By creating tracking in 3DE, we have been using the Trackpoint mode.
When we come across a larger tracking point (like a distinct circle) that is easier to track on the screen, we need to use the [Marker] mode.
[Ctrl+Left Click] to create the tracker point. Select the [Marker] mode in the [Attribute Editor] in the [Trackingmode] on the right. Click on the [Gouge Marker] at least four times, and then click on [Track].
When we encounter a situation that the tracking points are obscured during a production project:
Tracepoints are created in two stages. The first stage is before the tracking point is obscured. The second stage is after the mask has been removed, and the tracking point is visible.
1. The tracking point is created in the start frame. [Ctrl+Left Click]
2. Observe the trace path of the tracking points. When observing an approaching keyframe, we can use the arrow keys (Left and Right) on the keyboard to confirm the information before and after the keyframe. When an object obscures the tracking point, select [End Point].
3.After the obscured object has been removed, create a new tracking point at the same location. Use [Page Up] and [Page Down] to see if the new tracking point’s position and the size of the border are the same as the previous tracking point.
(Repeated comparisons are required, so be patient.)
After we have established a tracking point. Click on [Calc All From Scratch] in [Calc].
Click on [Use Result] .
The mean curve values in the [Deviation Browser] are not stable enough at this time.
The value of the lens needs to be adjusted to ensure accurate tracking.
After adjustment, we will find that the [Deviation Browser] ‘s mean value is less than [1].
Click on [Parameter Adjustment Window] in [Windows].
Click on [Brute Force All] and then click on [Adjust]. Wait for a while, and the many red dots will appear as in the picture below. But this is not what we want. So click on [Clear] to clear it.
Click on [Adaptive All] and then select [Adjust]. This time the result is much better.
This time click on [Calc All From Scratch] in the [Calc] section. Click on [Use Result] again. The curves are much better.
Now we need to create tracking points on the person’s face. Before we can create the tracking points, we need to fix the camera.
In the [Camera] properties bar on the right, find the [Camera Constraints]. Adjust the properties of [Positional Camera Constraint] to [Fixed Camera Position Constraint]. This operation will give more depth to the tracked point in 3DE.
Click on [Calc All From Scratch] in [Calc] to observe. This time get a deeper trace on the image. Click on [Use Result].
The [Deviation Browser] ‘s mean value has now been adjusted to be closer to [0].
Click on [Parameter Adjustment Window] in [Windows].
Click on [Clear], click on [Brute Force All] and then click on [Adjust]. A nice 2D Line will be shown.
Now create a new [Point Group].
Create tracking points evenly over the person’s face.
In the [Point Group], select the second group of points for facial tracking of people. After double-clicking on the second group, select [3D Models].
Select [Import Obj File] in [Add New]. Right-click on the mask and select [Import Obj File] in [Add New]. Import the downloaded mask model.
In F6 (3D Orientation Controls), we can observe the imported models.
Select [New 3DE4 Window] to open a new window. We can compare models and tracepoints in these two windows.
Set the [Environments] in the right Window to [Orientation].
Now it’s time to match the tracepoints and the model. Select the tracking point in the [Basic] mode on the left. After that, select [Extract Vertex] on the right and then select the model’s corresponding point.
After all tracking points match the model, close the window on the right. Click [F5]. Click [Calc All From Scratch] in [Calc].
Click [Use Result].
The model will match the human face.
We need to double click the OBJ model in[Objective Browser]. Turn off [Model Contains Survey Data] from [3D Model].
Select the OBJ model and adjust the [Translate], [Rotate], and [Scale] to better match the human face.
After adjusting the model matching, select all of the tracking points in the background. Select [3D Models]. Select [Mesh From Points] in [Create] to create a 3D space of the background.
The 3D space is now shown in the background as a tracking space.
Delete the tracking points from the background. Select [Run Warp4] in [3DE4].
Change the name of the export path. Click on [Preview] and adjust the lower-left corner to [Source Footage]. Finally, click on [Render] and wait for a while.
Now we can export the file to Maya by selecting [3DE4] and choosing [Maya] from [Export Project].
This is a Feedback video about my last work, Stylised Walk.
The main issues with this adjustment are:
1. The character’s feet I made raised when it hits the ground. When the character’s feet are flat on the floor, the character’s angry emotional walk will be more urgent. The pace I made before was not powerful enough.
2. The highest point of the character’s arms needs to be increased. In my previous version, the character’s arms were raised low, and the power of the character’s angry emotion was not enough.
3. The upper body of the character needs to be bent more forward. In my previous version, the upper body was not curved enough.
4. The character’s hair was not animated last time, so I needed to be animated this time.
Change process
1. Keyframe change of feet
Before the change, keyframe of feet. & Before the change, keyframe of heel controller.
After the change, keyframe of feet. & After the change, keyframe of heel controller.
2. Keyframe change of arms
Before changing, the keyframe of the arm. & Before changing the keyframe of the arm controller.
After changing, the keyframe of the arm. & After changing the keyframe of the arm controller.
3. Keyframe change of upper body radian
Keyframe of the upper body before the change. & Keyframe of the upper body controller before the change
Keyframe of the upper body after the change. & Keyframe of the upper body controller after the change.
4. Increase the keyframe of character’s hair
Final rendering video:
（2）Rending Farm
When we finish the animation project, we can submit the rendering task remotely using the self-service rendering form. The advantage of rendering farm is that it can improve rendering speed, and there are no restrictions on personal computer hardware. Simultaneously, after the rendering completed, an online preview can be carried out immediately and automatically downloaded to the local disk.
So how to operate the rendering farm. Let me share how to use UAL’s self-service rendering farm. (Rendering farms are basically operated by remote connection to another computer, so the basic operations are similar.)
We need to download a [VMware horizon client]. Through the use of this software to connect to the computer animation classroom of UAL. The image below is the download address. There are win, MAC, Linux, IOS, Android, and Chrome versions. Because I am a Windows system, so I download the win version.
