Chilling over the xmas period, I thought I'd play with a walkcycle using Anim Squad's Jack rig.
Wip of reel
With my first taste of animation employment beginning soon, I thought be nice to see how my new reel is coming together. Slowly, but its getting there :)
(Third shot is currently in wip stage)
(Third shot is currently in wip stage)
Anim Squad assignment one: Standing from Seated
I have recently commenced Anim Squad's online education program for body mechanics and pantomime. The first assignment was to make a character stand from a seated position. After proposing a few ideas to Disney's Marlon Nowe, it was selected that attempt the receiving of sad news.
Watching short clips from movies of sad news being received by the telephone (the impossible, source code, requiem of a dream and good will hunting to name a few), I soon realised the challenge I had set myself. The characters were remaining still. Marlon had also suggested I try a medium shot to capture the facial animation.
I knew standing up in 4 seconds is a big movement for the face to travel. If I wanted to make her stand and the emotion to read, a fast beat needed to occur. I decided on shock before letting the emotion read through the eyes. For this shock to occur, she needed to expct the telephone call, so decided it was from a friend. I'm pretty pleased with it so far:
Next assignment will be playing more with a character taking a few steps. Hoping I find a nice idea. We'll see.
Watching short clips from movies of sad news being received by the telephone (the impossible, source code, requiem of a dream and good will hunting to name a few), I soon realised the challenge I had set myself. The characters were remaining still. Marlon had also suggested I try a medium shot to capture the facial animation.
I knew standing up in 4 seconds is a big movement for the face to travel. If I wanted to make her stand and the emotion to read, a fast beat needed to occur. I decided on shock before letting the emotion read through the eyes. For this shock to occur, she needed to expct the telephone call, so decided it was from a friend. I'm pretty pleased with it so far:
Next assignment will be playing more with a character taking a few steps. Hoping I find a nice idea. We'll see.
library girl
experimenting with a test of a library girl. Mouth and hands hardly touched, while also in need of general tidying up and focusing the movement.
Jump wip
Wip of jump assignment set by a friend. I was advised to animate a normal jump, striped of ''character''. Yes, it would be nice to do something full of personality, but instead focused on simplicity which places further attention on getting things correct. Used the good trusty Norman rig with some FK arms. Needs a polish, but I'm happy with its direction.
Workflow:
- Calculate timing of root using ball.
- Shot some reference (yes, for some reason I shot this second. It helped to direct the posing)
- Blocked in the body with contracts and direction changes
- Started splining
Stand up from kneeling position
When wanting a spontaneous challenge, I like to ask my friends on the 11SC skype for animation ideas. Wolfor challenged me to animate a character standing up from a kneeling. While I wanted to keep things relatively simple in terms of character, I broke up the action so that the hands to add variety and hopefully interest.
Still needs to be polished.
Review of shot
(click to watch)
It's time to move on from this shot. Admittedly, it's not the most polished, but it is certainly a stepping stone into the realm of character performance. I now wish to write a review, that I may look back on this shot and learn from its lessons.
Why this audio clip?
Upon choosing this clip, I received many words of wisdom opposing its selection. Wizard of Oz is one of the most famous musics in the world. It was argued that any attempt at animating this shot, would be compared to the delightful performance between Julie Garland and Ray Bolger. Could I offer anything different?
For me, I saw an opportunity to explore a father-daughter relationship. Both have their insecurities, but are strengthened by their kinship. I too have my own nerves. I've often said that the 11 Second Club interviews left me with butterflies. Yet, I am carried by my passion for story, theatre and the support of my friends and family.
Characters
Frank is inspired mostly by actor Dick van Dyke, who I have always seen as everyone's favourite uncle figure. I took particular inspiration from his nose poke in the song 'You Two' from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Caractacus Potts is on a similar quest and asks:
What makes the battle worth the fighting?
What makes the mountain worth the climb?
What makes the questions worth the asking?
The reason worth the rhyme?
It's his love for his children. I find this idea inspiring.
Of the two character's, the performance of the girl was the most challenging part of the shot. I wanted to find smaller movement's that complimented Frank's big gesture at the start. Original plans to keep her minimal and simply listening were inspired by Rapunzel in the song 'I've gotta dream'. Rapunzel's patience displayed her spirit as a princess. My character was different.
