Animation Fundamentals ✦Project 1✦

24.04.23 - 19.05.23
WEEK 4 - WEEK 7

✦Ariel Chin Bei Yi 0343651✦

Bachelor of Science (Hons) Food Science

 

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✦LECTURE RECAP✦

 Week 4 

This week we studied about character design in animation. The two main animation principles that plays an important factor in the process of creating a character is Appeal and Solid drawing.

Appeal

Definition: The design of the character and how the character is stylized.

• Important to give a character charisma and draw the attention of audiences when presented.
• A character with ideal appeal:
• Pleasing yet simple design
• Expressive character full of personality

Solid drawing

Definition: The used of the basic principles of drawing form, weight and volume to create the illusion of a 3-dimensional object.

• Good solid drawing:
• Use perspective view, avoid parallel view
• Take into consideration of overlapping to give a 3-dimensional effect
• Prevent symmetry which may cause flatness to a solid drawing
• Avoid Twinning to avoid character from looking like a wooden board. The variation of gestures of each body part gives a more natural looking pose.

Volume

Utilizes cubes, sphere and cylinders to give a form of character

• A good character design is defined as the recognizability of the silhouette that gives a clear indication of a character.
• Positive and negative spaces can be used to allow a more defined silhouette, making the pose of the character pronoun and recognizable.

Figure 1.1: Examples of clear silhouettes.

Line of action

An imaginary line running through a character that describes the direction and motion of their body.

• A character that has a straight line of action would appear boring and bland
• Arcs are commonly utilized to make a character more interesting.
• A strong line of action illustrates the force of the action, unifies the pose and make a clear statement. This increases the appeal of a character.

Figure 1.2: Line of action demonstrated by characters from Spongebob Squarepants.

Weight and Balance

• Determines the weight and size of character
• Contrapposto- Counterpoise which is described as a character standing with most of its weight of one foot, causing the shoulders and arms to twist off-axis from the hips and legs in the axial plane.

Figure 1.3: Examples of Contrapposto.

 Week 5 

Layout and composition is a very important factor in animation of a scene, as it allows the attraction of viewers to the focal point efficiently as well as produce a scene that is visually pleasing.

Rule of Thirds

• A technique in which an image is divided into thirds, using horizontal and vertical lines which yields nine parts with four interaction points. The center of interest is placed in the intersection points which can attract the attention of viewers.

Three types of horizon of view:

• High angle
• Eye level
• Low angle

Figure 1.4: Types of horizon of view.

Types of perspective:

• One point
• Two point
• Three point

Figure 1.5: Comparison of different type of perspective.

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✦INSTRUCTIONS✦

Figure 2.1: Assignment guidelines for Animation Fundamentals.

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✦1.0 CHARACTER DESIGN✦

 1.1 Reflective Study 

Project 1 of Animation Fundamentals is divided into two progressions, in which the first progression consists of character design. We are required to design a character that reflects their personality to their story in which it is visually appealing to the audience. First, I came up with a story which my character will be based on. I am very interested in Chinese mythology, hence, I researched about Meng Po, the goddess of forgetfulness. She serves Meng Po soup on the Bridge of Forgetfulness (Naihe Bridge) which wipes the memory of the person prior to reincarnation to remove the burdens of the previous life.

Figure 3.1: Illustrator depiction of Meng Po from Hannah on Wordpress.

After researching, I have decided to based my character surrounding this mythology. I searched further for some references from existing films to gain inspiration. My favourite character designs are from the Ghibli films as it is evident that they put a lot of care into designing characters

Figure 3.2: General character analysis of Ponyo.

Figure 3.3: Detailed character analysis of Ponyo.

Ponyo is a character from a Japanese animated film called Ponyo. She is a water spirit whom initially have the appearance of a fish-like creature before becoming human-like. Based on the study conducted, I have noted down the design elements that makes up the character, Ponyo.

A. Shape language

• Ponyo has an overall of a round and soft shape to her body. The squish and squash to her body enables her to move like a fluid such as a fish. However, the sharp edges of her hair creates a contrast to her round body, indicating that although she looks soft, she is a troublemaker within causing childish chaos.

B. Proportion

• Ponyo has a giant head in contrast to her small body as well as short limbs. The head to body ratio shows that Ponyo is a child below 10 years old. Her cheeks are large and round to accommodate her bright eyes and large mouth. In the show, Ponyo is greatly expressive with her facial and body movements. Hence, this detail in facial features convey to the audience that she has a loud personality.

C. Silhouette

• As seen in the detailed character analysis, Ponyo has a clear silhouette and optimum negative spaces which allows high recognizability. She easily stands out with her messy hair and loose dress as well as the help of her highly expressive body languages. Thus, Ponyo has a distinctive silhouette which allows the audience to easy recognize her.

D. Line of Action

• The line of action of Ponyo is mainly curves and arcs in which she is always jumping around. She moves like a curious fish, jumping around to things she find interesting. Dynamic curves and arcs allow her bright personality to show, indicating that she is a child who can never sit still.

E. Colour

• The colour scheme of Ponyo consists of warm colours, mainly her iconic red dress and her bright orange hair. Warm colours indicates liveliness, as well as invoke feelings of energy and optimism. This clearly resonates to the personality of Ponyo in which she is someone who is always smiling.

 1.2 Design Process 

I drafted out sketches of three different variations of my character each with a different personality in mind. The first variation was more towards the grandmother personality with an older aged looking fashion. The second variation has a more cheeky personality and spirit-like aura around her. The third variation is based on the Chinese zombie, JiangShi, who is wearing a chef coat. However, they all share the same similarity in proportion with a round head and petite body, hence, giving a child-like appearance.

Figure 3.4: Sketches of initial ideas of character.

