The Moving Image
Animation • Cinema • Cinematography • Editing • Montage • Visual Narrative
The Central Question
How can a sequence of images, movement, sound and cuts create the experience of time, action, emotion and story? Photography freezes time. Animation constructs motion. Cinema organises motion + time + sound + space into an emotional experience.
The Temporal Matrix
Ontology of Time-Based Media
Foundation & Animation
Frame & Motion
- Frame: The basic visual unit. Frame Rate: Frames per second.
- SINGLE IMAGE → CHANGE → MOVEMENT → TIME
- Motion perception is how the brain processes successive changing images.
Animation Principles
- Photography: Records an existing moment. Animation: Constructs it.
- Keyframes (poses) and In-betweens (transitions).
- Squash & Stretch: Communicates weight, impact, and elasticity.
Timing, Ease & Arcs
- Ease In/Out: Movement accelerates/decelerates naturally.
- Arcs: Organic movements follow curved paths.
- Anticipation & Follow-Through: Preparing for and reacting to an action.
Story, Space & Camera
Narrative & Storyboard
- Converting script ideas into visual sequences.
- Recording shot size, camera angle, action, and dialogue.
- STORY → SCRIPT → STORYBOARD
Shot Sizes
- Establishing Shot: Location and context.
- Medium Shot: Action and relationship.
- Close-Up: Face, detail, emotion, tension.
Camera Movement
- Pan/Tilt: Rotation on an axis.
- Dolly/Track: Physical movement through space.
- Zoom: Changing focal length without moving the camera.
Editing, Continuity & Time
Continuity & Spatial Rules
- Maintaining understandable spatial relationships.
- 180-Degree Rule: Keeping the camera on one side of an imaginary axis.
- Eyeline match & Match on action.
Editing & Montage
- Cut: Instant transition. Dissolve: Passage of time/memory.
- Montage: Arranging shots so their juxtaposition creates new meaning.
- SELECT → ARRANGE → TRIM → CONNECT
Temporal Manipulation
- Compression: Squeezing days into minutes (jump cuts, ellipsis).
- Expansion: Stretching a moment (slow motion, multiple angles).
- Parallel editing & Flashbacks.
Sound & World Building
Sound & Audio
- Diegetic: Exists in story world (footsteps, dialogue).
- Non-Diegetic: Added for audience (score).
- Foley, Ambience, and Silence as a narrative tool.
- IMAGE + SOUND = NEW MEANING
World Building
- The designed physical/digital world of the film.
- Sets, locations, props, costumes, and colour palette.
- Visual consistency establishes cinematic style.
Animation Types
- 2D/Cut-out: Layers, keyframes, flat articulation.
- 3D Animation: Modelling, rigging, posing, rendering.
- Stop-Motion: Object → Move Slightly → Photograph.
Post-Production & Labs
Compositing & VFX
- Combining visual layers: BG + Character + VFX + Text = Image.
- Green-screen, particle effects, multi-track timelines.
- Export: Frame size, codec, aspect ratio.
Foundation & Labs
- C6-8: Flipbooks, sequence, simple stop-motion.
- Master Editing Lab: Same footage cut slow, fast, tense, or comic.
- Master Project: The 5-Minute Film (Story to Final Export).
Realm 11 Doctrine
ONE IMAGE SHOWS.
A SEQUENCE CHANGES.
CHANGE CREATES TIME.
TIME CREATES MOVEMENT.
MOVEMENT CREATES ACTION.
ACTION CREATES STORY.
THE CAMERA CHOOSES THE VIEW. THE EDITOR CHOOSES THE ORDER. SOUND CHANGES THE EXPERIENCE.
AND MONTAGE CAN CREATE MEANING THAT NO SINGLE IMAGE CONTAINS.
Knowledge Progression
09 — DESIGN & COMMUNICATION
10 — PHOTOGRAPHY
11 — TIME + MOTION + FILM