Understanding the animation pipeline

Animation pipeline is a term used to describe the process that animation studios and professional animators follow to create animated sequences. This process typically involves several stages that work in tandem, starting from an idea to a rough outline, then a basic design, and finally, a finished product. Almost every animated sequence that you have seen across a variety of mediums has been created using this process in one way, shape, or form, making it a fundamental part of the animation industry.

If you are familiar with video production or game design, you will find that many of the same concepts are used in the animation pipeline. As an animator, I use a variation of this process and many of the workflows I have developed in making my VR experiences. The idea of going from an idea to written words on paper to creating simple visuals, and then building out the experience, all stems from core principles I learned in my training as an animator...