After installation, this is an icon appearing on my desktop.
Click this icon, select the new server in the upper left corner, and a dialog box will pop up. (Because my computer is a Chinese system, so the language displays the Chinese glossary. Don’t worry, our software is the same except for the language.)
The first line requires the server name. The student number and password of UAL need to complete in the second and third lines. Then click login.
This interface is the computer room that we can connect to remotely. Select a computer to log in.
Find Maya and click to open Maya.
You need to import the file before start rendering. Set the rendering data of the file and save it. Attention file naming format, rendering frame number, and image size.
After setting the rendering data, click the icon below the deadline bar.
Now a panel appears.
Note the project job name and pool. Don’t forget to check the render output path. After filling in and selecting correctly, let’s look at the bottom of the panel. Click [Pipeline tools] to adjust the properties. Generally, we choose the MOV format. Click [OK], and then click [Submit the job] to start rendering.
Find the render item of submitting in the deadline monitor of your computer. You can focus on the rendering progress of your project.
Finally, find your rendering file in the saved rendering path.
Rendering farms is really convenient.
Tip:
During my testing with the rendering farm, I found that my homework files can not use the rendering farm.
I checked the render settings and path of the file, but these were correct. This situation confused me.
I asked Luke for help. After looking at the process of what I was doing, Luke told me that if I want to use the rendering farm, I needed to choose UAL’s MAYA software.
Great! I could use the rendering farm again!
So when remote controlling the school’s computer, click on the MAYA icon for UAL.
Don’t forget this step. All the other steps are the same as I wrote before.
The following pictures are the six interfaces of Overview.
F1(Overview Controls)：
F2(Manual Tracking Controls)：
F3(Distortion Grid Controls)：
F4(Autotracking Controls)：
F5(Lineup Controls)：
F6(3D Orientation Controls)：
In the upper left-hand corner of the [Basic] screen, there is the [Objective Browser]. Here we can create and manage [Scene], [Point Groups] and [Lenses].
The [Point Browser] allows us to manage the points which we make.
In the [Deviation Browser], it is great that the curve’s value is less than [1], which means that it makes fewer tracking errors. If the data exceeds [1], we need to modify the tracked points.
Start making projects!
Create a new [Sequence Camera] first!
Select the newly created camera in the [Object Browser] screen and then look at the [Camera] screen in the [Attribute Editor] on the right. Make sure that the Proxy Footage property in the Live Action Footage is [Main]. Click on [Browse], and import the file you want to create.
After importing the sequence file in the correct path, I adjust the values in [8 Bit Color Conversion] to ensure an easier viewing of the screen during production. I adjust the values in the [8 Bit Color Conversion]. In general, we need to change the data of [Gamma]. I have chosen to set the Gamma to [3].
When we play a video in 3DE, we feel that the playback speed is slow. So, this time we want to export the buffer of the video. Select [Export Buffer Compression File] in [Playback].
A progress bar appears in 3DE now. We need to wait a short time.
The [Export Buffer Compression File] has been created. We have to save the archive of the file. Please save the file at the beginning of the production process. We need to select [Save Project As]. After entering a name in the [Filter] box, the file will be saved in our project folder. Next time we can use [Ctrl + S] to save the file.
Create a point: [Ctrl + Left Click].
Select the created point: press and hold [Alt + Left Click], and then move the mouse.
Delete point: select the point you want to delete and select [Delete] in the [Point Browser].
When selecting the points, need to pay attention:
1. Choosing Corner point, Dark points, or Light point.
2. Don’t choose Reflective points, Invisible points, and Moveable points.
After the point has been created, two boxes appear. The inner box of solid lines is used to mark the characteristic areas of the tracking point. The outer dashed box is used to mark the different areas of the tracked points (the outer box has a range of areas, of course). The distance between the two boxes should be moderate. In this case, [Direction] should be selected as [Forward Only].
After creating the point, you need to preview the tracking effect. If you find that the tracking point’s frame is not tracking correctly, you need to select [End Point] for the correct keyframe. The next keyframe on which the correct tracking point can be created is then created. In this case, [Direction] should be selected as [Backward Only].
When creating a tracking point, it is best to choose a point that contrasts strongly with its surroundings. There should be a clear distinction between the tracking point and its surroundings in terms of light and shade, colour, and saturation. Do not select a point where the displacement changes during video playback.
If adjusting only [Gamma] is less helpful for observing the created tracking point’s position, we can make a better observation by changing the file’s colour property. Select [Image Controls Window] in [Windows]. (Changing the colour of the image only helps us better observe the position of the created track points and does not improve the software’s ability to track the track points.)
Then it’s time to get down to production! I have selected a video file about the scene. The steps from the very first creation of the file to set up the tracking points are the same as above, with Gamma set to [2]. After creating the tracking points, click on [track] to see the screen’s tracked route.
The video below shows me creating the tracking points. During the production process, it also appeared that the tracking points were only tracking a few keyframes, which meant that the tracking points were not chosen appropriately. I had to delete the wrong TrackPoint and create a new one. If the values in [Deviation Browser] are off, remember to adjust the [Focal length] in [lenses].
This is the tracking point effect video.
Let’s import the 3DE tracking project into MAYA.
We need to use the JPEG format for rendering for MAYA, and the material must also be of distortion-free quality.
First, let’s go to the F1 (Overview Controls) screen.
All tracepoints need to be hidden before rendering. Select all track points in the [Point Browser] on the left. Click on [Right Click] and select [Hide From Display Area] in [Modify].
If you want to view the hidden tracking points, you can select [Show FOV] in the [View].
Click on [Save out Rendered Frames] in [Render]. This action helps us to save the rendered frames.
A dialogue box will appear. Modify the rendering path in [Output Path]. Make sure that the [Image Format] is in JPEG format. Click on [Render] to start rendering.
