Takes & Reactions Demo Reel

Reaction shots are the bread-and-butter of junior animators. On a feature film, once an animator has graduated from walk cycles and crowd shots, they get given reaction shots.  In the compilation demo reel above we show some of the best takes and reaction shots animated by our students at Animation Apprentice. 

Animate a "Take" with the Luxo Lamp

Animate a "Take" reaction shot with the Pixo Jr lamp

In this simple free tutorial we show how to animate a "take" (a reaction shot), with the Pixo Jr lamp rig which you can download from highend3d.com. 

The tutorial is a simple one, aimed at animation beginners, but it helps if you are already familiar with the Maya Interface.  Follow the thumbnails below to replicate the tutorial.

Animate a Cartoony "Take" with "Mr Buttons"

Reaction shots are the bread-and-butter of junior animators.  On a feature film, once an animator has graduated from walk cycles and crowd shots, they get given reaction shots.

In this series of video tutorials, we show how to go about blocking out an animated scene, in this case a reaction shot, or "take", with the cartoony cat rig "Mr Buttons" by Keith Osborn.

Soft -vs- Hard Accents

Hard -vs- soft accents.

What is the difference between a hard accent and a soft accent? In animation terms, a soft accent eases in, and a hard accent bounces back.

Take a look at the image to the left, taken from The Animator's Survival Kit (all our students should have a copy; if you don't have one, you can buy it here).  It shows someone pointing, both as a hard accent (past the extreme point, bouncing back) and a soft accent (settling in to the extreme pose.

The difference is one of emphasis. In the top example, someone might be pointing vigorously, shouting "over there!!" and pointing quickly.

In the bottom example. someone might be pointing slowly, with their hand settling in to the final pose. They're not shouting, they aren't in a hurry.

Animate a "Take" Reaction with "Monty"

Animate a "take" with Monty

In this tutorial, we show how to animate a reaction shot, or "take" with Monty.  Reaction shots are the bread-and-butter of junior animators. On a feature film, once you have graduated from walk cycles and crowd shots, you get given reaction shots to test your skills.

A reaction shot is where animators first start to get to grips with acting and performance.  Just like live-action actors, animated characters on a screen must listen - and react.

How to Build and Block a Scene

Animation Blocking on Stepped Curves: Mark Masters

One of the biggest challenges encountered by student animators is how to block out a shot from scratch, starting off with nothing but a blank screen and a character rig.

In animation you get nothing for free. You start off with a digital puppet, usually in a stiff "T-pose", and you have to figure out the rest yourself.

In a new series of videos, we show how to take a reaction shot - a cartoony "take" - from zero to hero.