Timing and spacing are the heart of animation—affecting everything from rhythm and weight to style and emotion. In this in-depth tutorial, Supervising Animator Jason Martinsen demonstrates how to shape your animation’s texture and energy using smart timing and spacing choices, backed by visual references and case studies from film and games. Watch the full video above.
Meet Jason Martinsen
Jason Martinsen has been a professional animator since 2006 and is currently a supervising animator at Sunrise Productions. He previously worked at Framestore, Reel FX, Sony Imageworks, and Blue Sky Studios on film productions like Storks and Ferdinand. Other projects include Scoob!, Back to the Outback, Rumble and Monkey King.
You can learn more about Jason and his work here.
Why Timing and Spacing Matter
Jason begins by returning to animation fundamentals, demonstrating with the classic bouncing ball. He shows how tight and loose spacing of frames create the illusion of acceleration, hang time, and weight. Bouncing balls become the foundation for understanding every pose-to-pose rhythm in animation.
Caricature and Style
To push beyond realism, Jason explains how caricature comes from exaggerating timing and spacing. For example, a cartoony action might hold a pose for several frames (slow timing) then move to the next pose very quickly—creating a snappy, textured feel. He demonstrates this with a simple pointing gesture, showing both a direct and a caricatured version, and references scenes from Hotel Transylvania 2 for evocative timing.
Workflow in Maya: Blocking, Spline, and Polish
Jason walks through his process step by step:
- Start with reference (video or your own acting), then block out the character’s main poses in Maya.
- Experiment with retiming video reference—slowing down the anticipation, speeding up the jump, holding moments of drama, and compressing rapid actions for effect.
- Block, then spline your shot, first matching naturalistic real-world timing, then exploring ways to stylize and push the rhythm using different timing and spacing.
- Use Maya’s graph editor to sculpt curves for more hang time, punchy transitions, and crisp holds.
Examples from Film and Animation
The tutorial uses real footage—from Hotel Transylvania 2 and 300 to Marvel and Spider-Verse movies—to examine how top animators and filmmakers manipulate timing and spacing for unique results. Jason even demonstrates side-by-side edits, adding frames for longer anticipation or removing frames for snappier attacks, making character actions feel more powerful or more cartoony.
Stylized Animation: Embrace Texture
Jason pushes the principles further, illustrating how animators “scale time” by blending holds, quick transitions, and varied frame rates (ones, twos, threes) to build a stylized, textured feel. He draws parallels to animation techniques in projects like Spiderverse, Ninja Turtles, and K-pop music videos—where pose holds, rapid transitions, and extreme spacing give rise to dynamic visual rhythm.
Real World “Sticky” Animation
He also breaks down “sticky animation”—where a character appears to hang in space before quickly snapping to the next pose. Through breakdowns of actual scenes, Jason demonstrates how controlling the duration of holds, easing in or out, and shifting spacing creates animation with impact and clarity.
Tips for Animators
- Never settle for even, mechanical timing—use contrast, holds, and quick transitions.
- Push anticipation and hang time for energy, especially in action shots.
- Mix up frame rates and spacing for stylistic flair.
- Use real footage and draw inspiration from great animators and films.
- Review your animation at different speeds and experiment with retiming for the clearest, most powerful result.
Jason’s takeaway: “Powerful animation comes from thoughtful timing and spacing. Study great references, play with rhythm, and don’t be afraid to exaggerate!”
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