This week’s task was to plan and animate a ball with a tail, focusing on clear planning and simple motion before adding complexity. The animation was restricted to side view only, blocking only, and a 100-frame limit at 24fps, which helped keep the focus on fundamentals.
I began by sketching the motion path of the ball and then planning how the tail would follow and overlap the main body. Looking at reference, such as squirrels, helped me understand the relationship between the body and tail, especially how the tail drags behind and catches up after direction changes. I planned areas where the tail would stretch, squash, and overlap to enhance the sense of weight and flexibility.
This exercise reinforced the importance of secondary motion, timing, and overlap. Keeping the animation simple allowed me to focus on clarity and strong motion, rather than detail, and helped me better understand how tails and similar appendages should behave in animation.
I need to make sure the tail reacts correctly to the movement of the ball instead of moving at the same time or in the wrong direction. The tail should always lag behind the ball, clearly showing overlap and follow-through, so it feels attached and affected by the ball’s motion.
I also need to adjust the direction and timing of the tail, making sure it consistently trails opposite to the direction of movement and only swings wider when there is enough speed or impact. Right now, the tail movement feels too independent, which makes the motion less believable.
Finally, I need to refine the tail’s settling after the landing. The ball should come to rest first, while the tail continues to move and gradually settles, creating a clearer sense of weight and physics.
Final realisation of the pendulum challenge: