http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-v9nAN_llOM&feature=youtu.be
Setting the Scene
Production
Once I had set up the scene the next thing I did, before even starting to animate, was get the walk cycle right. I went back and looked at the Digital Tutorial walk cycle exercise. I took note of the key principles, the contact points, the ups, the downs and that crucial component that I still feel is missing from my previous walk cycles; weight.
I practised using the DT walk cycle on the spot and tested moving the finished rig across the screen from right to left across the X axis...
It was only after this test that I felt comfortable enough to proceed with the final film. I had already done a lot of tests with the ball and tail rig and I felt comfortable enough to use it. There was one problem I ran into though, concerning the overlap and follow-through of the tail... I just couldn't get it right! I do feel that this is still something that needs work. It is a key principle that I have yet to get to grips with ... check out this Playblast of the test, I still think it needs work...
The tail is not acting the way I wanted.. and whenever I try moving the tail to add overlap and follow-through, two key principles I'd just like to make clear that I am very aware of, the rig breaks and the tangents rip apart. I found no way around this problem and it was actually a problem I have encountered before with my previous ball and tail animations. I asked my lecturer and even searched for options online but to no avail. Perhaps its just a problem with the rig Ive downloaded, but, honestly, Ive tried everything...
The collision scene
When I was storyboarding the scene where the two characters meet in the middle initially I had the idea that the ball and tail would push animo out of the way because he was in a hurry or something. But as I was making the scene I realised it would have a better visual impact if the ball and tail passes by without even noticing animo, as if to suggest that they have had an argument in the past or something and the ball and tail is cross with animo... maybe?... the only limit here is your imagination, and thats not the point. The point is that I thought through the production of this scene that it would be funnier if animo was ignored by the ball and tail, despite animo's clear knowledge of the balls presence. Because, you know, rejection is always funny right?! No. I jest. On a serious note though, I believe this change is beneficial to the final film. It adds more appeal to the character and his reaction to this rejection which you can see in the final shot where he storms off stage in a mood.
Here is an early Playblast of the collision scene:
Final shot - Grumpy Animo
When considering the final shot I knew I had to reflect the change in stance as the rejection has an emotional affect on animo and I wanted that to be portrayed in the movement of the character. I wanted the viewer to get the impression that he is upset, distraught and moody. I lowered the back and dropped the hips. I also increased the speed of the steps and added more impact to the downs. Moreover, it was crucial to get the 'grumpiness' into the arms and hands... it needed to be shown that animo was agitated. To animate this sort of reaction I closed up the fingers on the rig and clenched the fists and had the arms sway violently so as to get across the impression that animo is angry. The key thing here is, of course, the head. Throughout the rest of my scene the head remained relatively untouched, (apart from a few minor tweaks to add to the weight aspect of the walk) but within this shot I leaned the head downward and rotated the neck... the viewer is always drawn to the head, it is what gives away the most emotion so it was crucial to get this bit right.
Editing
The editing and post-production phase was done using After Effects. I tried my best to stick to my original vision for the film and consulted my initial sketches and storyboards. This was because I knew if I went along and edited without looking at my first storyboard I would have ended up with three different movies; my initial storyboarded film, the film I actually produced and the film I finally put together using After Effects. This is a problem I have encountered before but this time I wanted to remain loyal to my original idea because I was told by my peers that it was a simple yet effective idea that conveys everything needed for this unit.
Once I was happy with all of my shots, I went back into the project files, played around with the graph editor and flattened the tangents to make the movements smoother, then rendered the individual shots (consisting of between 2-4seconds long) using the batch render, Maya Software and exported them as .tiff image files. After waiting several hours, I imported these .tiff sequences into After effects and placed them together on a single composition and made my final movie.
Although I do feel proud of my final film I do believe it could do with some work. For instance, The collision scene needs to be revisited. I found that movement of the rig very difficult to achieve, I simply rotated the rig and had him raise his arms and head. It looks very robotic. I couldn't think of any other way of doing it. I understand that live action reference would have helped. If I had gone outside with a camera and filmed myself turning round I could have used that reference in my film and fully understood the movement. Another niggle I have is the overlap on the ball and tail. I really cannot understand what I am doing wrong here. With most of my problems I encounter with Maya I go away and seek advise from others or look into the problem online using tutorials or other rigs... but for this problem I have honestly done everything within my power to avoid it because it is a problem I had met previously in my other ball and tail animations.
Overall, I have throughly enjoyed using Maya, although there were some stressful times and A LOT of software AND hardware problems! Ultimately I am pleased with what I have learnt and I believe that it is an efficient way of learning the principles of animation and creating an effective, if a little robotic, animated film. Hope you enjoyed observing this journey as much as I enjoyed living it. THANK YOU AND GOODNIGHT!
