In my never-ending life mission to always try new things, I recently downloaded DAZ3D, an introductory 3D software package, to take a stab at building animatics for my Voice Acting Workshop scripts.

Animatics are animated storyboards, very often assembled from sketched 2D artwork using After Effects or other motion graphics software. In the videogame industry, where nearly every asset is a 3D model, animatics are usually rendered in 3D software. Since they're quickly made and very roughly animated, they can look pretty silly, sometimes showing everyone sliding around in A-poses with no body animation whatsoever. But the goal isn't to show off animations. It's to show camera angles and scene pacing, and they can be a huge help to understanding the visual goals of the director.

I write the scripts for my Voice Acting Workshop panel as if they were scenes lifted from a movie, the dialogue matched with character activity and happening in environments. When I write them, I always picture in my head where the scene is happening and what the characters are doing as they deliver their lines-- and also how the camera would show them. Sometimes this makes directing volunteers a challenge, since I have a very clear idea in my head of how lines should be delivered, one that doesn't come across on the single sheet of paper and the handful of minutes panel attendees have to prepare. This is why I've thought for a while that an animatic might be a helpful tool in getting my directing ideas across.

Of course, the big problem I have is that I'm an audio engineer, not a 3D artist. I've looked at 3D software before, but while I can keyframe animate a little bit from my work in motion graphics, I can't model or rig, so I could never get past the first step. That's where DAZ3D became a gamechanger. While many of the tools are deeply simplified compared to other 3D packages, it's built around a generic, pre-rigged human model that is highly adaptable. In a clever bit of sales strategy, the software itself is free-- but to build more customizable characters requires purchasing add-ons. Still, at a reasonable price, I was able to buy all the add-ons I needed to model fully-rigged furries.

For my first test, I chose one especially notorious script, Shellback. My original script was a good two pages long as I struggled to get across all the actions going on during the scene, with the armadillo climbing into the truck and back out again, the dingo revealing the rifle, the showdown between the characters... it was just a lot of stuff to describe. Once I got the script down to its requisite single page, nearly all the action was stripped out. It was a perfect candidate for an animatic.

The first recording of this script was made at Rainfurrest 2014, and while I don't usually do it, I took the time to add sound effects to the recording. I built the animatic over that recording, which was a huge help to building and pacing it. And more than anything, I learned the value of an animatic as I found myself making camera decisions once I actually saw how the action was playing out. I'm pleased with the result, I learned a lot, and I'm looking forward to making more of these! So perhaps at a future Voice Acting Workshop panel, expect to see some more! :)

Sam (Armadillo) played by Garrett Biggerstaff
Murphy (Dingo) played by  standarddeviant


https://youtu.be/DmYXHKMWou8
[yt]DmYXHKMWou8[/yt]