Jackie Chan: Follow through and Overlapping action

This scene from the film, Shanghai Knights with Jackie Chan is a good example of a well timed live action comedy with some large and some subtle elements of follow through and overlapping action. The movement of the umbrella comes just after Jackie's movements and adds to the overall feeling of the clip. The way that the umbrella spins repeatedly at the eleven second mark and Chan leans forward is interesting because straight after it, his arm moves forward to continue with the rest of his body. There are also a lot of slight motions with the hair as the actor jerks forward throughout the clip. There are a lot of hand movement that link up to the main action but come slightly after it before coming to a stop. Follow through and Overlapping action are important when it comes to storytelling as they add realism to a motion. At 29 seconds, Jackie jumps down from the box and in doing so, raises his arms before lowering them on impact. This is to do with his balance as well as a natural bodily function of anticipation. This is also important in animation as there is a built up and also a wind down, an action followed by a reaction. The cartwheel at 32 seconds is interesting as after Jackie grabs the cloth, it continues to move slightly. This physical reaction is in essence these principles. Finally at 46 seconds when Chan gets the coat and runs towards Owen Wilson, he stops suddenly but his coat continues to move for a second. The follow through and overlapping action will be a great asset to realism when I create my own animations and it is important to learn and study it now.    

I do not own this clip.