Consciousness
Webster defines consciousness as “the quality or state of being aware especially of something within oneself; the state of being characterized by sensation, emotion, volition, and thought”. This “awareness”, not only of external stimuli but of oneself’s inner voice, thoughts and desires, is one incredible ingredient of animating believable characters.
As members of the audience, we empathize with characters we see on the screen. Their performances by themselves won’t do much to move anyone. However, something special happens when we connect with these characters; their presences stirring something within us and awakening past feelings, memories and experiences; causing an emotional response in return. Incredible!
The “thinking” character, with his/her own thoughts, emotions, needs, and goals is better suited to garner this reaction from an audience, and is difficult to achieve. This is my goal for this year, and the first entry to my new blog: Tacos and Tangents.
Having just moved from Queens, NY to Kansas City, Missouri, I have decided to start fresh with this blog to track my own progress and journey towards this goal. I animate primarily in Maya, and I have a hankering for tacos, hence the name. Here is a quick cool-down test from yesterday, using Animation Mentor’s “Jules” rig.
