Now that you’ve worked through the three actions, I’d like to point out a few things. The first is the complexity of the actual scene file. I’ve stripped this scene down to its basic components in order to render and update the shot more efficiently. There are minimal props, and the character still remains in the lowest detail possible. These items don’t affect the current state of the animation and enable me to quickly render the scene for viewing.

Second, I’m working fairly quickly as I place the character in each position. The resulting poses will require some modifications and I should have plenty of time to include further detail during the refinement stage. I’m mainly interested in communicating my intentions for the scene and generating enough information to show the character’s emotions.

Third, I’m not paying too much attention to the curves these key frames are creating. With the exception of a few minor tweaks to avoid slipping, I rarely open the editor and adjust the values. I’m concentrating on modifying timings in the dope sheet and relying on the perspective, front, side and top camera views.

When your shots clearly show all the elements given to you during turnover, the director, supervisor, or lead will begin to see your work. It is here that the changes begin. This is a common part of production and one that all artists and animators must expect. If you’ve approached your shots as described in this chapter, you should be in a position to make changes quickly. There will definitely be times when entire shots need to be re-worked. Often this occurs after you have just saved what you thought was the final version. Understanding that change is likely and keeping your scenes well organized will allow you to easily address both minor and major changes in direction.

Author and series editor, Kyle Clark (left), and series editor Mike Ford (right).

Series editor Kyle Clark is a lead animator at Microsoft’s Digital Anvil Studios and co-founder of Animation Foundation. He majored in film, video and computer animation at USC and has since worked on a number of feature, commercial and game projects. He has also taught at various schools, including San Francisco Academy of Art College, San Francisco State University, UCLA School of Design and Texas A&M University.

Series editor and author Michael Ford is a senior technical animator at Sony Pictures Imageworks and co-founder of Animation Foundation. A graduate of UCLA’s School of Design, he has since worked on numerous feature and commercial projects at ILM, Centropolis FX and Digital Magic. He has lectured at the UCLA School of Design, USC, DeAnza College and San Francisco Academy of Art College.