Character Animation Showreel

[narfnarf]

Hi guys, check out my showreel, I'm a 3D animator who loves animating characters. I work freelance. Contact me if interested. Thanks

F

Showreel - Fran Power - Summer 2009 on Vimeo

NARFNARF, 3D ANIMATION, Dublin, Freelance

[Dana_1991]

Realy nice work Dude :) I'm newbie to 3d can you please tell me what softwares you used to create those animations?and how long did it take you learn to create such animations?
Thanks

[narfnarf]

Hi Dana, thanks for the comment. I used 3dsmax mainly which I learned in college, also some Maya and XSI. 3 minutes of animation usually takes between 6 months and 1 year. It depends how much detail is needed. Detail = more time

[Dana_1991]

6 month to 1 year to study 3max?
Thanks :)

[Dana_1991]

how long did it take to learn to create things like that?

[narfnarf]

No, it took me 4 years in college studying animation and learning 3dsmax.

For a project like a three minute film it takes one year working every day.

You need to study animation in College for at least 3 years doing 3dsmax, Maya or XSI. Its lots and lots of work and patience needed

[Dana_1991]

thank you :) again realy nice work.
do u think its possible to become a professional without studing it in collage ?

[narfnarf]

Yes if you are taught by someone who is a working professional animator. Some studios in major cities sometimes take on students for work experience. You can learn more from being an apprentice sometimes. It depends on the individuals artistic and technical skills.

My advice would be try to get onto a course in a college or on Animation Mentor.
A great book for studying animation techniques and skills is "The Animators Survival kit" by Richard Williams. Its full of great advice.

Also draw alot with pencil and paper.

[Dana_1991]

thank you very much for your help and good luck :)

[Wallfish]

is that your rig or biped????
and yeah showreel is very good...
i'm working on one. well thats why i watched yours more than 30 time....
he he he....

[narfnarf]

Originally Posted by Karan_Games

is that your rig or biped????
and yeah showreel is very good...
i'm working on one. well thats why i watched yours more than 30 time....
he he he....

Some of characters are biped rigs but most of them are just my own rigs with 3dsmax bones

[Wallfish]

can you suggest me a good and easy way to learn rigging....????
thanks..

[narfnarf]

Originally Posted by Karan_Games

can you suggest me a good and easy way to learn rigging....????
thanks..

Create a thin or norrnal body shape for a character, fat body shapes are a lot more work. A simple children's TV type character is good place to start. The rigging tutorial in 3dsmax help section is ok, but makes things a little over complicated when it comes to the spine bones.

Try some tutorials here:

Area : Home

louis marcoux - 3ds Max Tips & Tricks

Ben Mathis - tutorials

Also there are a lot of good books for 3dsmax users, 3D World Magazine reviews new 3D learning books every month, try there too.

There are no really 'easy' ways to learn rigging in any 3D program. It always takes a lot of time, practice and testing for errors.

Good luck!

[Wallfish]

check this - character animation thread.
Well i made alot of rigs but treing to make it as simple as possible.
And i only make use of IK Limb.
Do you think i need to use anything else than that......

[narfnarf]

Originally Posted by Karan_Games

check this - character animation thread.
Well i made alot of rigs but treing to make it as simple as possible.
And i only make use of IK Limb.
Do you think i need to use anything else than that......

That rig should be ok, but forget about the matrix and make the character do a walk cycle, lift some weight, run etc. You will learn more about animation doing these things. Also, if you have a digital camera, film yourself as reference doing some actions, and watch it frame by frame on your computer to understand how bodies move. You can even apply the video to a background plane in 3dsmax and copy the keyframes and poses with your rigged character