One of my favorite animated dance pieces. Does an especially nice job of conveying the emotional state of the characters: entirely without facial expressions. Impressive!
WEEK 1
Step 1: Reference. Importance of proper reference. Select keys and breakdowns. Make drawings beside of line of action and balance. Think about exaggeration early
Step 2: Get the tempo. Animate simple bouncing ball to the beat. Remember to improve the dancers timing and accuracy. Creature: pawn animation; placement in time and space.
Step 3: The root. Feet in FK mode to make follow easier, snap to IK later. Exaggerate up and down. Careful attention to location and choreography Root is the overall facing of the torso, relates to what the feet/hips are doing. Watch for gimbal lock. Use primitive sphere as a guide.
WEEK 2
Step 4: The Torso. Curl, arch, twist and roll. Refine the root to improve line through body. Line of action, keys as guide. Hide the legs if you need to. Head/Neck next. Look for dramatic tilt and emphasis. The acting should be clear at this point.
WEEK 3
Step 5: The Footwork. Beware auto stretch and user defined channels! FK legs for leaps and extensions = better and easier arcs. Creature: pick the primary legs first (usually front) then secondary, then any middle legs
WEEK 4
Step 6: Arms and hands. IK for contacts, holds and interactions only. Elbows in shoulder space. Constraints and prop space hands. Who gets to drive? Snapping for simple contacts. The hands can say a lot: make it worth hearing.
WEEK 5
Step 7: Offset, overlap and drag. Secondary action as well. Facial performance (first pass) especially eye-line and brows.
WEEK 6
Step 8: First polishing. As per lecture. P.O.A. (path of action) and refining offset/overlap especially important. Facial performance (second pass)
WEEK 7
Step 9: Final polish. Pick the low hanging fruit first. Priority list of final details: finger nuances, eye-line tweaks.
