult to estimate the production cost. For example, every animated film directed by a famous director will become a box office record of Japanese films and win prizes at international film festivals, so the production funds given by sponsors will be much higher than other works. With sufficient production funds, he can increase the number of shots, invite famous seiyuu (or actors) and music production groups, and improve the popularity and publicity effect of the products. If you are a newcomer and have no "achievements", then the funds may be less. Because the film and television company has no comparison benchmark (the performance of newcomers), it will be more cautious to invest in this new project.

The third animation stage I: script

From the analysis diagram on the left, we have roughly explained several important steps before doing homework. From this time on, we began to explain the process of pre-production one by one. As you can see, the first and most important step is "scripting". All figure design (*2), mechanical design (*3), art design (*4) and directors should make composition according to the script. Therefore, no matter what kind of planning, the script plays a very important role in the production process.

We mentioned for the second time that the script may have been completed at the project stage. In that case, will the script be revised again after the plan is passed? It depends on the opinions of producers and directors. In the picture on the left, you can see the word producer (*5). Producers are responsible for the success or failure of an animated work. So if the producer has a problem with the script (not attractive enough), the screenwriter (*6) will modify the script. Of course, if the director has an opinion on the script and the producer agrees with the director, then the revision of the script is inevitable. Furthermore, although the director doesn't agree with the preliminary script and the producer doesn't think it is necessary to modify it, the script will not be modified either.

General animation companies don't have exclusive script writers, and most of them invite freelancers (some of these screenwriters are SOHO, and some set up studios with several like-minded screenwriters, such as the famous studio Orphy) to write manuscripts. The reason why we don't hire an exclusive screenwriter is because the script is not a department that needs it all year round. So if necessary, just sign a project contract with the scriptwriter. However, a few traditional animation production companies with a long history still have their own scriptwriting departments.

Script writing is not a simple matter. Different from novels, the actions and feelings of all characters need to be described in detail as bystanders. For example, a character is angry. Because everyone is angry in different ways, we should not only describe how he is angry, but also describe his actions in great detail to illustrate the character and characteristics (for example, Taro is furious = Taro clenched his fist, his eyes became a line, how the sweat dripped from his forehead, how the fire on his head became angry ...). The special way of writing plays makes a novelist sometimes unable to become a good playwright. And good scriptwriters are rare.

The fourth animation stage 2: director's works

The director is the leader of the whole animation production team. There is no certain benchmark for Japanese animation industry to judge the qualification as a director. At present, famous directors have different processes of becoming directors. Some of them switched careers from the film industry, some started as animators, some were screenwriters and directors, and some started from scratch. Generally speaking, most directors in the early stage of animation started from the production management (*2) who participated in animation production for many years, and then they were upgraded to directors or switched to the film industry. However, with the migration of the times, most animation directors are animators at present. The charm of being a director is that you can decide the direction of your work. But because the director decides everything, the work is busy, and the success or failure of the work lies with the director. Therefore, not everyone involved in animation production ultimately aims to be a director. However, for a person who wants to be a director, no matter what job he starts from, it is not difficult as long as he has the heart.

The following are the general contents of the directors' actual work:

1, pre-production operation:

* Complete the script with the script writer and producer.

* Meeting with role stylist, mechanical stylist and graphic designer respectively to finalize the design case.

* Making perspective (*3) (sometimes made by assistant directors)

2. During the production process, talk to the assistant director (*4) about the production direction of each episode.

3. Post-production operation:

* Edit movies with an editor

* Instruct the directors of seiyuu and sound effects to produce ideal effects.

* Image and sound synthesis.

4. Participate in all publicity activities.

The fifth animation prophase 3: mirror image and assistant director's work

The following is a perspective view of Japan (Europe and America are mostly horizontal tables, which can be known in the "animation" project of Studio Tour, an American cartoon website). Perspective is simply "a script presented as an image". How long it takes to draw a mirror image depends on the progress. An average animation of 26 minutes takes 3 weeks to complete. The perspective view does not need to draw the figures correctly, as long as the later staff can understand it. Nevertheless, before the original painter (*3) correctly draws the shots needed by the deputy director in each episode by relying on the split-mirror diagram, the split-mirror painter still needs to practice the character modeling of each work and understand the characteristics of the work in advance.

