

In some cartoons, it is obvious that a part of the background will be used. What makes it obvious is that it is strikingly lighter in color than its surroundings. It might also have an obvious difference in detail or color saturation. Another telltale sign would be clear black outlines on the object: the three clearly outlined rocks on the cliff would be the ones to tumble.

This is an unintentional artifact from the animation process. Foreground/animated objects are drawn by the main animators separately from the background and matte painters. Because the two processes were done at different times and locations and by different artists, consistent matching was very difficult. Additionally, the unpainted portions of cels are not perfectly transparent, so the colors on lower cels became more and more muted as additional layers were added to the top of the stack.

Film critic Roger Ebert has called this the "Fudd Flag", after Bugs Bunny's nemesis, who uses it to determine which tree Bugs is hiding behind, which rock he needs to trip over, etc.

Nowadays, digital ink-and-paint and compositing has largely displaced the use of painted cels, meaning that colors can be matched accurately. The issue of lavish backgrounds contrasting with simple animated elements remains to some extent, but it is often avoided. Many TV cartoons now use backgrounds rendered in the same simplistic style as the animation, while theatrical films can now use CG to render "background" elements that can be animated... which can lead to a whole new set of problems.

Something similar occasionally appears in older live-action productions. In particular, you may see an oddly colored sheen around the characters in shows featuring heavy use of Chroma Key. In his review of the Star Wars prequel trailer, Mr. Cranky dubbed this slight Special Effects Failure a "mystical aura." The technique has since evolved to the point where it is mostly no longer noticeable. Mostly.

This also applies to mid-era point-n-click Adventure Games, when the background would be painted or 3D rendered, while objects would usually be drawn sprites. However, this had a practical use, allowing players to easily locate collectible objects, even small ones. Especially small ones. A similar version can appear in action games that require you to destroy parts of the environment to proceed, again, mostly in older ones. The breakable parts would usually be a different color, and one can sometimes even see the seams where the object is supposed to break apart.

In early console games, some interactive objects might use a noticeably different palette than the background, since sprites and backgrounds have their own color spaces.

Occasionally inverted by allowing the cel/object to exist and making it readily visually apparent, and then moving the background art instead of the cel.

This trope is particularly prominent in cartoons made during The Golden Age of Animation.

Examples of Conspicuously Light Patch include:





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Straight Examples

Anime and Manga

The Touhou doujin-anime Musou Kakyo: A Summer Day's Dream has this almost constantly.

has this almost constantly. When the elephant eats bricks on Black Cat Detective ... god that show sounds weird when you write about it.

... god that show sounds weird when you write about it. Dragon Ball Z had it, though not as bad as some other cartoons of the era. For example.

had it, though not as bad as some other cartoons of the era. For example. Quite obvious at one point in Yu Yu Hakusho , when the part of the Saint Beasts' castle is collapsing. Two guesses on which part.

, when the part of the Saint Beasts' castle is collapsing. Two guesses on which part. Parodied in episode 15 of Pani Poni Dash!. When the bus is teetering on the edge of the cliff, literally every external shot of the cliff shows the edge of the cliff very obviously animated this way, indicating that the cliff is about to crumble. It never does.

Video Games

The video game Serious Sam , interestingly, features these. Behind a lightly colored spot on a wall, you could expect to find a secret by moving to it or shooting at it.

, interestingly, features these. Behind a lightly colored spot on a wall, you could expect to find a secret by moving to it or shooting at it. Conspicuously Light Patches, along with other texturing and lighting tricks, were pretty much a staple in FPSes since Doom , as they were often a clue to where a secret could be, or where monsters would come from.

, as they were often a clue to where a secret could be, or where monsters would come from. Wolfenstein 3D pulled a major dick move in not doing this most of the time; if you wanted to find every secret, you had to move up and down every wall repeatedly hitting the action key.

pulled a major dick move in doing this most of the time; if you wanted to find every secret, you had to move up and down every wall repeatedly hitting the action key. The newer, Crystal Dynamics-developed Tomb Raider games constantly use white ledges to signify which parts of the wall Lara can grab.

games constantly use white ledges to signify which parts of the wall Lara can grab. Mods for the Quake -derived shooters such as Half-Life have this quite often, based on rendering limitations, until dynamic shadows became more prevalent in engines starting in 2004. Lighting effects were determined when the level was built, and didn't change during play, even if an object moved to a differently lit environment. Similarly, interactive objects didn't block light, meaning a bright light would shine right through a door or destructible wall as though it were glass. Levels had to be designed with the limitations in mind, by having near identical lighting on both sides, or leaving the light off on the opposite side until it was triggered.

