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New Media Production week 6: 3D animation
3-D Graphics and Animation
• 3-D animations are more complex.
• Creating 3-D animations involves modeling, animation, and rendering.
– Modeling is creating broad contours and structure of 3-D objects and scenes.
– Animation is determining the motions of the objects..
– Rendering involves determining colors, surface textures, and amounts of transparency of objects.
Computer Generated Animation
• Motion capture can be used to create animation.
– Actors wear special suits that allow the computer to capture their movements.
– The movements can then be applied to computer-generated graphics.
• Examples:
– Pirates of the Carribian
– Ted
• Traditional animation is defined as the process of creating the illusion of motion by viewing a series of individual drawings successively.
• Computer animation is creating a digital scene by digitally recording cells, sorting them on an electronic storyboard, and displaying them electronically in succession.
Bridging the Traditional and
Computer Eras
3D animation
• computer 3D animation refers to the work of creating moving pictures in a digital environment that is three-dimensional.
• Through the careful manipulation of objects (3D models) within the 3D software, we can then export picture sequences which will give the illusion of movement (animation) based on how we manipulate the objects.
http://www.media-freaks.com/articles/3d-animation-studios-what-goes-on-behind-those-closed-doors
• What happens in animation is that motion is simulated in a way that the eyes tend to believe that actual motion has taken place while the fact is the perceived sense of motion is only because of the consecutive images that are passed through very fast.
• This theory is inherent be it for 3D, 2D or stop motion animation.
• In traditional 2D animation, pictures are hand-drawn and every one showing subtle changes from the previous. When played back sequentially, it creates the illusion of motion.
• In stop motion animation, real life models are moved slightly and filmed. Again, the pictures will create the illusion of motion when played back.
• In 3D animation, everything is done within the computer and exported from the computer.
3D animation process
3D animation process
• The process of creating 3D animation can be sequentially divided into three phases: modeling – which describes the process of creating the 3D objects within a scene, layout and animation – which describes how objects are positioned and animated within a scene, and rendering – which describes the final output of the completed computer graphics.
• Through the combination of the above phases and a few other sub-phases, this completes the process of a 3D animation production.
3D animation softwares
• There are many softwares in the market for creating 3D animation, ranging from the cheaper lower-end ones to the professional high-end versions. If you are curious to see how a 3D software works, you can download a free one called Blender. Just Google it and you will be able to find its official website.
3D Software
2D Cel animation involves illustrating many pictures of a scene in various phases of movement and flipping through them quickly digitally to create the illusion of movement or animation.
2D Cel animation
What’s the Difference between 2D and 3D
3D computer animation is a costlier and time-consuming process compared to 2D animation as it involves many more steps.
Stop motion animation is a painfully tedious process and involves tweaking the models bit by bit!
Stop motion animation
3D computer animation
3D Stop Motion • In 3D Stop motion The object is moved in small
increments between individually photographed frames,
creating the illusion of movement when the series of
frames is played as a continuous sequence. Dolls with
movable joints or clay figures are often used in stop
motion for their ease of repositioning. Stop motion
animation using plasticine is called clay animation or
"clay-mation". Stop motion using objects is sometimes
referred to as object animation.
• The first concept you must grasp is that 3D means 3 dimensional and 2D means 2 dimensional.
• The 3D and 2D in animation refer to the dimension in which the animation was created.
3D v.s. 2D Animations
• For 2D animation, everything happens on a 2 dimensional platform. Pictures are flat, without depth and offer only one perspective.
• Objects and characters are usually drawn without the subtle soft shadows we see in real life and colors have few varying shades.
• In 3D animation, everything happens on a 3 dimensional platform. Pictures have depth and offer multiple perspectives just like in real life and have soft subtle shadows casted on the objects and characters within.
• In 2D, characters look cartoonish and unrealistic. In 3D, characters can look cartoonish but realistic at the same time.
Super Mario in 2D and 3D, Copyright(C) Nintendo.
• Another way to think of this is to think in terms of a painting and a sculpture. 2D is a painting, and 3D is a sculpture. • 3D introduces “depth perspective,” so we not only see a rectangle (2D) but a CUBE (3D). You may also want to think of it like being the difference between a photograph of a glass of water (2D) and being able to reach out and actually pick up the glass of water (3D).