It is often seen that the draftsman and assistant director are the same person. There is a simple reason. Because the designer of the drawing (the mirror artist) is usually the person who knows the effect and superb acting skills that each shot needs to best set off the charm of the work. Therefore, the split-view picture is often the work of the deputy director.

The assistant director basically shares the burden of the director. No matter how many episodes of OVA series or 26 episodes of TV animation series, it is impossible for a director to take care of all the production details. Therefore, each animation series has an assistant director position to manage the animation production of each episode. Most directors are responsible for the important first and last episodes. The assistant director's job content is basically the same as that of the director except that he is not responsible for the pre-script, design draft and post-production publicity activities. However, since the director is the commander-in-chief of the whole work, before the assistant director is responsible for the production of each episode, the assistant director's auxiliary mirror picture must be approved by the director before the work can be officially assigned to the original painter for production.

The 6th Character Design and the Works of Character Designers

Animation is a collective activity that needs close cooperation. Therefore, besides a good script and an experienced director, a good work is of course an important factor to make it more attractive. For the first time in this unit, we explained that there are two kinds of animation works-original works and original cases. So the design of character modeling is different.

When the original cartoon was adapted into animation, there was no need to design more because the characters and costumes had been finalized. But why does every original animation still indicate "original character design" and "animation character designer"? First, comics are static works, because the number of squares is small, so the lines and costumes of the characters can be complicated to deepen the aesthetic feeling and impression of the works. However, when making animation, if you are loyal to the lines of the original characters, it will prolong the painting time and production time (and more funds), so it is necessary to simplify the lines of the original characters. Second, cartoon characters don't have to be colored, and they don't have to connect every line. However, animation needs coloring, so it is necessary to improve the original character modeling and connect all the lines, so that the coloring staff (*3) can color. Thirdly, some original anime characters are not suitable for anime works. For the reasons of production efficiency, coloring, animation modeling and so on, the original animation needs to hire another animation role designer.

The role design of original animation is a creative and arduous work. When the design case of the original characters is given to the character designer for design, it is only the director's words and verbal instructions (*4). Therefore, designers can only rely on the script and their own drawing ability to design people who can set off the charm of the story and leave a deep impression. In addition, we should also consider the problem of production efficiency, and don't draw characters with too complicated lines. Therefore, even a senior stylist may take some time (*5) to finalize the design.

The graphic design of the pre-production operation is completed (please refer to the graphic design listed on the website of Hades Project). Will be distributed to the original painter to do the drawing work of each shot. The design of a character can be divided into three types: costume design, facial expression design and local decoration design. All designs are usually divided into front, side, back and special expressions (angry, sad or smiling, etc. ) for the original painter to simulate.

How to be a role designer? According to AIC's senior designer, "it's very simple. Just keep practicing painting! " ... okay ... it's not that simple. The same person, everyone's painting style is different, some are very attractive, and some look inconspicuous. It really takes practice and tempering all the time to show different styles, just as they say. Moreover, just because female characters or animals are well drawn does not necessarily make them designers of animated characters. An important condition for a role designer is to be able to draw a wide range of roles specified in a work, which means that the designer's drawing ability should be flexible enough to meet the requirements of each work. If you can fully meet the requirements of the production company and the original characters you design are attractive enough, you can become an eye-catching animated character designer.

From the photos above, we can see the tools that role designers need. Drawing table, pencil, eraser and a pile of white paper are the most basic equipment (a little nonsense ... _; )。 In addition, the mirror is necessary, because the movements and parts of the characters sometimes need to look at themselves in the mirror to sketch. Other reference books and drawing tools depend entirely on the needs of each character designer, so I won't describe them in detail here.

