Looking for some new sources of inspiration to enhance your animations?
Here are five unexpected places to look that can provide inspiration to refine and enhance your animations in new ways you hadn’t thought of before.
1. Silent Film Techniques
Have you ever watched a student reel where a character is overacting to the point of comical absurdity—completely unintentionally? Picture a scene where the line is, “You love me?” and the character dramatically points at the other person, then themselves, then tips their head back and faints onto the floor. While such actions can serve a comedic purpose, going overboard is often a rookie mistake.
So, what’s the right amount of expressive acting, and how do you develop a knack for it? How long should you hold a pose? What’s the ideal level of exaggeration?
This is where the silent film era can offer valuable insights.
Before sound was introduced in films, actors had to convey emotions and dialogue largely through mime, occasionally supplemented by title cards. This meant they had to employ very clear movements so the audience could easily follow the story. As a result, actors used more pronounced physical expressions than we typically see in today’s cinema, where modern storytelling often relies on over-the-shoulder shots of talking heads.
However, even with these heightened movements, the actions were not so theatrical as to become unbelievable. Silent film actors effectively conveyed a range of emotions, from somber to comedic.
Studying silent film techniques—or even the art of mime—can help you understand the balance of movement and expression needed to convey a message in animation. Overdoing expressions can come off as silly or unnatural, while too little emphasis results in stiff, boring characters. Finding the right level of expressiveness is key.
If you’re looking for excellent silent films to study, check out this compilation of classic examples.
2. Dance and Theatre Choreography
What interesting things can you animate with just two arms, two legs, a torso, and a head? That’s essentially the job of every choreographer—they’re always finding entertaining ways to move the body.
So why not let them do the heavy lifting? As an animator, you can pick and choose from their creative movements to enhance your animations.
For example, if you have a character who gets punched and falls over, instead of just applying ragdoll physics, consider exploring some dance routines for unique ways to depict their fall.
Or think about a character who’s overwhelmed with joy. It’s easy to have them simply jump with excitement, but why not have them break into a little dance instead?
These moments, where a character is consumed by emotion, present great opportunities to implement something more captivating, helping you stand out as a talented animator.
If you’re looking for inspiration or want to study some intriguing choreography, check out Kyle Hanagami’s YouTube channel. He has over 250 choreography videos that showcase a variety of styles and movements.
3. Nature’s Micro-Movements
Have you ever animated an amorphous object, like a blob, a transformation, or something growing?
It’s easy to just in-between the key poses to go from point A to B in a consistent manner, but consider drawing some inspiration from nature’s natural rhythms and sequences.
Studying organic growth can add a lot of depth and realism to your animation. For example, how does a leaf grow? It’s not just a blob that morphs into a leaf. It starts curled up, unwrapping and unfurling its edges in a specific sequence. Seeds similarly send out roots that spread and “explore” their surroundings before the first leaves, called cotyledons, shoot up. These natural sequences are full of subtle and deliberate movements that can be directly translated into animation for a more organic feel.
For some great examples, check out these time-lapses of plant growth that reveal the hidden intricacies of nature’s transformations.
Seeing how nature gradually evolves over time can inspire new approaches for animating morphing scenes. Instead of simply moving from point A to point B, you can incorporate natural, gradual transitions that build complexity and depth. This approach allows you to craft more nuanced, captivating animations by mimicking the organic pace of real-life transformations.
4. Everyday Machine Mechanics
Robotic tools are so embedded in our daily lives that we barely notice them anymore. Think about how many robotic systems you encounter every day—bus doors, automated sprinklers, coffee machines, and more.
Though these systems often have simple, user-friendly designs (press a button, and something happens), they rely on complex inner workings that can inspire some fascinating animation techniques, adding new layers of detail to your work.
For instance, if you’re animating a bus door, instead of simply sliding it open and closed, consider how a real pneumatic bus door system works. Here’s an instructional video that breaks it down—from the hinge joints and angles of the doors to all the inner mechanics at play.
Studying these everyday mechanisms can help you understand the timing, movement, and complexity of real-world objects, which you can apply when animating machinery to give it a more realistic, grounded feel.
If you’re looking for some more interesting examples of how machines operate, check out Mechanical Design Brain, which has dozens of videos showing just how intricate machinery can be.
5. Animate to Different Genres of Music
If you’ve read Richard Williams’ book The Animator’s Survival Kit, you’ll recall how he famously asked animator Milt Kahl what he listens to while animating. Kahl’s response was, “I’m not smart enough to think of more than one thing at a time!”
While it’s solid advice to concentrate fully on the scene you’re animating, many animators enjoy listening to music to help them get into the groove. Most have their go-to background tracks, and you might even have your own playlist that keeps you motivated.
But have you ever tried switching it up completely? How does your animation change when you listen to jazz, hip-hop, classical, trance, or even something completely different like white noise?
You might discover that varying your music influences the style, pacing, or even the design of your animation in unexpected ways.
Want to learn more?
Learn the basic principles of character animation, including a survey of the different types of animation, basic vocabulary, and the 12 principles of animation. If you’re just starting out and want to make sure your basics are covered – this course is the best place to start.
