Animations Testing

To start, I'm going to post an updated video of the creature walk because in the last video you can't really get the jist of what's happening in a second, I can't anyway, so I'm posting a much better version and as a bonus one with controls and the other without:

After getting better videos for my creature walk, I can now delve into Jeffrey Chide. Before breaking up for the Christmas holiday I expressed an interest in animating for Craig and his film Jeffrey Chide as I wanted as much work to do as possible and push myself as hard as I can. That and his film would be extra, extra hard for him to complete without a pair of animator's hands ready to help him out. Jeffrey is a very sad little guy, who only wants to get noticed. But every time he tries people just ignore him as as a result he slowly becomes flatter and flatter. And that's Jeffrey.

So back into full swing of the new term Craig came in to give me the rigs for the characters so I can test them out. Here are some of the walk tests I've been doing with the characters 2D Jeffrey and Rod, a general extra in the film. My little job was to test them out for their flexibility and to report back any problematic issues in the rigs. Now I'm no rigging expert but I've been around enough to know the kind of hierarchy system and ways it kind of works, and these seem a bit messed up and all over the place. The rigs work, but the outliner isn't exactly laid out nicely so that if there is something substantial wrong I can't easily see the stuff because it's all jumbled up. The other big issue I noticed was the bad or lack of weight painting to 2D Jeffrey in particular which you'll notice in Jeffrey's legs and them not bending correctly. Another weighting issue was on Jeffrey's back where if you rotate his arm too much, geometry spazzes out on his back.

The first two walk tests are Jeffrey and the next two are the Rod tests:

In terms of animation they still need to be pushed a lot further, but for quick tests of the rigs to see what they can do and how much needs to be done to make them better, they will do for now. Things for me to keep in mind, is overlap and more secondary animation like the hands on 2D Jeffrey floating down and being carried back up. On Rod there needs to be better foot movement, which when the rigs are fixed a bit more, it will provide me with this freedom. Next time I approach the walks I'll keep all this in mind and add in a bit more squish to them when they tilt to the left and right as well as twisting them round more to the left and right so there is a greater sense of weight as it all feels quite light at the minute.

Testing stages, over and out for now.