After the rendering is complete, we need to export the file to MAYA. Click on [Export Project] in [3DE4]. Here we can see that we can export files in different formats. This time we need to chose [MAYA].
After clicking on [MAYA], modify the export path in the panel [Exportfile]. Click on [OK], and the file can be exported.
The key to the animation is the design of the story. Even if the animation’s character or ability is well designed, if there is no good story to show the characteristics of the character, the audience will still think that this is an immature work. Animation often produces a story around the interaction of one or more characters. We call these characters ‘main character’. The main character (except for the development of multiple protagonists’ stories) will lead the audience to understand the world and problems faced by these main characters. These kinds of characters are called ‘protagonist’. In the following picture, it’s using ‘you’ to refer to the protagonist.
1.You — A character is in a zone of comfort.
At the beginning of the story, the protagonists will be in a relatively safe or comfortable place. This place may be the place where the protagonists lived since childhood.
2.Need — But they want something.
The protagonists begin to eager for something. The existing life makes the protagonists feel dissatisfied, or the protagonist has to get some things different from the current life because of tasks.
3.Go — They enter an unfamiliar situation.
The protagonists left their familiar residence and went to a strange environment. Generally speaking, this environment will be very different from the place where the protagonists lived before. It’s almost the opposite environment. After seeing the obvious contrast, the audiences will be more curious about the development of the following story.
4.Search — Adapt to it.
When the protagonists arrive at a new environment or face a new situation, they need a process of adaptation. Obviously, in the process of adaptation, we can also see the growth of the characters themselves.
5.Find — Get what they wanted.
After constant adaptation and exploration, the protagonists finally get what they want. If the story comes to an ending here, it will be dull and boring. Just like we know that the sun rises during the day and sets in the dark. The audience can guess the development of this story at the beginning. So before protagonists getting items, the process of searching needs to be carefully designed to surprise the audiences.
6.Take — Pay a heavy price for it.
If the characters want to get something, they need to pay the price of the items. In the story, the protagonists often take some experiences from the frustration. The protagonist will lose some important objects or people from These failures. The design of this story part is depressing and serious because it reflects the vulnerability of the protagonists. Even if the protagonist’s ability is powerful, or there are many people’s help passport. There still have some problems that make protagonists weak. Facing difficulties, if the protagonists overcome their fear or weakness, they will know how to defeat the enemy or solve the problem. This process makes the story structure vivid and interesting.
7.Return — Then return to their familiar situation.
Returning to the familiar environment also means that the protagonists have ended their adventure. But at this time, the protagonists and the story have changed a lot. The protagonists who have experienced difficulties and crises have become more powerful in their hearts, and have more excellent moral characters reflected in them. The protagonists will spend a good time in the new life with the friendship, family affection, love (or other things) gained in the adventure.
8.Change — Having changed.
Here is the perfect ending to the story. Of course, some stories are not happy end. But compared with the original life of the protagonist, the protagonists have changed a lot. I tend to think that’s a good chance for the protagonists. In the story, the audiences will also put themselves into the role, and then harvest their own experience and growth.
Tip:
The upper and lower semicircles of the story circle have almost opposite settings.
For example:
The upper part: life. The lower part: death
The upper part: conscious. The lower part: unconscious
The upper part: orderly. The lower part: chaotic
The upper part: the familiar living environment. The lower part: the new environment full of challenges
（2）Story Arc
The height of the story arc represents the tension’s degree of the plot. Why not use the word ‘wonderful’ or ‘value’? Because some stories are excellent from the beginning to the end, so I choose the word tension.
The curve in the story arc is from left to right, which represents the change of story with the development of time. Because the story’s time can not regress, the plot curve can only move forward. (some stories have set back time, but in fact, the character’s storyline is still moving forward.)
1.Exposition: introduction of setting, characters, problems
At the beginning of the story, the paper introduces the world’s background setting, role setting, and the problems that the role needs to solve.
This part needs to tell the audience what kind of environment the story.
2.Rising action: characters struggling with problems
When the problem occurs, the protagonists are required to find out the cause of the problem. The protagonists need to consider how to solve the problem at this story node. The tension in this part will be more than the exposition part, and the plot compactness will also show an upward trend.
3.Climax: the tense moment of crisis
This position in the curve is the most exciting part of the whole story! If it is a hero movie, it should be the hero and villain to fight at this story node. If it is a love movie, it should be time for the male and female masters to overcome difficulties and ensure their true love.
4.Falling action: movement toward an ending
The tension in the story began to decline. The contradiction between the story has resolved. Now is the process of slowly moving towards the end of the story.
5.Resolution: final outcome
The story developed to the end. There is the story and characters’ result. Whether it’s a good ending or a bad one. The whole story has been told and returns to its original peace.
（3）Type of Characters
1.The main character (Protagonist)
The main characters in the story can also be called the ‘protagonist’. It may make up of one or more people. The actions of the main characters will influence the direction of the story.
2.Character opposing the main character (Antagonist)
If the protagonist is a hero, the antagonist is the evil force fighting against the protagonist. The antagonist can be a person or a group, or it can be a negative power.
3.Static or flat character
These characters are not significant in the plot, and they rarely appear in the story. The characters’ character or behaviours have no change. However, it is possible to promote the development of the plot in a certain story node and help the protagonists complete tasks.
4.Changing or dynamic character
This character will have dynamic changes in the story and will have an important impact on the plot. For example, from a very timid weak person to the most powerful assistant of the protagonist. Or by an unknown person, under the influence of some reason, become a monster with evil power.
5.Confidante character
The growth of the protagonist accompanies this kind of role. Provide support, encouragement, and other positive energy to the protagonist. Help protagonists to build their self-confidence. These characters don’t only limit to be human. It can also be an animal, plant, and so on.
6.Foil character
You can use the characteristics of these characters to form a contrast with the protagonists. There is a lot of significance in this character story. It’s difficult to directly tell the audiences many of the good qualities of the protagonist by using lines of the story. But through this role, the audiences can understand the good characters of the protagonist from different angles.
