Flash Tutorial - Character Animation using Symbols

[metaitachi]

This didnt work for me. Is this obsolete because of the bone tool?

[fhertamez]

be good doing something is easy...but share it with others is awesome. Thanks man

[legendarywerewolf206]

Hey dude i'm planning on making an epic anime fan film and i need help. Want to do the animations?

[akashwaybig]

can you use motion tweening for a character jumping?

[ciaraxxxa]

thank you! It's really helpful and the video is really clear.

[walkingPorkSword]

you're a champion. This video saved my ass!

[LOLisInevitable]

Animating like this is never good it's always better to redraw each frame.

[mojoj87]

thanks for share. love this video :)

[RATHAHONNI]

I missed the part about the eye blink! where was it???

[Pompanobarb]

Can you tell me how to combine symbols to make one symbol in CS5 ?

[gaigaigoo]

@Pompanobarb right click :p

[cutiethief]

@Pompanobarb select all the symbols to combine and hit F8 (in CS4, but u can try :] )

[SLYFIY]

what animation are you using and how do you get it

[MrEpicFlashes]

some ppl are too lazy so they move pieces around :/ lol

[QWERTYCommander]

Thanks! This was exactly what I needed!

[alien001Productions]

im taking multimedia classes in school, and soon we will be working with flash after we get done with photoshop ^_^ i can't wait :D

[Milkman26789Z]

Where can I find the student version of this program?

[jinvonoe]

Cool. Very helpful tutorial. I didn't even know about the pivot point until now--had to move around the symbols manually, haha. Thanks for the upload; this is certainly extremely helpful to someone who's just starting out!

[elstoe]

great tutorial, thanks!

[BlackFire363]

If You Make Every Part into layers does this still work? As That is what i have done

e.g 1 layer for arm, body,head ect...

[SniperShot2010]

every cartoon has 4 fingers

[likamuffin]

could u mak a tutorial to HOW to make that

[shikamaru5608]

Very cool tutorial. I have a question though. What if you wanted to rotate the character's head so that we could see the back of his head? Is there an easy way to do that? I'm guessing you would have to redraw the character with the back of the head showing.

[suzudi]

hey bro pls learn me make animation pls :D

[bubbliiciious]

Did you draw the arm in 3 parts in the first place?

[ryanrockz2010]

No you called them symbles

[ryanrockz2010]

Can I download this pic with the bone things so I can like move the had inside the arm I think you called them key

[berryicesplatter]

perfect job man!!!!!

[NarutoHinataLied]

and how did you colored that? Because when I want to colored my character it won't work ( example: I made some boy and I want that his hear be brown, I went to Paint Bucket tool choose a color and than click it on hear, but it won't work ) If you have any idea what am I doing wrong please tell me... THANK YOU! :D

[anushaone]

@NarutoHinataLied

I had the same problem, Make sure your outlines/borders are closed, and there are no gaps.

[NarutoHinataLied]

@anushaone THANK YOU so much it worked! That was really helpful!!! ^_^

[richmob111]

it doesnt seem to work for me, they just snap to position

[MrEggsoup]

good tutorial but i get stuck at the tween part as i can't see a menu like the one on your video can anyone point me in the right direction

[mnaazmy]

@MrEggsoup you will find it in the bottom

[FinnBoonman]

@MrEggsoup u can add the menu bij adding it in the window section

[DFFactor]

@MrEggsoup Go to WINDOW-> LAYERS

[cutiethief]

@MrEggsoup if your flash is cs4, u just need to click the in between frame, right click add motion tween :)

[UrbanSLUG]

@MrEggsoup If you're on a PC you should just be able to rightclick the frames you want to tween, and choose Motion Tween.

[future0829]

the character only has four fingers!!

[insanity401]

i suck at flash but im tryin to get better. so if you draw a character in flash all of symbols this method should work?

[lovinggirL03]

awesome tutorial dude! :)

[AlekseyStarkov]

Nice tutorial!

Thanks

[Celeryhart]

Excellent...every tut I watch helps tremedously...BUT.... I have drawn a character with all the parts on different layers.. Now how do I make that a symbol that I can animate. Lord will I ever learn this..?

[ml112597]

@Celeryhart Just right click, go to Convert to Symbol. Then open up Library, which should be on the right. You can find the symbols there.

[MrWhiteplusnerdy]

@Celeryhart he didnt draw the cartoon its from toon doo

[t1n9a24]

@Celeryhart

u need to click F8 n click either on graphic or movie clip to convert it into a symbol

[GNFart]

thanks man, what program for recording ? Bless you!

[SuperFTWFTWFTW]

is it possible to to make an entire animation with just using symbols??

