The aim of this, the first assignment in our Animation Strategies module, was to enhance our methods and understanding of biped animation through the creation of two walk cycles: one regular or so called vanilla cycle, and one walk with personality and character, as well as one regular run cycle, and finally a running jump where the character runs and jumps over a space or object.
A ‘Walk Cycle’ is the term used for a character’s locomotion in a world or environment. No two walks are the same; with just how different and unique walk cycles can be, highlighted in the animated version of the front cover of Richard William’s book, ‘The Animator’s Survival Kit’ (YouTube, 2023a).
Source: YouTube, 2023a
Interestingly, walk cycles can therefore be used to create personality, add character, and to elicit both an emotional and psychological response in the audience. Indeed, ways of walking, and a link to their psychological impact has been known for some time, with some of the first studies into how your walking style can reveal your personality type published as far back as 1935 by German-born psychologist, Werner Wolff (Sharma, 2022).
Furthermore, with studies showing that most of us consistently make very similar assumptions of people’s personalities based on their walking style (Jarrett, 2016), walk cycles can be used to trick or deceive the audience, and to hide a character’s true intentions or identity. Who can forget at the end of ‘The Usual Suspects’ when, revealing his true identity, Roger ‘Verbal’ Kint’s walking style transitions from the limp of an unassuming character with a disability, into the confident stride of Keyser Soze, a notorious criminal and killer?
Source: Tenor, 2021
Intrigued by this information, and excited with the prospect of learning more, over the summer I took the opportunity to delve a little deeper, and in preparation, gain a better understanding of the fundamentals of both walk and run cycles by completing the tasks suggested by our tutors.
Having watched both Alex on Story’s online Blender 3D walk and run cycle tutorials (YouTube, 2023b; YouTube, 2023c), to ensure I understood the process, I created a step-by-step guide as a reference document from the information provided, before implementing these on the ‘Ellie’ Blender rig (https://studio.blender.org/characters/ellie/v1/). Both this document and my initial walk and run cycle can be seen below:
‘Ellie’ Walk Cycle
‘Ellie’ Run Cycle
Next, I created the 2D walk cycle below, by following the TipTut ‘How to Animate a Walk Cycle’ online tutorial (YouTube, 2021), and also coloured the animation using their online Grease Pencil tutorials (YouTube, 2022a; YouTube, 2022b).
2D Blender Walk Cycle
I can honestly say that completing this work over the summer proved very advantageous. Not only was it a great starting point, but increasing my confidence, instead of starting from scratch I now had a good grasp of the basic techniques and principles involved, which put me in good stead for the start of the semester and our class tutorials.
References:
Jarrett, C. (2016). What your walk really says about you. [online]. [Accessed 5 October 2024].
Available at: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20160519-what-your-walk-really-says-about-you
Sharma, R. (2022). Personality Test: Your walking style reveals these personality traits. [online]. Accessed: 5 October 2024].
Available at: https://www.jagranjosh.com/general-knowledge/personality-test-your-walking-style-reveals-these-personality-traits-1653996095-1
Tenor (2021). The Usual Suspects Verbal Kint GIF – rabbieburns. [online].
Available at: https://tenor.com/view/the-usual-suspects-usual-suspects-verbal-kint-keyser-soze-kevin-spacey-gif-21682149
YouTube (2021). How to Animate a Walk Cycle – TipTut. [online]. [Accessed: 16 July 2024].
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCe1xtx-nK4
YouTube (2022a). Crash Course: 2D Grease Pencil Animation in Blender [1/2] – Tip Tut. [online]. [Accessed: 18 July 2024].
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sA1aeen8UP4
YouTube (2022b). Crash Course: 2D Grease Pencil Animation in Blender [2/2] – Tip Tut. [online]. [Accessed: 19 July 2024].
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbATU7U3JGM
YouTube (2023a). The Animator’s Survival Kit – Animated: Animation Hub. [online]. [Accessed: 5 October 2024].
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lO-WYLUnXB4&list=PLTtGN6QVc1ZjfVRkau4TAEEgNetJdv7_f&index=1
YouTube (2023b). Mastering the Blender Walk Cycle: Tips and Tricks for Animators! – Alex on Story. [online]. [Accessed: 9 July 2024].
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzJZ7yEEgRA&t=23s
YouTube (2023c). Mastering the Blender Run Cycle: Tips and Tricks for Animators! – Alex on Story. [online]. [Accessed: 13 July 2024].
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIrfIIiQvrg