Many of animation’s most memorable moments come from stories that have lasted for generations. Animation is full of book to movie adaptations, from classics like ‘Cinderella’ to more recent hits like ‘How to Train Your Dragon’. When reimaging these stories for animation, adaptors have a long road ahead of them to capture the story, translate the style between mediums, and wow the audience.
Why Adapt Books Into Animation
Animation is often considered a medium exclusively for telling children’s stories, and while it’s excellent for that purpose it is also a great choice for all sorts of tales. Whether a plot entails mythical creatures or a stylized reality, animation possesses many useful and unique visual storytelling techniques.
The Appeal of Animation for Literary Worlds
Most novels and other works of literature rely heavily on the narrator’s unique perspective to establish the tone of a story. Through animation every minute detail like character design, background layout, and color palettes can be curated to visually establish a mood and invoke particular emotions within the viewer. Simply put, animation relies on visuals to establish a unique perspective and therefore doesn’t require language.
Medium-Specific Storytelling
Animation is a fantastic medium for novels and short stories because it can communicate the atmosphere immediately. Take Edgar Allan Poe’s immortal classic ‘The Tell-Tale Heart’, in 1953 it was turned into an animated short that visually captures the tension, fear, and anxiety present in the original story through a more expressionist lens than a live-action adaptation could.
Selecting and Scoping the Source Material
Animators looking to adapt literature into animation must first consider the source material they are utilizing. Considerations, such as thematic relevance and scope of the source material, are vital for animators to discuss before beginning a new project. Otherwise, issues in adapting the novel or short story may occur further down the line.
Choosing Adaptable Works and Defining the Core Premise
Many written works are considered “unadaptable”, meaning that the key characteristics of the narrative, tone, and themes are so successfully captured in the original writing that it could be considered a disservice to the material to adapt it into another medium. While smaller plotlines and intensive worldbuilding may have to be pruned for brevity and clarity, animators must always attempt to keep the core values and premise of a work.
Condensing Versus Serializing: Feature Film or Series
Many novels expend exhaustive prose detailing a location or a character that could be quickly and easily shown in a visual medium. As such, it is fairly common for directors and animators to be able to greatly trim down pieces of literature when formatting them for animation. However, for many large bodies of works, it may not be possible to properly express the core premise and themes of a written work if overly condensed. For animators, this might help to determine whether a certain project would best function as a feature film vs series adaptation.
Fidelity Versus Interpretation
For adaptors looking to reimagine a piece of literature into animation, staying true to the source material is an important consideration that should be balanced with telling the story the way they deem most appropriate.
What to Change, What to Keep, and Why
When creating book to movie adaptations it is inevitable that some changes will be made. Dialogue may need to be paired down, scenes and even whole characters and subplots may need to be cut. While it is no easy decision for animators to decide what stays and what goes, one rule of thumb is to keep as much as possible that can be communicated through visual storytelling techniques. Making the most of what makes animation unique promises to breathe new life into an adaptation even if other elements are pruned.
Rights and Collaboration
Once animators have determined the core themes and scale of the literature they want to adapt, they must secure the rights to legally animate the piece. Many classic pieces of literature such as ‘Robin Hood’, fall into the public domain but more recently published books, novellas, and other literary media may not be. While understanding copyright law can be difficult, according to Cornell anything published before 1930 should be considered in the public domain.
Managing Fan Expectations and Canon
Many animators wish to maintain as much creative freedom in adaptation as possible. However, large scale changes can come at the cost of alienating fans of the source material. Take the example of Ralph Bakshi’s 1978 version of ‘The Lord of the Rings’. While J.R.R. Tolkien’s original story was epic and expansive, according to cartoonresearch.com many fans criticized the animated film for being too condensed.
Story Structure and Pacing for Animation
You may already be familiar with The Hero’s Journey, a concept first published by Joseph Campbell in his book ‘The Hero with a Thousand Faces’ in 1949. It outlines multiple plot points or ‘beats’ that most fables and adventures cover. Being aware of these beats is helpful to build a compelling narrative yet becoming overly reliant on them can make a story feel trite or unoriginal.
Balancing Exposition, Action, and Quiet Moments
Pacing is one of the most difficult pieces in constructing a new story or even when reworking a literary adaptation. According to Studio Binder, Pacing is the “tempo or speed at which a story unfolds.” Stories that move too fast may not provide adequate “breathing room” for audiences to care about the characters or world, while stories that move too slowly may be deemed uninteresting to audiences. There is no perfect formula for pacing, it is an art fully at the discretion of the storyteller.
