Howls Moving Castle

[ArlandoBattle]

Im pretty sure most of you have seen this movie. If not atleast heard about? How do you think they managed to illustrate that moving beast while keeping all the colors constant. i think I want to be a Animator wehn I growup but I'll probably go to the field of CGI Animation because it seems more open and future safe. Thanks

[onionface]

heya

I've worked in 2d animation for a few years. here's what you want to know.
They move the object on different layers, kinda like flash animation. Watch Nausicaa/ valley of the wind. they use the same technique to animate the Ohms. I've only seen the trailer of HMC so it may be CGI, I'm just guessing.

Going into CGI is not safer. When I was studying all the CGI guys were telling us 2D classical guys that we were old news, truth is there are so many CG animators out there that it is hard to get a good job. Plus many places would rather employ a 2d animator and teach them 3d, as they did with TOY STORY and DINOSAURS.

2 years on and half my 2d class
is employed by Disney Australia and a few more by a local studio. Only one person from the CGI class has a job now.

Even if you are going to do CGI, do a couple years in 2d first, your work will be better by far, CGI clouds the mind with all the techincal
things while 2d lets you concentrate on flow and drag, squash and stretch, overlapping, and mass consistancy.
After your animation skills are solid then you move on to the CGI stuff.

hope this clears things up.

[egerie]

onionface has it right. A lot of 3D animators come out of school with too much technicity in their curriculum. If they are somewhat gifted and push reaaally hard they have a better chance at starting as a junior technical animator. Personally, I'm always on the lookout for animators. The sad thing about it is that since 3D animators spend more time on technical stuff rather than animation theory, they lack practice and, what I consider, basic animation knowledge. I'd rather hire someone that does a good (animation theory and creative wise) stop motion with construction paper than a so-so 3D demo with caustic lights, volumetric lights, demon-like creatures and shit.

Back on topic ! I saw Howl's castle last friday and was wondering the same with the opening sequence of the castle. I can't say a 100% how it was made, especially these scales looking things where the legs and the body of the castle meet. I'd be very curious to know. Because if this was animated single frame in the traditional sense... Some poor animator must be squished on the pavement by now. I think it's a mix of individual scales animated, repeated, tweaked, offsetted, composited and maybe some CGI in there. Anyone else ?

[ArlandoBattle]

Most of Hayao Miyazakis stuff just amazes me Studio Ghibli must work 6 days a week 12 hour shift atleast art wise/music wise. I heard this movie was going to be relased but it was scrapped and Miyazaki redid it because they hired anew animator and it wasnt ghibli quality.

I got some books ordered at the library for animation? Any good books to get me startd, im only 15 I got a ways to go. Im scared to draw nude models just because my age i dont like feeling looked down upon in real life, and i dont think y parents would go for it Though theres this place where they do the nude models every monday pretty close to my house.

[Groove Zombie]

Sneak out and go to this life drawing place, it's for a good cause :teeth:

[Mike Frank]

Y'know man, if people are going to look down on you for trying to gain the knowledge you need to realize your dreams.. then f%$# them. Don't let something like that get in your way, you'll have enough challenges to face as it is. If you need some ammo as to why life drawing is important check this thread, and ignore the immaturity http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=37015

[Kittywolf13]

oooh Howels Moveing Castle!! I cant wait to see that movie! Hayao Miyazaki is my idol!! The castle in the movie was probably animated useing cg (i havent seen it yet though.) from what i've seen of the previews...or perhaps its a combination of cell and cg. it does have a strange quality about it. as one of the previous posters said, watch Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. that movie was released in 1984 (a year after i was born :P ) and the Ohmu's ( i hate that the english version calls em ohms.) are animated useing different layers of cell's moved back and forth similiar to stop motion animation.

