Animation N VFX Career Program
Elevate your creative potential with Animentor Academy’s industry-aligned program. Master 3D Modeling, Digital Film Making, and Visual Effects using tools like Maya and After Effects.
The essential foundation for every professional animator at Animentor Academy.
In the golden age of Disney, legendary animators Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas introduced a set of rules that changed the industry forever. Known as the 12 Principles of Animation, these concepts are the foundation for creating movement that feels realistic, charismatic, and emotionally resonant.
Whether you are a 2D enthusiast or a 3D professional, mastering these principles is what separates a mechanical movement from a living, breathing character.
This is considered the most important principle. It gives objects a sense of weight and flexibility. When an object hits the ground, it flattens (squashes), and when it bounces up, it elongates (stretches). Key Rule: Always maintain the object's total volume so it doesn't look like it's growing or shrinking.
Anticipation prepares the audience for an action. Think of a golfer swinging their club back before hitting the ball. This "backward" motion before the "forward" motion makes the action feel natural and physically grounded.
Staging is about directing the audience's attention to what is most important in a scene. Through camera angles, lighting, and character placement, you ensure the primary idea is unmistakably clear and free from distraction.
Straight Ahead involves drawing frame-by-frame from start to finish (ideal for fluid elements like fire or water). Pose to Pose involves drawing the key poses first and then filling in the frames between them, which is better for structured character acting.
Nothing stops all at once. When a character stops running, their hair and clothes continue to move for a few frames (Follow Through). Additionally, different body parts move at different rates (Overlapping Action), which prevents the animation from looking stiff.
In reality, objects need time to accelerate and decelerate. By adding more frames at the beginning and end of an action, you create a "Soft" feel. This avoids robotic, linear movement and adds a sense of organic physics.
Natural movement rarely happens in a straight line. From the swing of a pendulum to the turn of a head, most actions follow a circular path or an Arc. Following arcs makes your animation look fluid and lifelike.
These are small gestures that support the main action to add more personality. For example, if a character is walking (primary action), they might also be nervously tapping their fingers (secondary action) to show their mood.
Timing refers to the number of frames for a given action. The correct timing makes objects appear to obey the laws of physics—more frames make an object look heavy and slow, while fewer frames make it look light and fast.
Animation isn't about perfect realism; it's about enhanced reality. Exaggerating a facial expression or a physical reaction helps convey emotion and impact more effectively than a boring, literal representation.
This principle means giving your 2D drawings the illusion of three-dimensional volume, weight, and balance. It ensures the character doesn't look "flat" or "skewed" when they move through space.
Appeal is the "charisma" of a character. It doesn't mean the character has to be heroic or beautiful—even a villain can have appeal. It’s about a design that is pleasing to look at and has a clear, interesting personality.
Master the full 3D Production Pipeline. Designed for high-end industry placement.
Bridge the gap between imagination and the screen with advanced VFX and Storytelling.