The Fine Arts Animation Triad

Mission Statement

Our goal is to create an animation area at CU Film Studies by correlating the three courses that deal primarily with the manipulation of the single frame. All of the courses listed below position the learner in a framework that stems from a fine arts practice at its root rather than a theatrical practice. This focus delineates the animator from the narrative filmmaker.

Completing all of the courses in this triad would constitute a holistic set of production techniques in animation including animating materials under camera, working with film chemistry as the material itself, and creating digital images for eventual cinema presentation.


Stacey Steers’ latest film, Phantom Canyon, recently screened at MoMA. Meticulous handmade collages explore a woman's fantastical journey through memories. Stacey Steers, adjunct faculty.

Students would have experiences that differ technically yet correlate conceptually between the courses. They would have the opportunity to use work created in one course as the starting material for a project in another. This process-oriented curriculum goes hand in hand with a process-oriented highly technical practice such as animation.

We offer students exposure to a wide range of animation techniques, from the most basic to the most state of the art, without falling into the trap of repeating mainstream aesthetics. All the tools used in these courses, ranging from the experimental to the orthodox, will be addressed with a sense of play and reinvention. The overall goal in each course is for the individual to find their unique expressive voice through the tools presented.

Acknowledgements

Film Studies would like to acknowledge the generous donations and continued support for the animation area by:

Courses

Animation Production: FILM 2610

Includes analysis of independent and experimental animation and an introduction to various animation techniques (object, line, collage, sand or paint on glass, Xerox, cameraless, pixillation, etc.). Students produce exercise films and a final film exploring these techniques.

Experimental Digital Animation: FILM 3620

Instructs students in the making of digital animation. Covers the use of the exposure sheet, frame series manipulation, digital motion techniques, and an analysis of pertinent films. Emphasis is on digital tools to create individual, personal, or experimental animated works. This course includes experimental techniques of transfer between digital media and film.

Cinema Alternative Processes: FILM 3030

Students learn to process motion picture film in order to gain creative control over the cinematic image. Topics include negative, reversal, and print processing. Students will also be exposed to both the contact and optical printers through hands on activities. Alternative photographic processes are explored in order to relate them to the moving image. Students are encouraged to approach film as an art form and focus on creative control of image quality in order to explore new forms of visual expression.

Independent Study

Advanced students use experience gained through their experimentation in the Animation Triad to produce a single complete work of film animation. Students will work one-on-one with an animation instructor for critique and guidance and will have access to the tools and facilities typically restricted to students in the animation classes.