Making 'Toons That Sell Without Selling Out

Table of contents

1. Cover
2. Title
3. Copyright
4. Preface
5. Acknowledgments
6. Contents
7. Chapter 1 Introduction
   1. The Second Golden Age of Animation
8. Chapter 2 My History
   1. Early Influences
   2. Humor in School
   3. Oregon’s Climate
   4. The Big Apple
   5. Print Cartoons
   6. “Your Face”
9. Chapter 3 Making an Animated Film
   1. Raising the Money
      1. Idea
      2. Synopsis (Storyboard)
      3. Budget
      4. Marketing Plan
      5. Concept Art
      6. Title
      7. Grants
      8. Family and Friends
      9. Hollywood
      10. Kickstarter and Internet
      11. Self-Investment
   2. Plympton’s Dogma
      1. Dogma Point #1: Make Your Film Short
      2. Dogma Point #2: Make Your Film Cheap!
      3. Dogma Point #3: Make the Film Funny
   3. Alternative Funding
10. Chapter 4 Production
    1. Creating a Studio
11. Chapter 5 Storytelling
    1. The Myth of Story
    2. Intuition
    3. Conflict
    4. Other Directors’ Notes
       1. Don Hertzfeldt (“Rejected”, “Billy’s Balloon”)
       2. Peter Lord (Aardman’s Chicken Run):
       3. Pat Smith (“Mask”, “Delivery”)
    5. Comedy
    6. Character Development
    7. Children versus Adults
    8. Live Action versus Animation
    9. Censorship versus Self-Censorship
12. Chapter 6 Character Design
    1. Strong Personality
    2. Dynamic Shapes
    3. Simplicity
    4. Line of Action
    5. Pushing the Eye Around
    6. What Not to Do
13. Chapter 7 Storyboarding
14. Chapter 8 Voices
    1. Casting
15. Chapter 9 Animation
    1. Influences
    2. Techniques
    3. Animation Secrets
    4. Caricatures
    5. The Human Body
    6. The Face
    7. Design
    8. Silhouettes
    9. Previz
    10. Walk Cycles
    11. Point of View
    12. Perspective and Foreshortening
    13. Distortion
    14. Shadows
    15. Metamorphosis
    16. Pencil Test
    17. Backgrounds
    18. Perfectionism
    19. Digitizing the Art
        1. Scanning
        2. Cleaning
        3. Color
        4. Compositing
16. Chapter 10 Postproduction
    1. Editing
    2. Timing
    3. Conflict
    4. Effects
    5. Humor
    6. Reviewing the Film
    7. Sound
    8. Real versus Cartoony Sound
    9. Dolby
    10. Music
        1. Ironic Music
        2. Music Budgeting
        3. How to Save Money
        4. Film Composers
        5. Music Clearances
    11. Testing
17. Chapter 11 Selling Your Film
    1. Market Festivals
    2. Fun Festivals
    3. Comic Conventions
    4. How to Find the Right Festival
    5. The Tune Deal
    6. The Strange Person Deal
    7. Telluride Story
    8. The Distribution Deal
    9. Distributor Complaints
18. Chapter 12 Self-Distribution
    1. Booking the Theatre
    2. Personal Touch
    3. Nontheatrical
    4. Press Agent
    5. Guerilla Publicity
    6. TV Spots
    7. Television
    8. Ownership
    9. Mini-Disney
    10. DVD
    11. Piracy
    12. VOD
    13. Merchandise
    14. Personal Appearances
    15. Commissioned Work
    16. Music Videos
19. Chapter 13 Advice to Young Animators
    1. Finding the Right School
    2. What to Study in School
    3. After School
20. Afterword
21. Index