501 - Study Task 2 - Writing a Research Question

My initial proposed question was: Is the Art of Hand Drawn 2D FX Animation Dying Out? 

The practical response to this being some fx animations applying principles of good fx animation to show why fx animation shouldn't die out.

The reason for this topic was mainly due to my desire to investigate and explore 2D fx animation, using COP as a way to practice and learn about it more, and I proposed this question based on 2 articles from ex-disney animator Joseph Gilland, talking about his concern for the direction of 2D fx animation.

Upon further research, I realised this question wasn't viable. Firstly, other than those 2 articles, there was no discussion about the state of fx animation, (mainly talking about state of 2D animation in general). Secondly, as I started finding more and more resources and artists whos specialise in 2D fx, I realised that the answer for the question was simply - no, it is not dying out. The artists I found all demonstrated and some talked about/taught the principles Gilland was mentioning that was lacking in today's industry. In addition to this, there are many films out nowadays with plenty of 2D fx, as well as lots of tv shows and studio animations.

There was no discussion or even many talking points with this question, and to be honest I was losing interest in it, however I still wanted to talk about 2D fx. 

The aspect that drew me to this genereal theme was the fact that I could learn about it, so I decided to change my question and make it more investigative rather than academic, focusing on that Aesthetics theme. My new question is:

What makes hand drawn 2D FX Animation Appealing?

Most of my research has been finding information about how to improve fx skills, so it's not so major a change that I have to start again. Furthermore, it opens up much more talking points, and allows for a much more practical project.

I was initially concerned about making it into an investigation, as I wasn't sure that was ok for COP, however seeing an exemplar example that was very investigative, and also talking to Ben, I realised it could still work. Rather than my triangulation coming from multiple sources of people talking, it can come from a mix of analysis, tutorials and my own practicals. For example, I could look at one person's opinion of how to make appealing fire, then study references to see if real life feature those aspects. Then, I can look at popular films to see if those techniques are applied in practice and if they were well-received, and finally I can then apply those techniques to my own work, and even get opinions from others about it. This gives multiple different viewpoints on one point.

Furthermore, this question allows my practical to be throughout the whole investigation rather than just at one point (which is what the previous question would have been like).