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Part 4 Refine
After the entire run has been fleshed out, it is time to go back and add subtlety. Work on the hands and fingers if you have them in your character. Work on the feet and knee positions. Add side to side movement to the hips. Continue to refine your animation until it is polished and feels good. With a solid foundation and few keys to capture the essence, it should be easy to go back in and clean it up and add some detail and personality. NOTE: Also don't be afraid to delete keys. Often times I would be trying to refine a particular part of an animation, and found I just had too many keys on too many different objects all working to hide what I wanted to correct or refine. So when this happens, just delete all the movement in the area on all objects and start fresh. Sometimes by deleting keys one by one from one object to the next you can begin to see where you need to focus your attention on. You may think that the moment you are trying to refine is in the hand but when really the movement is being generated by a combination of hip rotation and spine rotation. Refining one of those areas may allow you to smooth out the hand motion your were trying to. Part 5 General Tips and Information "The basis of all action is posture, the broadest stroke of establishing mood. A change in posture, with all else remaining the same, can completely change the effect of a scene." -Character Animation, by Doug Kelly
LOOK! Everywhere you go, take the time to watch people. Notice the subtle ways the move and express emotion. Look at the hand gestures they make when they talk. Body posture. All these traits and movement help to define the personality of a character and give him or her life. In the case of a run: Look at the way a child runs on the playground and then go look at a football player running at a high school. Go to the mall and see 3 teenagers running to the car. All very different runs, all with their own style and personality. Try to capture some of that in the animation you create.
FILM! Either use video you taped or rent some movies with the action you are trying to recreate but I cant stress enough that video reference helps. Don't copy it exactly or you will kill the life (ROTO) but notice what movements stand out and give personality to the character. Notice how weight shifts and moves. Study the video for timing. Then take what you learn and apply it to your own animations. If you can, use video to act out what you want to animate, and then go back and look at yourself acting it out. What subtle motions do you see in the film that came out in you? OTHER ANIMATION! Watch other animation. How do other animators accomplish what you are trying to do? Study the techniques and timing tricks they use. Study how they exaggerated or simplified certain actions and how they solved the issues you are trying to solve. Different animators have different styles. What do you like? Why? Try to incorporate what you like into your own style. PRACTICE! Nothing can take the place of practicing. You must take the time to build your skills and only by working hard and constant work can you expect to become better. Animation is like any muscle and only by constant workout can one become strong at it. BE HAPPY! Clear you mind when you sit down at the computer and focus. Animation is an art form and takes an extreme amount of focus and patience. If you have 20 other things on you mind when you sit down to animate, how do you expect to create masterful work? Get yourself in a good frame of mind and the creativity will flow much more easily and your work will be much more productive. You will find you make far less mistakes and the ones you do make will be easily corrected. If you are frustrated, then take a break. Calm you mind and the answers to your problems will present themselves in time. |
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