From Base Frame To Full Animation

by Stern

Introduction

A solid method of moving base frames forward towards full animation and a compilation of quick and easy tricks to help bring the animator's creations to life.

Learn how to take a standing base frame:

To full animation:

The magic of animation is "capturing" how your character moves and reacts through a series of frames. To animate well, we must learn about a concept called...

The Network

One of the most important concepts of animation is that of the "network." Your character is comprised of a "network" of many parts which are all hooked together. In theory, when your character swings a sword, the entire rest of the character must move in response. (For more information upon the "network" idea and other powerful concepts, check out Jetrel's Basic Animation Tutorial: http://wiki.wesnoth.org/Basic_Animation_Tutorial).

Example

To illustrate a "network" in a character, below is a base frame of my Goblin Trumpeter and an edited version.

Green: Core
Red: Joints
Bones: Blue

It is valuable to understand the linkages within the anatomy of your character. The position of each of the Goblin Trumpeter's joints are dependent upon the character's core. By animating the core and head of the Goblin Trumpeter first, it was simple to imagine where the feet and knee joints would be placed to support him throughout his attack. Also, determining the swing of the Goblin Trumpeter's spear early on simplified the placing of his elbows and hands. In conclusion, by utilizing the "network" concept we can bring our creations to life.

Animation Methodology

To make an animated character, you will need:

A base frame of the character -> (http://wiki.wesnoth.org/Creating_a_scratch_built_sprite)

A graphics editing program -> http://www.gimp.org/

Blocking

"Blocking" is a method of pre-animation which allows you to quickly draw your character's motions with minimal rework. By dividing the character's moving parts into distinguishable colors, you can simulate and adjust the full movement of your character without spending time re-doing tiny details. For example, I have modified Zerovirus's base frame of the Ghast into distinguishable colors based on the monster's different limbs.

Animation Script

Just like any good blockbuster movie, your character should have a written script or description of what it will be doing throughout its frames. By writing a brief description of what you want the character to do in each of his frames, you create a logical series of actions for a convincing animation. Another helpful tip is to draw a rough draft of the animation with stick figures to show how you want your character to move. By drawing stick figures ahead of time, you are actually "mapping" out the "network" of your character in preparation for animation.

Example

A script for my Goblin Trumpeter's attack animation and corresponding blocking frames.

Base Frame: Character is at rest.

Frame 1: Character is charging up for the attack, Begins to raise spear and begins shifting bodyweight backwards.

Frame 2: Character is fully charged up for the attack. Bodyweight is fully shifted back and spear is fully raised.

Frame 3: Character initiates attack. Lowers spear while bringing body weight forward.

Frame 4: Character is in full swing. Spear impacts target.

Frame 5: Character follows through, Weapon reaches full extention. Ends in a "lunge" stance.

Frame 6: Character pauses to regain balance. Withdraws spear.

Frame 7: Character regains balance and steps back to rest position.

By using the stick figure drawings and following the written script, I created the finished blocking animation of the Goblin Trumpeter. Through the iterative process of moving the character's core and all of the corresponding joints frame by frame, little by little, you will soon have the blocking for a full animation.

Fine Tuning

To finely tune the blocking animation, continually observe the effects that your changes have upon the entire blocking animation. It is a good idea to be on the look out for the animation issues discussed in Jetryl's Basic Animation Tutorial: http://wiki.wesnoth.org/Basic_Animation_Tutorial.

Moving only the active element
Misaligned frames
Hidden and turned surfaces not redrawn

For feedback from the Wesnoth Community it is valuable to discuss the development of your animation via the Wesnoth Art Workshop: http://forums.wesnoth.org/viewforum.php?f=23&sid=a976661f1c0a02092e50c643980d7eb0.

Character Coloring

If you are happy with how the movement of your character is throughout your "blocking" animation, it is time to finish by coloring your character.

My preferred method of coloring a character is to trace an outline around each of the character's moving parts frame by frame while applying an appropiate base color. Here is an example with a blocking frame from the Ghast's walking animation.