H+ Animator's Process 101: Designing Poses

When animating for a 3D Holographic display, such as the Holus, it's important to have a process and knowing what to plan for - just as with any animation you make, whether for film or gaming.

Once you have all the information and instructions from your supervisor, get down to it and draw, draw, draw! Draw out your main poses, and really stretch it out to the extreme. As one of my teachers taught me: go big with your poses - it's easier to tone down then to push further. And don't be afraid to act out your character! You really get a feel for them and their actions. My coworkers here probably don't notice, but I've made a decent amount of weird, contorted faces to really get into the character. No climbing on tables yet though - they're probably not ready for that.

The benefit of drawing out your poses is that you can seek out approval from your supervisor, instead of pouring in hours of work that could get scrapped, or revised, had you planned it out in the first place. This way, your supervisor knows what you're doing, and your foundation is solid. If there are any doubts along the process of your animation, you can always turn back to your poses.

And once you're done, you've completed the hard work! All that's left is to transfer from paper to computer: Copy poses, struggle with Maya, in-betweens, struggle with Maya, refining, struggle with Maya, polishing, (Ctrl+s), Maya crashing.

This has been my standard process here at Hplus: from angry polar bears, to logos in motion, or Woody dancing in the Magic Room - it works for me!

Also, don't forget to save. (Ctrl+s)

- Jordan Paler, 3D Animator