Jump Cycle

Jump

When initially thinking about this task I was a bit concerned as I thought animating someone leave the ground would be difficult, due to weight and knee movements. To overcome this initial reaction I ensured I did a lot of research that I could use for future reference. I began by jumping in front of the mirror; I believed this would help me with the movement and weight aspect, as I can personally feel what is happening. I then began watching others jump; I watched a number of people, looking at common occurrences. To ensure my jump looked realistic I noted when jumping people bend their legs a great deal, so this was my first body part to animate. To ensure the audience could see the knee bends clearly I made my character move from standing position to squatting position. This I found problematic as I needed to ensure the angle of my knees was correct. This meant moving my character a number of times. When I felt I had the right angle I could then begin to show my character using his weight to push up.    

I needed to get the weight right when creating the next part of my jump, this meant referring to my references a great deal to recognise and understand the weight balance. I needed to make sure that my characters movements in the air were realistic instead of him simply floating upwards and downwards.

Overall I am fairly pleased with this animation however at times it doesn’t seem realistic enough to meet my initial aim.