Clips of Bobbin and Squidge

After a small rest from the major project work on Monday and Tuesday, I decided to allocate some much needed time for some major development for my dissertation work which involved gathering more information and essays going back to the complete basis for my dissertation: feminism. I have done this along with gathered books on cultural studies in order to gain a much greater understanding in why women are represented as they are in film. And hopefully, by accumulating many different theories in this way, I can then use a selection of these theories that will make my argument stronger and actually help to reinforce it. Throughout the week I have managed to spend time throughout the day on dissertation work that is much needed considering the weighting of the major project and dissertation are equal.

On Wednesday it was back to the studio again and for the next couple of days I decided to go back to practising some more animation, as I really enjoyed the bouncy mushrooms sequence. I started by making Bobbin, bob up and down, well bob meaning animated standing movements.

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I then progressed to blocking out some rough shapes and placed them around Bobbin in the scene, then putting some more animation in using these blocks. Thinking back to the mushroom scene, I decided I could then have the Squirrel bouncing around from tree to tree. So after adding in the squirrel, I should have some animated standing and looking around from Bobbin, and some nice flowing movement from the squirrel focussing on the tail movement and getting it to look right.

As it is this test, is rather basic and simplistic, but its purpose was to get me into producing some flowing animation after a little while away from it, and in doing this test I have done it quite well. I do think there could have been more refined movement from the legs and arms of the squirrel with some secondary, ear and possible finger animation. My next test may be do look at this, possibly doing a jumping run cycle for the squirrel, getting it as smooth and right as possible with some nice secondary animation in there too. For Bobbin I would probably continue his movements throughout the jumping squirrel sequence and also get some more secondary motions into his fingers maybe, and for definite his eyes. As another possible test route I could look at a rig like Blake and do some simple arm to finger movements creating some nice arcs, and also some subtle facial expressions and changes in emotion.

If I were to come back to this practise animation, which I may do in order to progress this idea a bit further, I would continue working into the Bobbin, and do more of a sequence of shots along with some character interaction getting in plenty of emotion.