Animation Principles - Intermediate — Claude Code skill
Guides animators through combining individual motion principles in complex scenes. Useful when fundamentals are clear but multi-element actions feel disjointed.
npx skills add dylantarre/animation-principles --skill animation-principles---intermediate -a claude-code
npx skills add dylantarre/animation-principles --skill intermediate -a claude-codeWhat Animation Principles - Intermediate does
The skill organizes twelve core principles into four functional groups: physics, clarity, interest, and technique. It focuses on how these rules interact. Faster motion demands more stretch to preserve apparent volume, while anticipation and follow-through function as visual bookends where the wind-up dictates the settle. Curved paths also require uneven spacing with frames clustered at the start and end.
Common coordination errors receive direct solutions. Uniform frame counts make movement look mechanical, and competing secondary actions distract from the main staging. The guide walks through a nine-step exercise of a character sitting down to demonstrate layered execution. You handle primary blocking first. Then you run separate refinement passes for each category.
Without hands-on experience applying individual principles first, these advanced combinations will feel overwhelming.
What it helps with
- Match anticipation scale to follow-through momentum
- Structure secondary actions so they do not compete with staging
- Apply easing along curved motion arcs
- Combine keyframe pose-to-pose blocking with straight-ahead follow-through
Example prompts for the agent
- Review the timing and arcs for my character sitting down animation
- Help balance anticipation and follow-through on this jump sequence
- Break down a run cycle into blocking and principle refinement passes
How to install Animation Principles - Intermediate
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add dylantarre/animation-principles --skill animation-principles---intermediate -a claude-codenpx skills add dylantarre/animation-principles --skill intermediate -a claude-code2Manually: put the files in place
~/.claude/skills/intermediate/SKILL.mdCopy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/intermediate/
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add dylantarre/animation-principles --skill intermediate -a codex2Manually: put the files in place
.agents/skills/intermediate/SKILL.mdFor all projects use ~/.agents/skills/
1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add dylantarre/animation-principles --skill intermediate -a cursor2Manually: put the files in place
.cursor/skills/intermediate/SKILL.mdCursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/
1GitHub CLI
gh skill install dylantarre/animation-principles intermediate2Manually: put the files in place
.github/skills/intermediate/SKILL.md1Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add dylantarre/animation-principles --skill intermediate -a gemini-cli2Platform CLI
gemini skills install https://github.com/dylantarre/animation-principles --path skills/04-by-skill-level/intermediateManually: put the files in place
.devin/skills/intermediate/SKILL.mdThe legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works
Skills CLI (Vercel)
npx skills add dylantarre/animation-principles --skill intermediate -a opencodeClaude.ai
Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills
Step by step, with commands for each platform: How to install skills in Claude Code: five ways
Questions about Animation Principles - Intermediate
How to install Animation Principles - Intermediate in Claude Code?
Run npx skills add dylantarre/animation-principles --skill animation-principles---intermediate -a claude-code in your terminal. You can also place the configuration directly into ~/.claude/skills/intermediate/SKILL.md.
What does Animation Principles - Intermediate do?
It provides guidelines for weaving separate animation techniques together, pairing physics rules like squash, stretch, and arcs with staging and secondary actions.
How does the skill combine pose-to-pose and straight-ahead methods?
It prescribes a hybrid workflow: block primary character poses first with pose-to-pose, then animate loose secondary elements straight ahead for natural spontaneity.
Source text
SKILL.md · MIT
--- name: Animation Principles - Intermediate description: Use when someone has working knowledge of animation principles and needs guidance on combining them effectively in more complex animations --- # Combining Principles for Stronger Animation You can apply individual principles. Now learn to weave them together and understand their interdependencies. ## Principle Synergies ### Squash/Stretch + Timing Volume preservation is key. Faster motion = more stretch. The timing dictates the degree. A 2-frame anticipation needs less squash than a 6-frame one. ### Anticipation + Follow Through These are mirrors. Anticipation magnitude should roughly match follow through. Big wind-up = big settle. They create rhythmic bookends to any action. ### Staging + Secondary Action Secondary actions must support staging, never compete. If staging says "look at the face," secondary action in hands should point attention there, not away. ### Arcs + Slow In/Out Arcs aren't uniform speeds. Apply easing along the arc path. Spacing should bunch at start/end of the arc, spread in the middle. ### Pose to Pose + Straight Ahead Hybrid approach: Key poses first (pose-to-pose), then animate overlapping elements straight ahead. Best of both: structure with spontaneity. ## Common Combination Mistakes **Over-anticipation:** When every action has massive wind-up, nothing feels spontaneous. Reserve big anticipation for big payoffs. **Competing secondary actions:** Three things moving differently splits attention. Hierarchy matters - one leads, others support. **Uniform timing:** Every action at 12 frames feels mechanical. Vary your timing: quick decisions, slow realizations. **Arc neglect in follow through:** The main action arcs beautifully, then appendages move linearly. Everything arcs. ## The 12 Principles by Function **Physics:** Squash/Stretch, Timing, Arcs, Slow In/Out **Clarity:** Staging, Solid Drawing, Anticipation **Interest:** Secondary Action, Exaggeration, Appeal **Technique:** Straight Ahead/Pose to Pose, Follow Through/Overlap ## Integration Exercise Animate a character sitting down: 1. **Staging:** Camera angle shows full body profile 2. **Anticipation:** Slight upward before descent 3. **Arcs:** Hips trace a curved path down 4. **Timing:** Faster drop, slower settle 5. **Squash:** Compress on contact 6. **Follow Through:** Arms/head continue after hips land 7. **Overlapping:** Hair settles last 8. **Secondary:** Adjusting clothing 9. **Slow Out:** Gradual stop to final pose Layer principles one at a time. Blocking first, then refinement passes for each principle category.
© dylantarre · MIT · dylantarre/animation-principles