• Try comparing a cartoon like Bugs Bunny, Aladdin, Lion King (2D) to “Toy Story 1,2 & 3, “Finding Nemo” and “Incredibles” (3D). If you have not watched any of these great cartoons, you should grab one right away or be branded a neanderthal forever!
• Typically, 2D involves “drawing,” or movement on, say, a flat surface (sketch pad, etc.) or in the vertical and horizontal planes.
• 3D involves “modeling,” i.e., creating objects in 3-dimensions using a computer software, residing in an expansive virtual environment, complete with lights, reflections, other objects, shadows, etc.
Is 3D Animation an Offspring of 2D Animation?
• Many people have the idea
that 3D animation stemmed as a progression from 2D animation. While not entirely untrue, this is definitely not the whole truth as well.
• If we have to make some form of link, then I would say that 3D animation has more of its roots in stop motion animation than in traditional hand drawn 2d animation.
• The stop motion film techniques were used very well in the 1963 film Jason and the Argonauts by Ray Harryhausen, although they have actually been around since the very early days of film in the late 19th century. But it was Ray Harryhausen who really brought the technique to life.
• You might want to know also that the original King Kong movie produced in 1933, also used stop motion techniques extensively.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sg1v5HkpdEA&feature=player_detailpage
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=grMo5-2Y5oc
• Comparing 3D animation and stop motion, we can actually see where the similarities are.
• For stop motion, it involves taking a model and filming one frame at a time. Slight changes are made to the model and then filmed again. This is to simulate movement. By building up frame after frame and playing it back at between 12 and 70 frames per second, the model looks like it is moving. This is a very painstaking process and by no means a walk in the park!
• 3D animation uses a similar method but it is created using computers. Everything is controlled within the computer and the output is automated by the computer after you key in the instructions. It is decidedly less tedious physically compared to stop motion animation, but the fundamentals are similiar in nature.
• Even the lighting, texturing and camera aspects of both animation methods share the same fundamentals, with the exception that one happens in reality, and the other in the computer.
• For a stop motion artist to transit over to 3D animation and vice versa, it would be a lot easier and faster, as opposed to a 2D artist.
• 3D animation smells more like an offspring of stop motion animation than 2D animation.
The Process of 3D Animation
Steps to 3D animation
• The process of a 3D animation pipeline is complex and can be a lot more complicated than any other forms of animation. Depending on what project and which 3D animation studio is involved, the number of steps may vary.
• There are 11 most common steps involved in producing a 3D animation project. They are namely :
1. Concept and Storyboards 2. 3D Modeling 3. Texturing 4. Rigging 5. Animation 6. Lighting 7. Camera Setting 8. Rendering 9. Compositing and Special VFX 10. Music and Foley 11. Editing and Final Output
• Step 1 | Concept and Storyboards
A storyboard for Sedo Dog – a cartoon series by Mediafreaks!
The very first step involved in a 3D production pipeline is the conceptualization of ideas and the creation of the storyboards that translate these ideas into visual form.
• A storyboard is a sequence of illustrations that showcases your digital story in two dimensions.
• The first dimension is time: what happens first, next, and last.
• The second is of interaction: how does the voiceover (your story) interact with the images, how do visual transitions and effects help tie together the images, how does the voice overs interact with the musical soundtrack?
• Any element can interact with any other one, and the storyboard is the place to plan out the impact you intend to make on the audience.
• Step 2 | 3D Modeling
• 3D Modeling is not drawing!
• After the storyboards are finished and approved by the client, the task of building the props, environment and characters begin. • The proper term is called ‘modeling’.
• Modeling is the process of taking a shape and molding it into a completed 3D mesh.
• The most typical means of creating a 3D model is to take a simple object, called a primitive, and extend or “grow” it into a shape that can be refined and detailed.
• Primitives can be anything from a single point (called a vertex), a two-dimensional line (an edge), a curve (a spline), to three dimensional objects (faces or polygons). Using the specific features of your chosen 3D software, each one of these primitives can be manipulated to produce an object.
Step 3 | Texturing
• The art of giving clothes to the 3D models.
