Acting for Animators

Ed Hooks' essential acting guidebook for animators has been fully revised and updated in this fifth edition, capturing some of the vast changes that have affected the animation industry in recent years. Written specifically for animation professionals instead of stage and movie actors, this book provides an essential primer for creating empathetic and dynamic character performance and, in the process, shows how the strongest storytelling structure works. Hooks applies classical acting theory – from Aristotle to Stanislavsky and beyond – to animation, as well as explaining scene structure, character development and the connections between thinking, emotion and physical action. Theory presented here applies to any and all character animation regardless of style or animation technique. Whether your project is stop-motion, 2D, 3D or a blend of techniques, audiences are audiences are audiences, and they have shown up at the theater or cinema so they can experience and enjoy your story. New to this fifth edition: Four new scene-by-scene acting analyses of animated feature films: Flee, Soul, Porco Rosso and The Triplets of Belleville A comprehensive and updated section titled "Classroom Notes" which includes a segment on experimental animation, a brief history of acting training for actors and guidance on Motion and Performance Capture technology Updated online database of Hooks' previous film analyses, all in one place Acting for Animators is essential reading for all students and teachers of animation courses.

Table of Contents:
Preface Introduction Let’s Start with Definitions Definition: Acting is behaving believably in pretend circumstances for a theatrical purpose. For a theatrical purpose Structure Action → Conflict/Obstacle → Objective We are narrative-seeking, storytelling animals Action Objective Long-term and short-term objectives Baymax in a shopping cart Pursuing a negative objective Acting and the CG Pipeline Animate the thought (acting is a process of exposing, not of hiding) Willing suspension of disbelief and the Uncanny Valley Regarding the animated documentary Emotion Empathy Sympathy Psychological gesture Character rhythm The audience Who is your intended audience? The 4th wall Video reference Storyboards vs. complete screenplays Comedy vs. drama (intro) Gags lack structure Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Laurel & Hardy Showreels Character development Heroes and villains Video games Empathy vs. agency in games Cutscenes (animatics) Humor Non-player characters (NPC's) Character design and narrative A few more thoughts about blinking in games Classroom notes Scenes begin in the middle Acting is doing; Acting is also reacting Blinking Eyebrows Animating dialogue Status transactions Power centers The adrenaline moment "Ma" Regarding those talking dogs in Pixar’s movie UP Experimental animation Laban movement analysis What does listening look like? Pantomime Anger and yelling Punctuation in scripts Crying Drunk My acting gift to you is a surprise A scene is a negotiation Relationships are the way that characters feel about one another Mirrors A brief history of acting training (for actors) Mocap Animating aliens, robots and other non-humans Film Analysis Flee Grave of the fireflies Soul Porco Rosso Analysis The Triplets of Belleville Introduction Madame Souza Training for the Tour de France The Tour de France The kidnapping French wine center/the sinister crime We meet the Triplets of Belleville The rescue Finale Postscript "PSSSST . . . a few words, please, with animation teachers and mentors . . ." Classroom exercises Tightrope Exercise Create a character profile Open script exercise The transformation game Addendum Walt Disney’s 1935 memo to Don Graham regarding how to train animators Ed Hooks annotates an animation master into "actor-ese" ... Ed Hooks annotates a section from the book The Illusion of Life Conclusion Becoming an artist The future of animated storytelling Acknowledgements References Index

About the Author :
Ed Hooks was a professional actor for almost 30 years, trained in New York, with credits in all media. He is an internationally recognized acting teacher who has taught in over 35 countries, and he has written several books for actors. Hooks is the first person to apply classical acting theory to animated storytelling.

Review :
“Acting for Animators is written specifically for animation professionals and provides an essential primer for creating empathic and dynamic character performances and shows how the storytelling structure works. Not only will every animation professional benefit from reading this book, every animation student can use it as a basic tool for the foundation of their career.” Nancy Denney-Phelps, Animation World Network, USA