But Miyazaki's stuff is an excellent reference for anyone interested in animation. His attention to detail is immpecable. if theres something he doesnt like, he scraps the entire story boards for the entire movie, just so it will flow better. (Mind you he does all his own story boarding.) When he did Kiki's delivery service, he spent an entire day studying how dresses and skirts moved on women to animate Kiki's dress properly. And he took the time and effort to make every passer by on the streets to look like individual people. i find that amazeing! his dedication to his work is amazeing!! he once did the last 10 minutes of a cartoon all by himself cause the studio he was working for at the time, went on strike. everything from sketchs, to backgrounds...everything. it was awesome.

yeah. definatly pick up some books, study, draw from life which is the most important even if you want to do cartoons...and dont let people stand in your way! ;)

[darkelf19]

Saw it and loved it! ^_^
As for the animation part, they definately used layers - lots of them - and have a world of pacience. If you're looking into going into animation it's a must. I'm actually learning about the process in school now. Currently we're working on an animated short that has to last 5-10 seconds at 15 fps. I'm already pushing 75 drawings and I still need a LOT of inbetweens. ^^; LOL But it's AWESOME when it's finally done and you can actually see your drawings come to life!
A word of caution - CGI is no easier. Actually while the computer does most of the inbetweens for you, that's not always a good thing. You can end up with lots of strange results when the computer takes over for you, such as objects squishing before impact and such. With CGI, I found that you spend more time fixing the computer's 'help' than actually animating. *shrugs*

[Kittywolf13]

Hey, i can answer your question now. i picked up "The Art of Howl's moving castle" and the castle/monster is animated through the use CG. however like someone mentioned before it was done in a similar style as the ohmu from Nausicaa which was done with layering and overlapping.

There are over 100 pieces that were each individually animated on howl's castle; which is what gives it, it's unique bobbling, waddling, bustling, gait. :) its really impressive. if you ever get the chance, go to a borders (they might have it at barnes n nobles or Walden books, but borders was the only one that had it in stock in my area.) and check it out in the "art of" book. its really cool, because there are several pages with each piece laid out, the CG "maps" and other things...like the wire frame of the castle when put together.

[pogonip]

Man, Nausica I just seen like a month ago ...can't believe that masterpiece has been hiding from me all these years ..best 2D film ever IMO ! Long live Miazaki !

[Pixeldragoon]

Though theres this place where they do the nude models every monday pretty close to my house.

Do it. Pleeease do it. You have the OPPRITUNITY to do it. Don't blow it away!!!!

[Bowlin]

The Nausicaa comics are even better... big big fan of nausicaa.

[Chingwa]

Was so excited to see this when it came out, paid special attention to catch the subtitled verson at Loews in Times Square, bought my tickets, sit down, the movie starts... lo and behold it's the crappy english dubbed version. They pulled this shit on me with Spirited away too... anyone in NYC hoping for subtitled miyazaki releases, avoid Loews Times Square at all costs.

Anyway it totally ruined it for me, could just not get over the bad voice acting. Someday soon I'll see the original version in all it's miyazaki flavoured glory.

[Steph Laberis]

Sorry guys, I have to name drop here; Miyazaki was very influenced by the stopmotion techniques used by the legendary Yuri Norstein (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuri_Norstein) I think the two of them were good friends; when I visited the Ghibli Museum, the private theater was showing Yuri's short films and there was a special exhibit featuring his cut-out animation works. Prettymuch as others described, the 3D animation used many tried and true priciples of 2D (specifically cut-out) animation... but I couldn't let this thread go without mentioning Yuri.

If you ever have to chance to see Hedgehog in the Fog, DO IT. Makes me as giddy as any Miyazaki film!

[Interceptor]

I did'nt know up until recently that thjis was'nt an original story. It's based of a book that's apparently even loopier than this film. This movie watch visually spectacular. Still.. i think of all the Studio Ghibli films, Whisper fo the Heart takes the cake as far as scenery goes. :heart:

[S.C. Watson]

Spirited Away is by far my favorite of his films. Just.... freakin' weird, weird shit. Loved it.

~Oreg.

[darth massacre]

I liked Princess Mononoke a lot more and totally enjoyed the warm spirited Kiki's Delivery Service when compared to Spirited Away and Howl's.

Studio Ghibli's works are just a wonder to see. Some of the stories are timeless.





