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Activity 5: Tone

Scene from Pixar's film "Ratatouille" of a rat pointing his finger at a man in a chef hat, outside on a dark corner near a street lamp.
Part A: In the above image, how is tone used to help create emphasis and direct the viewer’s eye?
  • What mood is conveyed?
  • What kind of contrast is used (low, higher, highest?)
Part B: Draw a row of 7 boxes. At one end, make the box as dark as possible. At the other end, leave the box empty. Fill in the rest of the boxes so that they gradually go from dark to light. You can do this with a pencil, pen, marker, paintbrush or anything else!
Seven boxes, each shaded a little bit more than the previous one. The first box is nearly white and the last box is nearly black.
Part C: On the sheet of paper you drew your movement lines, try adding shading to show different values of light and dark. Try to create emphasis and help direct your viewer’s eye to the most important element of your scene.

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