Blog Post 5: Newgrounds, The Internet and Flash Animation
The internet is a great source of distributing many different forms of information. This information can very from buisness data to various creative projects and Animation is no exception. The ability to freely distibute your animations to anyone with an internet connection can prove to be a great boon to small animation projects that may not have a large enough budget for wide distribution. When coupled with the ease of animating that programs such as Adobe Flash, the barrier for one to create their own animation is greatly reduced.
One particular website responsible for popularising such a method of creating and distributing such animations is Newgrounds. Newgrounds is website founded in 1995 for the hosting of various flash animations and games. Considering there were no video hosting websites like Youtube at the time, Newgrounds was the most accesible way to distribute one’s animation’s onto the internet for many years. This has allowed the site to gain a large following and it hosts a massive number of flash videos. Even with the advent of more mainstream video sharing sites Newgrounds is still one of the best places to find web animations.
Of course by lowering the barrier to make animations, one also causes the quality to vary greatly. A great many web animations are of poor quality; with very limited animation, sloppy drawings and poor writing. While some might see this as a reason to look down upon flash animation, there are a lot of good animations that might not have been possible without the aid of the internet and animation programs. With the creation of the internet and easy to use animation programs. the creation of animation is now accesible to almost anybody.
This week I commented on Michael Kush and Mycah Taylors blogs.
Ian, you are absolutely right. The creation of the World Wide Web has provided a canvas for people to display various artistic talents. I think that it is wonderful that people can display their art and opinions on the web for the world to see. Being able to animate and post other art forms on the web without editing and judgment gives numerous artists and opportunity to display their work for others to enjoy. I agree that animation quality does vary since any and everyone can post an animation on the web. However, it is nice to know that people are able to post their art and convey their feelings easily over the web. Additionally, the internet gives artist access to a broad audience they may not have had access to otherwise. Many stars have been made from the internet.
This easy access system is sure to produce the animators that will take over in the coming years. Other sites like youtube have made instant pundit, comedy, and blog stars over night and this web site can definitely help those who have been wanting to pursue a job in animation by allowing them to create, practice, and publish their work. Plus, the internet can store this data for later if the person may need to put together a portfolio. It is amazing just how convenient the internet has made our lives.
I do like that animation has become more accessible, however, you make a valid point–the quality tends to go way down. Whether because of the time it takes to produce solid animations or simply because what fostered the accessibility also fostered laziness, the quality of a lot of New Grounds stuff tanked.
I think it is great that there are websites that are dedicated to allowing people to freely post their animations. Although some of the animations may be of poor quality, the animators themselves probably know that is an issue, but they are happy to know that they will find fair criticism on their animation despite the quality. Thanks for informing me of a new site to find great animation!
I remember newgrounds as being one of the first websites that my friends and I used for comedy. Alot of the animations were not done very well using flash. Although most of these animations were pretty comical.I now think that a website like youtube is much more effective for animators to post their work. I still visit newgrounds though from time to time.
I think Flash Animation is a a great thing. There may be some poor animations out there, just like there are poorly edited videos on Youtube, but in the long run I think it introduces more people to animation, and encourages them to learn more and get better.