Introduction

This blog post is about design in animation and VFX. Everything on screen in animation is designed to some degree.

Kit-bashing or realistic modelling

The technique of kit-bashing to create real world models has been used for 50 years in film. Air-Fix model kits and other similar hobby kits are combined to create in-universe objects for the film (things like spaceships) that can be animated in a stop-motion style.

This technique was famously used in Star Wars to create the spaceships and vehicles (Onkenhout, 2022). In this image, you can see that the millennium falcon’s cockpit was kit-bashed using parts from a world war II bomber.

Photogrammetry

Photogrammetry can be used for re-creating real-world objects in 3D quickly and cheaply. Many reference photographs of a real-world object are taken and compiled to be used as a data set for generating a “point cloud” with a computer which uses the same points on an object and lines them up to understand how the object is formed in 3D space.

In this image, an actor, Norman Reedus, is being photographed for his face to be re-created in 3D for the video game Death Stranding (Shaver, 2017).

Here you can see his face in the final product.

Stylization

In animation, the term “stylized” is used to mean non-realistic. Every animator and artist has their own style which represents real things in a cartoonish or particularly emblematic way – exaggerating colours and features.

For example, The Simpsons portrays a family of human beings, but their skin is yellow, and their heads are shaped differently to normal human heads and their eyes are large round circles. This is because the TV show has its own style, which can be used to create comedy and cartoons out of real-world concepts.

You could describe The Simpsons’ main concept and it could be a live action sitcom just as much as it is an animated show:

“A family named the Simpsons lives in a satirised American town named Springfield. Homer Simpson is the dim-witted (comedic relief) father, Marge is a caring and typically-American mother with Christian values, Bart is their mischievous young son, Lisa is their intelligent daughter and Maggie is their baby, who knows more about the world than she lets on.”

Character Design

Primitive 3D and basic 2D shapes are often used in character design. This image shows this:

Proportions are the set ratio of how big body parts on a character are in relation to each other. For example, the average human is 7-8 times as tall in height as the length of their head from the top to the chin.

Conclusion

Over all, researching design in animation has been a good reminder of some techniques and prominent methods to use in my own work, as well as being familiar with industry standard techniques.

References

Onkenhout, E. (2022, May 4). Kitbashing: What Is It And How Did It Impact ‘Star Wars’ – CultureSlate. Retrieved from CultureSlate: https://www.cultureslate.com/news/kitbashing-what-is-it-and-how-did-it-impact-star-wars

Shaver, M. (2017, May 16). Kojima Talks Photogrammetry in Death Stranding | AllGamers. Retrieved from AllGamers: https://ag.hyperxgaming.com/article/2256/kojima-talks-photogrammetry-in-death-stranding#:~:text=%E2%80%9CDeath%20Stranding%20uses%20Photogrammetry%20scans,rebuilt%20in%20the%20game%20engine.