Sisyphus's Dance Animation

Prework: Sketches. Storyboards. Models.

The goal of this project was to create a 75-second animation that shows a variety of complex modeling techniques including: hierarchy, lathing, lofting, and extrusion, while implementing sound effects and plot. For my animation I made a music box ballerina and Sisyphus figurine holding back a boulder, that would meet each other and dance to the ballerina's song once the human leaves the scene.

Problem/Assignment

Proposed Solution and Planning

I created a basic plot of two character that want to meet for a dance. I decided that those characters would be desk decorations with a similar activation to Toy Story (when the humans leave the objects come out to play). I storyboarded the characters actions and planned the models that would be necessary and how I would implement each specific type of modeling necessary. After carefully planning the animations I gathered appropriate sound clips for the animation.

Solution

To meet the required modeling techniques I created a plant with loft and lathing methods. I created a bookshelf through extrusion and beveling. I created simple models to finish filling the scene. The most difficult models I created were the figures which I utilized hierarchy to create their rigging. After creating the necessary models I animated the object and rendered my animation. Lastly, I used Premiere Pro to add sound design.

Challenges Faced

What I Learned

I created extra models for this project that were not necessary and were not visible in the final animation. The models that I didn’t get to use were a keyboard, mouse and CPU. The models just didn’t line up with the perfect shot, but they were a nice detail if the scene were organized differently.

This project gave me my first insight into the time and effort that goes into modeling, animation, and rendering. Before this project I had never rendered something of this scale and the render time was around 10 hours. This project really gave me a perspective on what kind of work I would be doing in a career in animation or modeling.