I met my teacher's stepdaughter in Canada. Her energy was inspirational. I believe seeing this spirit in our next generation gives us older folks strength. It was this I wanted to capture.
However, at the stage of posing Frank, I still had little idea how this child would react. An important decision was that the nose poke must be seen as playful. Hit too hard and it looks a little violent. The stronger her reaction, the heavier the poke looked.
This challenge was overcome by a double reaction. First surprise, contained and shown mostly in the change of her face. Then a little dazed, she would shake her head. The head shake was inspired by Dopey, one of my all time favourite characters. When I was a child, I even won a fancy dress competition dressed as the dwarf. I loved his playful mannerisms.
The hands created the problem of what to do within a contained area. Simply touching her nose would not work together with the head shake, so I held the touch back til the movement had finished. Doing allows the hand to lead the action back to Frank.
This is where I'm thankful for the guidance of my teacher, Matt. Lots had to happen within four seconds of animation, which meant the careful use of frame efficiency. The poke, the tap away and the girl's nose push, his hand on heart; each beat had to be seen and lead to the next. I am pleased that the actions are true to each characters. I hope fits with Mark Kennedy's philosophy that ''true comedy comes from character''.
Eyes were another battle. Finding those moments when the eyes would meet add chemistry between the two characters.
Last choice I must mention is the crossing of the legs. This was suggested by Matt, given the character a more youthful and less formal pose. This appears true of my character. In my previous role at Computershare, instead of sitting on the seat of the bus stop like an adult, you'd find me crouched in the grass like a gnome, reading my latest choice of book. What can I say, it just feels more free!!
Conclusion
The goal of this piece was to present a two character relationship and play with the musical timing of the audio. It's been a challenge.
Matthew talked about a piece of animation being a composition. With little notes and beats to hit. Not hitting them, is an opportunity missed.
I'm not saying this piece is good. There is plenty of room for improvement. Hopefully, I can take his notes forward and use them to take an important stepping stone to my first industry experience.
Update: girl animation
Evening, Been a nervous couple of days. Started receiving positive feedback from studios, however, my stomach has been receiving plenty of butterflies with nerves. Hopefully, good times ahead :)
To keep me focused, my teacher has advised me to return to the Frankenstein shot. We both felt there were missing opportunities to increase the characters' relationship. This shot has been hard; learning to bring a performance to life without over doing the movement. Please click on the pic to watch.
Once this clip has been signed off, I look forward to pushing the lessons learnt into my next shot. Right, now I feel the hands still may need tidying up and the sync could do with some better shapes.
Night for now :)
If I only had a brain
My teacher encouraged me to return to this shot. I wanted to clarify a few things with the girl. Although she is handled very subtly, there were a few definite ideas I hoped to capture. Update, click to view. Thank you
Cycle
After a bit of feedback, I was suggested to reduce the bend in the arms and increase the hip action. It changes the personality type, creating a more determined/focused run. I was watching Graeme Norton show last week and Will Smith was talking about how action stars run with their elbows in to prevent them looking clumpsy on camera.
Here's the new version:
run version 2
If I only had a brain: update 3
I need to largely tidy this up, change the timing and spacing a bit, but here's some progress. I start my next 50 hours in the factory tomorrow, but hopefully I'll find some time to clean it up before animating the face or starting on the girl. May seek advice from my mentor over which to approach first.
If I only had a brain
Before commencing production, I hoped to write clearly my intentions for this shot.
I hope to animate the shot I hoped to animate in Canada, but my lack of experience prevented its completion. My attempts at animating a sneeze has provided some confidence and with this in mind, I hope to proceed. The shot is to animate part of the song 'If I only hand a brain'. The scene begins after our character, Frankenstein's monster, has dug up a grave and at last, his quest for completion is near... or is it?
The aims of the shot are:
1) Character. I have lived with this character for months, initially planning to animate him as part of a two character dialogue. Unfinished, he lacks a brain and feels a bit lost without one, but what he lacks upstairs, he makes up for in the warmth of his heart. It is important to note that Frankenstein is a villain and I wish to show this under core.
2) I will begin by animating the spine and head. Hitting the beats simply in the rotation x (forward and back). This will be the core of the shot, that will lay the foundation for the timing.
