Clip 1 - Bambi
What principles were used?
Anticipation
Appeal
Squash and stretch
Arc
Timing
Exaggeration
Solid drawing
Analysis
To start off, this is a clip from Disney's Bambi which was made using celluloid ceilings. This matters since each frame would be painted and would technically be 2D. Yet since the animator's used solid drawing, there is an illusion of it being 3D. This can be seen when the wings overlaps over the body and folds. At the very start, the animator's used anticipation to show the flow of energy used when jumping. I noticed this since the owl bends his knees down before jumping. If they had refrained from doing this, it could have caused the clip to seem unnatural and as if the energy appeared from nowhere. Another way they showed the movement of energy was the squash and stretch, which was used when the owl was flying up and stretched mid-air and squishes when stopping. Finally, his wings move in arcs which is great since it shows that the animators understand that if the wings moved in a straight line, they would shrink and the mass wouldn't stay constant. If the mass does not stay constant, it would look extremely unrealistic.
During the jump, you can also see the use of timing. The amount of frames during the jump is less than when he is striding across the screen, the difference created the effect of speed but also helps exaggerate how light-footed he is. Another part that is exaggerated is the way he walks, his shoulders alternate in lifting and lowering, the ends of his wings are lifted up and his hips sway. This makes the character seem very patronising and sarcastic. Due to the mix of the timing and exaggeration, it actually results in a third principal appearing : appeal. This is due to the exaggeration giving the owl charisma and the timing making us focus on it.
In conclusion, this clip was well made due to combining multiple principles to create a whole new effect. The owl has character (appeal, timing and exaggeration), great mass distribution (squash and stretch) and realistic movement (arcs)
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