🔑 Darth Vader, Sonic, + a Startling Shoe Spot
Where's animation going and how can we get onboard?
Unlocking inspiration for all things animation – a 5 minute or less, straight to your inbox, turboboost of keyframe goodness, every week.
👋🏻 MAY THE FOURTH BE WITH YOU.
It’s May, Star Wars day has come and gone, and of course, it’s raining news for the animation industry – some good (a new series from the creator of BOJACK HORSEMAN), some bad (a late night tariff announcement on anything NOT made in the US), and some weird (a nearly 2 minute long anime commercial for McDonald’s?!?)
I’d say we all could use some inspiration to get our engines started this week. Buckle up, we’ve got the good stuff.
📃 What’s inside this edition of KEYS & CURVES?
Animation: Feral Child goes full-on horror for tech.
Motion Design: Something new when it comes to SHOES?
Tools + Training: Never a better time to learn 2D.
It’s Monday already? LET’S GO! 😁
ANIMATION STATION
I Think Of You (Dying)
That might sound a little provocative, but it’s both the title of a great live-action meets 2D spot by Feral Child (how did the client go for this?!?), and what we’re all wondering about the animation industry right now. We’re still in the thick of it when it comes to figuring out what the heck is going on – are jobs coming back? Will more shows start production? Are we all going to have to make our own indie productions to keep working?
We don’t have the answers, but we’re certainly looking for them. Eric Calderon of Surviving Animation did a great summary of what went sideways in 2024 to at least help give us context for how we got here.
HELLUVA BOSS, the spin-off show from chart-toppingHazbin Hotel, is coming to Amazon Prime straight from Youtube, with TWO more seasons greenlit. It’s going to be the number one reference point for anyone pitching shows for the foreseeable future. FLOW is getting namedropped all around Hollywood after the surprise Oscar win – but what does it really mean for the rest of us?
And that begs the question – do readers of Keys & Curves want to hear about the health and direction of the industry here, or should we just try to be the weekly spoonful of sugar with all the bad-tasting medicine out there?
Quick Hits:
An amazing number of real-world headshot prankfall animation references
FrameByFrame found a reel life moment to break down for animators
Incredibly tight 2D FX work for League of Legends by JonghyunJukebox
MOTION MADNESS
Next-Level Shoe Stories.
Just when you think you’ve seen it all when it comes to shoe spots, Barton Damer and his wizards at Already Been Chewed pull together something completely fresh. What I love here is the merging of the kind of behind-the-scenes storytelling the ABC crew has been using for their social media posts sneaking into their actual deliverables.
This is what happens when a founder’s obsessions collide with a brand’s voice and vision – it’s so rare these days in motion design but when the magic hits, it HITS.
Bravo to that team in Texas rocking the keys and wrangling those curves.
Quick Hits:
Buck creates Notion’s animated assistant with the help of RIVE
Sculpture or painting? So neat to see a common motion design look IRL.
TOOL, TECHNIQUE, + TUTORIAL TIME
Two D for Three D
There’s something in the water right now and it feels like a growing interest in traditional, hand-drawn cel animation. We’re not sure if it’s a natural reaction the AI-sameification, the explosion of interest in Studio Ghibli’s work, or the availability of tools and training – but interest is growing.
Alex Grigg posted a gem of a video about 3 things to help you work LESS hard when animating, Dong Chang shared one of the best explanations on how timing charts are used in anime, and Olof Storm has some really unique takes on how they mix 2D and 3D that surprised us.
Here’s some quick hits when it comes to tools and tutorials:
Steamroller Animation with some great tips on leading with your head.
Lucas Malaquias has scene files + BTS for Stylized After Effects flames.
Super neat C4D trick to attach 1 object to another deforming one
Make a Custom Font and pull of a LOT of tricks in After Effects
Nick Scarcella dives deep on FutureDeluxe SONOS work at SAFE SPACE LA.
One last thing:
You mean I can get paid to be chased by life-size T-rex and her baby?
Got an idea for something we should cover? Hit us up with some choice links!
And that’s all folks, until next week, keep on slinging keys & riding curves! 🤩
That Alex Grigg video is incredible. Jenn Romolini wrote something and it's become my mantra for this year: Would it be okay with you if things were easy? It's a daily reminder. You don't have to do everything on hard mode.