Independent Study: Character Animation

Purpose of Study

Ever since I started the 3D program at CU Denver, animation has been my passion, especially character animation. Animation is an artform and craft that requires continuous effort in order to improve; through a purposeful and self-driven study, I wanted to not only refine my technical skills but also strive to begin developing a personal artistic voice that can help to set myself apart in a competitive field such as animation.

Methods of Exploration

Throughout this semester, I focused on animating a singular diaglogue scene, exploring character animation through the iterative process. This involved a combination of theoretical learning with my instructor, practical application, and continuous refinement. There were several steps to this process overall:

Scene Analysis:

• I began by analyzing the dialogue in the scene I chose in terms of character emotions, intetions, and the overall context of the narrative. By understanding the nuances of the dialogue, I was able to identify key moments that required emphasis through the animation.

Reference and Observation:

• After choosing a scene, as well as continuously throughout the process of animating, I looked for and studied reference materials to inform the basis of my character movements.

Blocking and Posing:

• I began the animation process by blocking out the key poses and major movements in the scene in stepped animation, and focused on capturing the essence of the character's gestures.

• This part of the process also involved experimenting with camera angles and shot compositions to see what would best enhance the story in a short dialogue scene.

Timing and Spacing:

• After the blocking phase, I began to refine the timing and spacing make the character movements appear smoother and more natural. This also included experimenting with the pacing of the actions of the character to place emphasis on specific moments in the dialogue.

Facial Animation:

• Towards the end of the semester, I began to work on the basics of the facial expressions in combination with lip-syncing. However, this did not get as far as I wished it could have and will be something I will work on in the future, as the character's expression and facial movements are such a key part of communicating the tone and content of a dialogue scene.

Feedback and Critique:

• Throughout the semester, I regularly met with my instructor to receive feedback, and subsequently used those critiques to further my own understanding of how to identify areas that needed improvement for myself.

Process and Challenges

In working on these steps, I began to systematically refine and enhance my chosen dialogue scene, ending up mainly focusing on the fall backwards the character does at the end. I found that I would often get stuck on one minor aspect of the animation and become fixated on it, taking myself out of the full picture and spending too long on the one specific part rather than improving the animation as a whole. This can be scene in the fall, as throughout the iterations the fall progresses much more than other aspects, such as the first half of the scene. Part of this was because I found learning how the mechanics of the body would work in this scenario very fun to explore. It was the most difficult part of the animation for me to get right and to understand, so I gravitated towards focusing on that. However, when I did make even small improvements to the animation as a whole rather than the one specific part, I noticed that even the bits like the fall that I was still working out looked better, as well.

One major aspect of the challenges I encountered was less to do with the animation itself, and more to do with my chronic health conditions. Due to my disabilities, I spent a significant amount of time sick and in the hospital this semester, and this greatly affected how much I was able to accomplish this semester. I am proud of what I was able to achieve, however my original goal of completing the dialogue scene within this semester was not ultimately accomplished. I was unable to move on to the subtler parts of the animation like the lip-syncing and facial expressions, and instead shifted to focus mainly on the larger movements of the body.

Results

Reference:

(While the only part of the dialogue I animated was the beginning quote, "Everyone! I'm going to kill my brother! Drinks are on me!" this video includes the entire song and context that the line is from as the mood of the song informed the direction I chose to go for the animation.)

Iteration 1:

Iteration 2:

Iteration 3:

Iteration 4:

Iteration 5:

Iteration 6:

Iteration 7:

Final Thoughts

This experience, while marked by challenges and unforeseen detours, has been invaluable. It has underscored the importance of adaptability in my creative and professional endeavors, the need for a balanced approach to my projects, and the skills required to navigate personal challenges alongside my artistic pursuits. As I move forward, the lessons I've learned from working on this scene will shape my future approach to animation, emphasizing both the meticulousness required to mold individual elements and the overarching unity required to breathe life into a scene.

Conclusion

The purpose of this independent study was to provide a focused, immersive exploration of a single character animation scene. Not only did this endeavor increase my enthusiasm for the craft and solidify my aspirations as a character animator, the self-directed nature of the study let me choose where my own passions lay and ultimately deepened my technical proficiency, creativity, and overall skill set within this field.