all action was staged to the side for clarity.2.4 STAGING
Staging is the presentation of an idea so it is completely and unmistakably clear; this principle translates directly from 2-D hand drawn animation. An action is staged so that it is understood; a personality is staged so that it is recognizable; an expression so that it can be seen; a mood so that it will affect the audience. [26]
To stage an idea clearly, the audience's eye must be led to exactly where it needs to be at the right moment, so that they will not miss the idea,
Staging, anticipation and timing are all integral to directing the eye. A well-timed anticipation will be wasted if it is not staged clearly.
It is important, when staging an action, that only one idea be seen by the audience at a time. If a lot of action is happening at once, the eye does not know where to look and the main idea of the aclion will be "upstaged" and overlooked. The object of interest should contrast from the rest of the scene. In a still scene, the eye will be attracted to movement. In a very busy scene, the eye will be attracted to something that is still. Each idea or action must be staged in the strongest and the simplest way before going on to the next idea or action. The animator is saying, in effect, "Look at this, now look at this, and now look at this." [26]
In Luxo Jr. , it was very important that the audience was looking in the right place at the right time, because the story, acting and emotion was
being put across with movement alone, in pantomime, and sometimes the movement was very subtle. If the audience missed an action, an emotion would be missed, and the story would suffer. So the action had to be paced so that only Dad or Jr. was doing an important action at any one time, never both. In the beginning of the film, Dad is on screen alone your eye was on him. But as soon as Jr. hops on-screen, he is moving faster than Dad, therefore the audience's eyes immediately goes to him and stays there.
In Luxo Jr., all the action was animated with silhouette in mind. When Dad and Jr. come face to face for the first time, it is easy to see what is happening because it is staged to the side. If Jr. was in front of Dad looking up at him, it would be difficult to read. (figure 7) Jr. hopping on the ball would be confusing if the action was to happen with Jr. facing the camera. Viewed from the side it is perfectly clear, (figure 8)
Most of the time Jr. was on-screen, Dad's actions were very subtle, so the attention of the audience was always on Jr. where most of the story was being told. If Dad's actions were important, Jr.'s actions were toned down and Dad's movements were emphasized and the attention of the audience would transfer to Dad. For example, when Jr. looks up to Dad after he's popped the ball and Dad shakes his head, all eyes are on him.