Unit 02: Character Animation; tasks 2, 3, 5 and 6

Task 2 – Modelling

With instructions from Chris, I built up a model of a person over the course of a few days using maya software. We were instructed to make a low poly character like you would see in an iphone game. Starting with a blank slate, I built the arm and leg separately, starting from basic shapes and adding more polygons to manipulate them further, and later importing them together into the same file.

I selected a full body picture of Alex Mercer from Prototype as reference for proportions, and put the picture of a background plate in the file with the arm and leg. Then I made a torso and and fused the arm and leg to it. I then cut the resulting model in half and mirrored it to make a full body and making adjustments when necessary.  . Then I made a head for the body in a separate file, and imported it to the body file to be fused.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/1ue5a29m8mme49h/Character%20complete.mb?m

Task 3 – Rigging

Using the joint tool, I attracted them to each part of the body, making sure to add a hip and shoulders, as well as a curved spine. I also added joints to the end of the extremities (fingers, feet and head). I then used the mirror tool to recreate the joints for the other side of the body. Once the all the joints were in place, I used to fuse skin tool to fuse the joints to the body, so it could be manipulated. Using the joint paint tool, we painted which areas of the body would be moved when each joint is manipulated, adding and removing ‘paint’ as needed.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/htvjkkmtye5c2fy/Rigging%20complete.mb?m

Task 5 – Animation Cycles

At the bottom of the screen, there is a timeline, which can be extended or shortened depending on the situation. Each frame is 1/24^th of a second.  When animating, the timeline is set to a certain frame, each joint is manipulated into place, and the S key is used to set the pose in each frame. When doing a cycle, it is important to make sure that the model is set to the same position at the start and end of the timeline, as the model will automatically move from pose to pose over the course of the cycle. This makes it so every frame doesn’t have to be animated.

We were asked to do a run cycle for our character. Aside from giving the character long strides, I also added a swing motion for the arms, twisting of the body, and bouncing the body up and down when he took a step. Looking at videos of people running, or using your self as reference is a good way to figure out how a character would move.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/a410kl7tfgqjnng/Paint%20adjusted%203.mb?m

We were also asked to create a dynamic walk cycle (in my case, I made a man in handcuffs). In a walk cycle, there is a longer time line and more subtle movement. Chris also suggested that I make a simple pair of handcuffs to add to the effect.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/me381ksp59likob/handcuffed%202.mb?m

Lastly, there was a jump cycle, where we were asked to make a cycle of our characters jumping over a gap or an approaching object. Using references on the internet, it turned out jumping is a lot more complex than first thought. Aside from the build up for the jump, each of the limbs has to move independently, and the spine has to move backwards whilst airborne. The landing in particular was the hardest part, to get right.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ophjedbliza3es8/jump%204.mb?m

Task 6 – Reflectivie learning

The underarm sections of the model were mismatched during animation, as a result, there are some clipping issues with the model when the character moves his arms. As it turns out, the reason was a lack of joint paint on the torso.

I tend to do better when I have a set idea of what I want to do.

I tend to play it safe when animating, not really pushing the model to it’s abilities, although this is usually due to concerns on the integrity of the models.

Task 4 – Written Document

The twelve principles of animation are a set of principles of animation introduced by the Disney animators Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas in their 1981 book The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation. While these are not the only principles, they give a basic idea on what animation is capable of, and how to utilize it.

1. Squash and strech is changing the shape of a model without changing the volume. This can be used for comedic effect, or to give it the illusion of weight and versatility in an organic character. Good examples would be a bouncing ball, or changing the shape of a characters face as they speak, as it can help simulate muscles in the body.
   

   Elastigirl from Pixar’s ‘The Incredibles’ who is able to stretch and contort her body.

2. Anticipation is the build up for an action. This can be a physical one, like preparing for a jump or winding up a swing, or less physical, like a character noticing something off screen. Anticipation can be omitted or subverted to give effect.
   

   This hunter from the game ‘Monster hunter’ is winding up for a dowards swing. Notice the bent knees and the way the sword is held.

3. In theatre or live action films, Staging is used to direct attention to an important focus, such as a character or an object, without overwhelming the audience. It can also set the scene and give the tone and mood of the characters. In animation, you have control over the camera, lighting and the design of the environment, so it can be changed however you wish.
   

