Character design
Basic character designs use techniques implemented in cartoon design.
Among these techniques include the use of reference sketches to ensure
character proportionality and multiple angle designs.
Proportions
Body proportions emulated in anime come from proportions of the human
body. The height of the head is considered by the artist as the base
unit of proportion. Head heights can vary as long as the remainder of
the body remains proportional. Most anime characters are about seven to
eight heads tall, and extreme heights are set around nine heads tall.
Variations to proportion can be modified by the artist.
Super-deformed
characters feature a non-proportionally small body compared to the
head. Sometimes specific body parts, like legs, are shortened or
elongated for added emphasis. Most super deformed characters are two to
four heads tall. Some anime works like
Crayon Shin-chan
completely disregard these proportions, such that they resemble Western
cartoons. For exaggeration, certain body features are increased in
proportion. Comedic effects often utilize these variations.
Eye styles
Many anime and manga characters feature large
eyes.
Osamu Tezuka,
who is believed to have been the first to use this technique, was
inspired by the exaggerated features of American cartoon characters such
as
Betty Boop,
Mickey Mouse, and Disney's
Bambi. Tezuka found that large eyes style allowed his characters to show emotions distinctly. When Tezuka began drawing
Ribbon no Kishi,
the first manga specifically targeted at young girls, Tezuka further
exaggerated the size of the characters' eyes. Indeed, through
Ribbon no Kishi, Tezuka set a stylistic template that later
shōjo artists tended to follow.
Coloring is added to give eyes, particularly to the cornea, some
depth. The depth is accomplished by applying variable color shading.
Generally, a mixture of a light shade, the tone color, and a dark shade
is used.Cultural anthropologist
Matt Thorn argues that Japanese animators and audiences do not perceive such stylized eyes as inherently more or less foreign.
However, not all anime have large eyes. For example, some of the work of
Hayao Miyazaki
and Toshiro Kawamoto are known for having realistically proportioned
eyes, as well as realistic hair colors on their characters.
Facial expressions
Anime characters may employ a variety of predetermined facial
expressions to denote moods and thoughts.These techniques are often
different in form than their counterparts in Western animation, and they
include a fixed iconography that's used as shorthand for certain
emotions and moods.
There are a number of other stylistic elements that are common to
conventional anime as well but more often used in comedies. Characters
that are shocked or surprised will perform a "
face fault",
in which they display an extremely exaggerated expression. Angry
characters may exhibit a "vein" or "stress mark" effect, where lines
representing bulging veins will appear on their forehead. Angry women
will sometimes summon a
mallet from nowhere and strike another character with it, mainly for the sake of
slapstick comedy. Male characters will develop a
bloody nose around their female love interests (typically to indicate arousal, which is a play on an
old wives' tale). Embarrassed or stressed characters either produce a massive
sweat-drop
(which has become one of the most widely recognized motifs of
conventional anime) or produce a visibly red blush or set of parallel
(sometimes squiggly) lines beneath the eyes, especially as a
manifestation of repressed romantic feelings. Characters who want to
childishly taunt someone may pull an
akanbe
face (by pulling an eyelid down with a finger to expose the red
underside). Characters may also have large "X" eyes to show a knockout,
or in some cases, even illness. This is typically used for comedic
purposes. Vacant, non-reflecting eyes can be used to indicate a state of
semi-consciousness.
Animation technique
Like all
animation, the production processes of
storyboarding,
voice acting, character design,
cel production and so on still apply. With improvements in computer technology,
computer animation increased the efficiency of the whole production process.
Anime is often considered a form of
limited animation.
That means that stylistically, even in bigger productions the
conventions of limited animation are used to fool the eye into thinking
there is more movement than there is. Many of the techniques that are
used comprise cost-cutting measures while working under a set budget.
Anime scenes place emphasis on achieving three-dimensional views.
Backgrounds depict the scenes' atmosphere.For example, anime often puts
emphasis on changing seasons, as can be seen in numerous anime, such as
Tenchi Muyo!. Sometimes actual settings have been duplicated into an anime. The backgrounds for the
Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya are based on various locations within the suburb of
Nishinomiya, Hyogo, Japan.
The large majority of anime uses
traditional animation, which better allows for
division of labor,
pose to pose approach and checking of drawings before they are shot – practices favored by the
anime industry. Other mediums are mostly limited to independently made
short films, examples of which are the
silhouette and other
cutout animation of
Noburō Ōfuji, the
stop motion puppet animation of
Tadahito Mochinaga,
Kihachirō Kawamoto and Tomoyasu Murata and the
computer animation of Satoshi Tomioka (most famously
Usavich).
Camera effects
Camera angles, camera movement, and lighting play an important role
in scenes. Directors often have the discretion of determining viewing
angles for scenes, particularly regarding backgrounds. In addition,
camera angles show
perspective. Directors can also choose camera effects within
cinematography, such as panning, zooming, facial closeup, and panorami.
Source: Wikipedia
