Elemental Magic, Vol. II by Joseph Gilland

Verdict: the hands-on companion to Elemental Magic, Vol. I. Buy and read them together: these two books are to effects animators what The Animator’s Survival Kit is to character animators.

About the author

Joseph Gilland has worked in animation for more than 30 years. At Walt Disney Feature Animation he was Supervisor of Visual Effects on Lilo & Stitch and Brother Bear, and head of the effects units on Tarzan and Kingdom of the Sun. He also worked at Don Bluth and the National Film Board of Canada, and taught at Vancouver Film School (Routledge).

What’s inside

In a sense, both volumes tell the same story. Volume I is more about the thinking behind effects. Volume II is slightly more technical. It has six chapters:

1. Introduction to the Elements
2. The Wave
3. The Splash
4. Lighting a Fire
5. Blowing It Up
6. Magic: The Art of Animating Pixie Dust

Gilland puts a lot of focus on design and on the physics behind each effect. A great deal of the book is about water: how it moves when something falls into it, or when it falls onto a surface. A wet log, a skipping rock and a single raindrop each make a completely different splash, and the book shows why.

The fire chapter explains how heat moves in a flame, and what hot air does when it meets cooler air.

• Edition: 1st edition, paperback, Focal Press (now Routledge), 2011/2012.
• Pages: 315.
• Format: wide landscape paperback, full color.
• Level: intermediate. It works best after Volume I.

How it helped me

These effects were important to me when I worked on the music video In the Middle of the Nite. The book showed me how fire moves, and the thinking behind explosions.

That said, I still need a lot more practice when it comes to good effects animation. This book makes it look easy, but mastering the craft is hard. But these books might help a little!

Strengths and weak spots

Strengths

• Physics first. Just as character animators need to learn the walk cycle, effects animators need to learn the wave, the splash and the behavior of flames. This book teaches exactly those.
• Step-by-step drawings with red arrows that show the direction of each force.
• Rough and clean versions side by side, so you see how a drawing is built up.

Weak spots

• It works best together with Volume I. On its own you only get half the story.
• It makes effects look easy. To master them you need a lot of practice beyond the book.
• Only six effects. Smoke and props are covered in Volume I.

Best for / skip if

Best for: effects animators, 2D animators who want to understand water and fire, and anyone who already owns Volume I.

Skip if: you don’t plan to get Volume I as well, or you are looking for a book on character animation.

Similar books

• Elemental Magic, Vol. I — the other half of the story. Get both.
• The Animator’s Survival Kit — what these books are for effects, this is for character animation.