And the SOMtember winners are…

Last month we invited you, our community, to participate in SOMtember, a series of 4 micro challenges over 30 days, where we explored some of the 12 principles of animation. Our featured artist Marta Duarte Diaz designed several fun project files to help you get started, and you know what? You guys absolutely killed it!!!

Sometimes the reward for doing something is knowing it was a job well done. But sometimes it’s stuff! For this contest we raffled off 10 free spots in the Fall Session of our updated Animation Bootcamp, with none other than instructor and School of Motion founder, Joey Korenman as your Teaching Assistant!

And the winners are… (click on their name to see their SOMtember submission on Instagram.)

• Sengsavane Chounramany - @sengsavanedesign
• Valentina Piccoli - @dodoplanet.it
• Manuel Perez Martins - @ani.manuu
• Alfonso Benitez - @alfonso_benitez
• Matt Barry - @mattbarrygfx
• Marina Parra - @estasenlaparra
• Ryuhei Tada - @ryu316_design
• Yahya Tebaa - @yahya.prod
• Evan Cooksey - @evancookseymotion
• Sandy Bouman - @thesandybouman

Congratulations to our winners! And thanks to all who participated. You guys rock.

For those that did not win, but still want to take Animation Bootcamp, it’s a great time to sign up. Classes start next week (October 9th, 2023), and while we are almost sold out, there are still a few seats left!

If you weren’t able to participate and want to practice animating, you’ll find the prompts below! Don’t forget to sign up here and use our free assets!

Prompt #1: Slow-in / Slow-out (Easing) 

This principle refers to the idea that movements should start and end gradually, with more emphasis on the intermediate frames. By easing into and out of movements, animators can create a more natural and fluid motion. Different easing can create very different vibes. See how smooth and flowy you can make your moves with slow in and slow out.

Prompt #2: Anticipation / Overshoot

Anticipation is the principle of preparing the audience for an action or movement before it happens. By giving us clues about the upcoming action, animators can make movements feel more natural and less sudden. One example of this is how we first squat down before jumping up. The squat anticipates and builds energy for the jump. You don’t need a character to illustrate this one, however. Shapes can also anticipate their actions!

Prompt #3: Follow Through & Overlapping Action

Follow Through and Overlapping Action refer to the secondary movements that occur after the main action has taken place. For example, a character's hair may continue to move after they have stopped walking. These subtle movements add realism to animations and create a sense of weight and momentum.

Prompt #4: Squash & Stretch

Squash and stretch is a classic used by every skilled animator. It’s one of the best ways to convey that your animated objects or characters have weight. The principle of Squash and Stretch refers to the stretching and compression of objects to emphasize their weight and movement. By exaggerating the deformations of an object as it moves, animators can add weight and believability to their animations.

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