[KISSAproductions]

OK, I urgently need to find out how to convert .swf into a video file suitable for youtube. GUYS HELP!!!! This is so desperate, I've downloaded a pile of converters that don't work, tried various other methods of exporting from flash, OMG nothing works!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!!! PLS PLS PLS does anyone know, I need it for my project.......................­....

[ysvry]

great tut , thx for sharing.

[10ficho]

i can`t di it help please i pres motion and it isn`t arows

[SkyEFX2]

what program is this? adobe flash?

[guytwentyfour]

@SkyEFX2 Look at the title of the video

[SkyEFX2]

@guytwentyfour Does not say adobe, and yes I know it's adobe now.(yes I am a noob) I didn't know what adobe looked like at the time of this post.

[xia523]

this is a great tutorial...exactly what i needed for class!!!! =DDDD



[xia523]

this is a great tutorial...exactly what i needed for class!!!! =DDDD

[catra195]

nice tutorial.............but what software is this ?

[FloobenShnooben]

@catra195 @SkyEFX2 As stated in both the title and description, it is Adobe Flash.

[varundadude1]

u dosent tell how eyes blink

[darklightstudioinc]

@varundadude1 Graphic symbol with 2 frames for eye open and closed.

[inliner720]

Very good tutorial, thank you.

[bucl3r]

What this program name??

[HystericTheHedgehog]

@bucl3r *facepalm*

[andreisabe]

that waas really a good tutorial, thank u very much. I want to do an animation based on an stop motion i made 1 year ago. Enter my channel and check it out. Can u help me ? which tutos should i watch?

[Ehmiy321]

Very similar to computer animation ^_^.... But where can I purchase flash software?

[cooldude3010]

@Ehmiy321 adobe dot com/products :]

[WelcomeToThePwnShop]

where can u get these character packs??

[MrMisterJB]

@WelcomeToThePwnShop Their site.. But they cost money.

[AnimationsInColors]

Nice tutorial but i see you have some ease problems its 2 ways to make a ease in and out.

1. Create a frame between frame first and your second position and click ease in ease out

2. (the recommended way) select a frame bettween position 1 and 2 and in the properties click edit and make a simple S shape that should look good!

[roeefl]

thanks good stuff for starting

[HackerUploads]

EXCELENTT Tuturial... tq 

[ramyun]

SUPER helpful. Thank you very much. Something i totally needed to be shown and told clearly.

[lilsis]

Is this CS3?

[sevensketches]

anyone with a mac, can you help me? i have a macbook pro. in flash, if i for example, press the f12 key, the volume increases. if i press f6 or f5, it doesn't do the shortcut and instead does whatever else that button is meant for. f8 has an icon of a play/pause button on it. so the mac will respond to that request, not the shortcut for flash. how do activate these shortcut keys for the f# buttons?

[Whiteoverblue]

@sevensketches

On the bottom-left corner of your keyboard, there is a button that says: "fn." press and hold it, then press on of the f1-12 buttons, to get the desired function.

you can also go to "system preferences," "keyboard," "use f1, f2 etc. as standard function." This will switch the functions of these buttons, and you'll have to hold the "fn" button to rise the volume of your laptop.

Cheers!

[sevensketches]

@Whiteoverblue thank you so much!!!

[KapustaCuber]

tyvm :D

[EiToast]

my computer has no ctrl key,.. i tryed it with Strg key but it doesn't work,...

any ideas what to do???

[sanjayproduction]

@EiToast download a mouse keyboard or i think computers already have those

[kupazmaslemutube]

@EiToast ok, WTF, well if you're on a mac than try command(i think) but if you're on a PC thats has no Ctrl on it than i suggest you just go and die

[aiden989]

how do you make the animation stop after a certain amount of time?

[Piglord1234]

@aiden989 You go to the frame that you want (probably the last one), right click it and press "Actions", press the "ActionScript" button (around the top right, so you can use actionscript)... once you do that type in:

stop();

Thats it!

[Fingabang69]

Thanks guy, this saved much hair pulling!

[007Natty007]

Thank u so much, this tute was my lifesaver at uni this semester :) great job

[0987654321284]

what i love about flash is that you do not have to re draw or re import your character every frame

[legoscavenger]

what is actualy the program you used.

i'm kinda new with flash animations

[siddaz9]

i needed this only thnks

[Fingabang69]

nice work! found that very helpful

[toytown72]

mine doesn't have a timeline,only a story board and i dont know how to change it to a timeline

[shithead364519468326]

@BLUNTxMAN412 ow ok :)

[misswhatmakeshertick]

Best so far!

[shithead364519468326]

damn no one made a tutorial of how to make pictures no animations just pictures of yourself and post them on steam and shit like that does anyone know how to do so :) ???

[MegaTennisking]

where do you get those symbols thingy

[Xpr3ssion]

They use 4 fingers mostly in cartoons.

