Feedback for a kick animation

CrisVaquero

Hello guys! I am working here on an animation of a woman being pushed and she counter attacking. I would welcome a feedback if you had a second for it! ( the attacker is not as polished yet, so I have decided to not show it for the moment). Here is a link to Syncsketch

https://syncsketch.com/sketch/22d641e91f5b/#479384

Thank you very much!

BoonS

I think one of the things you can look into is the motion path/trajectory function of the software you're using. Unless you plan to do a slow-mo shot of the kick in mid air, it'd be best to remove what looks like the pose locking in place half-way through the kick. I'd just turn on motion paths and smooth/balance out the control points in the curve editor, until the nodes are distributed properly on the motion path (and when the animation looks decent at normal and slow speeds.)

I'd also advise:
-exaggerating the force of the character being pushed back to match the exaggerated style of the character
-and posing in more anticipation/weight shifting before the character enters the prepare-to-kick animation.

hope that helps.

CrisVaquero

Thank you very much for the feedback! I will try to apply it as soon as I can. I have a couple of questions, if you don´t mind answering me :
-What do you think it could be useful to make the kick more "powerful"? I think the poses are more or less good but I just don´t get the timing right. 

-When you mean the exaggerated style, you mean how the character is modelled?

Thank you again for your time, it is very much appreciatted ! 

BoonS

np, in making the kick more powerful, I mentioned before that it'd help to not have to foot slow down halfway through its swing; that's just a matter of adjusting the keyframe/control points in the curve editor. From that point, additional emphasis of power will have to rely on secondary assets (since I think your poses are decent too). Like the effect the kick will have on the opponent, the way the camera reacts to the kick, and maybe even some particles flying from the impact if you want to take the extra step.

Yep, since the character is modeled in a cartoony style the viewer will expect at least some cartoony exaggeration. If you were working with a realistic character, it would make sense to keep some of the motions more constrained, but you don't really have a reason to do so in this case.

CrisVaquero

Hello! I am back with a new work in progress. I have tried to apply the feedback as good as I have been able to, and here is the new result in the link: 
https://syncsketch.com/sketch/22d641e91f5b/#486286

I liked the idea of the particles but I have no idea of how to implement it yet, so I focused on the timing/exxageration problems that I had. I hope you are not tired of giving me feedback! 

BoonS

Yeah particles are just an example of an extra step, pursuing your core animation skills are worthwhile alone. From this point, I think the technique that would benefit you the most is getting used to making your own video references. I'm not enough of a dedicated animator give you the solutions to the following problems, but I know they're problems that can be quickly fixed with video reference:

-The unnaturally weighted turn at frame 30-35
-The unnatural landing/resolution at 65
-And if you're up to it, a much more dramatic emphasis of expression and motion when the character is pushed at 10-20

For me, figuring out a setup to make vid references (usually with a phone/camera) was pretty much the last big hurdle in figuring out how to analyze my own work outside of slowing play speeds and youtube clips. With that you'd be much more in tune with your character movements, and you'd also be able to rely less on the sporadic whims of fourm posters. Good luck, and I would also highly recommend moving onwards to another animation if you're only getting diminish returns from polishing the same one; escape the tunnel vision of watching the same animation for the 1000th time when you can.

CristinaVaquero

You are right, next time I will use an actual videoreference ( I used a variety of footage but not of my own). I have to say your whims were pretty much useful, and I am really glad you helped me on this . After touching it a bit more, I have decided to move with another animation, as the tree was not letting me see the forest. In case you want to see the final result I am going to let you here a link so you can get a little peek: 



Thank you very muuch!

brucemoose

A good practice for realistic animation is to do a channel pass. Starting with your ty.

So go into your graph editor and make the ty as responsive and as accurate as you can to what you want to accomplish. Focus on wieght and believability. Same for your rotates and any offsets you have on joints if it's in fk.

Robert_Lamp

Hahahah, that is girl - looks funny)

CrisVaquero

Thank you!

dondrapichrust

Hey, Im not a pro (yet) but dropped some remarks in syncketch, maybe you will find them usefull
are you using some reference shot for this?

CrisVaquero

That is a very good feedback! Thank you very much

I was using some youtube footage, so I did not film it myself. In some previous feedback @brucemoose told me to do the videos myself, and that is what I am going to start doin from now on.