Secondary Action Squirrel Ball

The first of two exercises that deal with secondary action, this animation looks at the balls movement coupled with the subtle characterization of the tail as it bends and deforms. The timing works well as when the ball propels itself upwards, it braces itself with a nice element of squash and stretch before the following jump. The timing works when it lands two as the deformation on the texture of the ball leads to an illusion of impact.

The tail is secondary action, a principle of animation that is meant to be a subtle movement that doesn't detract from the overall story. In a sense, this is true as the story is the ball landing on the platform but in another sense, the tail does draw the eye away from the ball due to it's flowing and far more excessive movement. The tail almost acts like an arm as well as it  braces for impact by curling upwards as the ball becomes level with the platform. When the ball lands, the tail lowers itself and curls downwards again in order to settle back into it's original position. A fairly good height is reached on the ball and tail that makes the weight and jump more believable.

The tail adds characterization to the ball and definitely works in favour of the animation, giving it context and personality. Much like the second exercise the appendage adds to the emotion and feelings of the character and in a way personifies the inanimate object. One thing that doesn't work about this animation is the way that the tail twists at the end, making it appear broken. This could work in favour of the animation but I think that it ruins the end slightly and takes the viewer out of the mood. This issue could be resolved with better manipulation of the various joints in the tail and taking note of the rotation values in order to make the end and start tails the same.

Finally, this was a successful animation as the secondary action is clear and due to the progressing knowledge of the graph editor, well timed and believable. This principle will definitely come in handy when it comes to the final animation project of the semester. 

THIS ANIMATION USES A RIG CREATED BY JASON THEAKER AND REFERENCES ANIMATIONS ALREADY CREATED BY HIM AS PART OF A LEARNING EXPERIENCE. I DO NOT OWN OR CLAIM TO OWN IT'S CHARACTERS