Search/Recent Changes
DBTropes
...it's like TV Tropes, but LINKED DATA!

Underlighting

 Underlighting
type
FeatureClass
 Underlighting
label
Underlighting
 Underlighting
page
Underlighting
 Underlighting
comment
Underlighting (aka "Bipack Glow") is an animation technique that caught on in the 1980's, although it dates back much further.
Some parts of an animated scene may need to glow. Traditionally, a glow was painstakingly drawn by an animator, who had to pay careful attention to get the fringe colors just right to make it convincing. Even in the best cases, a hand-drawn glow still didn't look very "glowy."
The solution was to cut a hole in the background in the shape you wanted the glowing object to have, and then project a bright colored light from underneath the scene. The result was a rather awesome-looking glowing object, with tapering fringes that looked exactly as you'd expect a brightly glowing object to look.
There were, however, two big drawbacks to this technique. First of all, it was somewhat labor-intensive, as the hole in the animation background would have to move to track where the glow was supposed to be frame by frame; as a result, underlighting would typically be relegated to static background elements if needed for a prolonged portion of the animation, with underlit moving objects typically being on the smaller side to reduce the workload for the animators. And second, adding texture to glowing objects was much more difficult compared to hand-painted glow effects, though not outright impossible; typically texture was added by placing a translucent foil or a glass tube filled with a mix of soap/shampoo, water, and glitter between the background and the backlight. This second drawback meant the technique was used primarily for amorphous objects such as "energy beams" or lightning.
Underlighting eventually faded out as digital ink and paint software became more accessible to animation studios in the late 1990's and early 2000's, with these computer programs allowing animators to more easily produce glow effects and give them levels of texture and flexibility not previously possible with cel animation. Among live-action producers, the rise of CGI also rendered underlighting obsolete for similar reasons in regards to producing energy effects and whatnot, though with the added benefit of CGI allowing these same kinds of effects to more believably mesh with the live-action footage. However, in the context of hand-drawn animation, creating the exact kinds of glow effects underlighting provided through digital technology is excruciatingly difficult, due to the unexpectedly complex nature of real-world light requiring a large amount of legwork in realistically replicating tapering fringes on a frame-by-frame basis (to say nothing of how light refracts against foils and glitter fluid). Consequently, underlighting-esque effects have largely died off in this field, rendering it a de-facto Forgotten Trope.
 Underlighting
fetched
2024-02-02T09:29:46Z
 Underlighting
parsed
2024-02-02T09:29:46Z
 Underlighting
processingComment
Dropped link to StarWars: Not an Item - CAT
 Underlighting
processingComment
Dropped link to TronLines: Not an Item - FEATURE
 Underlighting
isPartOf
DBTropes
 Underlighting / int_19d740d8
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_19d740d8
comment
Underlighting was used in a very subtle manner in The Great Mouse Detective. It provided the glow for the coals when a character was smoking a pipe.
 Underlighting / int_19d740d8
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_19d740d8
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Great Mouse Detective
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_19d740d8
 Underlighting / int_223c2a48
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_223c2a48
comment
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild: Tying in with the game's anime-inspired visual design, underlighting is mimicked to depict the various Tron Lines that appear throughout the game.
 Underlighting / int_223c2a48
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_223c2a48
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Video Game)
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_223c2a48
 Underlighting / int_366a284d
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_366a284d
comment
The 1984 anime adaptation of Fist of the North Star frequently made use of this, both textured and untextured, for a wide number of purposes, ranging from censoring blood to providing extra "oomph" for battle auras and energy effects. The 1986 recap film further ups the ante with it, using backlit foil for battle auras in addition to making greater use of it for ambient lighting and effects.
 Underlighting / int_366a284d
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_366a284d
featureConfidence
1.0
 Fist of the North Star (Manga)
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_366a284d
 Underlighting / int_3ac36a5c
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_3ac36a5c
comment
Transformers: Generation 1 used underlighting frequently for the yellow Autobot gunshots, the purple Decepticon gunshots, and sometimes the red and blue glowing eyes.
 Underlighting / int_3ac36a5c
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_3ac36a5c
featureConfidence
1.0
 Transformers: Generation 1 (Franchise)
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_3ac36a5c
 Underlighting / int_469771d2
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_469771d2
comment
For The Powerpuff Girls, underlighting was used for the streaks the girls left behind as they fly away, and for when they use their heat vision.
 Underlighting / int_469771d2
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_469771d2
featureConfidence
1.0
 ThePowerpuffGirls
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_469771d2
 Underlighting / int_610a28dd
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_610a28dd
comment
Underlighting was used on Peter Pan to make Tinker Bell glow.
 Underlighting / int_610a28dd
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_610a28dd
featureConfidence
1.0
 Peter Pan
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_610a28dd
 Underlighting / int_b8c056b0
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_b8c056b0
comment
Space Ace used underlighting extensively for laser shots, glowing instrument panels, molten lava, the lightning effects streaming off the quarterstaves in the final scene, the glint on the surface of the mirror, et cetera.
 Underlighting / int_b8c056b0
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_b8c056b0
featureConfidence
1.0
 Space Ace (Video Game)
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_b8c056b0
 Underlighting / int_baa6c6fc
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_baa6c6fc
comment
The second season of Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends used underlighting for Iceman and Firestar's transformation sequences, and for Video Man's eyes.
 Underlighting / int_baa6c6fc
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_baa6c6fc
featureConfidence
1.0
 Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_baa6c6fc
 Underlighting / int_ccd1ec22
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_ccd1ec22
comment
The Thief and the Cobbler: Just one of the very many animation special effects used to no end. Things made to glow this way include the golden balls, all fire, beams of light, Zigzag's flashy smoke bombs, brightly lit areas, and many more...
 Underlighting / int_ccd1ec22
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_ccd1ec22
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Thief and the Cobbler
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_ccd1ec22
 Underlighting / int_d14c3aa1
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_d14c3aa1
comment
Ghostbusters (1984): Underlighting is used to provide the streams from the Proton Packs.
 Underlighting / int_d14c3aa1
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_d14c3aa1
featureConfidence
1.0
 Ghostbusters (1984)
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_d14c3aa1
 Underlighting / int_d794a2a2
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_d794a2a2
comment
The 1988 film adaptation of AKIRA uses underlighting to depict sunlight shining through a window in the correctional school Kaneda attends, replicating the effect of the camera focusing on the objects in front of and around the window rather than on the view through the glass. Underlighting is also frequently used throughout the film for a large variety of other lighting effects, from lights on bikes and neon signs to the bright light that envelops Neo-Tokyo when the esper children reconnect with Akira's remains.
 Underlighting / int_d794a2a2
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_d794a2a2
featureConfidence
1.0
 AKIRA (Manga)
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_d794a2a2
 Underlighting / int_ed535562
type
Underlighting
 Underlighting / int_ed535562
comment
In The Secret of NIMH, underlighting was used for the glowing eyes on Nicodemus and the Great Owl.
 Underlighting / int_ed535562
featureApplicability
1.0
 Underlighting / int_ed535562
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Secret of NIMH
hasFeature
Underlighting / int_ed535562

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 Underlighting
processingCategory2
Animation Tropes
 Underlighting
processingCategory2
This Index Glows
 A New Hope / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting
 TRON / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting
 Transformers: Generation 1 (Franchise) / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting
 Ghost in the Machine (Music) / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting
 Space Ace (Video Game) / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting
 Peter Pan / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting
 Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting
 The Great Mouse Detective / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting
 The Secret of NIMH / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting
 The Thief and the Cobbler / int_21b9581f
type
Underlighting