Parallels between good animation and good dance

Let me make this clear. I can't dance. My wife has regularly commented on my inability to look even remotely cool when I dance (I don't try very often... it gives her to much to giggle at). I was watching TV last night and the final for 'So you think you can Dance' was on. In it one of the dancers did the most amazing solo for the program, and while I was watching it, it occurred to me that there a so many parallels between watching a wonderful dance/dancer and watching amazing animation.

From my undeducated dancing eye, the thing that I most enjoyed about the dancing were the same things I most enjoyed about great animation.
- Incredible strong storytelling poses
- Wonderful interesting absorbing transitions
- Variations in movement and timing
- Curves (man.... the way the guy in the final was able to move his body through the air with everything following these fluid arcs)
- Settles

It seems to me that a good way of explaining to people what the difference is between good animation and bad animation would be to get them to look at good and bad dancers and compare them.

I had a hunt on youtube and found the guys final solo. Unfortunately you have to wade through the standard corny discussion leading up to it, but if you're an animator, watch this guys solo. The pose he hits at the end of his pirouettes is wonderful to watch.

Great stuff.

:) I love animating!

His solo is about half way through the whole clip (2 minutes 11 seconds in), so skip forward to it if you can.


The Viennese waltz!

What I'm up to

Its been a crazy month or so. I've finished up working on Animalia and have spent the last couple months working on some Shrek 2 marketing, Bee movie marketing and am shortly to start working on a full length feature (of which I'm not sure I can speak yet... ). Its all very exciting. At the same time my son has turned 4, my daughter is walking and talking, and life is thumping along.

As soon as I get a chance I'll post some of the shots I did late last year for the TMNT movie, and a few other bits and pieces that I've done which I'm allowed to post.