-derived shooters such as have this quite often, based on rendering limitations, until dynamic shadows became more prevalent in engines starting in 2004. Lighting effects were determined when the level was built, and didn't change during play, even if an object moved to a differently lit environment. Similarly, interactive objects didn't block light, meaning a bright light would shine right through a door or destructible wall as though it were glass. Levels had to be designed with the limitations in mind, by having near identical lighting on both sides, or leaving the light off on the opposite side until it was triggered. In the Super Mario All Stars version of Super Mario Bros 3 brick blocks with jumping Goombas hidden inside became easier to pick out, as they didn't have the "shine" effect normal bricks did.

Invoked in the LEGO Adaptation Games, where non-LEGO scenery serves only as background. All interactions involve only LEGO items.





Western Animation





Mystical Auras

Film

There's a particular bit in the 80s Flash Gordon movie where, as a rocket travels forward entering the Imperial Vortex, this bright, transparent... thing moves behind it. Instead of moving steadily behind the rocket, it sort of jumps whenever the rocket's going to go past it. Seen in many space films, actually. Exterior shots of the Leonov in 2010 have an aura, most noticeable when the ship moves toward the camera. Likewise, small ships in the original Star Wars trilogy are often surrounded by a light rectangle, particularly in VHS and earlier DVD releases.

movie where, as a rocket travels forward entering the Imperial Vortex, this bright, transparent... thing moves behind it. Instead of moving steadily behind the rocket, it sort of jumps whenever the rocket's going to go past it. In the B-Movie Xanadu , Sonny gets one as he enters the muses' world , as seen at the bottom of this page.

, Sonny gets one , as seen at the bottom of this page. While Back to The Future Parts II and III did chroma-key well (managing to disguise, for example, when the flying DeLorean was actually a model), the original had two obvious Special Effects Failures: When the car first disappears, leaving the fire trails; and when Marty's hand begins to fade in front of his face.

Parts II and III did chroma-key well (managing to disguise, for example, when the flying DeLorean was actually a model), the original had two obvious Special Effects Failures: When the car first disappears, leaving the fire trails; and when Marty's hand begins to fade in front of his face. Hitchcock's classic North by Northwest has the climax take place on the front of Mt. Rushmore. If you look very carefully in the moments in which you can see the full monument, you can see the blue-tinted line.





Live-Action TV

Extremely apparent in some Muppet productions, as Jim Henson liked using Chroma Key a lot in the mid-80's. It gets to the point where you can tell something's up when you see that "mystical aura" around a character. Done intentionally in the "Secrets of the Muppets" episode of The Jim Henson Hour . Henson explains how the room he is hosting the show from is blue-screened, then holds a bright blue necktie in front of himself, making his chest transparent and demonstrating the Chroma Key technique. And then subverted later on. Jojo (the Audience Surrogate) claims that he can now tell when Chroma Key is being used. When a Doozer from Fraggle Rock enters the room, he claims that it's obvious the character isn't really there, and is probably about three feet tall and standing in front of a blue screen somewhere. Jim then picks up the Doozer, demonstrating that it is actually a radio controlled puppet, and then begins the segment on how characters like that are made.

On Babylon 5 , some special effects failures let you see the characters were suddenly in front of a blue screen such that someone was going to do something that required a special effect to depict. Due to the way the widescreen version was produced you can spot the picture quality drop with every effects shot in Babylon 5 on DVD, at least on a good quality TV setup.

, some special effects failures let you see the characters were suddenly in front of a blue screen such that someone was going to do something that required a special effect to depict. Lampshaded on The Daily Show. During the 2004 election, a segment is done with Rob Cordry lying handcuffed on the street, with an extremely obvious Aura. After the segment, Jon Stewart comments that it "looked like the street was melting away from him."

