"The Surprise and Wonder of Early Animation" Reading Response

Amongst all of the films, "Jumping Beans" intrigued me the most. I felt the blend between animation and real-life film/acting was really clever, and the interactions between the two were very playful. For example, the creator/animator "throws" jumping beans onto the drawing board after drawing a string that forms itself into Koko the Clown. Overall, the storyline is engaging and brings a level of suspense that makes the viewer want to continue watching. I think without the use of the creator in this animation, it would not stand out as much and it would simply remind me of any other "typical" animation. When thinking about the techniques used in 2D animation that are still relevant to contemporary art/design, drawing is the initial one that comes to mind. Hand drawn processes using pencil and paper was obviously a necessity for creating numerous frames for animations. Today, digital techniques have been largely implemented but character developing and sketching using drawing tablets is a technique that is still relevant to modern day design.