Serra Lesson

Week 2 focused on project setup and moodboarding, establishing the narrative structure and visual direction. The concept revolves around a sci-fi space chase featuring rocket ships, creating opportunities for dynamic movement and high-energy sequences.

During the reference-gathering phase, the release of Andor Season 2 proved unexpectedly valuable. Key sequences from the show offered precisely the kind of animation reference needed, particularly in terms of ship movement, atmosphere, and framing. These visuals became a foundational influence, helping to shape the storyboard and inform pacing and shot composition.

The project also takes advantage of Unreal Engine 5’s FAB materials, using modular, mix-and-match assets to streamline the construction of spacecraft and environments. This combination of strong references and flexible assets created a solid base for building the upcoming animation.

Serra Lessons

Experimenting

Week 1 of the Advanced and Experimental Unit began with a focus on procedural environment creation and simulation. Gaea was selected to generate terrain using its node-based system, offering precise control over shaping natural landscapes.

In parallel, Houdini was introduced to explore environmental simulations like snow and wind. Despite having no prior experience with the software, its inclusion represents a deliberate step into more complex technical workflows.

All elements are being prepared for integration into UE5 to test the flexibility of the pipeline and enhance visual storytelling within a real-time space. The project is designed to be ambitious, pushing technical and creative boundaries while embracing the spirit of experimentation.

This combination of tools sets the foundation for an ambitious and forward-thinking project one that embraces technical risks and aims to unlock new visual storytelling potential within UE5.

George Lessons

Spline is fine

Week 9 involved further refinement of the acting shot, following feedback on body movement and facial detail. While some improvements had been made, the body animation remained choppy and moved too quickly, breaking the natural flow and reducing believability, as well as the end with the framing of the head and the neck stretching.

In contrast, the eyes and eyebrows continued to read well, maintaining smooth transitions and effectively supporting the emotional tone. However, the mouth still needed additional work. Certain shapes were either unclear or poorly timed, weakening the sync with the dialogue.

The tutorial provided valuable insight into animating the eyes more effectively, highlighting how subtle shifts in motion can convey a wide range of reactions and emotional states. It emphasized the importance of timing, focus, and context showing how the direction of a glance or the speed of an eye dart can change the entire tone of a performance. This guidance helped build a deeper understanding of how the eyes can drive emotion, intention, and character thought in a scene.

The week emphasized timing and spacing was again the fore most issue, especially in body mechanics during dialogue. Continued refinement of the mouth shapes remains a priority to ensure the performance reads clearly and cohesively across all elements.

Geroge Lesson

Body, eyes, then mouth

Week 8 focused on breaking the animation into clearer stages: body, eyes, and mouth, to improve control and clarity. This segmented approach made it easier to isolate issues and refine specific areas of the performance.

The body animation still felt choppy, with transitions lacking fluidity and weight. In contrast, the eye and eyebrow movements showed improvement, flowing smoothly between poses and helping to convey emotion more effectively. However, the mouth shapes did not align with the audio accurately, weakening the lip sync.

To address this, additional research was done into phonemes and mouth shapes. Practising in front of a mirror helped identify how different sounds form and translate into animation. This deeper understanding began to improve the accuracy of the dialogue sync and highlighted the importance of precision in facial acting.

George Lessons

LET’S MAKE IT BIGGER

Week 6 focused on acting references and applying emotional nuance to facial animation. A scene from Doctor Who featuring David Tennant was chosen due to its strong emotional range and the actor’s expressive facial performance. The subtle shifts in tone provided a valuable study in how quickly and believably emotions can change on screen.

A character bio was developed to support the emotional context, helping ground the performance in personality and backstory.

However, the recorded reference didn’t turn out as intended, lacking the subtlety needed for accurate translation. The initial blocking was also too extreme, making the performance feel forced rather than authentic.

George Lessons

“Eyebrows are the shoulders of the face”

Week 6 was a difficult and ultimately unsuccessful week in the animation process. An audio clip lasting 12 seconds was selected as the acting reference, but the length proved to be a misstep. It demanded more time and complexity than was manageable within the scope of the task, resulting in an unfocused approach to performance.

The blocking lacked precision, and attention to facial movement was insufficient, weakening the emotional clarity of the scene. Without strong facial acting, the performance failed to convey the depth needed. This misstep highlighted the importance of selecting concise audio that allows for focused, expressive animation.

George Lessons

Earthbending is fun

Week 5 marked the conclusion of the body mechanics phase and the introduction to acting through facial animation. Previous feedback led to noticeable improvements. Movements between poses now transition more smoothly, with better coordination between body parts.

This refinement reflects a deeper understanding of how the body moves in unison yet retains independent motion, which is essential for creating animation that feels alive and responsive.

The introduction to acting shifted focus to performance through facial expression. Animator Jeff Gabor’s showreels were used as a key reference for studying nuanced emotion and timing.

The process began with breaking down the dialogue line, identifying the underlying emotions, and researching how those feelings are reflected through subtle facial cues. This analytical approach helps establish a foundation for authentic performance.

To support the acting exercise, a character bio was created, detailing the character’s backstory and emotional context. This step informed the development of expression thumbnails and layout planning, ensuring consistency between personality and performance. The combination of narrative, emotion, and design marks a new layer of complexity beyond physical mechanics, where the body and face now work together to tell a story.

Shmoving Holds

Week 4 focused on refining the timing and spacing of the body mechanics. Although the shot had been shortened in previous edits, some movements failed to make full use of the available space, and the motion arcs were weak or unclear. To address this, the sequence was slightly extended, giving key actions more room to develop and allowing arcs to be adjusted for smoother, more natural motion. This helped each movement land with greater clarity, weight, and visual impact. A before-and-after can be seen below.

Timing and spacing remain one of the weakest areas in this project. Adjustments were necessary to improve how momentum carried through the body and how pauses could be used to emphasise force or transition.

Introducing moving holds also played a key role in improving the animation’s overall look, helping maintain energy in the pose while avoiding stiffness, and adding subtle polish to moments of impact and transition.

K.I.S.S

Week 3 involved refining the shot based on feedback, with key notes focusing on changing the camera angle to a 3/4 view and shortening the action by removing a side flip. These adjustments were aimed at improving clarity and pacing while keeping the viewer focused on the core motion.

Switching to a 3/4 angle allowed for a better view of the character’s body mechanics, revealing the rotation in the movement more effectively than a flat front shot. It also helped maintain spatial awareness, giving the animation a stronger visual impact.

Removing the side flip from week 2 helped streamline the sequence, cutting out unnecessary complexity that detracted from the key action. This decision emphasised the importance of movement, choosing actions that serve the shot’s purpose rather than overloading it. The result was a cleaner, more readable scene that stayed grounded in strong body mechanics.

Shifting, Moving, Changing

Week 2 focused on drawing key poses and exploring the timing of movement. The goal was to understand how weight, balance, and momentum are communicated through individual frames. Capturing strong poses required careful observation of how the body shifts and reacts during motion, particularly in actions that engage the whole body.

Earthbending from Avatar: The Last Airbender was used as a reference due to its grounded stances and forceful, deliberate gestures. The movements clearly demonstrated how energy travels from the ground up, with each pose showing a clear line of action and purpose. This made it easier to break down and redraw the mechanics frame by frame.

Then, after the blocking phase, timing the poses helped reinforce how long certain actions should hold to emphasise weight or impact. Quick transitions contrasted with slower, heavier moments revealed how rhythm plays a role in body mechanics. This exercise highlighted the importance of strong posing and thoughtful timing in building believable, physical animation.