Ben Riley: Week 8 animation
1. Assignment: Walk Cycle
2. Animation Time: 4 hours, 5 hours, maybe more? Time has lost all meaning.
3. Problems encountered: Just making the walk cycle itself was far more time-consuming than I thought it would be, so the other stuff I had planned– having him come back the other way in a different mood (Dejected? Scared? There’s a lot that can be conveyed through a walking style), or have him stop in the middle and do something– fell by the wayside.
4. In spite of all of that, hitting play and seeing my little character stroll across the frame, looking just as jaunty as I’d hoped he would, was very satisfying.
5. Most of the problems resulted from sheer animation time, so there’s not much that would change if I animated this piece again. His arms are a bit crazier than they should be, I suppose.
Week #8 Animation – happy lama by Musen
happy lama
Week #8: Animation Walking Cycle
Here’s one with sound:
- Time: 1 day and 6 hours
- Problems: Spent a lot of time rethinking my concepts, as I had a hard time coming up with a “walking” story or a plot line. I started with a person which was boring. I needed a story, so then I thought of an animal (horses, stags, wolves)… Then that got overwhelming. Also I wasn’t too crazy with the paper models I started cutting up. Though my models looked great, the scale of my plot line was going to be huge to stage and where I am currently living could not accommodate my original concept, the lights, the camera and shoot properly.
- Ah Ha: Used vector images on Illustrator instead.
- If I animated this again I would: I’m wondering if a diorama would be better with a revolving background built on a scroll.
- REFLECT: I do like paper, I just wish I had a real studio, proper equipment, a partner and a complete week to do something sublime. But vector art worked just as well, but didn’t have the organic feel it should have. Still need help with the sound + frame combination.
Week #8 – Walk Cycle Review & Homework
Great job in class today. Seriously, not only was it amazing because you were using a new medium, but you had nothing but your bodies to pull information from (sans mirror). Watch your animation a few more times and notice where the body positions are the strongest. Why do you think that is? Where are they the weakest? Why?
Check out all of the readings below before you start your homework.
Walk Cycle – The Mechanics of Motion
Homework:
Animate a walk cycle of your choosing for 10 seconds. Add some personality. Be creative. Step outside of your comfort zone and try a technique or style you normally shy away from.
Animation Concepts 