Animation Fundamentals/Project 1
-SPETEMBER 24, 2024
14/10/2024 - //2024 (Week 4 – Week )
Wang Yifan / 0368363
Animation Fundamentals / Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media / Taylors University
Project 1
LECTURE
Week 4
The Line of Action is an imaginary line running through a character's body that defines its direction, motion, and the leading force behind its actions.
A strong line of action:
- Extends through the entire body.
- Illustrates the force and energy of the movement.
- Unifies the pose into a cohesive form.
- Communicates a clear and impactful statement.
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| Fig1.1 Mr. Kamal's blackboard writing in class,Week 4(14/10/2024) Week 6 |
Clarity in Animation
Clarity in animation means keeping your shots clean and precise. This often involves simplifying character movements to ensure the audience can easily follow the action. Regardless of the type of animation, clarity is the most important concept to prioritize for effective storytelling.
Clarity in Staging
Clarity in staging is a broad principle that spans many aspects of animation and has its roots in theater. It emphasizes the importance of clear composition, focus, and purposeful presentation to guide the audience's attention and enhance storytelling.
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| Fig1.2 Class notes,Week 6(28/10/2024) Clarity in Animation Exaggeration - Not distortion or excessive violence**, but amplifying emotions and actions: - Make sadness sadder, happiness brighter, worry more intense. - Maintain realism: - Exaggeration is a caricature of reality and should never break believability.
Anticipation Clear preparation before an action helps the audience understand and stay engaged. Technical Principles in Animation Line of Action - An imaginary line through a character that defines the direction and force of motion. - A strong line of action enhances energy, unifies poses, and conveys clear intent. Silhouette -Negative space matters: Use varied spaces between limbs to create dynamic and interesting poses. - Dynamic posing tips: - Avoid symmetrical (Twinning) poses. - Use Contrapposto and perspective to add depth. - Weight and balance: Ensure poses feel grounded and believable. |
PROJECT 1
Project 1A: Character Design
Task Requirements: Define a character description (age, gender, weight, attitude, personality) and design the character to reflect their personality and appeal to the target audience. Use similar existing characters as references (from movies, anime, etc.) with at least two legs for walking cycle practice. Study design elements like shape language, parts, silhouettes, action lines, and colors, and create a unique design that stands apart from the references.
Deliverables:
a. turnaround sheet / Model sheet (front, side, back and ¾ view perspective)
b. Pose sheet (Various poses in different emotion / action) - 5 poses *full body
c. Character facial expressions - 5 expressions * focus on chest up
Concept Development
- Character Description: The first step was to define my character’s basic traits, such as age, personality, and cultural background. I decided to design a young, approachable character inspired by traditional Asian clothing, with soft features that reflect a warm and innocent personality.
- Gathering References: To ensure an authentic and relatable look, I researched anime and character designs that incorporated traditional Asian clothing styles. I referenced elements like the collar, buttons, and loose fit that are typical of traditional clothing, which gave the character a unique yet familiar appearance.
Visual reference
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To get inspiration for traditional costumes, I looked at different websites for terms like "traditional Asian anime characters" or "characters wearing traditional costumes." This helps determine clothing elements, proportions, and facial style.
Role information
Age 13
Gender Male
Height 140
Weight 40KG
Personality He is gentle, friendly and approachable. He is curious, attentive, and a little shy. Respectful and disciplined by nature, coming from a humble or culturally grounded background.
1) Character Turnaround Sheet
Shape Language: I used rounded shapes to convey the character's youth and friendliness. The soft curves in the head and body create a warm, approachable appearance, hinting at the character’s innocence and amiability, which are core to their personality.
Proportion: A larger head-to-body ratio emphasizes the character's youthfulness. The smaller body relative to the head creates a cute, childlike effect, ideal for appealing to a young audience. By setting horizontal reference lines at key points like the shoulders, waist, and knees, I ensured consistent proportions across different views.
Basic Skeleton and Shape Block-in: Using simple shapes like circles and rectangles, I created a foundational structure to define the head, torso, and limbs, ensuring consistency throughout the design process.
