Definition
Secondary Action is a supporting action that's the direct results from a main action. It's always a subordinate that should never dominate and take over the primary action.
A secondary action is present for support and is put for a reason to give the scene more life: it is the resulting action from another movement. The combination of a primary action (independent motion) and a secondary action (dependent motion) heightens interest. The importance of adding a secondary actions to the primary action can add more dept into the character's animation and make them appear more realistic and dramatic: giving the illusion of life. It also gives more personality into what the character is thinking or doing making it easier for the audience to read. Secondary actions should never dominate the primary point of interest, otherwise it distracts the audience from the most important element of your shot. If the secondary action becomes more important than the primary, then in this situation the action is most likely staged wrong for the specific scene or is completely incorrect to be considered a secondary action. Furthermore, they add dimension emphasizing the character's actions. This principle is a useful appliance when you're wanting to strengthen the idea or feeling you are trying to portray to your viewers.
Secondary actions are often taken for granted in real life and are neglected by animators. When tampering with secondary actions, there are some tips and techniques that should be taken into full consideration to avoid disastrous results. For example with the involvement use of facial expressions in a shot there are caution actions to carefully contemplate and plan. Sometimes these subtle actions may go unnoticed when integrated with a dramatic movement. Therefore, rather than adding this action in the duration of a greater movement, it is often better to include this subtle movement at the beginning or end so that it wouldn't detract the dominance of the primary action. In a more detailed explanation, there will be a situation where the facial expression will be the secondary action. The change of expression must be staged to be obvious to the viewers, though secondary. When the basis of an action is being told in the movement of the body, the facial expression becomes the subordinate to the basis.
Secondary actions are often taken for granted in real life and are neglected by animators. When tampering with secondary actions, there are some tips and techniques that should be taken into full consideration to avoid disastrous results. For example with the involvement use of facial expressions in a shot there are caution actions to carefully contemplate and plan. Sometimes these subtle actions may go unnoticed when integrated with a dramatic movement. Therefore, rather than adding this action in the duration of a greater movement, it is often better to include this subtle movement at the beginning or end so that it wouldn't detract the dominance of the primary action. In a more detailed explanation, there will be a situation where the facial expression will be the secondary action. The change of expression must be staged to be obvious to the viewers, though secondary. When the basis of an action is being told in the movement of the body, the facial expression becomes the subordinate to the basis.
Steps to Making sure a Secondary Action stays subordinate
- Animate the primary action first
- Go through the scene another time and animate the secondary action (making sure it doesn't overpower the primary motion in any way)
- Go through the scene a third time making sure that the animation relates to both primary and secondary actions the way it should
A helpful tip to making sure the animation goes well is to always review and go over the scene a few times before doing the next steps. Avoid rushing!
Secondary Action Example
Walking is the primary action (main element)
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Primary action: Deer eating
Secondary action: wiggling its tail |
Primary action: Stick man knocking
Secondary action: the opposite hand that is lifted
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