This is in a similar fashion to how my teacher encourages timings to be broken down into simple components. For instance, to animate the piano sequence from Tangled's I've got a Dream, he would plan out the core of the movement using a ball as follows:
3) The character is warm and friendly, but he has an essence of villainy inside him. I wish to draw inspiration from Fagin, particularly in the hand gestures. I am a fan of how much character can be presented in the hands, of particular note is Andreas Deja's scene where Jafar's cruelty is presented by his fingers wrapping around an amulet. I love how spindly they are.
4) Facial animation is going to be fun here. My plan is to note the key emotions/expressions I wish to hit and use the different head turns to help build asymmetrical poses. Knowing the different thoughts that enter the character's mind will help build the transitions between each pose.
5) In order to complete the shot faster and stay in control, this shot will be produced as a single character shot. However, depending on its success I may later extend it to a two person, changing only a few key frames to do so.
The above shot was produced in Canada. Although unfinished, it could provide a few ideas when combining the characters together into one performance.
I hope to animate the shot I hoped to animate in Canada, but my lack of experience prevented its completion. My attempts at animating a sneeze has provided some confidence and with this in mind, I hope to proceed. The shot is to animate part of the song 'If I only hand a brain'. The scene begins after our character, Frankenstein's monster, has dug up a grave and at last, his quest for completion is near... or is it?
The aims of the shot are:
1) Character. I have lived with this character for months, initially planning to animate him as part of a two character dialogue. Unfinished, he lacks a brain and feels a bit lost without one, but what he lacks upstairs, he makes up for in the warmth of his heart. It is important to note that Frankenstein is a villain and I wish to show this under core.
2) I will begin by animating the spine and head. Hitting the beats simply in the rotation x (forward and back). This will be the core of the shot, that will lay the foundation for the timing.
This is in a similar fashion to how my teacher encourages timings to be broken down into simple components. For instance, to animate the piano sequence from Tangled's I've got a Dream, he would plan out the core of the movement using a ball as follows:
3) The character is warm and friendly, but he has an essence of villainy inside him. I wish to draw inspiration from Fagin, particularly in the hand gestures. I am a fan of how much character can be presented in the hands, of particular note is Andreas Deja's scene where Jafar's cruelty is presented by his fingers wrapping around an amulet. I love how spindly they are.4) Facial animation is going to be fun here. My plan is to note the key emotions/expressions I wish to hit and use the different head turns to help build asymmetrical poses. Knowing the different thoughts that enter the character's mind will help build the transitions between each pose.
5) In order to complete the shot faster and stay in control, this shot will be produced as a single character shot. However, depending on its success I may later extend it to a two person, changing only a few key frames to do so.
The above shot was produced in Canada. Although unfinished, it could provide a few ideas when combining the characters together into one performance.
side step
got challenged last night to animate a side step. I wish to push this further and also animate the cube. But here's a wip :)
sneeze
Started a facial animation today. A sneeze. Got terrified to begin with, then as I started, I realised my tutor's advice had paid off a bit. Still tempted to push it further, but back to the factory tomorrow. Comments welcome, but night for now!!
climb
I was requested to try a jump. So put a couple of days into this wip. I don't like the second jump yet, but feel its coming along. Thoughts are welcome. Thank you
stunner update
Think that's this one finished for a few days. Another shot under the belt. Hopefully soon, I can apply for my first job. Lots to do, but we shall see
stunner
Working on a wrestling move as a two piece character interaction. I hope to change the finishing pose. At present the victim feels a little too T-shaped. Other changes are include changes the hand poses.
This could be dangerous
A short dialogue I'm working upon. The idea is that she is teasing him at the end. The bigger person should be the more scared etc. Thinking to change the hands and push the face. We shall see. Any notes are always welcome, thank you.
Squirrel test
Playing with the Squirrel Rig as inspired by an old favourite, Disney's World of Illusion :)
Character Animation Reel
There are a few pieces I am working upon, but this is my character animation reel as of 19 March 2013. Both thoughts and advice are welcome, thank you
football header
My mentor before providing me with the character, requested I produce a short body mechanics exercise. Knowing my passion for football, or soccer as they call it in Canada, I had to animate a move of my choice. I chose heading a ball.