7.Stock character
These characters don’t make much sense in the story. It will neither promote the development of the plot nor attract the special attention of the audiences. It looks like they get a job in the story that someone is needed to work for this.
8.Round character
This is one of the most interesting characters in the story. Generally, it can be called the main character or dynamic character. These kinds of characters will continue to develop themselves in the story. There may be multiple personalities or behavioural changes in a story. This setting also makes the characters more realistic and makes the audiences feel more empathetic when watching.
9.Evil character or villain
Evil characters are very similar to antagonists, both of them like to make problems. If the antagonists are mainly to make trouble for the protagonists, then the evil characters are more inclined to make trouble for the world. Often under the influence of these negative characters, the protagonists will establish a firm belief in maintaining peace.
（4）Archetypes
1.Hero
The main characters in the story. Heroes often need to protect the world by completing various tasks or defeating the enemy in a new environment. The audience will experience the story from the hero’s perspective.
2.Mentor
Hero’s mentor in the story. Help hero strengthen or develop capabilities in a new environment. They will also help the hero establish a correct outlook on life and values. When the hero grows strong enough to take the path of justice, the mentor will leave.
3.Threshold Guardian
Threshold guardian is similar to an examiner who tests heroes. When the hero reaches a certain standard, the threshold guardian allows the hero to go on the next journey. Unlike the mentor, threshold Guardian doesn’t teach hero skills, they’re just the final judges.
4.Herald
This character often gives the hero a warning of the crisis at the beginning of the story. Gerald drives the whole plot. Let the hero encounter danger in the original living environment. So that the hero forced to leave the comfortable and safe place, and then go to a strange environment and dangerous struggle.
5.Shapeshifter
This role is very contradictory. A shapeshifter can be a friend and an enemy. The character’s loyalty to the protagonist is not certain. But shapeshifter can also bring the key information to the protagonist at some point.
6.Shadow
This character exists to create threats and conflicts and to give the hero something to fight. Shadows are not necessarily human. If the shadow set to mirror the image of the hero. This character will show the audience that if the hero goes wrong, the hero may lose the faith of justice, and highlights the hero’s inner struggle. On the other hand, it also makes the success of heroes in growth more meaningful.
7.Trickster
This character is the spice of the story. Trickster adds a lot of humour to the story. If there are restrictions on the number of words, plot, and other aspects, the director can also delete the trickster in the story.
8.Allies（sidekicks）
When the hero faces a challenge, allies will appear to accompany the hero to fight together. Allies can be a human, animal, plant, etc. These characters may not be perfect and have many shortcomings. But their loyalty and admiration can accompany the protagonist through the difficulties.
Over this past week, I have produced a Stylised Walk.
I chose to make the Stylised Walk in the Angry style. I can see model’s highest and lowest points of the character’s head in the reference picture. It is very convenient to position the height of the figure’s movements as it walks by the height of model’s head in the frame. The tendency of the figure’s movement is also greatest when figure’s head at its highest point.
I can see in frames 1, 15, and 28 the head is at its highest point, and one of the arms also raised to the highest point in this picture. With frame 15 as symmetry, the movements in frames 2,5,7,9,11,13 and 17,19,21,23,25,27 are exactly the opposite of left and right. For example, the action of the left hand in frame 9 is same as the action of right hand in frame 23. It’s also same as the legs. In this case, the head’s height is same in frames 9 and 23.
Before making it, I reflected on what I needed to improve from last week’s homework [Cycle Walk].
1. The character’s legs were too straight during the walk, and the whole figure looked a bit stiff.
2. The character’s waist should also be raised or lowered during the walk. At the same time, the figure’s upper body needs to form a [S] curve with the legs.
3. The character needs to walk with a swinging neck, rather than like a wooden man.
4. Make sure that the feet, do not look like slip during the walking.
I’ve learned from my last production, so let’s go to a new work!
Here’s the reference video I found. It’s a Stylised Walk [Angry Walk].
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2e0Fzm_mmOE
I think this video is a good way to help me observe the details of the model as she walks. For example, the waist, the upper body, etc. Also, the orientation of the legs and knees.
This video has side and front views. I think it’s helped me observe the details of the video model’s walk. As the figure steps forward, the figure’s waist is raised and lowered in line with the movement of the legs. More specifically, the left side of the character’s waist and hips raised as the character’s left leg steps forward. As well as this, the body’s center of gravity shifts as the character walks.
The main difference between Stylised Walk and Cycle Walk, I think, is the different movements and rhythms of movement. A Stylised Walk with personalization will have more detail. For example, a Cycle Walk might be a normal slow walk, whereas a Stylised Walk, which I chose to refer to, would be faster and more forward-leaning in the upper body.
Before I start animating, I create a shortcut to the skeleton controller with all the controls selected, which makes it easier to create the keyframe for my subsequent animations. Once all the selected steps have been selected in the Script Editor, I copy and paste them into MEL and drag and drop the middle mouse button into the property bar above. This way, during the animation process, I can create the keyframe directly by selecting the shortcut and then selecting all of the controllers.
But this step needs extra attention. Even though I selected tools all, there are still two controllers that are not selected. There may be a problem with one of the steps in the program. During my production, I noticed that I didn’t select left foot and waist controls. Luckily I was able to save my work in time by making two steps and checking them. The solution is simple: When I make a keyframe, I will select the two controllers individually. Overall, it was quite convenient.
This is the process I used to make this step, and it also helped me better to understand the body joints that how to control each curve.
Rigging
If you watch my video, you will see that the controller was deformed when I selected it. Sometimes the controller looks like a broken biscuit or a sharp spike. It looks awful, and it’s difficult to choose. Especially with the finger controller on the back of the hand, there is no way to select the original rectangular area. Only select the spiky part will work.
t doesn’t look good. But fortunately, it doesn’t affect the use of the controllers. All the controllers still work smoothly. There is no wear of the model. The model weights are well-produced and rotating or moving the controllers does not cause the model to wear out.
