Hey, I am currently in my Honours year of studying Computer Art at the University of Abertay Dundee in Scotland.
I am studying how to effectively Rig 3D creature characters for game and animation by obtaining influence from current artistic/technical techniques of creature creation, as well as scientific methods such as the study of animal structure and palaeontology.
As part of my dissertation I am contacting industry figures conducting interviews and I was wondering if anyone would be willing to help me by answering some questions about your experiences as an Animator?
There is also a set for Technical Artists if you could answer some this would be such a huge help
http://tech-artists.org/forum/showthread.php?p=10008#post10008
If you have any questions or would like to contact me- marniefaulkner@gmail.com
Thanks very much in advance for your time
Marnie =]
Questions for Industry Animators
What is the typical interaction between you as the Animator and the Technical Artist? Please detail the level of involvement you have before/during/after rig creation and identify any impact this has on a rig’s fitness for purpose.
Please identify any features of a rig you feel are vital to help make an animator’s job easier and state why they are important.
Looking back on your personal experiences using rigs, what difficulties have you encountered and how have they limited your ability to animate?
On receiving a finished rig, would you expect it to be fully tested and ready for animation or do you carry out your own tests? If so are there any particular trials you carry out and in your experience, are these personal approaches or general techniques used by Animators?
Please detail the process you would undertake if a rig did not meet the requirements of the project. As an animator, is this something you have experienced occasionally or frequently?
As an Animator, please detail any technical input you have with the rig. For example- do you perhaps add any limits to attributes or controls, use any Mel script, make any customisations? In your experience are these personal approaches or general techniques used by Animators?
Please detail any differences in your expectations of a rig for games compared to animation. As an Animator, is this something that requires your consideration or does this fall under a different role?