Point-And-Click Version

MMORPGs

World of Warcraft frequently has quests where you have to pick up objects on the ground. These objects are scenery and can't be manipulated (and don't even light up when the cursor hits them) unless you're on the relevant quest. Since finding which book among the thousands of books you see in a building is the one you're supposed to pick up is annoying, Blizzard eventually made quest objects sparkle and glow to make them easier to discern. A variation on this is used in at least a couple of places, including the mines underneath one of the Mana Forges in Outland and during one of the Harrison Jones quests in Uldum. Dead NPCs that will spawn additional creatures lie on the ground. The ones that will spawn creatures use a different model and are rendered in higher detail than other "background" elements, making it very easy to tell which bodies will spawn mobs. Happens in most MMOs sooner or later, thanks to Players Are Morons (sort of justified on the side of the developers, because only the players who can't find the items will write long ranty bug reports saying finding the objects is impossible).

frequently has quests where you have to pick up objects on the ground. These objects are scenery and can't be manipulated (and don't even light up when the cursor hits them) unless you're on the relevant quest. Since finding which book among the thousands of books you see in a building is the one you're supposed to pick up is annoying, Blizzard eventually made quest objects sparkle and glow to make them easier to discern. In the City of Heroes computer game, items that must be found to complete a mission not only pulse with light, but emit a sound to alert players to their presence, earning them the nickname of "glowies" among players. This falls under the category of Acceptable Breaks From Reality, mind. The "glowies" in City of Heroes didn't originally include the sound clue for finding them, but since some were tucked into corners and nearly impossible to locate by sight alone, the sound effect was added to relieve frustration and reduce GM calls. You can alter the file and make them emit any sound you care to, if the "wom wom wom" noise is too disruptive or irritating. A more traditional example appears in the final mission of the first "Shining Stars" arc received from the contact Twinshot: a secret door in a mansion's library is a bookcase that is noticeably lighter than the other shelves around it. Almost certainly a deliberate invocation of the trope, as there is no technical reason why the bookcase would have to be a different shade.

computer game, items that must be found to complete a mission not only pulse with light, but emit a sound to alert players to their presence, earning them the nickname of "glowies" among players. This falls under the category of Acceptable Breaks From Reality, mind.

Video Games

Parodies and Aversions

Anime and Manga

The anime Blue Seed had an Omake sequence after one episode which parodied this; one character stops and monologues on the properties of a set of desk drawers, noticing that one is drawn more simply and in a different palette—therefore it must be the only one that moves, and contains the item he is looking for. In the same sequence, Matsudaira warns Kunikida not to step on a part of the cliff that was colored differently. Instead, the more complex part of the cliff collapsed.

had an Omake sequence after one episode which parodied this; one character stops and monologues on the properties of a set of desk drawers, noticing that one is drawn more simply and in a different palette—therefore it must be the only one that moves, and contains the item he is looking for. Averted Trope in Spirited Away ; the art book points out that CG was used to animate the dishes when Chihiro's parents start nudging them around with their pig snouts.

; the art book points out that CG was used to animate the dishes when Chihiro's parents start nudging them around with their pig snouts. Inverted like hell in Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, where the titanic Ohmu insects are made up of animated backgrounds.

Video Games

The creators of Doom 3 made a point of rendering both fixed and dynamic objects the same way for this reason, among others.

made a point of rendering both fixed and dynamic objects the same way for this reason, among others. The original The Legend of Zelda has identical dungeon walls whether a bomb will punch a hole in them or not. Fortunately, only the middle of any given wall needs checking.

has identical dungeon walls whether a bomb will punch a hole in them or not. Fortunately, only the middle of any given wall needs checking. Spoofed in Telltale Games's Point and Click Game Back to The Future episode 3 . A bricked-up doorway features a obviously discoloured brick, the only selectable object upon the surface. It's just there to have Marty make a joke about it being "another brick in the wall". Subsequent clicks confirm its useless nature, with Marty commenting that it is just a brick.

. A bricked-up doorway features a obviously discoloured brick, the only selectable object upon the surface. It's just there to have Marty make a joke about it being "another brick in the wall". Subsequent clicks confirm its useless nature, with Marty commenting that it is just a brick. Peasant's Quest subverts the game version. At one point in the game, a conspicuously light candle appears on the screen. If you try to get it, the game says "It seems like you should be able to do that, doesn't it? Sorry. No dice."

Web Original

Don't step on it!

RWBY, especially in Volume Four and onward, is a strong aversion. The "backgrounds" are themselves fully-rendered 3-D models that act as "stages" on which the characters are placed. As such, any moving elements are already built in and do not need separate renders, nor are separate models or images needed for close-ups. For a fantastic example, see the hidden "elevator" in Haven Academy in the final episodes of Volume Five.

Western Animation