Deep canvas is a coloring and rendering technique based on a computer program. The tool was created for the film Tarzan (1999) by the producer Walt Disney Pictures and was intended to improve the feeling of depth in the sets of animated films. The term was created by the artist and engineer Eric Daniels who is its developer. The software won an Oscar (Technical Achievement Award) in 2003.
The Deep Canvas implied a breakthrough in the world of animation. This technique allowed to achieve a higher level of realism, it increased the freedom of the "camera" which could now move freely inside the set[1] and also sharpened the traditional animation process which consisted on copying the frames by adding slight variations. Now you could automatically duplicate the work done and simply add the modifications instead of drawing and painting everything from scratch. This was expressed by the co-director of the film Kevin Lima,
, Dan St. Pierre (then president of Disney Feature Animation) and Doug Ball (head of sets in Tarzan's production):
"It [the Deep Canvas] finally allows us to do what non-animation movies can do with a Steadicam. For the first time we can move our camera wherever we want from the background, instead of just flat layers of two-dimensional backgrounds. . " - Kevin Lima
"One of the most unique things about Deep Canvas is that it allows these wonderfully trained traditional background painters to create whole environments instead of just square, flat pieces of art. The software we've created allows them to paint with a pencil and a tablet. of digitization in a three-dimensional model. " - Don St. Pierre
"The idea of being truly able to paint a background that can be animated and seen from all sides in a three-dimensional way is a dream. People who have virtually no computer experience have been immersed in the program and in a matter of weeks they are painting as prolifically as they did with traditional painting tools. " - Doug Ball
The first step in this technique is to create scenarios as computer-generated images. Simplified and three-dimensional models are created. On these, artists may paint as if it were a canvas but instead of doing it on a canvas and with a brush they do it on a tablet and with a pointer. The program, which offers different types of brush and thickness, records information (location, color, pressure) on each brushstroke, which allows you to easily reproduce what has already been painted. Before creating these images the director needs to know what the camera movements of the sequence will be. Finally, the two-dimensional characters drawn and animated in the traditional way are added (frame by frame).[2]
Deep canvas was later used in films such as Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) or Treasure Planet (2002).
Background
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. It was Dan St. Pierre, design supervisor, who planted the first seed for the birth of Deep canvas in the mid-90s. Having noted the limitations that 2D imposed on animation, he presented the matter to the then director of Disney Feature Animation, Peter Schneider . The idea took shape, the studios acquired new computers and Eric Daniels, a graphics supervisor, assembled his team of digital production software experts and made St. Pierre´s ,who went on to become the art director in Tarzan's production, dream come true. The new software still connects traditional animation with the world of computers. Traditional and new technology.[3] Computer coloring had already been made possible with CAPS (Computer Animation Production System) which made it possible to paint on scanned drawings.
Deep canvas represents one of the first steps towards the digitization of animation but it is neither the first nor has it turned out to be the last. Producer Walt Disney had already expressed interest on improving the backgrounds of his films and in the 30s he developed the Multiplane camera which gave some movement to the sets created in different layers that could be moved to allow the camera to shift freely.[4] The main drawback of this camera was the cost it had, often impossible for some producers to bear. However, it was the best technology of the time and continued to be used until the introduction of computing in animation.[5]
A year after the presentation of the Deep canvas (with the Tarzan film), American animation was thrown headlong into the digital world.
References
edit- ^ Tarzan changes the face of animation. 14-12-17.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help); Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Como se hizo "Blancanieves y los Siete Enanitos"". YouTube (in Castellà). Retrieved 14-12-17.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|access-date=(help)CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ^ "Disney's Tarzan Adventure: Two Worlds Merge" (in anglès). Retrieved 14-12-17.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help)CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ^ "Walt Disney explica la càmera multipla". YouTube (in anglès).
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ^ Inconvenients de la camera multipla. [Consulta: 14-12-17]
External links
edit- Explanation of how the Deep Canvas works
- Walt Disney talking about the multiplane camera: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdHTlUGN1zw
- Web site of Jason Gillard. 'Deep Canvas' The Animation Technique: http://jasongillard.com/deep-canvas-the-animation-technique/
[[Category:Film]]