Blending Animation with Live Action
- Samantha Reynolds
- Mar 24
- 2 min read
Not only did I write a complicated film for my first one in 20 years, I also chose to blend animation with live action to tell a crucial part of the story.
Yes, it made the filmmaking process a bit more complicated as I had to shoot live-action scenes knowing that some would be intercut with animation.
BUT...
I just knew the animation would add a magical element I know I couldn’t have achieved otherwise.
The hurdle?
I’m not an animator. I’m not an illustrator; I still draw in stick figures.
So how did I know what the animation should look like?
I didn’t. Not even close.
What I did know was:
The emotion I wanted the animation to evoke in the audience
The arc the animation needed to follow
That it had to be simple, dreamlike, and ideally, hand drawn
Over the past few months, my animator (who also illustrates my picture books) and I have been going back and forth, refining the design, the colors, the movement.
I knew I’d recognize the right look when I saw it.
What began as loose black-and-white sketches became storyboards. Then came the color palettes. Eventually, we landed on these beautiful blended watercolors with a few unexpected elements woven in.
It wasn’t an easy route to find exactly what felt right, but that’s what I had to lean into—what felt right.
Trusting my instincts and my heart has never steered me wrong, and this time has been no different.
Below are two samples:
The first is a storyboard by my illustrator, and the second is a sample of the animation.
Thanks, as always, for the support.
Keep writing. Keep creating.
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