This is a link to Dreamworks website this all were i got all of my Info from. http://www.dreamworksanimation.com/dwa/opencms/inside/how_we_make_movies/post-production/11.html
This is the production pipeline of Dreamworks which is basically the stages they go through to create an animation.
Script
All films start with a script these begin with great concepts. Some of Dreamworks ideas are completely original, while others are also inspired by a number of sources , inclucing chidrens novels , comic books, or other movies already around. Once they have selected on an idea they then create a script for the movie to be.
Storyboards
Once the script has been finalised , the script is then handed over to the storyboard artists who from there go on to create the characters landscape etc. They then show how words will translate into action and pictures so in which they make a sense of sketches- which is like a kind of comic book which tells the story and is the first step in bringing it to life. Once the director and the producer approve the storyboards they are then digitalitally photographed and strung together to create what is called a story reel. They combine this with music and sound effects this takes about 18 months it is a kind of fancy flip book.
Visual Development
Once the story reel is underway they then develop how the film will/ should look , developing the style , the tone, colour and overall the artistic approach to each and every scene. Everything is designed from the major chracters till little things as background props.
Casting
At the casting stage the storyboards are complete the charcters are set and designed, so the next thing is to give the chracters voices. Which involves various actors fecording the charcters lines. They judge the actors for animation films not by the way they look in films such as action films but on the way they sound and would their voice suit that of the character of the animation.
Modeling
From the initial design , the modelers construct 3D models which are nedded for planing an animation.
Rigging
The Modelers start useing wire frame sculpture to allow them to armature, that breaks down the design into workable geomtry and allows them to rig the figure. Which will allow them to move the character in anyway needed.
Basic Sufaces
Then basic surfaces are created to that the charcter and be moved in these basic places/ surfaces.
Layout
Then the layout artists use rough stand-by shapes to block out movement of the character in the scene. The rough layout or animatic is the blueprint from which they determine the camera movement, character placement, spacing lighting, geography and scene timing. The animatic maps out the entire movie, giving them a digital picture of each scene before they actually begin the character animation.
Character animation
Once the sequence is working in layout, the animators start bringing the characters to life in the computer. They articulate the thousands of controls that were created during the character-rigging phase to bring each character to loife and to synchronize them to the voice performances. Now the characters really look like themsleves but not quite. This is just the animation complete.
Effects
After the camera moves have been set and the characters have been animated, the next steps are effects and lighting.
In a live action film , its easy to photograph things live leaves blowing in the wind or even footprints in the computer animators have to create all these thing useing various effects. Once all the effects all complete the fim is then completed.
