3D ANIMATION SHOWREEL

Below is a selection of my work from my first year as an animation student at CDW Studios in 2023. I've also included some breakdowns of my favorite pieces. Thank you for taking the time to review my portfolio!

HERO SHOT

The Hero shot is an animation I recently completed. This piece showcases everything I've learned so far about animation, including advanced techniques like the parent constraint setup and the strategic use of camera movement to enhance the overall impact.

Initially, my instructor's feedback during the block-out stages highlighted the need for a defining moment of action. In response, I adjusted the timing between key poses, leading to the more dynamic flow seen in the spline pass.

During the polishing stages, I focused on refining the finger movements and paying close attention to the secondary animation in the coat and hair. For the final render, I drew inspiration from Persona 5 character scenes to further enhance the aesthetic of the shot.

PHONE PICK UP

The phone pickup animation was my first introduction to parent constraints, and it was a challenging experience (there were moments I had to hold back tears). Fortunately, with my instructor's guidance, I was able to grasp the concept for this exercise.

I'm particularly proud of the finger movements when picking up the phone. This required a lot of keyframes and significant time spent in the graph editor to achieve a smooth motion.

As a result, most of the polishing stages focused on perfecting the finger animation. Additionally, to enhance the comedic value of the shot, I incorporated a simple camera motion. This experience made me realize that mastering camera work is an entirely new skill set I need to develop.

WEIGHT LIFT (WIP)

Similar to the Phone Pickup, this project also involved using parent constraints, but with a more advanced approach through the use of locators and the hierarchy.

I aimed to make my weight lift animation tell a story true to the character (using the Akali Rig), rather than just completing an exercise for the assignment. This added complexity in mimicking the weight as the character lifts it onto their shoulder. Initially, my spline passes felt inconsistent, as if the character were lifting three different weights, thus I had to do a weight adjustment pass.

The next steps include cleaning up some of the weight shifts and tightening the timing of the hand switches to ensure Akali's face remains in the scene. Once the primary animation is solidified, I plan to focus on secondary animation, followed by a final polish.

                                   THANKYOU FOR READING ;)