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I usually use a Mac for stop motion (iStopmotion) but I've heard good things about Dragonframe for the PC. Use the best camera you can afford, a DSLR is great but a decent camera is good too if you take time with your lighting. Don't forget to tape everything down if you don't want it to move!
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Preston Blair's "Cartoon Animation" is great for the basics, and Richard Williams' "Animator's Survival Kit" is great for more details, but I think one of the best places to start is to grab a DVD or QuickTime of your favorite animation, and watch it frame-by-frame. It's a nice way to see what goes in to a shot.
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I'm pretty sure that Jason Vorhees would kill all the campers. Dan and Jason usually don't carry any machetes with them. Advantage: Vorhees.
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I don't really get inspiration from one place, but old books, stories from friends, D&D, podcasts, and newspapers are all great places to start.
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If I'm drawing or animating, I like to listen to music. If I'm trying to write, I need a quiet space. Distraction is bad, little breaks are good but bad if I'm on a roll. I have nothing against coffee, but some people like it much more than I do.
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Hi Will! That's a tough question, and I guess it depends on what you want to do with your life.
It's very, very hard to find work as a traditional 2D animator in either New York or LA, without solid knowledge of 2D computer and/or 3D animation. Most is done overseas, and what is still done in the US tends to be short-term projects.
New York is great for advertising, motion graphics, documentary, and preschool animation. It's also a fantastic place for independent animation, art, and culture in general. I lived there for a little more than ten years, and I still miss my friends and the city out there. Unfortunately, if you want to do character animation, series animation, or features, the lack of both jobs and unions makes that sort of work rare and low-paying in NYC, especially any drawn or Flash-based animation. The situation isn't helped by several schools in the area that are turning out about 100 animators per year.
Los Angeles has its troubles. There isn't a large indie scene out here, and most animators in the industry are working on pitches or non-animated personal projects rather than independent films. I think it's because most people find jobs through their reels rather than their indie films out here, and work contracts tend to be longer and leave less unemployed time for work on personal films. However, the weather is nice, and the pay and hours tend to be better for character animators out here. Also, there's hiking, no mosquitoes, and no snow. It can be hard to get established without connections, and the more successful artists I know out here tend to be incredibly talented and have rich portfolios of personal projects, like paintings and comics.
So, it really depends on what you want to do. I had a great time as a Maya, After Effects, and special effects animator in New York. The work was interesting, and the pay was good. I think New York is a great place to spend your twenties. That being said, I'm enjoying my time out in California! -
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Fran Krause’s Bio
I am an independent director and animator, and a professor at CalArts.