   The song ‘Hellfire’ from Disney’s ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ is one of the darkest songs in Disney history, with the visuals to match.

4. Straight ahead action means drawing out a scene frame by frame from beginning to end, making it good for action scenes. Pose to pose involves starting with drawing a few key frames, and then filling in the intervals later. The latter works better for dramatic or emotional scenes, where composition and relation to the surroundings are of greater importance. It is the go to method for CG animation, but it is important to use these two methods together.
   

   The bridge fight from ‘Kung Fu Panda’ is one of the most complex action scenes ever animated, if only for the bridge itself.

5. Follow through means that separate parts of a body will continue moving after the character has stopped (such as hair or clothing). Overlapping action is the tendency for parts of the body to move at different rates (an arm will move on different timing of the head and so on). These give the impression that the character follows the laws of physics, especially during motion or sudden changes of pose.
   

   The Goblin King from The Hobbit film is very flabby, especially his wattle. This helps to give him a sense of size and weight.

6. A lot of objects need time to accelerate and slow down. Some actions, such as a person standing up or a bouncing ball, seem more realistic if there are more frames used at the start and end of an action, and less frames are used in the middle. This is known as Slow In and Slow Out.
   

   A child on a swing set is another example. If slow in and out were not applied, the action would look light and mechanical.

7. An Arc is drawn out to aid the path of movement, to make the movement seem more organic. This appears as ‘ghost’ images which appear between each key frame, and can be removed in post production.
   

   This wireframe to textured model of a dinosaur from the 1999 ‘Walking with Dinosaurs’ series shows differing poses during movement, particularily the legs and tail.

8. Secondary Actions are used to give a character more life, and to emphasize an action or emotion. This includes waving arms whilst walking, or a character pointing at something to emphasize dialouge.
   

   Dean Hardscrabble, from ‘Monsters University’, is a very stoic character, whose reputation and design helps to make her quite intimidating. Her centipede like legs have to move in sequence in order to move her properly.

9. Timing in animation can be used to give a sense of weight and mass (physical timing), or make a sitution more comedic or dramatic (Theatrical timing), or along with music or sound (Musical timing).
   

   Tom and Jerry is often seen as the master of comedic timing.

10. Exaggeration of poses and facial expressions can be used to emphasize certain words or emotions in a character’s actions or dialogue. This is mostly used in 2d animation, though it can be used in less realistic works, such as Cloudy with a chance of Meatballs.
    

    In this shot form ‘Cloudy with a chance of meatballs’, Flint’s face is literally stretched in shock, even his eyeballs.

11. Solid Drawing means giving an object volume and weight in a three dimensional space. This is not as common in 3D animation, but 2D works can be used for reference (storyboarding and animatics for example).
    

    This concept art for Homer Simpson shows how he would look in a 3D space.

12. The Appeal of a character or an action can come from the design, the animation, the writing and the story, and how they affect other characters. This is often done deliberatly to make it more (or less) appealing to the audience. For example, good characters tend to have more baby like features, such as large eyes or a plush look, while vilainous charcters tend to be the exact opposite, although there are exceptions.
    

    In Diney’s ‘Hunchback of Notre Dame’, Quasimodo was written as a kind, naive soul who wanted to be accepted by those around him, despite his unconventional design. His relativly soft features and voice in particular, elecit sympathy from the viewer. This is in contrast to the original book, where he was depicted as a tragic monster.

Ralph from ‘Wreck It Ralph’, started out as more of a monster, but steadily became more humanoid. This helps to give him more sympathy, despite his role as ‘the bad guy’ in his game. The few constants in his design are his large arms and fists, and large, boxy figure.

Ralph’s final design, although intimidating and looking like a typical bully, is soft,colorful and does elicit some sympathy, especially when we learn who he is off the job.

In contrast, Alex Mercer from the game ‘Prototype’ has a very dark colour scheme, and a less than inviting appearance, despite looking like a normal person. His moral ambiguity, and the fact he is actually a superpowered, shapeshifing monster detracts him even further, despite him being the player character in the game.

Videos:

12 Principles of Animation Explained with Rayman Origins by WheeBurhProductions

The 12 Principles of Animation : Animated (A memory aid) by 3ddm