Throughout cinema, there have been various techniques to depict motion, and one style in particular is the fascinating use of smears in animation. Incredibly popular and captivating to artists, these animation smears are frames that creatively replicate motion blur captured on film, which is the phenomena that we commonly observe in our everyday life.

The vast world of different techniques for smears is explored in this book, expanding way beyond their commonly believed starting point in the 1940s to their actual origins that date back to the beginning of art history with illustrations and prototypes that led to their usage in some of the earliest known theatrical animations.

The Animation Smears Book: Uncovering Film's Most Elusive Technique is a comprehensive guide that provides extensive information on the stylistic and creative aspects of smears and their impact, on how they make use of the way we perceive motion. Additionally, this book also reveals the names of artists who helped develop smears and the original techniques that were used.

Thoroughly examined by a professional animator, the animation smear is highlighted as a versatile technique used in all forms of animation including 3D and stop-motion. This book answers all of the questions that readers ever had about smears and brings clarity to this simple yet mysterious trick that has puzzled fans, scholars, and historians for centuries.