Final Project: Dialogue

Due 5/8, 11am-1pm

Choose a character from one of the provided rigs, or acquire a rigged model of your own (so long as it doesn't already come animated).  Use it to create a short character animation to a line of dialogue.

The camera can be focused on a bust shot (waist up) of the character.  Animating anything that's not showing on camera is not required, but make sure to animate everything that we do see on camera.  Avoid just a talking head shot - involve the character's body in the animation.

What I will be looking for during the final grade:

Lip Syncing:  Do the mouth movements match the dialogue?

Head and Body Accents:  Do the character's actions accent the dialogue?

Acting:  Does the character show personality?  Does the character feel alive?

Technical:  Are there any hiccups in the animation?  Is the rig being utilized to its fullest potential?  Are there any technical issues such as the model's body parts intersection each other (such as the hand going into the body)?

Student Examples

Project 2: Prop Character

Due 4/29

Design a character based on an inanimate object (ex: Luxo Jr., the cast from Brave Little Toaster, Beast's servants from Beauty and the Beast).

Something to think about is how can this character show sentience?  It doesn't have to involve facial features (Luxo, the rug from Aladdin, for example, don't have faces but show sentience).  What kind of personality does the character have?

It's recommended to work from references of the real life object, such as photos, when designing your character, figuring out what your textures/colors should be, etc.  However, it doesn't have to look like a real-life replica of that object.  How realistic or cartoony the object is, is up to you.

This project will be divided into several parts:

Preproduction
1. Gesture Drawings
2. Model Sheet

Production
3. Model/Texture the Character
4. Rig the Character
5. Animate the Character performing a simple gesture.

The project will be graded on:
Character Design:  Was there thought and effort put into the character design?  Does it show research and preparation?  This will be most prevalent in the preproduction stage.
How the Character Design Translates into the 3D Model:  Does the model look like the reference drawings/photos?  This refers mostly to the model and textures.
Model Functionality:  Can the model function properly?  It's not required to have complicated functionality, but can it do simple things like bend its body, move its limbs and show character?
Animation/Acting:  Does the final gesture animation show personality?


Student Examples