Research - Inspiring Flash Animations

Okay, this is going to be a long post, so bear with me while I waffle on a bit about some ridiculously good animations.

Basically, since my group have decided on doing flash animations, I figured it would be a good idea to start researching some straight away. Here are some I really like, with an explanation of why I like them.



BOB AND THE APPLE by *LazyMuFFin on deviantART

I love this animation, because it is just so unpredictable and silly. It is a very simple concept, and it uses cliche over-used film techniques like slow motion for comic value. The style of animation is quirky and suits the tone of the story.


Animator vs. Animation by *alanbecker on deviantART

This animation is breath taking. It isn't humourous as such, but you find yourself being blown away by the sheer brilliance of the timing and action in this clip. The animator successfully adapts the setting (Flash interface) so that it can be interactive with the characters. The tools are used as weapons to be used by the characters against eachother. The story is sound, and engages the viewer to keep watching. Very good use of two very simple characters - a stickman and a cursor.



I'm not entirely sure whether this was made on Flash, but I can't stop myself from putting this on my blog. This is a very fun random animation featuring a boy called Finn and his dog Jake. They are very daft and childish, which makes the main characters very endearing to watch. The animation is colourful and simple, but not lacking in quality and smooth imagery. I'm not surprised that this short has been made into a series for Cartoon Network.


I saw this Weird Al Yankovic music video quite a while ago, and felt that it needed to be praised again for its slick execution. Doogtoons recreates the story of the hungry couple in a very amusing away. The backgrounds are really nice, and there's some nicely demonstrated depth of field, done by blurring certain objects or people in the foregrounds and backgrounds. This helps the viewer concentrate on centre of focus. Also the part where the load music is cleverly done. The wiggly lines show the power of the speakers really effectively.


Simon's Cat has become vastly popular on Youtube, and I think it definitely deserves its success. This is a perfect example of a funny and simple animation. The concept, again, is very straight forward - a cat bothering its owner for attention. The quality of the lineart is clear enough to not need colour. The important thing that makes this so successful is that these shorts are based on real life.

Also, the time frame is just over 40secs. This gives me an idea of just how snappy and short our animation has to be. I'm quite daunted, to be honest. However, I think we're up to the task :D