The second design appealed to me more, hence, I selected the second design and further refined it as well as come up with a general colour scheme. I chose the main colours to be red, black and gold as it represents the colour of hell where Meng Po is stationed at. I mixed in bright colours such as blue and yellow. This signifies that she has a bright personality in contrast to the dark and dreading environment of hell.

Figure 3.5: Refined version of design#2 with colour scheme.

 1.3 Character Turnaround Sheet 

After I have a clear reference of my character, I started on the character turnaround sheet with 5 different views of the character, front, back, perspective front and back, and side. I have ensured the character to have a clear silhouette by giving her sharp and protruding edges on her hair which is the most unique part of the character. In contrast to her hair, I gave her a soft and loose sweater.

Figure 3.6: Rendered version of front view of character, with jacket 

Figure 3.7: Sketch of character turnaround. 

During Week 5, Mr. Kamal gave some advice on the sketch of character turnaround. Some body proportions are slightly inaccurate, such as the neck and the feet are not aligned, causing the body to look slanted. Hence, I was advised to utilize guidelines to allow accurate body alignment.

Figure 3.8: Cleanup version of character turnaround.

 1.4 Character Pose Sheet 

The character pose sheet requires 5 variations of poses with dynamic line of action to suggest the attitude of the character. I have first placed down the line of action to act as a guideline before drawing my character surrounding those lines. This is an efficient way for me to ensure a dynamic action of the character. The shape language of my character is flexible and flowy to represent that she is a ghost. This also shows that she has a carefree attitude.

Figure 3.9: Sketches of character poses.

Figure 3.10: Completed character pose sheet.

 1.5 Character Facial Expression 

Next, I moved onto creating the character facial expression sheet in which we are required to deliver 5 different expressions. This is to provide reference in which how a particular character would react to different situations. Hence, the expressions have to be versatile. The five emotions I have selected to express are happy, clumsy, sad, scared and disgusted.

Figure 3.11: Sketches of character's facial expressions.

Figure 3.10: Completed character expression sheet.

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✦2.0 BACKGROUND DESIGN✦

An animation sequence consists of scenes that includes a variety of shots with different settings. Hence, the second progression of animation fundamentals requires us to draw an established shot of a background to complement your character design. The goal is to create visually interesting and dynamic layouts that enhance the story and the mood of the animation.

I found some references online regarding images of the setting my character is set in, which is the hell as visualized in Chinese mythology.

Figure 4.1: 'The Chinese Mythology of Hell' by Joey Leung.

I also found some background layouts that include excellent use of perspective to serve as a guide at how various perspectives affect the tone of backgrounds.

Figure 4.2: A collection of backgrounds with various perspectives.

Based on the perspective drawing technique shared by the lecturer, I placed down a perspective grid and mapped out a guideline for my background. Then, I drew a quick sketch of the overall composition and placement of objects.

Figure 4.3: Initial draft of background layout.

After the rough sketch is completed, I did the lineart to clean up the sketch and add more details.

Figure 4.4: Lineart of background layout.

Moving on, I have explored on colours and set a general colour scheme which uses a balance of both warm and cool tones. I have set the environment to be dark which correlates to the fact that she is stationed in hell that is known to be a dark and brooding environment.

Figure 4.5: Colour exploration of background layout.

Furthermore, I have enhanced the warm tone of the drawing by adding in orange overlays as well as bright lights to brighten up the environment.

Figure 4.6: Colour adjustments of background layout.

During week 7 evaluation, Mr. Kamal stated that it can be improved with a horizon line in the background. Hence, I went back to the drawing board and mapped out the line of horizon and rule of thirds on the sketched canvas. I have also emphasize the focal point by implementing the Rule of Thirds.

Figure 4.7: Adjustment of composition based on line of horizon and rule of thirds.

After I made sure the composition of the illustration is balanced and satisfying, I cleaned up the sketch. I have added more background elements as compared to my previous work by adding more buildings. I have centralized the buildings instead of the scattered elements from my previous work.

Figure 4.8: Clean up of sketch.

I have also ensured the  vanishing point is clear by readjusting the position of the buildings giving a slight curve into the horizon. I have have also cleaned up the details as there were many rough lines which made the overall composition look messy.

Figure 4.9: Colour profiling of illustration.

Lastly, I kept the overall colour profile similar as well as maintained the night setting. I have added more details, such as signboards and customized window panels to further enhance the atmosphere in which it appeared as a busy night city.

Figure 4.10: Addition of details to set the mood.

 Final Outcome 

The background for this character is based on my representation of hell. I reference the tone of the bustling cities of the olden shanghai era by the repeating warm colours throughout the environment. My character is the lady who serves a type of soup to the spirits prior to reincarnation. She places her stall on the bridge to reincarnation and give the soup of forgetness to the spirits crossing in order to help them forget the traumas experienced in hell and reincarnate to the next life peacefully.

Figure 4.11: Final Outcome of Background Layout.

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✦REFLECTION✦

Project 1 of Animation Fundamentals was interesting as it instructed us to design a character along with their personality and background story. This assignment gave us a lot of freedom into what we would like to create, hence, I am able to enhance my creativity to the fullest and draw something that speaks to me. Moreover, I was also able to gain knowledge on character design in a professional setting in which many reference sheets are required to showcase the character as well as their reaction to a variety of situations. This is to aid the animators in understanding the character's personality well in which they are able to animate the expressions and body language towards specific situations cohesively.

Other than that, a background setting is also required along with the character in this assignment. The background is essential in setting the mood and tone of a character's story, hence, it has to be carefully thought out. It was quite challenging as backgrounds are not my strong suit. However, it was a fun challenge to try out various perspectives and settings to achieve a background that suited my character.