The Animator's Survival Kit: Book Review
- Rita Cruz
- Mar 10, 2021
- 2 min read
Updated: May 6, 2021
Written by Richard Williams, who won two Academy Awards for his work, and published in 2001, the Animator’s Survival Kit is an instructional book that contains the methods, principles, and formulas for classical, computer, games, stop-motion, and internet animators. This book is an extensive book with 282 pages that teaches the very basics of animation.

Basics is a word that will be used a lot to refer to this book, mostly because it is one of the most crucial aspects that it covers. It gives young animators the absolute basics and will teach you how to apply them in more complex scenarios. My most used page is likely the one with a detailed explanation on how to make a character walk, and how to make that movement realistic. I used this example as one of my baselines for one of the scenes I produced for my short story “Corruption”.
I purchased this book because while searching for which books are most essential for an animator to have, this was always the one in the top of the list. And, having read most of it, I would have to agree. There are simply so many indispensable tips and tricks in it, as well as detailed guides on how characters are meant to move naturally. Learning how to animate characters is one of the aspects I struggle most in with animation, and this book has helped me tremendously with that.
The tone of voice used in the book is extremely casual and friendly, almost as if the writer, Richard, is right in front of you explaining everything.
I do consider this book to be a must own by animations, having to agree with the reviews I read for it before purchasing it and reading myself.
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