Oreg: Welcome back to the forums. Didn't notice till today :D

[Kittywolf13]

i love all of the miyazaki films...except pon poko...that one just frightens me. O_O; but yeah...i've seen em all except for "The Cat Returns" and "Grave of the Firefly" (which isnt excatly miyazaki kjust animated by their studio...or something like that. not sure.) all of its great. Nausicaa is my fav among all, but tottoro is second, and kiki's delivery service, howl's, and spirited away are up their in the rankings. Laputa is really good too. :D

[Chingwa]

Well, just for the record, Nausicaa is the only animated film that's ever made me cry.

My favorite is Spirited Away, it's just a masterpiece of storytelling. close seconds are Nausicaa and Laputa, then come all the others.

[seba_boi]

Still.. i think of all the Studio Ghibli films, Whisper fo the Heart takes the cake as far as scenery goes. :heart:
Blind-bought this film, and was blew all my expectations away... It's charming and a very grounded film!... /////

And what preplexed me the most is the amount of long walks the main character takes--and it's never boring!!!... You're just intrigued by the details in their movement and their environments... They must've used a hundred or so backgrounds for this film alone!... And from the looks of it, they probably never used the same background twice in two separate scenes... And the detail!... Damn!...

Laputa is by far my favourite Miyazaki film btw, followed by Porco Rosso (sooooo underrated) and Nausicaa....

[Nero's Master]

Mmm love this movie. It's too cool. If you see it then read the book, the characters on paper probably won't appeal to you as much, since they're very linear. Still, very interesting read.

Back on subject, as far as animation goes, I loved the way they did the castle, I was just highly irritated that thing looked as if it had no weight. When it took a step, it barely had any follow through. Bah! I say!

A very good starter animation book that I personally would recommend is http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1595820086/ref=pd_sim_b_2/002-0688237-5800067?%5Fencoding=UTF8&v=glance&n=283155
Very good for bigginers as well as people wanting a bit of a refresher. Not on par with The Animator's Survival Kit but very basic and easyh to understand. :teeth:

[onionface]

Though theres this place where they do the nude models every monday pretty close to my house.

They "do" the models, or they "draw" the models?
either way it sounds like fun.

this is a helleva old thread.

[Darktwin]

Spirited Away is by far my favorite of his films. Just.... freakin' weird, weird shit. Loved it.

~Oreg.

agreed my friend, Sprited away is my favorite film thus far by Mizaki, although I haven't seen them all.

[fixx]

I hven't seen Howl's but I'll definitely get it now. And watch the effects. Nausicäa just blew me away, Ohmus are so wonderful!
dito on the crying ;)

[egerie]

I think they found the secret to the essence of childhood. Even tho we're all from different backgrounds/societies, Ghibli manages to evoke these feelings or memories. Dunno about you but I find that pretty amazing, whether we're talking about Whispers of the Heart or Totoro or Howl's moving Castle, Kiki, ...

[Quicksilver]

I think they found the secret to the essence of childhood. Even tho we're all from different backgrounds/societies, Ghibli manages to evoke these feelings or memories...
Definitely. It reminds me of one of this quotes:

"Well, yes. I believe that children's souls are the inheritors of historical memory from previous generations. It's just that as they grow older and experience the everyday world that memory sinks lower and lower. I feel I need to make a film that reaches down to that level. If I could do that I would die happy."

Other quotes:

"When I think about the way the computer has taken over and eliminated a certain experience of life, that makes me sad. When we were animating fire some staff said they had never seen wood burning. I said, 'Go watch!' It has disappeared from their daily lives. Japanese baths used to be made by burning firewood. Now you press a button. I don't think you can become an animator if you don't have any experience."

"I think 2-D animation disappeared from Disney because they made so many uninteresting films. They became very conservative in the way they created them. It's too bad. I thought 2-D and 3-D could coexist happily."

"[on the future of hand-drawn animation] I'm actually not that worried. I wouldn't give up on it completely. Once in a while there are strange, rich people who like to invest in odd things. You're going to have people in the corners of garages making cartoons to please themselves. And I'm more interested in those people than I am in big business."

