In the previous chapter, we laid down animation for both of our fully rigged characters. Now, we are going to arrange the actions to create a linear scene, as well as looking at any other areas that could use some improvement. This will set us up to export the scene as a video so we can do some editing in After Effects and Premiere, which will come in the next chapter.
But for now, we will cover the following:
By the time we are done, you will have a coherent sequence you can view in Character Animator and export out for further editing or sharing. This will also give you an opportunity to further understand how the timeline works. So, with that said, let’s get going!
In this chapter, we will reference Version 8 in the Chat_With_Chaz Character Animator project file. We will also reference the AudienceAnimation.png sequence, which comprises 60 images in a folder. We will combine these images to take advantage of the Cycle Layers behavior.
While Character Animator is great for quick character animation, there may be some tasks best left to other apps. In these cases, we have choices of how to implement external animations. These PNG sequences can be implemented during editing once you export them from Character Animator, or you can import sequences to Character Animator and integrate them into the set. In this chapter, we will do the latter.
Like importing PSDs or other files, we will import the sequence of images onto our Project panel. This animation comprises 60 individual images and we can link behavior to allow a cycle effect.
To import the image sequence, take the following steps:
Figure 11.1: You will find 60 images inside the AudienceAnimation folder
Figure 11.2: The audience images on the Project panel
Figure 11.3: You will find 60 images inside the AudienceAnimation folder. You can see the first nine in this image
Right now, this will not do much other than overlap 60 images over one another. We will need to add behavior to tell Character Animator to cycle through the images.
We will add a behavior to this sequence just like we added behaviors to our Chaz rig:
Figure 11.4: Clicking the + icon next to Audience Animation Main will allow you to add behaviors
Figure 11.5: The Cycle Layers behavior provides many options for your .png images
By default, you will see the animation won’t start unless enabled by a trigger. But what about the other options? Here is a quick rundown of them:
Figure 11.6: You have three options for how you want to trigger the animation
Figure 11.7: Hold on Last Layer will prevent the .png sequence from disappearing on completion
Now we can move on to placing the audience appropriately in the scene.
We will need to add the audience animation to the scene and make the adjustments. To do this, take the following steps:
Figure 11.8: The audience will overlay all other layers
Figure 11.9: You will find 60 images inside the AudienceAnimation folder
With the audience now on set, we have all major sequences ready to be polished and reordered. Up next, we will focus on arranging the layers so that everything runs in a nice linear and logical fashion. Luckily, we can edit our keys on the timeline. Let’s rearrange, tweak, and even add some more actions through triggers.
While we added some basic face and head animations to Chaz using the webcam, the alien is only currently being lip-synced. With the alien’s gaze, emotion, and body language being static, the animation is less engaging. Luckily, we can go back in and add some actions, breathing more life into the conversation.
Setting the alien’s pupils to look at Chaz will give the character and the scene a bit more depth:
Figure 11.10: You have many options with Eye Gaze
Figure 11.11: Set Keyboard Strength to 70%
Figure 11.12: If everything works correctly, the alien will appear to be looking at Chaz
As we do this, keyframes for Eye Gaze will start to record on the timeline.
Figure 11.13: You should see keyframes for Eye Gaze [3-4th Head]
With the gaze set, let’s add a bit more life to the eyes. Luckily, there’s a built-in behavior that makes this easy.
While we could set the blinks to record and use our camera to capture our own blinks, like we did when we recorded Chaz’s base actions, we’re going to use a special behavior to give you the chance to explore more tools. Here’s what we need to do:
Figure 11.14: Auto Blink is the first behavior on the list
Figure 11.15: These are the default settings, but if you want to adjust the blink animation, feel free
Preview the scene to see how the blinks add to the conversation and character interactions. Now, we can add a little body movement to the alien to help add even more life to the sequence.
While we have set down keyframes to allow the alien to sit, we can make the sequence more interesting by adding body movements, such as arm gestures. This can be as subtle or extreme as you like. Since we already added Dragger keys, let’s add a new dragger and isolate it to the left or front arm.
For this purpose, we are going to have the alien raise his arm as he talks:
Figure 11.16: Make sure only Dragger [Left Arm] is set for record
Figure 11.17: Raising the arm as the alien speaks will breathe more life into the conversation
By now, you should understand how we can build movements using multiple behaviors. But what about Chaz? While we recorded his actions, there may be some issues that cropped up. Luckily, we can edit these actions after the fact to make the animation more pleasing.
Note
The alien’s tags will be flipped (left arm and leg being on the right and vice versa). This is due to changing the Scale X to –100 in the previous chapter. We can counter this by flipping the character before setting up and tagging the rig.
When we recorded our character actions in the previous chapter, we didn’t pay attention to proper ordering. That’s fine, as we were only focusing on getting the audio and basic keys laid down.