• When a 3D model is created, 2D images can be overlaid on it to add colors, designs, and textures. This is called mapping, and often the entirety of a model’s color comes from this.
• These maps can be created in programs like Photoshop, and the illusions of textures can be brushed onto the models as easily as if you painted them yourself; some animators even use real photographs of the textures they’re trying to create, simply captured and then altered to make seamless repeatable patterns.
• This is how many illusions of hair are created; rather than model individual strands, instead grouped locks of hair are modeled, before a texture is overlaid with individual strands and detailing painted on.
Step 4 | Rigging and Skinning
• Put in those skeletons into a 3D character before he can move!
• Setting up a character to walk and talk is the last stage before the
process of character animation can begin. This stage is called ‘rigging and skinning’ and is the underlying system that drives the movement of a character to bring it to life.
• Rigging is the process to setting up a controllable skeleton for the character that is intended for animation. Depending on the subject matter, every rig is unique and so is the corresponding set of controls.
• Skinning is the process of attaching the 3D model (skin) to the rigged skeleton so that the 3D model can be manipulated by the controls of the rig.
• Step 5 | Animation
Animation doesn’t always come first in 3D animation !
• Animation is the process of taking a 3D object and getting it to move. Animation comes in a few different flavors. • There’s keyframe animation, where the animator manipulates the objects on a frame-by-frame basis, similar to old hand-drawn cartoons. Other methods of animation include placing objects on splines and setting them to follow the path of the curve, or importing motion capture data and applying it to a character rig. Yet another way to animate is to use your 3D application’s built-in physics engines, such as when your scene requires that objects fall. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=e70NIYIfiTc
Step 6 | Lighting
• Lighting in a 3D world is just as essential as it is in real life.
• Lighting, (in combination with
textures, camera angle etc.) is where
a scene has the potential to come
alive. Used improperly, light can wash
out a scene, make objects appear
hard or flat, and destroy all the hard
work. But skillfully applied, lighting
can make a scene convincing, or if
realism is the aim, create (in
combination with materials and
geometry), a scene that is virtually
indistinguishable from real life.
• In 3D, lights don’t actually exist as they do in the real world. Lights in 3D are objects that are designed to simulate how lighting works in real life, but in order to obtain the results you’re after, you have to apply a number of settings, not only to the lights, but to the materials
Step 7 | Camera Angles and Techniques
• Good camera angles and techniques make the difference between good cinematograhy and bad ones.
• The camera is an amazing tool. In 3D, unlike the real
world, physical limitations don’t exist. You can create a
scene where the camera takes you on a journey inside
the blood vessels of a human body, or to be an eye-in-
the-sky in your scenes, it can be used to create
impossible perspectives, to zoom and pan and so much
more. It’s beyond the scope of this article to tell you
everything about cameras, but here are some basics to
get you started.
• First, it’s useful to look at some of the differences between 3D cameras and real life cameras. In 3D, unlike in real life, there is no need for a lens, focusing controls, film, aperture, etc. All of these functions are controlled via software. Where things are similar is how the camera is used. In 3D, you can create one or more cameras, position them exactly as desired in 3D space and use settings to mimic focal length, depth of field, etc. Other options for moving a 3D camera are similar to those in movie making, including truck, dolly, motion blur, orbit and pan.
• In addition, software cameras have no size or weight restrictions. You can move a camera to any location and even inside the tiniest objects. You can also animate cameras so that several operations take place at once, such as a zooming into a scene while changing the depth of field. Once you create a camera in 3D, you can pick a view and assign the view in that view to the camera, meaning that you will see the scene from the perspective of the camera.
Step 8 | Rendering
• This is where the graphics get ‘made’ and exported…but it’s not the end yet!!!
• Rendering an image is typically the last step in the 3D
production pipeline (but not the last step in the overall
production pipeline), and is perhaps the most important
part. It is a step often overlooked or glossed over by
beginners, who are more focused on creating models and
animating them.
• There are many aspects to creating a good final render of a
scene, including attention to camera placement, lighting
choices which may affect mood and shadows, reflections
and transparency, and the handling of special effects, like
fluids or gasses.
Step 9 | Compositing and Special FX
• The renders are brought into compositing programs to edit, touch-up and add on special effects.
