Challenge 7: Record/find reference footage
Research path: Reference footage for animation and body mechanics
Bony Weightlifting Reference Footage & Rig: Download
This challenge is about preparation. Not just preparation for animation but also preparation for the weeks ahead. Over the next few weeks, we will be animating more complex body mechanics and performance-based animation using biped (human) characters. The more we can prepare for that now, hopefully, the more successful those animations will become. This is going to start be gathering (and analysing) good video reference footage. There are two basic (obvious) types of reference footage…
1) Found: In simple terms. this is footage gathered from the internet for example. Something that you haven’t personally participated in. There are positives and negatives to this approach:
- Cons: The footage may not be useful due to low resolution, bad shooting angle, or it may be sped up/slowed down. It may not be exactly what you need or feature more content (time) than is useful. A common problem is take footage from the internet and mismatching frame rates between the footage and Maya (3D)
- Pros: It may feature something you or someone else can’t do – A skill like sword fighting or acrobatics or maybe a specific kind of performance by an actor you can’t work with. The footage is more readily available and involves no shooting setup.
2) Personal: This is footage you record yourself of either yourself or another person/thing. There are positives and negatives to this approach:
- Cons: Skill level. If you are recording yourself acting, then you need to have the acting (pantomime) skills to match the requirements of the task. Not using the right tools can also be a problem, such as not holding an object with the right weight or pretending to do something without actually doing it – E.g. pretending to hit vs actually hitting. Finding a place to record, equipment, and help can also be an issue on occasion.
- Pros: You have full directorial control over what you are recording. The content will also be bespoke/unique to your process/goals. You can produce multiple takes of a recording and either use the best or ‘stitch together’ the recording to suit your needs.
FOOTAGE FOR THE WEEKS AHEAD:
Body Mechanics: Find or record your own footage – This challenge is to create a body mechanics animation. This could be something like a person picking up a heavy box, a golf swing, kicking a ball, standing up/sitting down or a stylised walk cycle. In simple terms, an everyday activity that is ‘short’ and involves how the body mechanically works with weight, balance, gravity, and the 12 principles. The goal is not to create a long (joined) sequence – running and jumping or doing a series of activities for example.
Advanced Body Mechanics: Find or record your own footage – This challenge is an ‘upscale’ of the first body mechanics challenge and the goal here is join motions. For example, running and jumping or walking and then sitting. You should focus on movement, not performance (acting and pantomime)
Performance (and Pantomime): This is not something you should record now but is a subject/process that I would like you to research and consider. ‘Acting and performance’ is woven into the DNA of this animation challenge and the best way to approach that if you’re not an Actor is to consider your options. For this challenge we are going to use a short (one line) audio clip (from a movie) as a starting point for an ‘out of context’ performance animation. Out of context means that we leave the actor (who it is) and the movie it is taken from (what context it was in) behind and build the performance around a new character/staging idea. For a wealth of examples, visit the “11secondclub.com” (example below).
The Challenge
For body mechanics: Source or record reference footage for the ‘body mechanics’ and ‘advanced body mechanics’ challenges (see video examples). This footage will form the basis of your body mechanics animation challenges over the next couple of weeks.
For performance: What you can do now to prepare for this challenge is to find an audio clip – either online or be cutting from a film yourself. Make sure it is short enough to allow you to make an animation in the time we have – No 10-minute monologues! Again, watching the examples on 11secondclub.com illustrate an ‘achievable length’ of audio.
Note: For all of these challenges, please speak to me if you are unsure if your footage/audio is appropriate or not.