Now for the character walk. This is my storyboard based on character movement. It will help me to see the connections between key movements.
Start making the first version of the campaign.
For this work, I will make adjustments to the full-body controller at the same time. During the production of the Walk Cycle, I found that make legs and waist of the figure separately and subsequently adjusting the waist controller. This action would result in a deformation of the figure’s legs. This time, the distance of the model will walk still determined at the beginning of the production, with one step in the waist being 13.895 on the z-axis and one step between the legs being 13.452 on the z-axis.
When looking at the reference video, I noticed that the figure leans forward and clenches her fists before she starts to walk.
This picture is the animation curves of the right-hand’s controller’s movement. In the video, the character goes from no movement to an angry walk. In this process, the hand is tightened and keep this action. But otherwise only the wrist changes the data. When the character moves her arm as she walks, the wrist also moves in the direction of the arm’s movement.
The below image shows the animation curves of the figure’s right hand after I created the keyframe.
This video is the first Playblast.
In this version, I noticed that the movement of the character’s arms looked very unnatural, so I made some adjustments.
Because the keyframes are so dense, there are some pauses between the action. The arms even look like they are being swung outwards by some mysterious force. I chose to delete some of the keyframes with smaller adjustments first. This time the all-controller applet I made earlier comes in handy, as this setting helps me to select all the controllers on the keyframe to delete quickly. Then I modified each keyframe and adjusted the keyframe animation curve.
This picture is the arm controller animation curve after the adjustment.
This picture is an animation curves panel for all body controllers of the character.
Let’s see my second Playblast.
Add the character’s [angry] face.
Basic on the character’s facial expression, I add the character’s eye changes. At the beginning of this part, I want to take 12 frames as an interval. The model opens her eyes at frame 0, close eyes at frame 12, and then open eyes at frame 24. But after playblast, I found that the action of closing the eyes of the character was too slow. It seemed that the character didn’t wake up. In order to correct this situation, I try to shorten the time that close character’s eyes. If the character closes her eyes at frame 12, I will make keyframes for the eye-opening action on frames 9 and 15. The whole process of closing eyes only takes three keyframes.
The below picture is an animated curved panel about the eyes’ movement.
Rigging needs to skin the model with the created bones because the bones and the model are independent. Therefore, each point on the model should be matched to the bone. Then the motion of bone can be used to control the motion of the model. Rigging is the most important part of the whole animation. If in the animation production process, the rig production is not complete. The animator is unable to produce the correct action that meets the requirements. How to judge whether the rig is good or bad, it’s a good way to know the animator complain or praise when they use the rig ( just joking).
Excellent rigging requires that bones match the model completely, and influence between the parts of the model should be fully considered when skinning. For example, if there is a problem with rigging. When the character walks, the waist will sag. Or the model will be destroyed when the character’s hand moves. Of course, if a model is not good, it will have many strange problems, far more than I described. But good models don’t have these problems.
In the past time, I’ve only used humans and quadrupeds to make animations. So my experience is mainly related to this part.
Before I use characters to make animations, I’ll see dose rigging is symmetrical. Because of the deviation, it will lead to the numerical deviation when calculating the moving position in the subsequent production process. Moreover, it is necessary to check whether the initial value of each controller is 0, which is also an essential part. If the initial data of some controllers is not 0, it is easy to have irregular joint tremble in the subsequent production. Of course, these problems can also be adjusted manually, but this is very troublesome.
I will observe the binding of facial expressions, which are very important in animation. The model I used this time has a rig on its face, which is very convenient to use. But to be honest, my favourite kinds of facial expression rig which get a face control panel. There is no difference in the final production effect, but the control panel is more convenient to observe and use. (the ELSA model with face controller panel below is my favourite rig type.)
The model’s foot controller I used this time is excellent. Both the front and back foot have corresponding rigs for operation. The hand controller has a little deficiency. There is no option to make the whole fist clench. I only can adjust it manually. But fortunately, the skin of the hand controller not bad. The adjustment process of creating hands’ action is very smooth.
Generally speaking, the model which I used this time is good.
Let’s talk about the rig from the quadruped animal model.
In this picture is a fox model. Rig of the animal model also needs to be symmetrical. It’s worth noting that the animal’s tail and ear rig. In the process of animal movement, these two parts also need to conform to the law of movement. If the direction of the tail and ears is too rigid, it will reduce the authenticity of the animal in the animation.
In rigging, a good model will set the maximum or minimum data of rig movement or rotation. Or lock some controller rotation or translation. Make a numerical range of the controller is more in line with the real kinematics law. For example, the controller of the human arm can only rotate, but it can’t move like broken.
Visual culture is a cultural tendency of humans grasps the real world and then through simulation after having the ability to replicate reality better. In the days of underdeveloped transportation, there were no planes, ships, automobiles, etc. People’s movement areas were limited. The culture and architecture of other countries were difficult to observe directly. At this time, there would be caravans traveling and use pictures or texts to talk about the culture from other places. After the Renaissance, people were gradually able to depict different cultural content in a more concrete way. Technology also evolved from pictures to digital media. We can see the cultural content of other places through online videos, texts, images, etc.
If a person who never been to China and wants to know about the cultural architecture in different areas in China, he or she can find some related documentaries on the internet. This visual culture helps people to understand and observe the culture of other places in a more straightforward way. And transforming the culture from an abstract concept to concrete and observable information content.
Part II：What does this mean to myself?
By watching different cultural content on the internet, it helps me to understand the culture of other countries. I am also able to understand design concepts faster when viewing some artworks. When I don’t have any breakthroughs, I will think about whether my limited thinking makes my design come simple. After that, I research and study the visual products of different regions to understand the current emerging design elements. When I come back to redesign my work, I think there are some new design elements in it.