The fifth stage of the seventh animation: mechanical modeling design and background design work

Many years ago, there was no specialized mechanical stylist. Most of them are designed by character designers or animators who are good at motors. From "Space Battleship Yamato" to "Gundam", we have truly positioned a professional mechanical plastic designer.

Mechanical designers must consider many factors in animation in order to design the mechanical modeling required for each animation. First, we should do a lot of homework at ordinary times to meet the various design requirements that follow. Secondly, the mechanical model of "suitable" production line should be designed considering the production date and schedule. The so-called "appropriate" lines are because if there are many lines, although the robot or spaceship looks cool, the animator will take a relatively long time to draw a shot. But if there are too few lines, the robot looks too simple and lacks courage, so it is very important to make appropriate lines when designing. Finally, the study of each animation world is to understand and design a mechanical warrior or spaceship that can meet the requirements of the director.

To be a mechanical stylist, you must have knowledge of industrial design and like machinery very much (such as cars, motorcycles, airplanes, boats ... as long as they are made of metal).

Background designers have a long history compared with mechanical modeling, and there have been professional background designers since the era of black and white comics. Background designers basically want to draw "good, fast and beautiful". This is why I mentioned it repeatedly in this unit. Animation time is limited, so there is not much time to draw slowly, so the popular professional art background design studio moves quickly and can meet the urgent delivery date. How to be a background designer? This is the same as shaping characters and mechanical stylists. You have to love painting, and you can draw well while lying down (a little exaggerated, but the animation industry is short of time, and there are few designers who can be OK at any time, but they are very popular). As for the skills or tools, you can find the information needed to draw the background in the "HowToPaint" column of the background design company "Corporation KUSANAGI" on the link page of this website.

The eighth animation stage 6: the work of color design and color distribution

After all the character modeling and mechanical modeling designs are completed, the director and stylist must work with the color designer to finally determine the color of the character (hair, clothes for various occasions or the color of the robot shell, etc.). ). Color design must match the tone (background and personality) of the whole work to design the color of the characters. After the color manuscript is finalized, the color specifier will specify a more detailed color type.

Many years ago, before computer coloring (*3), watercolor pigments were used to design colors on white paper (as shown on the left). Most of the colors of watercolor pigments are not prepared by the production companies themselves, but are designed according to the color cards and ready-made color types provided by the pigment companies. The reason why I don't paint myself is very simple, because after color design, I need a colorist to paint. If you color yourself, it is difficult for the colorist to name the same color. Of course, if the director asks and the funds permit, the production company can ask the pigment company to make the required colors, bottle them and distribute them to the colorists. Because the color type has been specified by the pigment company before the color design process, the color designer served as the color designator many years ago. And many animations look the same color.

At present, animation color design and color distribution are all done by software (as shown on the right). The software used by the company (animo and RETAS are popular animation software in Japan! PRO) is different, as long as it is software for processing images, color design can be carried out. It should be noted that different software processes colors in different ways, so the same software should be specified for color matching when it is delivered to the colorist. In addition, due to the digitalization of production methods and the freedom of color selection, the range of current color setting options has been expanded, and finer and more diverse colors have been set.

Color designers and color distributors all start from basic colorists. After one or two years (depending on personal qualifications), he was promoted to be a color designer or a color designer. The biggest difference between a color designer and a color specifier is that the color designer only needs to set the basic color (the color in ordinary sunlight, such as the left picture). The color matching staff should also work with the assistant director to set the colors needed for other lights and dramas in detail (dusk, night, special lights ... and so on). As the color design and color specification of animation, you need to have knowledge of image processing color. Because the picture quality and color displayed by each photographic equipment are different, if we don't design and specify it without a comprehensive understanding, the color displayed on the TV screen will be very different from the effect on the computer screen, which will reduce the charm of the work. Therefore, it takes one to two years for the basic colorists to be familiar with the actual operation process before they can be upgraded to colorists and then become color designers.

So far, the pre-production work has been basically introduced, and the following units will also introduce the original painting, animation and coloring personnel in the production process many times.