Moho Forum

Hi, I have a new head turn technique and I think it will be big.

There are many solutions for head turns here on forum and many of them work well, but no one of them (including my own tests) solve this problem:

You can have a front view with all the mouth inside the face and make it talk, but when you want to pass to a completely side view of the character you are forced to create a new model and play with switches or whatever technique to simulate they are "the same head".


Now here is my idea. Using masks we can easily have a character which actually can turn on 360 degrees with no problems:


How it works:
It's hard to me to explain it, but I'll try. I needed to have a head with a bite, just like the apple of Apple... and that bite must be able to move around the head to stay on the side or on the center of the head, this way it could be animated with the head turn.
That was easy to do using masking, but I needed to have the outline on the bite sector too, something that you can't make using a simple mask.

The better idea I had to obtain this is on this anme file:
http://www.mediafire.com/?dhgjt0ozzj2

Here is a visual explanation of its masking (if someone has a better idea, just tell, please

(Notice in the file that the shape on the layer "mouth" has only stroke, no fill)

The only disadvantage of this way of masking is that you are forced to use a layer script to control two layers at the same time (actually, you can do it without the script, but you would had to animate two identical layers separately all the time, which is just a waste of time). But don't be afraid, the use of the script is extremely easy. You just must have two identical layers with the same name, but one with ".dup". For example, you will have face and face.dup. Then you attach the script to both layers and animate both just moving the points of "face" (be sure that "face" is below "face.dup" on layer order).

Well, sorry for the long post. If someone has something to ask or to add, please feel welcome. I think this way to make head turns on AS can be a new reference and I'm pretty clear it can be improved and simplified.
Thanks.

That is Awesome technique!
Keep up the good work!

Great Effort Selgin. Now Anme Studio should be called a vector 3D Application. Great Tutorial and thanks for your technique.

Selgin, the great thing is that you have found a mask combination that allows to work with it properly rendered in the work area. There are other ways to obtain same results that aren't visible in the work area unless you render it.
That, plus the ability to use the script gives this technique a great potential.
Congratulations!!!
-G

Selgin, that looks fantastic! Is the script usable in ver. 5.6?

Thank you all, I'm very excited by this technique. I hope to upload new versions with new heads. It would be great if some of you could upload your own characters too. I have seen very interesting animation from onionskin, for example, and I think this technique could work with his style of drawing.

Genete wrote:Selgin, the great thing is that you have found a mask combination that allows to work with it properly rendered in the work area. There are other ways to obtain same results that aren't visible in the work area unless you render it.

Yes, I played a lot with masking and finally get that model. The other masking models I get were good, but as you said, can't be viewed properly without rendering. I hope it still improving, maybe there is some fantastic way to masking it simpler... if someone find it, please tell us!

Genete, as you said me it's easier to mask on Synfig, so you can take this technique and apply it on that software (and obviously share it on the Synfig forum). As this technique doesn't need bones or any exclusive AS feature, I think it can be useful for Synfig users too.

jahnocli wrote:Selgin, that looks fantastic! Is the script usable in ver. 5.6?

It should work on version 5. The script was made for Fazek some years ago. Anyway, now I have to test it with a modified version by Ramón López which let you change the curvature (Thank you, Ramón ), which was the only thing I missed on the original Fazek's script.

Thanks again

So the script essentially allows other layers with points to match the animated coordinates AND curvature of all the points from a master layer...

Brilliant!

Thank you very much for that head turn Selgin. I intend to have a go at that, in the mean time keep us posted please.

Wena

An amazing idea!!!.... but I do not work .... which folder you can include the script? I tried it at all .... I have version 6.1

Thanks

Never mind about earlier got it to work and once again. it's amazing

negroclarito wrote:An amazing idea!!!.... but I do not work .... which folder you can include the script? I tried it at all .... I have version 6.1

The script must be on the same folder the anme file is.

Selgin! amazing! i've not tried it yet - but can't wait to! bravo

ok, i just tried it - fantastic!



I extended the technique to include eyeball holes on the mouth layer... works well!

tips: make sure you have enough points for the animation you're going to want as every time you make changes to number of points, you have to delete/duplicate/rename and change fill/stroke options.

I'm used to having as much as possible in a single layer, so this makes things a little more awekward to animate, however its is deffinately worth the effort!

thanks Selgin!!

a little update... i was concerned that the face doesn't have shape when you turn it, so i created another duplicated layer called 'bumps' with 4 circles for general purpose bumping of the outside line - this extends the mask, and allows you to have an outline on top of the other layers as shown below:



my biggest problem with this technique is that the mouth/eyes are on a seperate layer to the head, so I can't use my normal stacking technique so that the top lip naturally goes over the bottom lip and the top eye lid goes over the bottom eye lid - but i guess you can't have everything!

This works great. I have just one question. I get an error message when I add a layer anywhere inside, or outside of the HEAD folder (Meshinstance wrong order - swap the source and the copy!). Is that normal?

I think Selgin just ignores the error message:

Selgin's techniques, tutorials and script ideas

funksmaname, nice variation; I esp. like the smear on the pupils!