Figure 11.18: As it stands right now, the timeline is a mess
But right now, if we play the animation, it will appear as a jumbled mess. The first thing we should do to work through this is pull up our script or outline from the previous chapter that lays out the scene. We can use this as a blueprint for timeline ordering:
We will start with a zoom-in on the stage as the audience cheers.
Chaz laughs and welcomes the audience back from the commercial break:
“Welcome back to Chatting with Chaz! I am, of course, your adoring host, Chaz, and today we have a special guest!”
Cut to show alien.
“An alien from outer space! How are you doing, sir?”
The alien replies: “Oh, you know, just sort of hanging out, planning to take over Earth, that sort of thing.”
“Well, that’s great, I... wait, what?”
Suddenly, three more aliens transport onto the set!
The first line suggests we have a moment for the audience to react before Chaz speaks. This means we should push any of Chaz’s and the alien’s actions forward on the timeline to create space for the audience’s reaction. Let’s push everything up by 1 second except for the audience. To do this, take the following steps:
Figure 11.19: Both audio files should start at 0:01
Figure 11.20: Expand the CHAZ layer to access the recorded behavior
Figure 11.21: Move Chaz’s actions up by 1 second to match his audio file
Finally, we need to properly sequence the alien’s interaction with Chaz. While giving the scene a second to establish itself is good, having both characters talk at the same time makes no sense. We will also need to create some space for the alien’s line to play out before Chaz answers him. Here’s how to make the adjustments:
Figure 11.22: We will be duplicating the audio file to split the lines up
Figure 11.23: Trimming the audio files provides us with more freedom when arranging actions
Figure 11.24: We need to place the alien’s line between Chaz’s split audio file
This will offset the character actions with the audio. Therefore, we need to rearrange the recorded actions for both characters so they match the new audio locations on the timeline. Let’s relocate the alien’s actions first:
Figure 11.25: Drag the Lip Sync and Visemes keys up to 00:17:03
We also need to account for the Dragger behavior we added to the alien arm. As it stands right now, he will speak and then raise his arm. We want the alien to raise his arm as he speaks:
Figure 11.26: Moving the keys will change when the animation starts
Once that is set, we need to account for Chaz’s last line. This means we need to arrange his mouth and body actions as well:
Figure 11.27: By extending the Lip Sync behavior, we can add the visemes closer to the end of where the line now is
Figure 11.28: Move the visemes up to match the start of the audio file
With these changes, playing the animation back should now reveal a scene in the correct order, with no overlapping dialogue, and proper lip-syncing. Now, we can add a bit more life to the character actions.
While using the camera is a great way to lie down animation quickly, you may find some anomalies pop up. In our case, the character’s head is turning but the actions are random in duration and appearance. Don’t worry, this is where the script comes in. By using it as a guide, we can plan out when to turn the head and for how long.
So, to add refined head turns to Chaz’s actions:
Figure 11.29: Locate the Head & Body Turner behavior for CHAZ
We are now going to re-apply the head-turn animation. We can do this using the webcam or with triggers. But we’re only going to focus on turning the head. To do this, let’s break down Chaz’s dialogue and plan out when we should turn his head:
“Welcome back to Chatting with Chaz! I am, of course, your adoring host, Chaz, and today we have a special guest!... An alien from outer space!”
During these lines, we will want to have our character face the audience.
“How are you doing, sir?... Well, that’s great, I... wait, what?”
With these lines, Chaz should face the alien guest. Once those lines end, we can have Chaz go back to the 3/4th view.
With that in mind, here’s what you need to do:
Figure 11.30: We’re only focusing on the head turns for this part
Figure 11.31: Since the default position for our head is the 3/4th view when looking directly at the camera, turning right will activate the front view
As you make your movements, the puppet will react accordingly:
Figure 11.32: Chaz should react according to your head movement. In this case, he’s facing the camera
Figure 11.33: Looking left will also activate the left-head phase
The puppet should match the left-facing head:
Figure 11.34: Chaz faces left, just like what you see in the webcam preview window
Figure 11.35: Looking forward will activate the default 3/4th view
Facing forward will activate the default view, which in our case is the 3/4th shot:
Figure 11.36: Chaz’s default head view
From here, look at the gaze and make sure it’s lining up. If the eyes are drifting, you can choose to re-record the action. The same goes for anything else you’ve recorded. Remember, you can apply manual controls if you need even more refinement.
While Character Animator allows you to press a record button and create an animation, the results may sometimes not transfer the way you intended. You can add, change, and remove actions. Being able to isolate specific actions to fine-tune them is very helpful. Even if you can’t record an animation in sequence, the timeline is powerful enough to allow for isolating actions and rearranging them to create a cohesive narrative. Finally, don’t forget you can add outside animations using the PNG sequence behavior built into the app. The more you try out these behaviors, the more possibilities you’ll find.
So, what’s next? There are several ways we can edit and enhance our production. In the next chapter, we will be exporting our work to be shared, visually enhanced through After Effects, and tightened up in Premiere.