Homer Simpson has 4 too, and Peter from Family guy has 4 too.

But i agree with this character it looks really obvious.

Thanks for the video !

[TheNeotogo]

he's missing a finger

[netedco]

in our days, you can use: distribute to layers

[Rookycastle22]

I double clicked on my symbol and animated that way, what's that? Please help.

Like one hand i double clicked on and it brought up what i think is the symbol  editing. This has a Timeline so i animated in here. then i went back to stage and just animated like that. Is that ok?

[Twist3rD]

HOLY SHIT 4 FINGERS!

But seriously, it's a good tutorial for noobs

[Rookycastle22]

Yes, it helped me so that i can make a cartoon band!! Thanks

[simplekaty]

@Twist3rD dude, cartoons are only supposed to have three. It's practically been tradition since minckey mouse.

[MissYamaneko]

@Twist3rD

...ha ha.... ! if you really want to know animated characters usually have only 4 fingers!

Unfortunately this is basic knowledge about character animation in the traditional manner- Professionals know what's going on. :D :) XD

[TheLazarusnightwolf]

@Twist3rD

I don't think a thumb counts as a finger =3

3 fingers 1 thumb

[jamsterman1]

@Twist3rD 3 including a thumb

[mewuniverse]

@Twist3rD lol!



[MoviesAndTuts]

know im not "experienced" wih flash yet but he helped me with stuff i could use for basic animations like i didnt know you can move the pivot points that will help me allot in animations im making

[MySecretagentman]

i dont know where to get them can you get them free

[milenyoo]

This the tutorial I need... Finally! thanks!

[CocahColah]

@milenyoo Yes indeed! "Finally"

It seems to be quite difficult to find one :P

[grunge313]

any way i can save symbols ...so puting them whenerver i want once i do them not doing them again and again?

[Linkrocks45]

neh neh neh he looks funny

[X1555]

veery helpfull!!=D=D

[mauroalzate]

OMG!!!! AMAZING,, Thanks A lot!!! Excelente tutor!!! advanceD tips!!

[josyula547]

how did you make him blink, and also can you please provide a video abt how to make a charecter talk?

[alienseye]

does anyone know if this guy used the bone tool

[legendlazy]

Due to the fact the this looks like flash 8 I would say no

[2martykiller1]

nice but i need a tut fur making an man a carackter cuse i can't draw good so they alwais ogly

[TheWaynelds]

you also need a tutorial for spelling too.

[2martykiller1]

@TheWaynelds ya i know sorry im just 15 jear old im nod goon in spelling :s

[hellucardlord]

Im 15, and i don't have a problem with typing. Anyway, art is not something you are born being able to do, you have to practice and practice. You will suck, no way to get past it, but you get better over time.

[centeromega]

i am also 15 and share the same view, glad to here that someone my age actually knows what they are talking about :D

[TyKexBK]

@hellucardlord Well, look up the word prodigy, and tell me what you get, Mr. Big 15 Year Old.

[hellucardlord]

When did i act like i was high and mighty, did you some how decide that me saying i can spell is the same as me saying i am equal to that of Mozart? No, im not that great, nor will i ever claim to be that great, the question is, why do you feel like you need to shit on me for helping a guy out and answering his question. Also, searching prodigy on almost any search engine results in a lot of pages for the band prodigy.

[Honeyhollow1]

whats his problem?

[hellucardlord]

Well if you mean me, its the guy who's being a ass for no reason, if you mean him, well, i don't know honestly haha.

[hellucardlord]

Also, after re-reading your comment a few times, i guess, you could have been saying that there are young people who are quite talented at art, either way, it is debatable as to if they were born with this talent, or if they learned it by practicing extensively.

[fmcneillii]

that is not true because i never was passionate about drawing and could draw photorealistic pictures just by focusing. I haven't drawn in years and can probably draw an near kodak quality pic. some peope are naturally gifted. especially those who paint and draw higher level art. you got to have to have innate ability and then a good work ethic

[hellucardlord]

im not arguing that you cant be born gifted, im just saying, that people who aren't, can be great, it takes practice to be good and develop your own style. Also, not to sound rude, but ive replied a lot of times to comments on this video, im kinda tired to it, if you reply, ill read it, but i probably wont respond. Nothing personal.

[fmcneillii]

lol why are ppl giving me thumbs downs. I'm telling the truth. I never was truely passionate about it but I did draw. I just never cud finish wat I started cuz it wasn't wat i wanted to do at the level of it a profession I thought it was fun tho dont get me wrong. and I just recently got back to doing art. Im doing pixel art for the first time!

[fmcneillii]

oh i must say almost anyone can learn to draw catoons tho it doesn't take natural ability like art from a vince van gogh type person.

