Bringing Animals to Life

Animals are just as much a part of animation as they ever were, but many of today’s artists, stuck inside wrestling with software, miss out on the real-world interaction necessary to properly design and animate these four-legged friends. In Bringing Animals to Life, veteran Disney animator Russ Edmonds simplifies the process, from first observation to finished scene, combining years of invaluable study and practice into a single book. You’ll be able to get beyond the basics and add believability through proper physics and motion and create essential acting performances by giving your characters unique personalities.



Original research on animals‘ locomotion, anatomy, biology, behavior, and personalities, all broken down into gesture analysis and method acting in a step-by-step approach that anyone can duplicate



Over 200 pencil and pen-and-ink color wash animal illustrations, as well as reference photographs of real animals



Behind-the-scenes look at the design and animation process for some of your favourite Disney animal characters!

With Edmonds‘ fast, tried-and-true process, you’ll be able to embue your animal drawings with a winning mix of human and animal emotion and anatomy, creating characters that are both interesting and accurate. Great for story artists, character designers and animators, and illustrators, Bringing Animals to Life is your one-stop resource for creating belieavable animal characters from the inside out!

Key Features

Original research on animals‘ locomotion, anatomy, biology, behavior, and personalities, all broken down into gesture analysis and method acting in a step-by-step approach that anyone can duplicate
Over 200 pencil and pen-and-ink color wash animal illustrations, as well as reference photographs of real animals
Behind-the-scenes look at the design and animation process for some of your favourite Disney animal characters!