Part III: How can we use this when creating animations?
During the animation process, this visual effect can help animation establish an overall worldview by giving the story a background setting. The proper application of visual and cultural elements is crucial, which can help the viewer understand the information more quickly by using visual and cultural elements in architecture and other aspects. At the same time, it can also enrich the content of the story, making the animation content leave a deep impression on people.
Before doing homework, I found an animation video about human walking that I can use it to reference.
Let’s go!
First, under the [File] column, select [Import] and import the character model and prop model into the file. Because I want to parent the prop and character models, so I decided to put the prop model in the right place first. For this project, the prop model I chose is the crown.
Now it’s clearly observed that the prop model is over-scaled and the prop model is not a whole. So I select all the model faces of the crown, and then in the interface [Shift+right mouse button], select [Combine]. This action will turn the scattered model faces into a whole.
After moving the crown to the right position, select the crown model, then select [Freeze Transformations] and choose [Modify]. Then [Alt+Shift+D] to delete the model’s history. (This is one of my habits. After determining the model’s location, reset the model’s values and history to 0. This will make it easier to calculate the value of the model movement in the subsequent production process.)
The crown and character models will now be made at the [parent].
There is a brief to the concept of the parent level. A parent relationship is a subordinate relationship, and selecting a parent object also means selecting both the subordinate and the related child of that object. Bones created in Maya are also linked together in a parent relationship.
Note: An object can have multiple “child”, but a “child” can only have one parent.
Parent creation method：
First select “child object”, then hold down [Shift] and select “parent object”. Then press [ P], so that the relationship between the parent and child model was successfully established.
The position in the menu bar is under the [Edit] select [Parent]. The operation to unparent the parent relationship is [Edit] and select [Unparent].
The next step is to create the character model’s walking.
I decided to create the animation of the person’s legs first and then make an animation of the person’s upper body.
I learned some experiences from my last assignment by making ball walks. Make sure when the figure walks, the feet cannot move position with the ground as a support point. Only lift or drop the model’s feet with the toe or heel as the axis.
This time still uses three keyframes as intervals. The keyframes 0,3,6,9,12,15,18,21,24 will be created first. With twelve frames as the axis of symmetry, the 0 and 24 keyframes move in the same way, and so on. Ensure that character can move around naturally. I determined the value of the movement after several keyframes were made. The waist moves forward 2.78 on the z-axis every three keyframes, and the character walks 23.14 every step so that I can calculate the movement of the character more easily when I make the keyframes.
I wanted my character to walk like a model, so I made the character’s feet walk in a straight line.
As I moved, I noticed that the knee would shake unnaturally. This problem because the time manually adjusts the knee controller for each frame to match the regular movement pattern of the knee. It also helps to adjust the position between the two legs so that the leg models will not overlap during the walk.
The figure’s waist also rotates when it walks. I found a reference image to help it easier to observe.
As the character walks, when the waist on the side lifts, and then the leg will also be raised. At the same time, the position of the waist needs to be moved during walking to ensure person’s point of gravity will also moving with the model. Person’s point of gravity is shifted to the side where the foot hits the ground as a point of support. So foot hits the ground the point of gravity, it also shifted to the side and down a bit. When a person lifts the body and steps forward, the point of gravity will rise and return to the middle.
Playblast:
I also noticed that when the character moves, the upper body needs to be reoriented. For example, when the figure takes a left leg step, the figure’s upper body needs to rotate to the left. When the figure lifts the leg, this figure is facing straight ahead. So the figure needs to continue to adjust the direction of the waist based on the figure’s movement.
Playblast:
Next, let’s start creating the upper body of the character. Let’s look at the reference picture first. As a human walk, we can see the shoulders form an angle with the waist. For example, if the figure’s right hip rises up, the figure’s right shoulder will slope down.
Putting each controller of the upper half body requires making keyframes in sequential order.
Four controllers for the upper body:
Playblast:
The arm’s move is similar to the tail principle in the swinging process. In order to match the model’s steps, I adjusted the figure’s arms to be more feminine as well. During the production process, I made the keyframes for the right arm first and then adjusted the left arm. In this way, it’s more easy to observe the movement of each arm during the production process. It also easier to modify the movement curves.
Playblast:
Let’s start making the model’s hand movement. For the hand movement, I chose to refer to the picture below. When the hand is at the front or back, the hand is relaxed and will take on a slightly stretched shape. When the hand is hanging down, it will naturally curl up a bit.
Now I will modify arms controllers’ animation motion curves. I will make sure that every arm has one keyframe distance. This picture is the animation curve of all the controllers after making.
Part I: Examples about how Political affecting the media
Game
Far Cry 5
Even if the game is obviously political, developers often say that it does not contain these contents. Ubisoft released Far Cry 5, a game related to the religious militia that rages in modern America. Meanwhile, Ubisoft claims the game is not political.
Tommy Francois says Ubisoft games are not apolitical despite avoiding making explicit political messages.
Francois clarifies the company’s position in its political statement that Ubisoft games are inspired by real-world people, places, politics, and issues affecting society. Ubisoft’s ultimate aim is to present a 360-degree view of life.
This company’s position is a marketing technique that attempts to borrow the freshness of contemporary politics without taking a clear enough stance to alienate gamers or damage the bottom line.
Film
The Candidate
Initially saw Bill McKay (Robert Redford) in The Candidate was seen as a young California Governor Jerry Brown. But the film’s director Michael Ritchie and screenwriter Jeremy Larner later denied this opinion. They said that the film was based on the political campaign for California Senator John Tunney in 1970.
This film is a political satire in a semi-documentary style, set in 1972, before the Watergate scandal. The Candidate is also a product of the New Hollywood Cinema movement. This film talks about American political elections, and puppet politicians follow the tide of the era’s counter-culture movement. The Candidate focuses on the nature of political elections. It is also a chronicle of a politician’s growth and the transformation of an aspiring young man into a political puppet.