[JumpingJamberie]

I disagree. I can't draw to save my life so I must have an artist to work with me so I can code and they do the art. I uploaded some of my work.

[tonyismyrat]

thats not true. you should get more educated before you begin to make asumptions based onn what you have seen. graphic are is very difficult and takes years of training and college.

[fmcneillii]

i'm talking about a cartoon picture not an actuall animation. I know animation is hard but drawing a imaginary cartoon on paper is not too hard for someone to learn to do

[attila518]

@2martykiller1 haha idk if you type too fast or have poor english but i had to reread that. And as far as not drawing so well, you just have to practice man. A lot of it is natural ability, but a lot is just pure passion too.

[2martykiller1]

ok ty

[Zyphonee]

Motion Tweening really limits the amount of actions you can recreate with your character, and it is really not adviceable at all; by far the most professional looking and best way to animate a character is Frame by frame, which can take more time, but looks way prettier, and quite honestly, you get little to no improvement by tweening everything... :P

[elDreDas]

Hi, ok i saw the wacom bamboo fun and the inote note taker on ebay, please tell me which is the best for me, i have some good characters on mind but i dont know very much about animation, i am learning

[NizeFoodz]

I rate this 5 STARS! This vid is awesome :D

[leftfootzcrew]

go to google type in the pic you want, save it. then open flash, go to file and click import to library. click the pic and it will be in the library then drag it over

[elDreDas]

Do you make those draws first on paper or you draw them directly from the pc? how do you do it? i have some characters on mind but i dont know how to pass them to the pc would you help me?

[Zyphonee]

@elDreDas nah, there's a Hardware piece that you can get on virtually any computer store called a graphic tablet, it's pretty much a square or rectangular piece of hardware that comes with a pen, when you move the pen above it, you move the cursor, and when you press it, it's like clicking, try looking for some videos of it here on Youtube, the prices range from U$S70 to U$S2.000 The most adviceable for starters is a Wacom Bamboo Fun, which is cheap and reliable.

[highintel]

bigtime! Thank you!

[bootscooter222]

yes this helped me immensely

[dieandgoaway]

how did you draw it

[mimzy14]

This was VERY HELPFUL..THNKX!!!

[maxtubes11]

thanks

this video helped me alot

[alexandreitv]

brazil is watching u!

[TkyoRahat]

can u tell me how to rotate, im trying to rotate my character's arm but i cant seem to get the rotate tool

[naharia2006]

he hve only 4 fingers xD

[footkraft]

how come the eyes blink?

[agodesa]

how you make that guy?

[Afterfield]

Nice TUT! really good. But all the stuff at cartoon solutions is REALLY expensive >.>

[cp85742]

this might sound retarded and noobish but, where can i download flash??? please reply with a link, thanks.

[BleuRanger]

There's a vid on youtube that tells you how to get it for free

That's how i got it

[taciouno]

gracias.

[kaminokok]

is it possible to import image into flash and animate it. Because when I import picture and brake it apart, I get pixels around the picture also, so I cant select only arm or body or head.... HELP!!

[Appledude500]

if you want to animate imported image, you need to redraw that image in next frame using "onion skin" then convert each bodypart into symbol.

[HappyGrazzzCartoon]

Also, if you are creating the character in photoshop, create each part of the character on different layers. Once all the body parts are created, turn all layers off in photoshop, then turn one on one layer, then export that layer as a .PNG, but you must crop it, other wise you will have a bigger image in flash, which will become annoying to work with when trying to move body parts around. So once you have exported that body part, shut off that layer, and turn on a new one, crop, and repeat

[MrSamsion]

Great video helped me alot thanks!!!

[03johnsone1]

Champion 5/5

[Superglassmaskinen]

Love it really nice that was one thing i needed to learn :) cheers!

[giveitup4me]

thanks

[Driftking7852]

you do it like it easy !! this tutorial help me too much big thanks and keep release more tutorial thank you ^_^

[MrFraggleRocky]

nicely expained, cheers

[Darkwolfgirl107]

Hey, i just started doing this and how do you make symbols?.

[sizzlinjeff12]

you select your drawing, select modify ( on the top) and convert to symbol.

[Appledude500]

select whatever you want to be in one piece, then right mouse click and select "convert to symbol...

[mikbok117]

thanks

[PrincesTomboy]

nice. im making an animation using this kind of thing, and it takes SIXTEEN frames per hand X.X and dont get me startedon the hair...

[clay82es]

very good design and animation.

I like it.

[Enniemation]

this is great! very simpe, but helped me to get back to flash :) thaaaaanks!

[ArizonaWildcats]

This is like 1st grade

[omomani]

i think you should work on 25 frame rate

[TheNapalmDonkey]

Anybody with flash CS4 should try using the bone tool, which is a quicker and easier version of this.