Dramatic lighting effects in 3D animation (1)

Generally speaking, if there is a lighting effect being kept within a whole animation, it is boring.

Animation is different from film and TV programs whose characters would be anything the designer hope for, even not existing in the real world. So it has more space for designers to develop their imagination and creativity. They can use some special lighting effects according to storytelling, which would not only attract the attentions of audience but also achieve some dramatic effects and artistic accomplishments. 

First of all I want to talk about selective focus. Selective focus means directing the audience’s attention to a specific area. The lighting designer can selectively focus attention in a number of ways but frequently does so by increasing the intensity of the lights on the desired area of interest. When this happens, all areas that are less brightly lit become of secondary importance. A common example of the use of selective focus occurs when the lighting designer reduces the intensity of lights on one area of a unit set while simultaneously increasing it on another. Instinct literally forces the audience to look at the brighter area. A more subtle use of selective focus can be seen in the lighting designs for most interior settings. In these designs the lights are usually brighter in the major acting areas than they are in the upstage corners of the set.

It is similar to the focal length. For instance, there are role A and role B having dialogues in a scene. If there are lines for A and the director want to attract the audience' attentions on it, A should be focused on by the camera focal length, which will be looked clearly whereas the rest are dim. Vice versa, if the lines are for B and then B is a key role. The focal length would focus on B, then B is clearer than A. Instinct literally forces the audience to look at the clear area. So the audience will easily put more focus on the key role' expression and psychological activity. It is helpful to understand the story.

Reference:

Gillette, J. M. (1989). Designing with Light. The United States: Mayfield Publishing Company.

Heys, D. (1989). Light on the subject. The United States: Proscenium Publishers Inc.