Snowman Animation Test WIP

[Andini]

Nothing at all!? I know that it needs critiques. (Or is it so bad that you're speechless? :p )

[SheepFactory]

How about employing those animation principles you read. You can also tell whats wrong with it based on the rules. you have no arcs , no ease in ease out , no anticipation , no secondary motion , etc.


It looks very mechanical and lifeless. Instead of trying to animate a short film , i would make some character excersizes first , start with a bouncing ball , than animate a juicebox , etc. Also join our animation sessions! the next one will be announced shortly.

Cheers ,

[JBarrett]

Ditto to SheepFactory's comments. Start with some simple exercises. Practice the individual principles one at a time if it helps. Pick a simple move, like a head turn. Block in the turn, experiment with ease in/out, then maybe add an arc to the move, then add some anticipation, etc. Build it up bit by bit, and get critiques on each section.

Also take some time to study existing animation. Break it down into individual components. Notice how characters move, and the impression of emotion/attitude that comes across based on how they move. Study weight...what makes things feel heavy/light. With your snowman you've got some good mass to deal with, but without an understanding of how to move it properly, it won't feel like there's any mass at all.

Lots to study, lots to learn. Start with the basics and move on from there.

[Andini]

I think my first mistake was starting out with a snowman. The character and rig are a little awkward.

I did employ the head-turn principles in "The Animation Workbook" but I'm having a ton of trouble with Cinema 4D's curves so I can't really make use of ease-in/ease-out.

I also don't have a very good model to use in Cinema. I really want to work on animation but I don't have a good rigged model to work with (I don't really want to you use the figures in the libraries because I don't really like the center-of-rotation posing. I more like working with bones).

Thanks for replying. While I'm well read in traditional animation principles, I really was stupid and didn't apply anything other than the crude head-turn idea. Biiiig mistake!

Thanks for the ideas and thanks for the heads up on the animation sessions. Where do I get info. on it?

[CGTalk Moderation]

This thread has been automatically closed as it remained inactive for 12 months. If you wish to continue the discussion, please create a new thread in the appropriate forum.