Character Movement:

In the first lesson on center of gravity we showed how when a character is standing still – an imaginary line runs vertically through to the feet. (fig. 1)

Fig-1a.jpg

Because they are standing with their weight equal on their two feet, the character is centered or balanced on those two feet.

When a character moves they will try to stay balanced. If they lift a leg they will shift their weight over the center of gravity to compensate or counter-balance for the movement. Sometimes an arm or leg or both will be used to counter-balance the movement and weight shift. (fig. 2 and 3)

Fif-2a.jpg

Fig-3a.jpg

Unless you want the character to fall then it has to be balanced (as in a stumble or walk or run).

Again, when a character moves it will try to stay balanced. Say the character jumps…

…their center of gravity becomes their path of action (the arc they follow). (fig. 4)

Fig-4a.jpg

Here, the weight of the character is centered on the arc. Obviously, this center point of the character will vary depending on the proportions and weight distribution of the character. (fig. 5)

Fig-5a.jpg

If the character does a somersault or flip…these movements will have their weight centered on the arc (or path of action). If the character is centered some where else …or instance the head then the movement will look unnatural. (fig. 6)

Fig-6a.jpg

Here is another example…a favorite animation exercise of mine…the Tarzan assignment (fig. 7).This exercise involves an anticipation (or antic) and jump, antic and grab, a swing across, a delayed action, a fall and the action/reaction and recovery of the landing.

Each movement follows an arc (or path of action) with the weight centered for natural movement.

TARZAN-plan.jpg

To Review:

1. Center the character’s weight – on balance(except on certain movements where you want the character off balance).

2. When a character shifts weight – they will try to counter-balance themselves with an arm or leg or both to maintain balance.

3. During movement the character’s weight should stay centered along the arc (or path of action).

4. If you don’t center the weight the movement will seem contrived and unnatural.

One of my favorite activities is a beach walk on Tybee Island…especially during the “SHOW”.

Here is this morning’s sunrise on Tybee Island beach- known year’s ago as Savannah Beach

The Show is that time at sunrise that extends to an hour or so after sunrise… when the light is magical. The light changes everyday at the beach. This morning the clouds began as puffy Monet-ish type cotton balls in the sky. By the time we arrived at the beach, the clouds had filled in and the light was a bit more diffused.

Everyday seems to be a lesson for artists (and animators) on mood and lighting. The scene is idyllic and inspiring. Artistically, this is one of the ways I feed myself

Savannah is the largest port in the South. Its great to see the ships enter the entrance to the Savannah River

This is the South Beach of Tybee Island where the pier and the pavilion are located. Except for the weekends, the season for tourists has not yet arrived. During the weekdays, the beaches are pretty much deserted – that’s when the locals take advantage of the calm, quiet and even healing nature of the beaches.

It is a really natural, unspoiled beach with sea oats and beach houses…

Well…back to the board!!!!

The Saint Patrick’s Day festival brought in over 400,000 “visitors” to Savannah. Included in their numbers were a niece and her three friends from Charlotte, NC. and a nephew and his girlfriend from Melbourne, FL. Our place was packed. Everyone had a great time and it is always was nice to see family!

Also, many former students flew in for the festivities. Among were three from Los Angeles and a bunch from Atlanta.

Nine of us had a perfect lunch at A.J.’s Dockside on Tybee Island – the day was pristine with clear sunny skies. The conversations were many and lively - they ranged from talk about curriculum to productions to art to just general ribbing and fun topics. It always makes me feel warm inside when former students do well. We talked about their past experiences at school and how determined they were as students – it is easily see why they are doing so well now.

The entire group at A.J.’s

Of the eight - four are working as animators: Rob Miller, Kevin Williams, Eric Cerda and Alex Manesa. It was a real treat for my wife and me to spend time with them all.

Robyn Holstein, Missy Feaster, Charlie Roode, and Chris Grim are young in the industry or are graduating this term.

By Monday, everyone was gone – headed back to work or school. Monday night, Glenn and Eleanor Vilppu dropped by for a visit. Glenn, the master artist had been teaching at Ringling in Sarasota for a week. Now they were headed to Provence area of France to teach for SCAD in Lacoste.

Tricia and Eleanor explore Tybee Island’s North beach

This is Glenn Vilppu on location from one his other visits at Hunting Island

On Wednesday, we all headed to the beach- the wives indulged us by taking a walk on the beach so Glenn and I could have a painting expedition. We had an hour or so to do art. As always, painting with Glenn is an amazing experience! His work is really incredible and I learn more and more every minute I spend with him.