Restructuring Plot Beats for Episodic or Feature Formats
The pacing of a book and the pacing of an animated film can be very different, as books allow for more space between plot points. Animators may have trouble condensing complex narratives for feature films without disrupting the momentum of a story. Episodic formats however allow for more falling action, or moments when problems have been resolved. For that reason, books may adapt easier into an animated series than a film.
Character and Worldbuilding
One mistake that is often made when adapting from page to screen is the loss of character and worldbuilding. While it’s important to preserve the plot, it’s equally important to show the particular setting and cast of characters that make the story possible.
Character Design That Reflects Backstory and Arc
Returning to the example of the animated ‘The Lord of the Rings’ film, it uses the unique visual strengths of animation to reflect the differences in its fantastical characters. The director, Ralph Bakshi, utilized a myriad of hybrid animation techniques, such as rotoscoping which requires animators to trace the outline of live-action actors from existing footage. In this way, Frodo, Gandalf, and the other heroes have a friendly design that contrasts against the monstrous Orcs and Nazgûl.
World Rules, Geography, and Visual Consistency
Few genres require as much worldbuilding as Sci-fi and fantasy where even the laws of nature are subject to change at the author’s will. Animation however, has the power to bring the impossible to life. Worldbuilding for animated series and films can transpire visually by showing the audience unimaginable worlds without a single line of exposition.
Dialogue, Narration, and Point of View
Perhaps the most important tool in literary works is perspective. As literature relies on narration to assemble the story, it can also be utilized to reflect a narrator’s opinion, outlook, and general disposition. This goes beyond crafting the plot and into the construction of tone and themes.
When to Use Voiceover and When to Show Not Tell
Similarly, creators can utilize voiceover and narration in animation, but it is just one tool in their toolbelt as opposed to literature where narration is the story. Voiceover narration is a quick and concise way to share exposition but animation is a visual medium that can communicate information even more efficiently.
Adapting Literary Language for Performances
The interior thoughts of a book’s narrator is often the most difficult component to capture when adapting into animation. Animation however is able to visualize and exaggerate the mental and emotional states of its characters in ways impossible in live-action.
Cultural Context and Ethical Considerations
When creating a literary adaptation animation, there are many important ethical considerations. These can range from honoring the wishes of the original author to ensuring that the final product reflects and honors the communities depicted in the animation.
Adapting Across Cultures Without Erasing Identity
Myth retellings in animation are common practice that allows animators to reignite the audience’s excitement with a particular fable. Disney has made a fortune by adapting myths from all around the world. However, while some of their animated films like ‘Moana’ have lifted the voices of different communities, others like ‘Peter Pan’ have reinforced negative stereotypes. Animators should recognize that they wield an awesome power in depicting cultures (even fictional ones) that should be used with the utmost empathy and respect.
Takeaways for Aspiring Adaptors
While there are countless decisions for adaptors to make when adapting novels for animation one of the largest is how they will get a project made. By presenting storyboarding for adaptations, animators can show their vision for a new take on a literary classic.
Building a Pitch Package and Proof of Concept
When animators sell a new project to producers, they will usually come prepared with a pitch bible for adaptations. According to Studio Binder, a pitch bible or story bible is a tool in the film industry that aggregates information about characters, plot points, tone, and themes all in one easily accessible place making it easier to pitch literary adaptations.
Portfolio Tips: Show Process, Not Just Final Frames
For animators pitching a particular project or even themselves, it is worth showing the entire animation production pipeline when sharing your work. Building an impactful portfolio is an exercise in not only highlighting your work but also illustrating your unique process.
Book to movie adaptations are a staple of animation. As long as there have been animated films, there have been literary adaptations. From fables and myths brought into the modern era to cutting-edge stories that could only be told through a medium with no rules, animation continues to surprise audiences. Animators put a lot of work into the films and tv shows you enjoy, especially when adapting it from literature.
How Will You Adapt?
Think animation can show you the next version of yourself? Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design teaches students the power of animation online or on campus with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2D Animation or 3D Animation. Students emerge from the program ready to launch a career based on hybrid animation techniques with knowledge on industry trends and lasting principles. Request information about these degree programs today.