I wanted to hit the following: - A step into the jump - a reverse 'c' for the anticipation, followed by 'c' shape in the jump. Looking through reference online, I stumbled across a series of basket ball clips that had some nice footwork while in the air. Some footballers can of course leap to similar heights, however, footage of slam dunks was more easily accessible to study. Of particular note were the movements of Terrence Ross:
Next job was thumb-nailing. My mentor was pretty firm on following any planned actions, noting how breaking away from any agreed planning material from a studio supervisor, could easily cause production costs to increase.
Once animating, the largest amount of time went into building the root and footwork. I began by posing each chuck of action, before my mentor reminded me how much easier it is to plan the whole sequence with the root attached to a bouncing ball.
Seeing the final result was especially pleasing when compared to my original planning. It matched so well and had the breakdown of beats that I originally aimed for. It has given me a boost, an extra shot of confidence I hope to carry into my next shot.
Thursday 14th February
Evening or should I say goodnight,
The last two weeks have been disheartening. I lost belief in my shot and it has been shelved. There is the potential to revisit part of the shot via a monologue. I need good practice at facial animation and it seems a good opportunity if I already have reference planned out.
On a positive note, Matthew has been challenging me on my problem solving. He sets high standards and expects them to be met. Yes, I haven't met them so far, but together, we are addressing my approach to animation and the creative problem-solving it involves.
Once I have rested and slept, I hope to produce 5 seconds of an upper body monologue. I have selected a track from one of my old favorite TV shows and hope to animate with Mallory, Matt's female child modification of the Malcolm rig.
Thoughts on Canada: I am yet to see much. I have been too busy buried in work, which feels a shame as much has been wasted. I am awoken most mornings at 6am by Lilo, Matt's kitten who very much enjoys nibbling my toes through the blanket. I've taken to hiding them under a cushion, but this seems to only encourage her to find new ways to encourage me out of bed to play.
The last two weeks have been disheartening. I lost belief in my shot and it has been shelved. There is the potential to revisit part of the shot via a monologue. I need good practice at facial animation and it seems a good opportunity if I already have reference planned out.
On a positive note, Matthew has been challenging me on my problem solving. He sets high standards and expects them to be met. Yes, I haven't met them so far, but together, we are addressing my approach to animation and the creative problem-solving it involves.
Once I have rested and slept, I hope to produce 5 seconds of an upper body monologue. I have selected a track from one of my old favorite TV shows and hope to animate with Mallory, Matt's female child modification of the Malcolm rig.
Thoughts on Canada: I am yet to see much. I have been too busy buried in work, which feels a shame as much has been wasted. I am awoken most mornings at 6am by Lilo, Matt's kitten who very much enjoys nibbling my toes through the blanket. I've taken to hiding them under a cushion, but this seems to only encourage her to find new ways to encourage me out of bed to play.
Notes on the child
I should have looked at this before, but here are a few observations on children in preparation for animating my little girl character.
To start with, I googled child actresses and liked this pic Lennon Wynn. It follows on nicely from the open/closed mouth post. The child's closed smile (together with the sparkle in her eyes) indicates a knowing-ness. She is stood up right with a confident posture.
Next, is this clip from Miracle on 34th Street. I love the patience of Santa Claus, then how big and bright the happy surprise meets her eyes.
A last note for now, is on this shyness of the boy when asking this question that is bothering him. The downward check of the eyes, to double check with him if he should ask or not.
To start with, I googled child actresses and liked this pic Lennon Wynn. It follows on nicely from the open/closed mouth post. The child's closed smile (together with the sparkle in her eyes) indicates a knowing-ness. She is stood up right with a confident posture.
Next, is this clip from Miracle on 34th Street. I love the patience of Santa Claus, then how big and bright the happy surprise meets her eyes.
A last note for now, is on this shyness of the boy when asking this question that is bothering him. The downward check of the eyes, to double check with him if he should ask or not.
Open or closed mouth
While focusing on the face, I started wondering how the mouth can
help illustrate character simply by choice of an open or closed mouth. I
contacted a few animators, receiving the following responses:
Edwin Schaap:
I think, it's open when you want to push the emotion a little further, or to exaggerate it. I was thinking... if I laugh, i just laugh with jaw closed, but if I laugh really loud, my mouth is open.... if somebody crys it's possible with mouth closed, but cry loud. with mouth open... when you're mad, it's closed, when you open it you show your teeth.. I think you would open the jaw much more with a silent shortfilm then when the character is able to talk... I'm not sure if I'm right, but thats what i think cheers!
