Why Eye Lines Matter in Animation

Eye Direction Matters

One of the most common mistakes made by junior animators is getting the eye lines wrong - the characters on screen just aren't looking at each other. 

This was a problem on Who Framed Roger Rabbit? - a film I worked on back in 1987 (it was my first animated film).  One of the biggest challenges on the film was getting Roger and the other cartoon characters to look directly at Bob Hoskins and the other live action actors. 

Without clear believable eye direction, the characters didn't seem to be looking at each other, and the illusion failed. 

And if the illusion failed, the whole suspension on disbelief failed. 

Roger Rabbit Reunion at Disney

Doy, Alex, Nik Ranieri, Ross Anderson, Burny Mattinson, Max Howard, Charles Fleischer, Andreas Deja

Who Framed Roger Rabbit was released in the summer of 1988, making the movie 31 years old this year.  Last week at Disney in Los Angeles we had an informal reunion with some the people who worked at the film, hosted in the Rotunda Building by Disney marketing head Howard Green.  Lead animator Andreas Deja was there, as well as Burny Mattinson, officially the longest serving employee of The Walt Disney Company,  Producer Max Howard, Charles Fleischer, the voice of Roger Rabbit, Ross Anderson, who has written the history of the film, animator Nik Ranieri, and me.

Ross Anderson Pulls a Rabbit from His Hat

Ross Anderson

Canadian author and animation historian Ross Anderson has finished his long-anticipated book - Pulling a Rabbit Out of a Hat - The Story Behind the Making of Who Framed Roger Rabbit?. 

Ross was first interviewed by animation blog FLiP back in 2013, about writing of the book, which has taken six years to bring to fruition.

Ross's book has finally hit the bookshelves; he was signing copies this week at this year's Annecy film festival.

Ross's book aims to be the definitive history of the making of the film. I've been looking forward to buying my copy for years. Among the highlights are Tom Sito's hilarious sketches and scribbles that documented the roller coaster ride that was the making of the film.