| Stationary Seaweed | ||||||||
| The Stationary Seaweed is another form of the overlapping action principle. A practical application of this would be the tail of a dog wagging or a pony tail on a girl as she runs. It's also used in animating waves on the ocean.
The action of the line is contained to a finite area as opposed to the wider swing of the pendulum. The tough thing about this exercise is trying to wrap your brain around which part of the line is moving in which direction. The bottom is moving to the left while the top is moving to the right. This is that cascade effect taking place again. The only reason the top is moving, is because the bottom moved first. The energy moves up the seaweed to the tip. The theory behind this movement of energy takes place in almost all the movements a character would do. If you've ever taken martial arts, you know the power of a punch or kick comes from the initial movement of the hips. The hips twist first and that energy travels up the spine into the shoulder down the arm and into the fist. When you go to animate your own characters, think of this principle before you begin and apply it if you think it will help. It's a very subtle aspect of animation. |
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