Kevan Shorey:
Hmmm. I've never really thought about this before, but maybe mouth position could be thought to be more related to the inward/outward projection of the emotion experienced by the character. Appeal definitely comes into it, but there are also acting/human behaviour cues that also influence things.
Closed smile, for example, suggests something internal in its weak form, and possibly smug in its strong form. Open smile is an abundance of happy times that cannot be contained - an outward projection of positive energy.
This thinking could probably be applied to other emotions, also.
Furthermore, open mouthed expressions carry with them a certain potential for subsequent action, so where a character goes next has an impact. It's easier to start talking from open, or breathe deeply for example; path of least resistance, and all that.
Whether or not a mouth should be open or closed when at rest is down to the character, both in terms of design and personality. I would judge it on a case-by-case basis.
Keith Glass:
Well, it all depends upon what works for your scene or what the motivation is for your character. Every choice we make should be based upon what the character is feeling and secondarily what is going to be more appealing to look at. So a lot of elements go into that and how you are thinking about your shot is going to determine your choices. But I'll throw out a few examples for you.
So lets say we have a character that is talking to someone that they don't really like but want to be nice to. A closed smile might be a good choice here. Because a closed smile is closed it makes it look less open and a bit more defensive. Another example would be for sadness. When a person is on the verge of crying and they don't want to. Yes you could have a person with an open mouth and get a very strong idea of sadness. But by having the mouth close and showing that the person is fighting to control their crying it becomes a much more powerful statement. You aren't just showing someone who is sad. You are showing someone who is sad but is also thinking about himself, his world, and how he impacts the people around him. Now a lot of detail goes into doing something like that, you cant just close the mouth and get all that great information, but it is an example where that choice could be made.
Another example is for purely animation based reasons. So lets say we have a character that is going from a happy expression to a surprised one. so we have the character going to a surprised open mouth pose. That cliche one you and everyone else has seen a million times. If we posed out the smile shape with an open mouth, when we went to the surprise it would work, people would understand it just fine. But if we posed it with a close smile shape when he opens his mouth the change is going to be way bigger. The graphic effect of the movement will be amplified while still retaining the core idea.
Other reasons that a character might smile with their mouth closed is purely character driven. If you had a person who was not happy with their teeth you could say that they trained themselves to smile with their mouths closed. But when they laugh their mouths open because they can't help it. It would be a fun bit of character. To show a shot with a person smiling with their mouth closed and then they start laughing and you see that they have braces or something.
Really the reasons you choose one style or another depends upon a lot of things. But ultimately its all about doing what works best for your shot and your character. My rule of thumb is that for every choice you make acting wise there needs to be a reason that you can explain behind it. either acting wise or animation wise. If you can't explain it, then you need to go rethink it. Hope that makes sense and helps.
I asked this question to Matt Finch during a skype discussion. He first responded:
There are plenty of people who smile with it open. You forget, animation is infinite, there is no answer. When you get to an acting shot, you have to look to yourself. There are mechanics physics, but there are choices and character. When you talk about choices like why a mouth should be open there is really no answer.
If you want appeal, all appeal is in a nutshell is simple shapes easily identified by any viewer. Appeal is a circle, a line, a box, a sack
Admittedly, I'm often vague trying to pin down the question I wish to ask. Thankfully, the DVD case for Megamind happened to be sitting on my desk. The below is a poster of the same film. Two characters with a similar expression, with a few important differences.
Metro man is a stereotype. The American man everyone wants to be; a touch of superman, a touch of Brad Pitt, a touch of Clark Gable. When a confident man smiles, he shows his teeth.
Metroman is a stereotype, his core of his character is a stereotype, he is what everyman wants to be, he is loved by others, he goes out on top.
Confident characters stay more symmetrical, however, a confident, arrogant, cocky smile may lean towards being assymetrical, with only one side of the mouth open, kind of like a smirk meets smile. This is usually a choice that will be made to show a character the audience needs to be uncertain of; their intentions are hidden.