We took out our paints and went to it….this my oil sketch on location with the blown sand mixed in

The final of the lighthouse at Tybee Island

On Thursday, I finished my first real oil painting - a still life I had set-up and painted on the back porch.

Here is the under paint for my first finished oil painting

The finished work

And finally – this week I sketched out a ruff layout for a project in development.

My ruff layout sketch for an upcoming project.

So it was a very diverse, wonderful and progressive week….oh and there’s the next lesson – part 2 of the center of gravity…almost finished that one, too.

Still Animated!

This is a pencil test from mister bagley - a blog based series I am playing with….

The premise is always the same…mister bagley is walking along and then he stops and takes something out of his bag…it could be an everyday item
or it might be totally outrageous. We will see…

With the approach of St. Patrick’s Day, it always takes me back to the many very fine memories I have about our time living and working in Ireland.

Lucan Village…St. Paddy’s being celebrated by the locals.

As our 747 descended into Shannon Airport the country was a gray blank…and then, at about 1000 feet we dropped through the mist to see the most amazing values of green ever. That first sight of Ireland took our breath away.

Just three weeks earlier we were out in L.A. visiting our friend, June Foray (the voice of Rocky the flying squirrel, Natasha – and 100’s of other characters). We thought we were going to Ireland, but now, I was out looking for a job.

We had sold our house and its contents, given away our cars, and were primed to travel to Dublin  - so I could direct a popular TV series. A former employee, BG artist, Mike Lowery was already working for them. It was at least a six month stint with the possibility for more.

We were up for an adventure!

But then, at the last minute, a change in distribution deals had altered everything - most of all… the course of our lives. An E.U. program would give funds if the major participants were from the E.U.- that, included the director of the series.

Here we were essentially homeless (though we did have the money from the house) and jobless.

We decided to travel to L.A. and “chat” with the “mother” animation company and while there,  take the kids on their first trip to a Disney theme park. The “mother” company just stonewalled me for 2 hours. When they first contacted me about working overseas, I had asked for a contract. “No, that wouldn’t be necessary, they assured me, we do this all the time”. At the time, I had no reason to doubt – like I said, Mike Lowery was over there having the time of his life.

The kids really enjoyed Disneyland!

“What next?”

We rented a car and drove out to see June. The kids could enjoy her pool and we could visit and maybe even obtain some leads for jobs. We told her our story about the “mother” company and Ireland, etc., etc.

When we mentioned Ireland June perked up. “Well, you know Dave Brain, a then Disney TV animation director, was working in Ireland with an animation school”. She insisted we give him a call to see if there was still a chance of a job over there. Now, it was probably around 5:00 pm Pacific time- add three  additional hours to the East Coast time zone…and, an additional 5 hours  to the time for the hop over the pond- that made  it about 1:00 am in the morning in Dublin. Amazingly, Dave answered the phone! We spoke for a couple of minutes…I had met Dave through ASIFA Hollywood almost 16 years ago…and he remembered me.

Then, he said the most  amazing thing, “I am leaving here in three weeks and Disney doesn’t have anyone to replace me. How would you like to teach?”

I had always taught part-time, my way of giving back to the people and industry that had helped me so much. I also trained all the folks who animated with me at my studio- teaching was a natural for me.

So…I said, “Yes”.

There was only one hitch; the school’s head of the Design Department (which presided over the animation course of study) was on vacation on the Aran Islands. You see, the Aran Islands have no phones- or electricity.

We thought, okay, we will go to Ireland for a month’s vacation and if something didn’t pan out we would return to the States and really scour L.A. for a job.

Back then, all flights flew to Shannon then on to Dublin.

We landed in Dublin with me, my wife, our three children and 7 duffle bags FULL of clothes, favorite toys, and other stuff.

Our adventure had begun!

The Laurias and Brains pose in downtown Dublin- the Dave and his daughter Meggan are on the right

Dave was kind enough to let us move in with him and his family. He showed us the ins and outs of life in Ireland.

Before he returned to the States, Dave asked me to call Des Fahey, a friend from the IDA (Irish Development Authority) to tell him “goodbye and thank you” for all his support.