TV
The Wire
The Wire is an American crime drama television series, primarily created and written by author and former police reporter David Simon.
There is an explicitly political element to the creation of The Wire. Each season focuses on an element of Baltimore, Maryland, and the political issues behind it.
The five seasons’ main characters are drug dealers and the police, blue-collar dockworkers and unions, the political system’s internal struggles, educational resources in poor neighborhoods, and the consumption of the media.
Advertising
I Like Ike—Eisenhower For President (1952)
I Like Ike was the first televised political ad in history. Disney Studios produced this political ad. The word Republican never appears in the ad, although it contains donkeys and elephants from both major political parties. By the standards of current advertising and animation, it was just a funny black and white cartoon. But this political ad ushered in an era of personalized campaigns centered on candidates.
Before I formally talk about politics and media relations, I found some information about the concept of media.
(1) Definition of Media
The word “media” comes from the Latin word “medius,” meaning between two. Media is the medium through which information is transmitted. It refers to the tools, channels, carriers, intermediaries, or technical. It also means people can transmit and obtain information, as well as the tools and means of transmitting text, sound, and other information. The media can equally be viewed as modern technology for achieving the transmission of information from the source to the message’s recipient. Media have two meanings: objects that carry information and entities that store, present, process, and transmit information.
(2) Major types of Media
1. Television
2. Radio
3. Newspaper
4. Periodical (Magazine)
5. Internet
6. Mobile Phone
7. Direct Mail
There are four traditional media: television, radio, newspapers, and journals (magazines). In addition, outdoor media also be used, such as advertising space on street signs or lightboxes. With the development of science and technology, new media are gradually derived, such as electronic magazines. They are developed based on traditional media, but the essence of them is different from traditional media.
(3) Classification of the Media
The CCITT (Consultative Committee on International Telephone and Telegraph, a branch of the ITU of the International Telecommunication Union) classifies media into five categories.
1. Perception Medium: It refers to the media that directly affects the human sensory organs and makes people feel directly. For example, the sound causes an auditory response, images that cause a visual response, etc.
2. Representation Medium: It refers to the intermediate media for transmission of sensory media, i.e., the coding used for data exchange. Such as image encoding (JPEG, MPEG, etc.), text encoding (ASCII code, GB2312, etc.), and sound encoding.
3. Presentation Medium: Refers to the media for information input and output, such as the keyboard, mouse, scanner, microphone, camera as the input media; monitor, printer, speakers, etc. as the output media.
4. Storage Medium (Storage Medium): refers to the physical medium used to store the media. Such as hard disk, floppy disk, disk, CD-ROM, ROM, and RAM.
5.Transmission Medium: Refers to the physical medium used to transmit the expressed media. Such as cable, optical fiber cable, etc.
What we usually call “Media” includes two meanings. One is the physical carrier of information ( the entity that stores and transmits information), such as books, flip charts, disks, CD-ROMs, tapes, and related playback equipment. Another meaning is the form of express information (or form of communication), such as text, sound, images, animation, etc. The term “Media” in multimedia computers refers to the latter. In other words, it is meant that media in multimedia computers can handle text, numerical values, and different forms of information such as sound, graphics, television images, and so on.
Social media doodles elements
(4) The main functions of the media include the following six aspects
1. To report the truth impartially and objectively.
2. Coordinating and supervising social relations.
3. Preserving culture.
4. Focusing on public concern issues and passing on new information so that the public’s needs can be more directly transmitted to the government agencies.
5. Enlightenment. In addition to guiding public opinion, the media can also create public opinion to arouse the audience’s awareness of the importance of issues and correct unjust policy biases.
6. To relieve stress and bring pleasure to the public.
Part II: Political influence on the Media
Some of the Internet’s roles in democracies or developed countries may not be similar in many ways to the less democratic developed countries. Especially some places where can not be guaranteed freedom of communication and state control of the media.
In a comprehensive summary of Internet policy, Andrew Chadwick (2006) explains that the Internet influences existing political systems and new political norms, rules, and procedures. He argues that the Internet is not just a medium. In the current fast-moving social environment, both ideologies and network structures have been made stronger by technology. He also elaborated on the impact of political election campaigns on the Internet. Firstly, there is a competition between the parties. The Internet allows marginalized former parties or even new parties to emerge the competition. This segment of parties is allowed to compete with established players (Andrew Chadwick, 2006).
The Internet has become a powerful weapon that political parties can use to build public relations and use their influence to spread power. The use of the Internet may lead to the decentralization of networks, thus transferring power from party leaders’ control to grassroots activists. (Gong, R. 2011)
Social media terms are creating word cloud on isolated white background.
Part III: My personal views about the influence of Media
(1) Politics
Politics can use social media as a platform for advocacy. This kind of advocacy is a low-cost campaign and an effective way for the media to access news resources in the first place. This act of communication has significantly increased the public’s interest in politics. It also plays a role in lowering the participation restriction requirements, allowing the public to participate in interactive discussions and monitor politics effectively.
(2) Consumerism
Consumerism cannot be separated from media propaganda. In media propaganda, the content and dissemination of information can be controlled. This situation leads to the fact that the media can also manipulate the masses’ reception of information. With the huge amount of data transmitted daily in today’s society, people are selective in remembering too much information. Therefore, once a message (advertisement) is repeatedly projected into various media messages, people’s memory of the message will be deepened. When people need to choose in their shopping time, they will subconsciously choose a more familiar product in their memory. Thus, the product can be promoted through media use to increase the product company’s turnover.
(3) Ideology
The media have greatly enriched people’s ways of learning, living, entertaining and interacting, and expanding their horizons, thinking spaces, and learning spaces. The media has the characteristics of rich information resources, fast and convenient communication, personal freedom and equality, entertainment time fragmentation, personalized choice, and use, etc. It can help people study better and faster to acquire knowledge and learning methods, enrich their knowledge structure. It will also help people better engage in social work of all kinds, develop their potential, and promote good moral character and independent personality.
