Reallusion's .iClone.
is an evolving real-time
animation creation software program that
generally caters well for self-taught
<have-a-go-hero>-home-hobbyists who
probably can't afford the time, .money.
and
daisy-chains of bleeding-edge PCs that may
be required to render output from
exclusive high-end professional packages.
It currently ships with a small starter
selection
of pre-set character movements that, due to this
universality of provision, have a ubiquitousness
and instant-recognisability that has tended to,
distractingly, de-value them through their being,
necessarily,
<<DONE TO DEATH>>.
~
iClone Custom Animations & Motion Editor ~
Fortunately, the option to expand, deviate and
"Create Your Own" has always been
available to
purchasers of the top version of the product.
Prior to the release of .iClone
3., unique sequences
could be choreographed by posing and re-posing an
undecorated artist's model-like "doll", along a timeline,
in a 3D applet called ."Motion
Editor"..
The video clip at the
top of this page gives a glimpse
into the .iClone
Motion Editor. environment providing a
(peepable) peek at the playback of about forty
seconds
of (not very "Street") dancing that I strung together,
in (seclusion (, delusion (?)) and) an isolated window,
without the benefits of audio-scrub or a figure that could
be relied upon to precisely match the idiosyncratic
physical form of its clothed recipient.
You can see that clothed recipient and the
final use
of these synchronised movements, with full notes,
at this website's dedicated (to the dead)
(good at
dancing) "Saint's
Alive !" page. Alternatively, you
could skip the bother of extra contextual blather
by scrolling or bouncing to the bottom
of this article.
~
Clipped <Clipped Clip> Clip Criticisms ~
The audio-visual synchronisation drops off
after about
16 seconds. I don't think .Motion
Editor. was designed
to be used for lengthy pieces and therefore I always
MIS-used it by trying to create COMPLETE all-in-one
character animations for full-length songs.
My results also tended to be rather jerky.
I think this
was due to a combination of harsh keyframing and the
general difficulty of creating BELIEVABLE, natural,
springy activity by hand.
To assist with this manual task, provision
is made for
film to be placed, for reference, behind the model so
that you can attempt to match the movements of
real actors. It's an innovative idea but one that fewer
people would need to explore if Reallusion
provided a
wide range of individually-downloadable, fully-editable
motion-captures.
AUDIO EDITTHURSDAY MAY 19 2011:
"...which, of course, they now
do."
~
The Bottom of this Article ~
Lastly (!) you may view the final (ghastly ?)
(not) resting p(l)ace of the above custom motion.
Yes, the presentation, a composite of output
created
with the Reallusion products
.Crazy
Talk 4. and .iClone
1.52., is a MESS with "all
kinds of everything"
happening at <entirely the WRONG speeds> but, it
<flows 'n' shows> (O')Beady-Eyed obedience to the BEAT.
JUST FOR FUN
ONLY MY FAVOURITE
CRAZY TALK LIP SYNC
FACIAL ANIMATION
3D FULL BODY ANIMATION
ICLONE MUSIC VIDEO
SONG & DANCE
SUBTITLED
VOICE ACTING
VOICE PROCESSING