The very next day, we decided to buy a one day family rail pass and travel the length of the Dart system, a distance of almost 40 miles. We began in Dublin and traveled south to Bray in County Wicklow…climbed Brayhead and then hopped back on the train and traveled north to the Isle of Howth. While on the train we heard a conversation in American- actually it was a Texas drawl. He was having an animated discussion with a bearded Irish fellow in the next seat. We engaged them in a chat. When we explained why we were here and that I was an animator, the bearded Irish fellow said, “Are you Larry Lauria?” We sat there stunned- as fortune would have it- that bearded Irish fellow was Des Fahey! Ireland is just like that…

In Ireland stonewalls are everywhere- lots of rocks- even during our visit to Howth

Ireland was a perfect place for animation! They have a disproportionate number of artists compared to the size of the population. Being a poor country – drawing, playing an instrument and singing were cheap pastimes. Plus the fact that it took hundreds of people to work on an animated films… and with the Irish there was no language barrier. The country struggled with a 33% unemployment rate- needless to say folks needed work and the IDA offered many incentives. All the major studios were looking at the possibility of setting up there. The Gulf War changed that a bit – but until then it was on course to become a major player in the industry.

I did get the job at Dun Loaghaire (said dun Leara) college of Art and Design. Taught some really wonderful students there. (still another story)

the Dun Laoghaire coast - thats the Martello tower where Joyce wrote his epic Ulysses

One day our kids awoke to some commotion in the back garden. A curious cow was peering into our backyard. It turns out the small field behind our house belonged to a farmer who brought his cows there to calf.

The next year, I moved to Senior College Ballyfermot to head up and help teach their Classical Animation Program. This program had a strong relationship with the Don Bluth Studio in Dublin and Sheridan College in Oakville, Canada.

The program was REALLY intense and the students were mostly from Ireland and other countries in the E.U. - we only selected the top 5% from all the portfolios submitted. It was a great experience!

Along the way we moved three times…from Foxrock to Lucan to Ballyowen (another section of Lucan).

A snowy scene of the Village of Lucan (where we lived for 4 years)

The weir at Lucan on the River Liffey…that smoke is from turf warming the houses

The girls learned to ride horses, our son learned to skateboard. He also joined the Irish Boy Scouts – which took regular “smoke” breaks during meetings.

The hunter-jumpers (and cross country) atop their steeds

Matt takes a jump at the Lucan Rec Center

We had plenty of “family” time and plenty of “couple time”, too. The bus, rail and ferry systems allowed us to travel without the need of a car (for 5 years). We walked everywhere! We became fit - and were no longer “mushy Americans”

We lived simple lives. I would walk to work (1.5 miles each way). Because of our tiny frig, I stopped on the way home each day to shop for dinner. The food was fresh and from all over the world. We began a collection of stickers with lemons from Israel, Kiwi’s from New Zealand, etc.

The Irish say,” …they work to live- not live to work!”

Some of my professional highlights included:

I persuaded Chuck Jones and his wife Mariam to visit us a Senior College and to participate in the Dublin Film Festival (another story, another time).

Chuck Jones visits the students at Senior College Ballyfermot in Dublin

My wife and I were guests of the Cinemagic Festival in Belfast and Derry, Northern Ireland for several years.

We worked with the Northern Ireland Film Council to create and direct ANIMAGIC- an innovative North/South film project about Cultural Heritage (32 students, 16 from the North. and 16 from the South participated (another story).

I attended the animation festival in Annecy- twice…found it to be one of my favorite places in the world. I also attended the Cardiff Animation festival in Wales- where I ran to an old professor, Bill Moritz.

The Ballyfermot school became one the best animation schools in the world. We were visited by Irish President Mary Robinson, the Prime Minister Albert Reynolds, even the President of Hungary and of course every major studio in the States and the E.U..

I worked for and with some VERY wonderful and talented people!

The Irish truly are the friendliest people on the Earth.

We got to see the U.S. from the “other side of the pond” – an eye opening experience.

We lived there during the Gulf War. We weren’t glued to the TV like folks in the States- it was just another news item.

At the time, there were 3 million in the South and 5 million on the entire Island…and there were 54 million Irish-Americans in the U.S.

Back then, Ireland was the poorest country in the E.U. - now they are the most prosperous in the E.U.

In 1995 – when we left the South of Ireland, it was pretty much 100% Irish – except for a few African-American basketball players in the premiere Budweiser league…and of course - one American animator teacher. Now 10% of the country is Chinese- plus they have need for 45,000 new service workers every year (mostly from Eastern Europe and Nigeria).

The Irish have a wonderful fascination with words- especially the “f-bomb” Colin Farrell, Bono, Daniel Day Lewis- you’ve heard them - they are all from Ireland. There, the “f-word” can be used as noun, pronoun, adjective, verb, adverb, and direct object – sometimes all in the same sentence.

