Mike Feil - Ring - Critique

Hey,

looks really good!

A few little things that caught my eye:

- during the first 34 frames the screen left hand feels super sticky, especially with the arm bending and moving around. I would add some ambient movement to the hand

- the ring drops a bit too nicely. I would have it land a bit on one side and then roll in place for a tiny bit

- the hand going off the table after around x220 feels a bit forced. It looks like it's moving in a straight line (height wise) up to around x236, then down. I would lower the hand throughout, so it flattens

- then I would have it swing and be a bit delayed compared to the other arm when they both go up around x271; right now the right hand goes down and then immediately up with the other arm at the same time

- from x365 to 382 the wrists feel very locked as he pulls the back towards him. When the forearm rotation changes, it should also affect the wrist and during the initial pull as well

- same thing during the lift, up to around x431.

Coming along nicely, keep going!

Cheers

JD

Mike Feil - Ring - Critique

[There was a question about how I approach the refining stage of a shot.]

Usually I go by chunks. I attack the first 50 frames or a section within the shot. Bit by bit and go through all the elements, root first, then chest, , then hips/legs, then head/arms, then face and fingers and detail stuff. Of course that order can change a bit depending on the style and content, but that's usually how I go about things.
Happy accidents can happen but I wouldn't rely on them. :)
I also get back to the basic blocking movie so that I don't loose the essence of the timing. Sometimes during polish you can get lost in the graph editor and worry about nice curves too much and then suddenly all the timing is different. Curves don't have to be all nice, it just has to look alright within the camera (without crazy cheating of course).

It's good that you changed the camera for the ring, but I would actually go even higher so we can see the surface of the table. Right now it's super flat towards camera and it's a weird perspective having the table legs in perspective yet the table is flat. :)
The camera push in is so subtle, I actually don't think it's needed because it is barely moving forward. What's your intention with that move?

Anim wise it's going in the right direction! For your next revision I would take a pass on all the pauses where your poses change. There are a lot of linear key moments where the movements suddenly stop and continue. So think about the ease ins/outs and the arcs of the root, arms, etc.
I would also look at the eyebrows a bit more. There are some moments where you could add some complexity to it. For instance during the sigh, and when he picks up the box and walks away. There could be some physical strain and other thought processes driving the brows during those sections.
The silhouette for the hand when he takes off the ring is good! Speaking of hands, as you continue with the breakdowns, start to add a few more poses so that they don't look like IK hands, sticking in space. For instance when he pulls the box towards him around x325 to x320 the wrists are pretty much locked even though his arms are pulling.

Hope that helps!
Cheers
JD

Mike Feil - Ring - Critique

Hey,

[there was a question about constraints]

What I would think about is what is going to be the driver. The character or the piece the character is interacting with it. I remember hearing this analysis through A Bug's Life (DVD or something, don't remember), where a tiny bug would hold a match. Since the match is heavier the bug's arms were constrained to the match and the match was driving the arms. But if a heavy set guy is holding a feather, then the feather is constrained to the hand and the guy is driving the feather. Hope that makes sense. :)

Your clip looks good already, it's all very clear. I would maybe bring up the camera a tiny bit since we loose the ring once it's on the table. What would you think about having the guy do something with the ring at the end. Maybe he comes back and takes the ring with him since he can't let go of it right now? Just throwing out ideas.
I like the walk out, it's going to be funny to have the guy's root not go up and down that much. You know when you carry something really heavy you hurry and take lots of tiny steps? :)

One thing to think about, not that it bothered me, but when he takes off the ring (please include a frame counter - using the quicktime fc it's on x98) the silhouette could be a bit clearer. The ring is right in front of the screen right upper arm and the hand/fingers and right in front of the forearm. Maybe have it happening more screen left or screen right, but either way with the hands to the side of the body and not in front of arms. Since you have room and him taking off the ring is a story point in the clip, might as well make that super clear.

Hope that helps, keep going!

Cheers
JD