While the media brings convenience and speed to the public, it also brings some negative effects. On the one hand, the media’s information is very complicated that it is not filtered effectively. On the other hand, the worldview, outlook on life, and values of some young people are still unmatured. Young people’s ability to choose information, distinguish between right and wrong, and self-regulate still needs to be further improved and enhanced. If they accept undesirable information, it will inevitably affect their values, political attitudes, psychological development, moral concepts, and behavior patterns.
(4) Evil corporations(An evil corporation is a trope in popular culture that portrays a corporation as ignoring social responsibility in order to make money for its shareholders.)
1. Only a few interest groups have a decisive role in national decision-making.
2. Interest groups, as “intermediaries” for public participation in politics, have monopolized public access to government power.
3. There are few democratic institutions within the various interest groups, and a few individuals largely control them.
4. Interest groups provide a fertile ground for government corruption. Interest groups operate to the extent by buying political influence with money and breeding ground for corruption.
(5) Current events
Due to the rapid growth of the internet, it has become easier to circulate information online. Information is often updated on many different social media platforms regarding the current concerns focused on the new crown epidemic. The advantage is that people can keep up with the outside world in a comfortable home without having to leave home. The downside is that the accuracy of the information can be widely disseminated without confirmation, leading to uncontrolled public opinion and potential public panic.
Part IV: Two topics of research for animation based around politics
(1) Paying attention to political correctness and the embodiment of values in animation
As a carrier of information, animation first needs to ensure that the content is politically correct. There should be no distortion, exaggeration of facts, or promotion of false information. Share awareness of values in multiple forms within the context of political correctness. Ensure that viewers remain informed and not confused by falsehoods when watching animation. Help the public understand the current state of society in a more light-hearted format.
(2) The influence of political content in animation on teenagers
As modernization progresses, teenagers’ values are changing in tandem with the messages of the times. Most adult viewers exposed to political messages in a mature mindset, ensures that the extent to which they are influenced by the messages is manageable. But teenagers still have not developed mature values. As a medium of information, animation needs to guide teenagers to politically correct content and develop positive beliefs.
As early as 1829, the famous Belgian physicist Joseph Plateau discovered a phenomenon. When an object disappears from view, the object’s image will remain on the human retina for a period of time. This discovery is known as “Persistence of Vision.” Based on this principle, Joseph Plateau invented “Phenakistiscope” in 1832. “Phenakistiscope” makes the picture sheet traced on a jagged paper plate move by movement, and the visual picture of movement is broken down into various images. In 1834, American William Horner’s “Praxcinoscope” was successfully tested.
In 1895, Auguste Lumière and Louis Lumière of France developed the “Cinematograph,” based on the equipment of Thomas Edison. The “Cinematograph” had three main functions: photography, projection, and printing. The Lumière brothers were the first people to use the screen for the projection of films.
From 1896 to 1912, the early cinema still hadn’t left its nascent traces. With its vaudeville and magic gestures, which were a novelty to the public. lumière’s film’s most striking feature was its documentary nature, with its direct shots of real life, which gave people a sense of being there. It makes the pioneer of the realistic naturalistic film style and forming the documentary tradition cinema. After a year and a half, lumière showing short documentary films about life in France. Due to the times and naturalism limitations that Interest waned, no one wanted to see them anymore. But this fledgling dilemma did not affect the trend of cinema. Another French film pioneer, Georges Méliès, emerged at this time. He moves cinema from the documentary “Moving Pictures” to the art cinema. This activity was making many creative contributions to the development of cinema.
Trip to the Moon, based on two famous science fiction novels by Jules Verne and HG Wells. This was one of his crowning achievements and had a profound impact on the history of cinema. This film depicts a fantastical story of one group of astronomers dressed in astrologers’ costumes who travel to the Moon. The astronomers emerge from the craft and enjoy a fantastic view of Moon’s crater. After dark, when they awoke frozen from their dreams, they went into a large cave, where they saw the moon gods, giant mushrooms, and all sorts of oddities. After a few dangerous turns, they fly back to Earth in a cannonball vehicle. Then after a strange trip under the sea, they end up at the unveiling of a statue. Méliès’s contribution to cinema’s art was a significant step toward becoming a separate visual and audio-visual art form.
Timeline of Film
1880 Multiple inventions In the 1880s, multiple inventors began working on various sorts of moving picture cameras or motion picture cameras. The first films were created by the end of the decade.
1890 First Public Displays The first public showings of films took place in the 1890s. The first theater was built in Philadelphia in 1899. Film companies began building film studios around 1900.
1903 The Great Train Robbery In 1903, the Edison Corporation produced the first western and established the use of shots and editing in film. This also marks the growing popularity of story films, over daily life scenes or news.
1910 Edison’s Kinetophone Edison invented the Kinetophone, making talkies an option. They would not become popular for more than 20 years, however.
1935 Technicolor With the release of Becky Sharp, audiences could now see films in technicolor. Two-color film technology had been available, but rarely used since 1922.
1953 Wide Screen With the invention of television, film needed to up its. New widescreen processes to produce bigger and more exciting films were the answer.
1953 First 3-D Film The first 3-D film, relying upon stereoscopic technology, achieved wide release in 1953. Earlier attempts had been made, but the 1950s saw the popularity of 3-d.
1976 Introduction of the Steadycam The Steadycam, first used in Rocky, became available offering new options to filmmakers.
2003 Home Entertainment Revenues Exceeded Box Office In 2003, for the first time, home entertainment revenues exceeded the box office. The DVD took over for the video cassette in 2003 as well.
2003 Growth of 3D films With improving technology, 3D films became more popular. In addition, a number of new IMAX facilities, offering larger format screens were constructed. Today, many large-budget films can be watched in 2D or 3D.
