Principles of Background Desig

Siobhan Twomey, our go-to artist/instructor for drawing and animation, is here to give us her perspective on creating background art for your animations. You first learn about production conventions like where and how background design fits into the production pipeline. Then, Siobhan teaches you the "language" of the trade and how to communicate your ideas and interpret a director's/producer's ideas about layouts, storyboards and the different types of shots.

Next, Siobhan explains how to stage a scene and frame the action. She shows you how to interpret a shot and compose a background that enhances the story, the movement and personalities of the characters.

Let's get some perspective here! The penultimate section is all about angles and perspective and how they influence the size, scope and proportion of the characters and their surroundings. As this course comes to a conclusion, you will have a new outlook on creating backgrounds for any animation that comes across your desk.