Create a storyboard after you develop a concept. Similar to a comic strip, the storyboard visually outlines the production and communicates its ideas. It commonly includes information such as how the characters are moving in the frame, the passage of time between one frame to the next, what the point of view is and dialogue.
Send the storyboard to the layout department upon approval. The layout department scrutinizes the storyboard, determines character costumes and location design, then determines character positioning throughout each scene.
Design a model sheet. Model sheets, also referred to as character boards, contain drawings that depict each possible expression a character can have. This sets the stage for finalization of the characters in the modeling department.
Create visual mockups in the pre-visualization department of the visual effects, or VFX, studio. Mockups assist the director in staging scenes and incorporating visual effects in the final cut.
Use low-resolution models to compose the shot and create rough animation for the animators during the layout stage. The layout artist responsible for this produces a 3D version of the storyboard department’s previous drawings. The director signs off on depth of field, character moves, set dressing and model composition in the layout phase.
Turn 2D concept art and sculpted maquettes -- or scale models -- into detailed 3D models. Modelers work with the technical animator, who develops the characters’ skeletons, and the enveloper, who puts the skin on the skeleton.
Develop the facial expressions and muscle movement after the enveloper and technical animator have finished the concept art and scale models. Send the final concept art and scale models to the rigging and texture paint departments.
Create texture for the scenes and characters. Texture artist shade to fulfill the requirements of the scene and paint textures that integrate with the concept designs sent by the design department.
Add lighting to the animation. Lighting technical directors, or TDs, determine light properties, light placement, how lighting interacts with textures and materials, decide which lighting best fits the mood of the scene and how it interacts with scene harmony.
Add bones to the character animation, a process referred to as rigging. The scale models developed by the technical director assist the rigging department in adding bones and defining the movement of mechanical objects. The technical director also creates test animations to determine how characters will look in various scenes -- she essentially adds character anatomy and examines how it interacts with its environment.
Create the animation for post-production. Although animation is commonly created with 3D graphics, the same principles apply as those first used in 2D and stop-motion animation. The effects department creates components such as smoke, precipitation and other visual effects upon approval of final animation and lighting.
Bring together the elements produced in pre-production and production. The composite department renders the final images for film.
Assemble the soundtrack and auditory effects to prepare for the final mix and ensure each sound-related component is ready for the final cut.
Manipulate and reorder the final shots in preparation for the final cut. Keep the final cut in mind when editing video, to ensure a smooth transition to the final cut.