For this assignment the objective was to use the basic principles of animation to have an basic object express emotion. The outline of the assignment was that a student had to use a block as a character rather than anything complex and express emotion.  

Thought Process

In this short animation I wanted to give an very matrix kind of vibe when it came to the gymnastics of the cube. While also making the cube only express via his eyes. As a personal challenge I wanted to use the Cinema 4D engine in after effects as I wasn't to knowledgeable of how to use it.

In order for me to get the very intense matrix vibe I knew I had to do something that expressing gymnastically challenging moves. I also wanted to give the feeling of intensity so I thought of a person jumping over a train with a backflip. I also wanted to work on the charging up frames to make things feel more impactful. 

Design Process

When I started I originally set the entire scene in 2D just to get the initial jumping movement down. After that I added the eyes to the character to give it more of a personality rather than having basic box. Once I had added the eyes to the character was added I could extrude out the character's body out. I wanted to keep the eyes 2D to work with a 3D/2D look. This was accomplished by comping the eyes and making the comp itself a 3D object. This would allow the 2D element to move as a flat plain in a 3D space. When it came to making the cube train, I initially made a square and then set an array so I could easily change the spacing evenly to give the gap feel between the train cars. Once I was happy with the spacing I then made the squares into cubes.

Major Design Choices

I am very happy with how the 3D and 2D elements worked out together. I definitely am also happy that I set up initial set up the animations in 2D before extruding them into the 3rd dimension. That way I was quickly able to move onto work with the squash and stretch of the 3D jump and landing.

Skills Learned

3D lighting, 2D and 3D aesthetic, charge/impact frames, Cinema 4D's 3D renderer for After Effects, as well as squash and stretch.