Characters are designed and fleshed out first.
Concept Art and Story Boarding
Almost all cartoons begin with some form of concept art. Concept drawings allow the filmmakers to get an idea about how characters, settings and key scenes will play out. The look, personality and costume of the characters are decided during the concept drawing phase. The entire visual look of the film is also decided during the concept phase. This can impact whether the film has a fairy-tale look, traditional cartoon look or even a more abstract feel.
Storyboards are drawn to show the how the frame of each shot will look and to give the animator's a heads-up on what sort of animation or effects will be required of them. Storyboards also allow the director to look at the visual flow of the movie and make sure that it fits with her vision before sending hundreds of animators to work.
Voice Acting
Voice acting and music are often done early on in Disney cartoons. This is because the actor's performance can influence how the artists animate each character. Recently, celebrity voice actors have been hired to create the voices of characters, which helps the animated films attract more buzz.
Voice acting can create some of the most memorable moments in Disney films. Moments like Mufasa's ghost visiting Simba in "The Lion King" or the genie in "Aladdin" transforming into parade commentators were made possible by compelling voice actors. Voice actors add humor, depth and drama to their line readings that cause the project to transition from cartoon to film.
Animation and Effects
Once the storyboards and voice acting has been done, animators can begin the process of creating actual animation. Cell animation was the dominant medium for the Disney classics such as "Snow White," "Cinderella" and on up until the "The Little Mermaid." However, with the production of "Beauty and the Beast," Disney began to include some computer-generated effects. This trend continued until Pixar's computer-animated films ultimately dominated the world of Disney animation.
Creating cell animation is much different than computer animation. Each frame of the film must be hand-painted onto a transparent cell that is suspended over a painting background. Disney animators had their hands full with a typical cartoon coming in at around 24 frames per second. Today, computer-generated characters are animated and rendered inside a computer. While each frame can be looked at and dissected, no one artist needs to hand-paint each moment of the film.
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