Pose Refinement: To give the character a relaxed, friendly stance, I slightly bent the arms and positioned the feet in a natural, balanced posture, laying a clear and balanced foundation for the turnaround sheet.
Process：
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Fig2.2 Make a character auxiliary line |
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| Fig2.3 Block diagrams from angles |
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| Fig2.4 Put on some clothes |
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| Fig2.5 Draft diagram |
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| Fig2.6 Detailed line drawing |
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| Fig2.7 Final draft |
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| Fig2.8 The final colouring is completed. In order to make the characters I created more perfect, I also added and established a multi-faceted perspective. |
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| Fig2.9 Add perspective line draft |
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| Fig2.10 Add perspective to the full draft |
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| Fig2.11 Build a large framework |
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| Fig2.12 Join the body part |
The third step is to draw the character's clothes: add clothes to each action. The folds of the clothes should follow the direction of the posture. For example, when the character bends down, the folds of the clothes will pile up at the waist. I added some more details: cuffs, collars, shoe shapes and other details, so that each action looks more complete and unified.
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| Fig2.13 Add clothes and details |
Step 4: Draw clear line drawings: After completing the sketch, outline it again with clean lines. Pay attention to the thickness of the lines to make each movement look smoother. Check the Proportions: As you complete your line drawing, double-check the proportions of each part.
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| Fig2.14 Complete line draft |
Fill Basic Colors: Fill in colors for each of the character's movements, keeping the colors consistent so each pose feels like the same character.
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| Fig2.15 Colour |
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| Fig2.16 Complete posture diagram |
3) Character Expression Sheet
I first draw a rough sketch and decide on the position of the head and the structure of the expression. The outline of the head shape and the dividing lines on the face allow me to know the position and size of the facial features.
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| Fig2.17 Make a basic sketch |
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| Fig2.18 Add facial features |
Start applying black lines and outline the outlines and details to ensure that each expression has clear lines for easy coloring later.
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| Fig2.19 Complete line draft |
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| Fig2.20 Colouring diagram |
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| Fig2.21 Complete colouring Final Project 1A: Character Design 7.jpg) Fig.2.22 Turnaround Sheet   Fig.2.24 Character Facial Expressions Project 1B: Layout Design For Project 1B, we will use perspective drawing to create layout designs for our animation project. These designs will serve as backgrounds for various scenes in the animation to enhance the storytelling and overall atmosphere. We must select a scene from the animation and use perspective to sketch the layout design. The sketch should depict the placement of background elements and characters within the scene. References Before I started sketching, I found some references for my idea, which was an autumn forest. I also looked for other local references, such as scenes of temple architecture.   Fig.3.1 References Sketches 1 After finding some reference materials, I started painting the perspective background of the woods. After coloring, I wasn't satisfied with how the forest perspective turned out, so I changed my mind and replaced it with a background of buildings and temples.  Fig.3.2 First draft forest scene  Fig.3.3 First draft forest scene Sketches 2 First, I used perspective lines to lay out the structure and perspective of the building. This makes the whole picture simpler and more comfortable to look at.  Fig.3.4 prepare a draft After I determined the basic structure of the building and environment, I removed the perspective lines. Start adding architectural details and the surrounding environment, including lanterns, trees, clouds, etc. This gives the scene more form while maintaining clean outlines.  |
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| Fig.3.7 final design |
This assignment was difficult for me because I always made mistakes due to proportions and smoothness of lines. Through this character design and movement expression exercise, I have a deeper understanding of character design. Different expressions and movements can make the character's personality and emotions more vivid. Character rotation diagrams help me ensure that the character's proportions and details are consistent from all angles, avoiding the problem of characters looking out of place from different angles. The movement practice made me realize that the character's posture can also convey emotions. For example, bending slightly to appear friendly and relaxed. Throughout the process, from sketching to detailing to coloring, I became more organized and learned the importance of maintaining a consistent style while designing.
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