Masterclasses

Secondary Animation Series

Topics	Description
Hair	Anime-like, long and short, along with traditional guide hairs for use in realistic hair rendering.
Props	Like a gun holster, a backpack, a whip like Indiana Jones
Cloth	Skirts, capes, sleeves
Usage	Constraints and collision groups, fine tuning

We don't cover this yet, as it's partly CreatureFX and Technical Animation - something I've wanted to steer clear of. But there is value for animators here, a lot of animators are stuck with this because a studio simply cannot afford (or understand) technical animation.

So we'll need a character that we'll apply motion capture to, and only worry about secondary effects. The character would look somewhere along the lines of the below. Familiar, common in the animation field, with things we can make dynamic.

We'd combine this with general dynamics on limbs too, like swings and trajectories for jumps, that kind of thing. Maybe we can repurpose Skye for this?

Human Masterclass

Topics	Description
Hinges	Knees and elbows
Spherical	Hips and shoulders
Fingers	Palm and thumb, up to individual fingers
Facial	Fleshy cheeks, lips, jaw
Usage	Leave some pose stiffness, soft limits, soft translation

This one would focus on anatomy and what people most associate with "ragdolls". People getting struck, falling, lying on things that move, floating, the Jedi-grip, crash-dummy. That kind of thing.

For this we'll need a realistic character, not necessarily with clothing as our focus would be on the body itself and not so much on the input animation or character.

Mecha Masterclass Series

Topics	Description
Linear limits	Like hydraulics
Spherical	Hips and shoulders
Animation	How to animate something to look like a robot

We can do a really strong job here, animating things to look robotic is a lot easier and forgiving than a human. As a robot generally needs to move one limb at a time, in a controlled manner. Which is funny, as it's a look that's based on how difficult it is to approximate human motion. A heavily controlled, slow movement. We'll have overshoots and jiggles, because that's just how motors work in real life.

For feet, I think we'll do especially well too, as we can stick with the pointed feet like with Locomotion, and rely on contacts to animate anything coming into contact with the ground.

I found these which will serve as an excellent foundation for this.

https://www.artstation.com/marketplace/p/k1yK9/10-sci-fi-robot-models

Weightlessness Series

Using the setups from the previous 3 masterclasses, put them underwater, in space and thrown around with magic/Jedi force.