SeanC.

So then USE the parrot...make us think and feel something... THAT'S animation! You seem to be trying to express that animation can do more than just tell a story in the traditional fashion. I respect any kind of endeveaor which attempts to push the traditional bounderies of how people feel animation should be used but in the end, no matter how experimental a piece of work is, no matter how untraditional, there is always some underlying theme within the work itself...(unless it's dadaism). That is what i feel this piece lacks. You say you feel even a simple character can tell a story...i agree...but it doesnt, instead you tell the story and then we view the animation. The animation is simply a supplement to the story or idea you are telling. If you truly want the animation to tell the story...then let the animation tell the story, or theme, or preach or whatever it is you want it to do. Again, i respect any kind of work that tries to show people that animation can be more than a medium that appeals to jsut kids. SeanC.

Cute story. Congrats on getting a full animation done! SeanC.

Interesting work with the coffee pot! I must say...sometimes i get the feeling you purposely try to think as abstract as you possibly can just to push people's buttons. But what does it mean to push a button...a button is nothing...what matters is the action that occurs. And this cannot be predicted...the world cannot be predicted. Its contents, unknown to us...forever in blackness...much like the inside of the coffeepot. -insert irrelevent googled link of your choice- Something like the above in your next post perhaps? Don't take it personally, just a bit of observational humor. S.C.

I disagree. I feel that emotion can be conveyed just as well if not better through actions. I do think that sound often serves to increase my interest in an animation but it does not create the character; the actions do. As the adage goes, actions speak louder than words. SeanC.

Actually, as far as 2 cameras goes, theres a way around it. Set the interpolation method for the camera keys to stepped tangentsZ and then set keys for your camera. When you get to the point where you need it to switch camera angles, first, select the camera and set a key on the frame before it needs to move. Then, on the next frame, reposition the camera to where it needs to be and set another key. Its not the best method to use for a long animation with lots of camera changes, but its good for small projects like this one. SeanC.

One other thing to consider is how far off the ground his feet are actually coming. For such a casual, non-chalant walk his feet are coming awfully high off the ground. As it says in Williams' book, "Normally we lift our feet off the ground just the bare minimum. That's why it's so easy for us to stub out toes and get tipped over." I think this is partly contributing to the awkward-ish cycle, although i think its a very good cycle SeanC.

I think it might be the lack of a nose which is triggering your memory Hutch Very excellent work! Excited to see some animation!!

I use Jason Osipas facial setup. I love it! ITs a long list of mouth shapes but its well worth it. He uses visemes, shapes you can see rather than phonemes, shapes you can hear. Some of the poses are mouth open/closes , upper lip up/down, lower lip up/down, sneer, ooooo, pucker, narrow, wide. All of these are of course split into left and right sides of the face. The there are different brow shapes. I recomend buying his book, "Facial Animation and Modeling Done Right" It really helps. SeanC.

Thank you for the tips J, they all sound like sound advice. Ill implement them and repost as soon as i can. Thanks alot, SeanC.

Little bit of animation with my character. Something just doesnt seem right though. Something in the handfs mayber. Let me know what you guys think. http://www.pallidus.net/BadaBing4.mov Thanks, Sean

WOWEEE!!! Thats a great job Emilio!! Thats not the easiest technique but you pulled it off very nicely. With a little touchup here and there in PSP (i plug the cheap versions) it will come out nicely! SeanC.

Thats not bad for a first animation. It seems a little slow though, maybe try pushing the poses closer to each other in the timeline. Whats that soundbit from anyways? Also, try rendering larger, its really hard to see. SeanC.

New character im working with. Little animation test on my website. C and C welcome. PS-facial expressions were made using the book, "Stp Staring" by Jason Osipa-best ive ever done. hats off to Jason for the wonderful book. Thanks, SeanC. http://www.pallidus.net/animationwork.html

Thought id show off my new model im working on. First time ive really played with color and especially bump maps. C and C definitely welcome! Thanks, SeanC. ps. that is just a temporary color map to ge tthe feel, not the final.

::Stares blankly ahead smiling, clearly with no idea of what you just said::