However, remember. Animation is observation, you have to always be observing life.
This is where I feel my studies were focused. Yes, I love getting infront of a camera, observing nature etc. However, character can also be built upon stereotype. It helps people become familiar with a character.
Let's look at primitive expression:
Number one and four: The chimp cannot contain his excitement, its released through the mouth. Could you argue that a more dignified person can be shown through a closed mouth? Take a look at the Kate Middleton painting as an example. Going through history paintings, how many portraits show royals with open-mouthed smiles?
Number five shows a submissive expression. I was fascinated watching Bobo Smith's 11 SC entry for September 2011. You could argue that his lady standing under an umbrella, takes advantage of both the closed mouth regal (used at the start), before the more submissive open mouth shapes (used during speech).
Another submissive mouth is used in Liane - Cho's December 2011 animation. It is, however, pulled further back and shaped into a sneer. Great work!
Number two: The chimp is aggressive. Yes, this may open to release the rage, but currently it is contained within a pressure cooker.
Well, I've finished rambling for now. Probably need to tidy up this post sometime and include a conclusion. We will see.
Edwin Schaap:
I think, it's open when you want to push the emotion a little further, or to exaggerate it. I was thinking... if I laugh, i just laugh with jaw closed, but if I laugh really loud, my mouth is open.... if somebody crys it's possible with mouth closed, but cry loud. with mouth open... when you're mad, it's closed, when you open it you show your teeth.. I think you would open the jaw much more with a silent shortfilm then when the character is able to talk... I'm not sure if I'm right, but thats what i think cheers!
Kevan Shorey:
Hmmm. I've never really thought about this before, but maybe mouth position could be thought to be more related to the inward/outward projection of the emotion experienced by the character. Appeal definitely comes into it, but there are also acting/human behaviour cues that also influence things.
Closed smile, for example, suggests something internal in its weak form, and possibly smug in its strong form. Open smile is an abundance of happy times that cannot be contained - an outward projection of positive energy.
This thinking could probably be applied to other emotions, also.
Furthermore, open mouthed expressions carry with them a certain potential for subsequent action, so where a character goes next has an impact. It's easier to start talking from open, or breathe deeply for example; path of least resistance, and all that.
Whether or not a mouth should be open or closed when at rest is down to the character, both in terms of design and personality. I would judge it on a case-by-case basis.
Keith Glass:
Well, it all depends upon what works for your scene or what the motivation is for your character. Every choice we make should be based upon what the character is feeling and secondarily what is going to be more appealing to look at. So a lot of elements go into that and how you are thinking about your shot is going to determine your choices. But I'll throw out a few examples for you.
So lets say we have a character that is talking to someone that they don't really like but want to be nice to. A closed smile might be a good choice here. Because a closed smile is closed it makes it look less open and a bit more defensive. Another example would be for sadness. When a person is on the verge of crying and they don't want to. Yes you could have a person with an open mouth and get a very strong idea of sadness. But by having the mouth close and showing that the person is fighting to control their crying it becomes a much more powerful statement. You aren't just showing someone who is sad. You are showing someone who is sad but is also thinking about himself, his world, and how he impacts the people around him. Now a lot of detail goes into doing something like that, you cant just close the mouth and get all that great information, but it is an example where that choice could be made.
Another example is for purely animation based reasons. So lets say we have a character that is going from a happy expression to a surprised one. so we have the character going to a surprised open mouth pose. That cliche one you and everyone else has seen a million times. If we posed out the smile shape with an open mouth, when we went to the surprise it would work, people would understand it just fine. But if we posed it with a close smile shape when he opens his mouth the change is going to be way bigger. The graphic effect of the movement will be amplified while still retaining the core idea.
Other reasons that a character might smile with their mouth closed is purely character driven. If you had a person who was not happy with their teeth you could say that they trained themselves to smile with their mouths closed. But when they laugh their mouths open because they can't help it. It would be a fun bit of character. To show a shot with a person smiling with their mouth closed and then they start laughing and you see that they have braces or something.
Really the reasons you choose one style or another depends upon a lot of things. But ultimately its all about doing what works best for your shot and your character. My rule of thumb is that for every choice you make acting wise there needs to be a reason that you can explain behind it. either acting wise or animation wise. If you can't explain it, then you need to go rethink it. Hope that makes sense and helps.