I was a member of Cartoon Ireland for three years and an advisor to the Irish Film Board

And, I was all-Ireland shortstop or third basemen for the Irish Softball/Baseball Association, 3 years in a row- this while playing in my 40’s (another story). Heck, when I got to Disney and wanted to play - they wouldn’t even allow me on the field.

The kids atop Bray Head looking north towards, Dakey and Dublin

Oh, by the way that adventure began in 1990 – it still hasn’t ended

ALWAYS ANIMATED.

This is a small snipit of a pencil test from Crossing the Line.

If this works then I can upload videos, animation and other cool stuff!!!

I shot this test with my webcam pointed at my animation disc using FLIPBOOK by Digicel

SOOOOOOOOooooooooooo easy!

Okay, I promised a maquette lesson so here it is…

Squash McStretch in maquette form

First, let’s begin with the materials – they include: wire, Super Sculpey (1 package), a plaque (for a base), 2 wood screws (and a screw driver), Propoxy (lead based), rubber cement thinner, Q-tips, light gray acrylic paint (no enamel), aluminum foil and sculpting tools.

Some notes about these materials:

The wire should be pliable and not too thick.

The plaque or base can be found at Wal-Mart, Michael’s or in the craft section of hobby and art stores.

The Propoxy should be used with rubber gloves, It looks like a Tootsie Roll…once mixed you have about 20 minutes until it hardens. Some folks use this product to adhere joints and /or to make pad forms for the hands and feet.

The rubber cement thinner and Q-tips are used to smooth the Sculpey- before it is baked. This is optional! The same smoothness can be had by smoothing using just your fingers.

The aluminum foil is to cover large areas like the chest area to lessen the weight on the character’s legs and feet.

Let’s use this mouse as an example.

The mouse broken down into simple forms

Design your character (6-8 inches in height) in 2D forms on paper - this will help you solve any design problems and offers the added challenge of meeting established proportions.

The first step is to build an armature. Begin with making a “U” shaped feet (for wood screws). Begin with one “U” shaped foot; work up the leg to the hip across to the other hip and down to the other “U” shaped foot. From here you have options, you can cut the wire and go to the middle of the hips and begin the spine…or wrap the wire tightly around leg and work your way to the spine. If you decide to cut the wire – you will have use Propoxy to adhere the wire to the spine.

Here’s a drawing of how an armature might be constructed.

Remember, pay special attention to the proportions. If you have trouble “eyeing” the proportions then use a caliber, or a pencil or paintbrush or even a ruler to measure.

From the middle of the hips work up the spine to the neck, continue upward to create a basic sphere or oval shape for the head and then work the wire back down the neck to where the shoulders will be located - from here you can create a chest cavity or just cut the wire and form the chest cavity and adhere it with Propoxy.

Now you can fashion the arms and the pads for the hands and then use the Propoxy to adhere them.

Cover any of the character’s large areas (could be the head, chest, butt or stomach) with aluminum foil. It will save on the weight and the stress on the character.

Once you have the armature completed – screw the character onto the base. Pose the character in the final position. By working on the base it will keep you from flattening your character,

Now begin applying the Sculpey over the armature and the other forms. As you work with the Sculpey, it will become soft. When this happens, take a break and place your character in the refrigerator for 5 or 10 minutes….and then you can continue sculpting the character.

Some folks like to create the body- bake it, and then place the clothes over top. Others continue “straight” ahead create the body and then the clothes and then bake it. Either way works!

Remember to smooth before you bake! If you use the rubber cement thinner and Q-tips - keep in mind you are essentially melting the Sculpey.

Preheat the oven (check the Sculpey box for details)

Moisten the base with a very damp washcloth- just make sure it won’t crack or split during the baking process.

COVER ALL DELICATE OR THIN AREAS WITH LITTLE TENTS OF ALUMINUM FOIL!!! Areas like the hands, noses, snouts, ears, hair, thin cloth- all need to be covered or they will be burned.

DO NOT USE A MICROWAVE!

Once the character is in the oven, check it from time to time. For best results when the baking is completed, turn the oven off and allow the character to cool in the oven. This step helps avoid the cracking of the ankles in the Sculpey. Sculpey is pliable when warm so if it’s jostled, cracking can occur. Turn off the oven go for a 10 minute walk or watch the news- then remove the cool character from the oven.

There you have it. You can leave the character the natural color, or paint it a light blue or light gray. Since these maquettes are 3D references it makes sense to keep them light so you can see the proportions and details.

a close up of Squash’e BIG nose

Have fun!