3D Animation - Make Better Designs for Your Dime

Transitioning into the world of 3D animation has been an exciting adventure for many studios across the world. The chance to gain inspiration from a whole new perspective is largely a great gift, but has proven to be slightly problematic for more classic companies. Disney itself came into a minor crisis, due to the fact that Mickey was always drawn with both circular ears visible at all angles, to keep his trademark silhouette. 

Translating that into a fully dimensional model posed a huge obstacle- whether his ears would now be normally attached to his head, or if a complex solution could be found to keep his ears facing the camera at all times. Of course, there was no way for them to realize this problem when he was first created, but designs created in current times should always be mindful of the process.

Planning in all three dimensions is likely the most challenging part of 3D animation design. Creating turnaround sheets of characters, so they have fleshed out designs from all possible viewing angles, has always been a crucial step in 3d animation production. This ensures the character will look consistent throughout, no matter what pose or position they are in. However, scenery and background objects are often designed from only one angle, so converting a project would involve conceptualizing each component over again.

Of course, there are clear advantages to the medium that can save vast amounts of time and effort. Lighting effects are generated entirely within the program, so no effort is required on the artist's part to figure out which sections of the scene would catch the light, or be cast in shadow. Likewise, the set and characters consist of fully realized models, so shape inconsistencies and coloring errors can be easily avoided.

Another reason to fully plan out the piece in advanced is the fact that not all angles must be accounted for, if the camera is never going to see it. For example, the back of a building can be left blank if only the front entrance will be seen. And while this may seem funny from a real-life perspective, the conservative approach can drastically cut down the time and costs involved in 3d animation production.

That being said, virtually any project possible can be converted into 3D animation. Planning the output from the start simply prevents most design issues from surfacing, and allows for more focused creative thinking. Converting a 2D cartoon concept after it's been fleshed out would be like making a sculpture based off of a painted portrait- The likeness is there, but only in one dimension. The process would have run much more smoothly if the plans were set from the beginning. On top of that, knowing the artistic direction of the piece can often help the creative ideas flow much more easily, and garner even better concepts. Planning for it from the outset could just allow the time to turn a good idea into an enduring masterpiece.