I asked this question to Matt Finch during a skype discussion. He first responded:
There are plenty of people who smile with it open. You forget, animation is infinite, there is no answer. When you get to an acting shot, you have to look to yourself. There are mechanics physics, but there are choices and character. When you talk about choices like why a mouth should be open there is really no answer.
If you want appeal, all appeal is in a nutshell is simple shapes easily identified by any viewer. Appeal is a circle, a line, a box, a sack
Admittedly, I'm often vague trying to pin down the question I wish to ask. Thankfully, the DVD case for Megamind happened to be sitting on my desk. The below is a poster of the same film. Two characters with a similar expression, with a few important differences.
Metro man is a stereotype. The American man everyone wants to be; a touch of superman, a touch of Brad Pitt, a touch of Clark Gable. When a confident man smiles, he shows his teeth.
Metroman is a stereotype, his core of his character is a stereotype, he is what everyman wants to be, he is loved by others, he goes out on top.
Confident characters stay more symmetrical, however, a confident, arrogant, cocky smile may lean towards being assymetrical, with only one side of the mouth open, kind of like a smirk meets smile. This is usually a choice that will be made to show a character the audience needs to be uncertain of; their intentions are hidden.
However, remember. Animation is observation, you have to always be observing life.
This is where I feel my studies were focused. Yes, I love getting infront of a camera, observing nature etc. However, character can also be built upon stereotype. It helps people become familiar with a character.
Let's look at primitive expression:
Number one and four: The chimp cannot contain his excitement, its released through the mouth. Could you argue that a more dignified person can be shown through a closed mouth? Take a look at the Kate Middleton painting as an example. Going through history paintings, how many portraits show royals with open-mouthed smiles?
Number five shows a submissive expression. I was fascinated watching Bobo Smith's 11 SC entry for September 2011. You could argue that his lady standing under an umbrella, takes advantage of both the closed mouth regal (used at the start), before the more submissive open mouth shapes (used during speech).
Another submissive mouth is used in Liane - Cho's December 2011 animation. It is, however, pulled further back and shaped into a sneer. Great work!
Number two: The chimp is aggressive. Yes, this may open to release the rage, but currently it is contained within a pressure cooker.
Well, I've finished rambling for now. Probably need to tidy up this post sometime and include a conclusion. We will see.
Handling the eyes
I recently spent a couple of months in Bristol, whereby I was invited to watch a few episodes of Misfits. I grew fascinated by the character Simon Bellamy, whose eyes told the story of somebody struggling to fit into society; The intensity in the eyes, coupled with nervous eye darts that looked within the mind of the character.
I found a few frames that illustrated this point. The first one shows illustrates a stunned sadness, through this intense focus. His thoughts are slower, but plenty still happens in the eye movements while the pupils maintain an intensity. Please note, by intensity, I mean you would look for an opportunity to show much more white around the pupil.
Next I like how a nervous smile, is partnered with this intense look. It has a disturbing quality to it.
A more well known character is Gollum from Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings. I love how Gollum's insecurities are illustrated by his inability to meet the gaze of his other self. Simon feels more of a threat, due to the lack of blinks. Similar to the characters Kirsten Stewart plays, Gollum blinks a lot. He is a more animated character in terms of his hyperactive energy levels.
Next I like how a nervous smile, is partnered with this intense look. It has a disturbing quality to it.
A more well known character is Gollum from Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings. I love how Gollum's insecurities are illustrated by his inability to meet the gaze of his other self. Simon feels more of a threat, due to the lack of blinks. Similar to the characters Kirsten Stewart plays, Gollum blinks a lot. He is a more animated character in terms of his hyperactive energy levels.
Sir Ector inspiration
Sir Ector feels more and more of an inspiration for Frank's mannerisms. Today, I have seen this sequence posted by Frame by Frame.
On the same site, I saw this sequence from the Chipmunks. I love her cheeky attitude and the roundness of her shapes. This particular image is inspiring for the fall backwards I wish to have her make at the start.
On the same site, I saw this sequence from the Chipmunks. I love her cheeky attitude and the roundness of her shapes. This particular image is inspiring for the fall backwards I wish to have her make at the start.
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