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17.8. Notes 443
Large-scaleanimation production is an extremely complex process which typ-
ically involves a combined effort by dozens of people with different backgrounds
spread across many departments or even companies. To better coordinate this ac-
tivity, a certain production pipeline is established which starts with a story and
character sketches, proceeds to record necessary sound, build models, and rig
characters for animation. Once actual animation commences, it is common to
go back and revise the original designs, models, and rigs to fix any discovered
motion and appearance problems. Setting up lighting and material properties is
then necessary, after which it is possible to start rendering. In most sufficiently
complex projects, extensive postprocessing and compositing stages bring together
images from different sources and finalize the product.
We conclude this chapter by reminding the reader that in the field of computer
animation any technical sophistication is secondary to a good story, expressive
characters, and other artistic factors, most of which are hard or simply impossible
to quantify. It is safe to say that Snow White and her seven dwarfs will always
share the screen with green ogres and donkeys, and most of the audience will be
much more interested in the characters and the story rather than in which, if any,
computers (and in what exact way) helped to create either of them.