The brain works with a system of input and output, just like a computer or machine. The input is anything that affects a character's senses, like the five senses and more. Those will then lead to affecting the character emotionally and physically. Facial expressions reflect the reaction to inputs, ultimately making them the output.
The rule of thumb for deciding the facial expressions is the KISS method: Keep It Simple, Silly! Basically, you see what is happening in the shot and then decide how your character feels about it. You also decide if something occurs that changes the emotion. Most times there is not a lot that happens to emotion in a single shot of animation so you would only have to cycle through one or two emotions. A start emotion and then the possibility of a change in emotion. Then you pose out those expressions. Create the first pose and key the positions as you go along. Facial and body pose must be treated as separate beings. If the body and face move at the same time, the audience will end up missing the facial expression that takes place. Facial expressions are key to an audience understanding a character's thought process.
To figure out an expression you must internalize what a character feeling. Get into their head and process their emotion, even act it out yourself. Line of action helps to build a facial pose, and you can also break from this to create asymmetry and a more human feel. To work with dialogue you should use jaw blocking first, and work with the timing of open and closed mouth timing. You also must remember to keep the eyes focused, and the irises in proper places. You also need to be careful to not overdue eye darts, which you can easily mess up.
Always think of facial expressions as the order of operations. Follow a chain to get to your facial expression. What is the input? Where are they looking? What are they feeling? The this and that and etc. of emotions. Getting started with a facial rig can be difficult, but with time you can learn to understand it.
I said multiple times that I wanted to learn about animating a face and now I'm kind of intimidated. There is a lot that goes into facial expressions apparently, and I never really thought about it. I wish that there was more with how to specifically adjust a face as needed, and how to work with not meshing body and face language but also keeping your flow.
I hope I can learn to use what I was taught in this article to my advantage. I might even come back to look at it several times in the future. I feel my facial animation will be shaky for a while, but maybe as I process KISS and the such more and more I will create a solid facial movement.
The rule of thumb for deciding the facial expressions is the KISS method: Keep It Simple, Silly! Basically, you see what is happening in the shot and then decide how your character feels about it. You also decide if something occurs that changes the emotion. Most times there is not a lot that happens to emotion in a single shot of animation so you would only have to cycle through one or two emotions. A start emotion and then the possibility of a change in emotion. Then you pose out those expressions. Create the first pose and key the positions as you go along. Facial and body pose must be treated as separate beings. If the body and face move at the same time, the audience will end up missing the facial expression that takes place. Facial expressions are key to an audience understanding a character's thought process.
To figure out an expression you must internalize what a character feeling. Get into their head and process their emotion, even act it out yourself. Line of action helps to build a facial pose, and you can also break from this to create asymmetry and a more human feel. To work with dialogue you should use jaw blocking first, and work with the timing of open and closed mouth timing. You also must remember to keep the eyes focused, and the irises in proper places. You also need to be careful to not overdue eye darts, which you can easily mess up.
Always think of facial expressions as the order of operations. Follow a chain to get to your facial expression. What is the input? Where are they looking? What are they feeling? The this and that and etc. of emotions. Getting started with a facial rig can be difficult, but with time you can learn to understand it.
I said multiple times that I wanted to learn about animating a face and now I'm kind of intimidated. There is a lot that goes into facial expressions apparently, and I never really thought about it. I wish that there was more with how to specifically adjust a face as needed, and how to work with not meshing body and face language but also keeping your flow.
I hope I can learn to use what I was taught in this article to my advantage. I might even come back to look at it several times in the future. I feel my facial animation will be shaky for a while, but maybe as I process KISS and the such more and more I will create a solid facial movement.
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