Ratchet and Clank Cinematic Sequences: Layout to Final

When I was in college, I always loved seeing a breakdown of professional animators' shots, from layout to blocking to finish, so I decided to do that with a few of the cinematics I animated on Ratchet and Clank Future: A Crack In Time.

NOTE: In Terac Sequence, Ratchet and Azimuth animation not by me. Included only for continuity.

Also included is the time spent animating on each scene.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Animation
• Ratchet
• Clank
• Future
• Crack In Time
• 3D
• Game
• Blocking

[Trogdorius]

hey koolgool,

I did a couple of scenes with Dr. Nefarious and the Nefarious boss fight. Most of the Neffy scenes were spread between the other animators who really did such an incredible job with him. He's a fun character to work with because you can really push his actions to an extreme.

[Trogdorius]

Then i try to think about posing and find any areas in the intonation of voice or meaning behind the words that lend themselves to specific poses. Then i shoot reference and use that and my thumbs to begin blocking. I get feedback from the other animators here and move forward to spline, where i tend to pump up the overlapping action and finally, polish things off.

[Trogdorius]

The "Time Taken" shown for each sequence is from the moment i am first given the 3d layout to the time when the animation is completed, so that includes figuring out poses, thumbnailing and shooting reference.

When given a scene, i usually listen to the dialogue and watch the layout to decide first if i am happy with what is there, or if any camera/character changes should be made.

[RatchetGod]

the layout are funny

[MsAlice651]

This is wonderful I really love the animation of nefarious and ratchet here but I was wondering what the spots on his cheeks are during the last sequence

[Lee2008]

haha, that Terac Sequence is a classic! And the "death sequence" is so sincere between Ratchet and Clank, love the acting choices!

[JohnHirtJr]

I just finished this game and truly enjoyed the animation in it. Especially Nefarious. As an animator myself, it was very inspiring to see that such great animation still exists in some video games. As you know, workflow is something we all struggle with as animators, so it's great to see over someone's shoulders, so to speak. Thanks for posting this! Keep up the great work!

[koolgool]

The animation in Dr. Nefarious is pure eye candy, I love it. Did you animate most of the scenes with him? He's such an expressive character.

[smearframe]

Thank you for sharing the shot progression. Its nice to see the blocking alongwith the final shots. I hope I get a Ps3 soon!

[TheBriness]

I love the animation on the ears, they look great! And the poses are wonderful. When you say time taken, does that include figuring out all the poses before you animate? If you don't mind my asking, what's your thought process when you get a scene to work on?