• This is where the final renders are brought into compositing
programs to edit, touch-up and add on special effects. • Compositing includes everything from what your probably normally
think of as special effects, where things explode, evaporate, morph, etc. It also includes stage extensions (making the scene stage larger digitally in post production), to environment creation (anything from buildings to complete worlds), to blue/green screen replacement (shooting in-front of a blue or green screen and then replacing the background with digitally created footage or footage shot elsewhere). Basically, the art of taking live footage and blending it with computer generated footage would be considered compositing.
Step 10 | Music and Foley
• Music and foley (sound effects) are added to give the animation the extra depth and boost in audio enjoyment.
• A music composer will create music soundtracks and
accompaniment music to set the mood for the
animation.
• A foley artist ‘recreates’ sound effects for film,
television and radio productions. Using many different
kinds of shoes and lots of props – car fenders, plates,
glasses, chairs, and just about anything I find at the
side of the road – the Foley Artist can replace original
sound completely or augment existing sounds to create
a richer track.
Step 11 | Editing and Final Output
• This is where it ends!
This is where it all ends! This is where the
composited renders, music and foley are
compiled and edited to ensure that everything is
in synchronization. Once satisfied, the compiled
product is exported as one of the many formats
suitable for broadcasting standards and
delivered to the client!
Case Study
https://youtu.be/D0a0aNqTehM
Case study • The use of computer animation in marketing and
advertising is potent as a communications tool. Many companies are discovering that it is much more effective and powerful than the boring PowerPoint slides and mundane TV adverts that use only live actors. While it shares some characteristics of other visual mediums, it has unique attributes that no other marketing medium can equal.
• Let’s take a look at how you can tap into the capabilities of this great marketing tool by studying some true case studies of how some other companies have been doing it
Case Study: APMI Kaplan
APMI Kaplan – a quality educational facility – wanted to
showcase their brand new campus. However, in most
cases, reality is imperfect and live shoots usually amplifies
that imperfection. A 3D animation walkthrough helped to
create the experience of studying in Kaplan’s beautiful
environment, sans the imperfections. The educational
sector being a very competitive one, this extra presentation
effort immediately helps to establish Kaplan as the right
place to study.
http://vimeo.com/1857370
Case Study: Shark Energy Drink
http://vimeo.com/1767150
Field Catering wanted to bring across how their Shark
Energy drink can restore energy to the most exhausted
individual. Mediafreaks came up with a concept that
showed how Shark can power up an entire city. Sure it
is an exaggeration, but all TV adverts build on hype,
and 3D animation does that the best! The conventional
live TV adverts can never achieve this kind of effect.
The Shark Energy Drink TV advert was shown during
the New Year period to good response.
Case Study: Schering Plough Clarityne
http://vimeo.com/1765484
Schering Plough wanted a different approach towards
showcasing their Clarityne product – which helps curbs
nose allergy problems. Mediafreaks came up with an
animated TV commercial that discusses how allergens
bring about the allergy symptoms and how Clarityne can
help improve the quality of life. Again, if this was a ‘live-
actor’ advert, the result would be much more boring and
less effective. The graphics concept was also implemented
on buses as mobile giant ads.
Case Study: Pilot Pen V-Grip
• It’s tough to sell something as conventional and mundane as the humble pen. No matter how much technology has gone into it, unless the pen has been given a micro super-computer and can write on its own, a pen is still a pen. So how do you sell a pen? Check out this cheeky animated TV commercial of a family who finds so much fun using the new Pilot V-Grip that they prefer to pen their conversations to each other! Again, having the commercial done in 3D animated form brings out the fun and humour. A live advert just wouldn’t have done justice.
http://vimeo.com/1757974
Case Study: Linden Place
Linden Place is an up market residential property in
China. The TV commercial that the developers wanted to
produce should spoke to those who recognize class and
prestige. Wanting to steer away from the conventional
property commercials that are a dime a dozen, they
decided to go for a beautiful and realistic 3D animated
rendering of an exquisitely crafted plague that emits
elegance, prestige and exclusivity. To create the plaque in
real life was too expensive in comparison to a digital
representation, and Mediafreaks came to the rescue.
http://vimeo.com/1757739
Q & A