Week 6

Ice Skater Character Continued – Head Creation

Over the last couple of weeks the basic body mesh for the Ice Skater Character has been created, this week the the most challenging asset was created; the Head. The Face of character is without doubt the most vital feature that helps portray a unique persona. Body language and dialogue for example are key elements of character animation which are enhanced by realistically animated facial expressions. In order to animate the head correctly the mesh itself must be produced using “Quads” (4-sided Polygons) as this type of geometry works best with the algorithm applied via a Mesh Smooth modifier and subsequent Vertice Morphing. The use of a completely Quadular mesh will ensure that no unwanted deformation such as pinches are present in the surface of the character’s face when animating the mouth to smile for example.

Box Modelling a Head….

The method of modelling a head by starting with a box is a well-known technique which produces much quicker results than manually extruding each edge as done with the plane modelling technique used in the 3D Head Creation Assignment in the first semester. Box modelling allows the basic head shape to be produced rapidly, then further detail is added by inserting the required number of additional edges. This method was preferred for its speed of production as the main focus of this assignment is on animating the character rather than exact detail which is more achievable using the plane modelling method where reference image planes can be followed precisely. Due to the fact that a visual guide or point of reference is favoured, a tutorial was roughly followed to produce the basic head, which was then manipulated to suit the intended appearance.^[1] Tutorials from the same location were similarly used to produce the body and legs of the character.

To begin with a basic cube was created, this was then given a “Spherify” modifier to basically turn the box into a semi-rounded sphere, eliminating harsh edge angles. One half of the head was then deleted and a “Symmetry” modifier was applied so that changes made to the right side would automatically be reflected opposite on the left side. Having done this the vertices were then pulled out to produce more of a familiar shaped head, leaving an angled indentation for eye socket location.

This basic shape was then built upon by inserting numerous edges across the surface of the face and adjusted accordingly to produce outlines of the intended facial features. Whilst these edges were created and moved “Edge Constraint” selection mode was enabled so that any vertices moved could only do so along existing edges, therefore preserving the prior head shape. Major edge loops were inserted around the eye socket and mouth areas as these are the features of the face likely to be animated the most, consequently a good edge flow around these areas is vital for smooth looking animation.

Spherified Cube to Head Shape	Face Edge Detail

(Click Here for Full-Size)	(Click Here for Full-Size)

Using the newly created edge loops the eye sockets were formed by extruded groups of polygons inwards and were also scaled around the initial edges to create basic eye-lids. The nose was formed in a similar fashion by pulling out edges along the centre of the nose, adjacent vertices were also manipulated to maintain a smooth appearance. The chin was also given definition by scaling down certain vertices in the X-Axis to provide more of a protruding shape. These changes were implemented with a Mesh Smooth modifier enabled to gain a better interpretation of how any adjustments might affect the final head shape.

Next the nose was also given more definition by inserting extra edges along its length to help with shaping the bridge and nostril areas whilst keeping a rounded appearance. The nostrils were produced in the same way as the eye sockets by extruding several vertices inwards inside the head object. The nostril sides were flared out and the end of the nose was given a slightly pointed impression by appropriately scaling each set of edges. The lips were then constructed by bevelling edges surrounding the mouth outwards multiple times to produce a nice curved and plumped appearance. The last implemented detail was to give the face more personality by creating slight indentations on the cheeks to emphasise the jaw bone area. This was done by again moving selected vertices inwards with the smoothing enabled to get a better impression. The reason for this was to adhere approximately to the reference images of a sketched out female head. The hair from this image will also be try to be replicated next week.