Blog Post #5

 

Pacing in animation helps control the speed in which the narrative flows and can help set the tone of scenes. It also greatly effects the full length of animation. It has been something I have been struggling with as I look back at the work I've done, mostly with it feeling a bit too fast. 

In my research on how to combat this, I came across his article, Mastering Timing and Pacing: Creating Rhythm and Flow in Animated Scenes, and it has served as a great help for me. It's discussion of creating a narrative beat and when to employ a slower pace has made me go back into my own animation and essentially slow down a few scenes. As a person who watches mostly animated media, I also went back and simply watched some cartoons! In doing this I realized that there does not have to be movement on screen at all times, which made me go back and alter several of my own scenes/narrative beats. The art of the pause is really important, and I think will be a great tool for building suspense and anticipation towards the end of my animation where the resolve will take place. 

Something also mentioned in the article was the importance of sound and music in pacing, both in timing and emotional beats. Though I haven't added audio yet, I plan to reference a scene from one of the greatest stop motion television shows of all time, Moral Orel. The first episode of the last season starts with No Children by the Mountain Goats, which adds a strong emotional heaviness. The episode goes on as normal, but then ends with the remainder of the song. I want to do something very similar, but I haven't yet discovered what song will be able to convey the emotion of distortion and heaviness that I want to get across.

https://hound-studio.com/blog/mastering-timing-and-pacing-creating-rhythm-and-flow-in-animated-scenes/