cushion: I'm not exactly sure what is the origin of the term cushion. A cushion is basically a tightening of the spacing of drawings to indicate either a "slow out" type of acceleration or a "slow in" type of deceleration. I like to think of the term as emanating from the visualization of an object landing on a pillow or cushion. The object lands on the cushion and gradually settles it doesn't abruptly stop because the cushion gives on impact. This timing diagram shows a “slow out” to a constant speed to a “slow in” to the final pose. All the inbetweens are halves relative to their preceding and following drawings. We are accelerating out from drawing 1 and decelerating into drawing 9, while the action is moving at an even speed in the middle. Frames 1,2 and 3 are a cushion as are frames 7,8 and 9. Another term that is interchangeable with the term cushion is easing.











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