Animating the mermaid.

I've been animating the mermaid for the last couple of days. The first day I spent getting to grips with her movement again as I hadn't animated her since last year. I made a new rig for her. One i made lie last years from a lighting arm and thick wire attached to it but it was very wobbly and she bounced too much. I then made another from a block of wood with the wire coming out if the middle so it supported her from underneath. This still wasn't ideal but it did the job.

I haven't enjoyed animating her to be honest. I've struggled with timing and giving her that weightless, floating in water look. At this stage I need to get the others animated too and if I have time, go back and re- animate the mermaid but it is passable for now and with her and the box I'm over the 30 second pass mark.

The first rig I made using the lighting arm. Last year it worked so much better.

The rig I made in the end using a solid base and a branch
style rig.

Playing around with lighting. She looks very effective
when lit from behind- haunting, other worldly.

I shot her from behind a pain of glass as I want her to come up to the
doorway of her tank and didn't want to use too many
digital effects. It meant that I had something
physical for the to press her hand up against.

Me animating.

Set up. 

I used tacky wax to keep her hand in place on the glass during a test but this
left a sticky mess so I had to just use patience
in the end!

Eyes

Been trying some options for eyes for the mermaid and Pip...

I really liked these aesthetically, but I felt that she needed bigger
eyes, being a fishy and all...

Sea-glass beads

Too flowery, metal, no no...

Now these I liked! They are mottled pale green and gold.
Treasures of the deep. The fact that they are flatter meant they
sat better in the sockets.

Snug fit.

I thought that flowery eyes might look good as she's plant related,
I do quite like them but couldn't find enough pairs. They
do look a little too 'cutsie'...

Quite liked the haunting pale look but it didn't seem quite right. 

Black glass headed beads. Perfect.

All the casts with their eyes.

St Pirans, Pyks & Penn Askorn

Happy St. Piran's!

Gool Peran Lowen

I carved out a new belly for the mermaid from memory foam. It's a great foam to sculpt with and leaves a really nice finish- I'm wondering wether I might take a razor to it and just shave off any tiny lumps and bumps.

And little monkey had an operation in his back and head today to fit the operating rods in place.

Pins  hold open the 'skin' on his back to keep it clear of the hole
made for rod (like in the back of head).

Mermaid

This character is one I'm continuing from my final project last year. She is a stop motion puppet. I want to use after effects to make her setting an underwater one- algae, murky tank.

Initial concept drawing

Clay marquette

Fins for marquette and prototype: wire, masking tape and latex

Tail armature- wire and polymorph

Prototype puppet test stills