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Archive for the ‘Animation’ Category

As an independent filmmaker specializing in animated comedy, I’d like to share my thoughts and observations on how to create projects intended to make people laugh (in a good way). By taking a close look at recent popular shows and movies (i.e. Simpsons, Family Guy, Shrek, etc) I’ve outlined a brief analysis that identifies some of the major strategies of humor used in many of today’s animated television programs and shows, as well as the advantages/disadvantages of implementing them. Just a note before we continue: this article isn’t intended only as a guide for comedy filmmakers- I’m sure those of you who appreciate good humor will get something out of it as well.

The following compilation is the result of my own observations, and I’m certain you’ll see what I mean if you take a closer look this Sunday night when Family Guy comes on. Later, I’ll share some of my own thoughts on the subject of creating effective humor for mainstream audiences.

1. PARODY: This involves poking fun of well-known genres and plot formulas (action, horror, porn, etc), and making references to well-known films, TV shows, famous people, significant historical events, etc. Very often, these genres, films, and TV shows are spoofed. Think of the number of times you’ve seen a reference to a Kubrick film during an episode of The Simpsons, or a Star Wars reference in Family Guy to emphasize a joke.

Advantages: First off, it’s easy to do and often elicits laughs. The basic structure of the joke is based on a well-known source, and the audience is likely to get it right away.

Disadvantages: To be blunt, it’s lazy filmmaking. Too much parody thrown in a story can often be interpreted as a lack of creativity/originality, and ultimately limits the project’s depth. Jokes/gags of this kind will only last as long as the spoofed or referenced subject is popular or is fashionable.

2. ANIMATION THAT IS DELIBERATELY BAD/CHEESY: Includes the use of poorly drawn/animated characters and backgrounds as an important element of the humor.

Advantages: Sometimes more efficient and more cost effective than using more detailed animation techniques. It’s funny to watch and calling some attention to the bad animation can generate new jokes and great sight gags. Think of shows like Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Sealab 2021.

Disadvantages: Like the parody, this can quickly turn into lazy filmmaking. Depending only on bad animation for laughs might make the project difficult to maintain in the long run.

3. GROSS-OUT HUMOR/EXPLICIT LANGUAGE: Includes humor that is, but not limited to being scatological, sexual, bloody, etc. Also includes use of foul language. Since the Simpsons and South Park, audiences have come to expect jokes of this kind.

Advantages: In small doses and if done with subtlety, gross-out humor and the use of explicit language combined with visual sight gags can be hilarious.
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Animation is the technique in which each frame of a film is produced individually, whether generated as a computer graphic, or by photographing a drawn image, or by repeatedly making small changes to a model unit (see claymation and stop motion), and then photographing the result with a special animation camera. When the frames are strung together and the resulting film is viewed at a speed of 16 or more frames per second, there is an illusion of continuous movement (due to the persistence of vision). Generating such a film is very labour intensive and tedious, though the development of computer animation has greatly sped up the process.

File formats like GIF, QuickTime, Shockwave and Flash allow animation to be viewed on a computer or over the Internet.

Because animation is very time-consuming and often very expensive to produce, the majority of animation for TV and movies comes from professional animation studios. However, the field of independent animation has existed at least since the 1950s, with animation being produced by independent studios (and sometimes by a single person). Several independent animation producers have gone on to enter the professional animation industry.

Limited animation is a way of increasing production and decreasing costs of animation by using “short cuts” in the animation process. This method was pioneered by UPA and popularized by Hanna-Barbera, and adapted by other studios as cartoons moved from movie theaters to television.[3]
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