A very good point:
""If [hand-drawn animation] is a dying craft we can't do anything about it. Civilization moves on. Where are all the fresco painters now? Where are the landscape artists? What are they doing now? The world is changing. I have been very fortunate to be able to do the same job for 40 years. That's rare in any era.""

And finally,

"Do everything by hand, even when using the computer."

I love Miyazaki - he pays so much attention to the small things which makes it all an even greater pleasure ot watch. Like when one of the characters shivers, their whole body shivers from bottom to top (think Chihiri in Spirited Away when she takes the money from the River God), and contact with fur actually looks so damn real and soft it makes you (well, me, at least) think: "I wanna hug!!" (When Satsuki hugs Totoro in My Neighbour Totoro). The fact that he doesn't allow more than 10% of footage in his films to be computer generated makes him more of a god.

Fav films:
My Neightbour Totoro, Nausicaa and Laputa.

[Red_Rook]

Steph Laberis just gave me the book recently, which i just started reading, it will be fun to compare the book and the movie (which i really enjoyed) certainly :)

[Number_6]

Miyazaki's films are the only anime films I've really enjoyed (and yes, I've seen Ghost in the Shell 1 and 2 and Akira). I loved Nausicaa, Spirited Away and Castle in the Sky. I wish there were more 2D films being made (that are that good...).

[GeikoSera]

Ooooo. I've been a big fan of the Ghibli films for a long while. Too cool.

Has anyone seen the trailer for the newest one yet? It's due out in Japan this July! :)

It's called "Gedo Senki" (Life of Ged) and it's based on the "Wizard of Earthsea" books by Ursula K. LeGuin (which I LOVE *dies*).

Check it out here, it's at the bottom of the page:

http://www.catsuka.com/videos_anim.php

Enjoy! :)

[Number_6]

Ooooo. I've been a big fan of the Ghibli films for a long while. Too cool.

Has anyone seen the trailer for the newest one yet? It's due out in Japan this July! :)

It's called "Gedo Senki" (Life of Ged) and it's based on the "Wizard of Earthsea" books by Ursula K. LeGuin (which I LOVE *dies*).

Check it out here, it's at the bottom of the page:

http://www.catsuka.com/videos_anim.php

Enjoy! :)

Is it a Miyazaki film? I hadn't heard about it at all (not that I travel in circles where I would...).

EDIT: Yes it is... but it's his son directing. Hopefully the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

[Undertow]

I thoroughly enjoyed the movie but kept chuckling to myself when Howl talked as I kept having lines from American Psycho run through my head.

[ArlandoBattle]

I command you all to see grave of the fireflies if you have not already seen this. Itll make you cry cry and then cry some more.

[rogfa]

Miyazaki is a master storyteller. He creates true protagonists and antagonists. No one is 100% evil or 100% good. I like how the antagonist doesn't even have to take the shape of a person, as in Totoro or Kiki. I only wish Hollywood and Disney would challenge it's viewers like he does. Howl's is a very complex movie and is probably my favorite so far.

[Spacemanchuck]

First off, you need to go to those life drawing classes I will tell you that right now. As an animator it is going to be the most important thing you can do for your self. You need to start learning the anatomy, and the figure now. And by the time you are my age you should be a pro. No matter what you are doing in art learning the figure is a must. And yes, starting your journy in the world of animation you should probably begin with traditional 2d, pencil to paper. But if you want to work CG eventually, because really that is where the money is, don't hesitate to do that either. But, make sure u have a solid foundation before you jump onto the computer for good. Or I should say, just dont forget how to draw, paint, sculpt, knit, ect as well. Because it will make your CG stuff work.

The only thing that bothered me about Howls was the character animation. Howl specificaly was animated very poorly in contrast to other Ghibli films. For me it was almost too much to look past at points and began to really ruin it for me, but I am spoiled by masterpeices like Spirited away.

Porco Roso is one of my favorite, but no other animated film has inspired me as much as Spirited Away. Myiazaki has really inpired my whole life, when I was a kid I got Nausica from a friend who got it from his older brother. And I believe I was forever changed after the first time I saw it. His use of flight, has always been so inspiring to me. I love the airships and flying creatures, shit its all so increadable.