Class Assignment Week 1

Here's a recap of what you should do for next week (or if you get it done earlier, no problem).
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If you are doing a bouncing ball:

- 1 heavy ball (like a bowling ball)
- 1 medium ball (soccer ball, etc.)
- 1 light ball (you can do a ballon or a super bouncy ball)

Use either the SIDE or FRONT camera in Maya. No perspective, no crazy camera.
Your ball can just fall down and bounce. You can also incorporate other objects in your scene. The ball can bounce down stairs, or hit something in mid air. You can also use the framing of your Maya scene or video as the actual walls and have the balls bounce off that. I'm not picky, just have fun with it.

If you feel that all this is no problem, then you can add character to the ball. Instead of physics driving where the ball is going, have the ball be alive. Treat it like a living creature, just with no arms and legs. If you do that, you want to incorporate squash and stretch. I'll post lectures about that on the site and if you have any questions, then I'll go over it in class as well of course.

You can also add a tail to your ball, by adding joints. With that you will have to think about secondary action and follow through (refer to the previous post about the principles). I'll find some explanations about adding the joints for a tail.

Again, the posts and tutorials on this site are not so that I don't have to do anything in class, it's for those students who want to know as much as possible, different techniques and get the most out of the time given. Remember, if you have anything to show, email me, don't wait til next class.
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For those who are changing the syllabus, think about what you want to do and bring me an outline next week. Please be specific and have multiple exercises listed. Don't show me something like "Uh, well, I wanna do some acting stuff." :-) You gotta think harder.

Examples:

a walkcycle, a character getting out of a chair/onto a chair, a jump, a fall, a tumble, lifting/pushing/pulling something heavy and/or light, pantomime with 1 or 2 characters, dialogue (what audio file) with 1 or more characters, gear change (emotion change), etc. etc.

The list can go on. Point is, have fun! I want you to enjoy what you are doing. If you want to do animation in this class for exercises only, that' s one thing. If you want your work from this class to be on a demoreel, that's another thing. The critique and feedback will vary and be tougher if you are going for demoreel clips, due to all the competition in this field.
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REMINDER:

I need QUICKTIME movies, 640x480, FRAME COUNTER clearly visible

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Alright! :-)

The next post will be other people's examples for bouncing balls or other type of animation. Work that should get you inspired.
Till then!

Tata
Jean-Denis