Mood in Animation

“In most instances,the driving force behind the action is the mood,the personality, the attitude of the character--or else all three. Therefore the mind is the pilot. We think of things before the body does them.” 

This quote by Walt Disney is one that animation artists continue to live by today. A majority of my animation blogs have touched on Disney's outlook on the importance of developing a character with a life-size and relatable personality and frankly this blog is a continuation of just that. Over the years, as explained before, Walt Disney came to realize that the character must not only have an attractive personality, but must physically and emotionally represent the actions of a human being. The minds of animators is what make a character who they are. The mind of an animator will influence the mind of what their creation is thinking. Whatever it may be that the character is thinking, the emotion must accurately be shown in his body language to make the character appear real. 

Though Walt Disney came up with the acting and storytelling, his animators are the ones who were able to create accurate representations of people. It is explained in chapter five of The Illusion of Life that Snow White, of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs that Snow White would not have appeared so kind, loving and tender without the detailed moods worked onto characters faces by Disney's animators. Setting the mood is so important in animation, otherwise your characters will seem somewhat lifeless or unemotional. Snow White throughout the movie can be seen as sweet and gentle both physically, mentally, and emotional. Disney's quote explains that without every aspect of good animation, it will never truly be good animation.