That One Weird Trick to Animating Horse Walks

Animating Animals: A Guide to Horse Walk Cycles

Introduction to Animal Animation

• Dong, a Canadian animator in Japan, introduces his experience with animating animals, specifically mentioning a scene from the anime "Megalo Box" featuring a dog.

• He emphasizes that animating animals is an essential skill for animators and will focus on creating a horse's walk cycle.

Understanding the Horse Walk Cycle

• Dong references American animator Abe Levital's idea that a horse's walking resembles a combination of an ostrich and human movements.

• The animation process begins with setting up layers in OpenToonz for ground and walk cycles, using 12 frames per step.

Drawing the Ostrich as Reference

• The tutorial starts by drawing an ostrich to understand its anatomy; the body size is compared to that of a human torso.

• Key poses are established: contact pose (right leg down), down pose (body lowers), passing position (body rises), and up position (left leg prepares to hit the ground).

Creating the Horse Animation

• After establishing ostrich movement, Dong shifts layers to create horse animations by adjusting drawings for proper exposure.

• He explains how to draw the horse’s anatomy while referencing previous drawings of the ostrich.

Adjusting Movement Dynamics

• Differences between human and horse movements are highlighted; horses keep their front legs straight when contacting the ground.

• Dong reviews his drawings for consistency in leg positioning and makes adjustments based on observations from flipping through frames.

Finalizing Animation Details

• To enhance fluidity, he discusses loosening up head, shoulder, and pelvis movements during different phases of the walk cycle.

Animation Techniques for Quadrupeds

Key Steps in Animation

• The pelvis should be positioned at the lowest point during the movement, emphasizing the importance of body mechanics in animation. This detail is crucial for achieving realistic motion.

• The speaker references Abe Levithal's observation about a horse's walk resembling a combination of human and ostrich movements, highlighting how understanding one animal's gait can aid in animating others.

Learning from Horse Walk Cycles

• Mastering the horse walk serves as a foundational skill that allows animators to adapt and create walk cycles for various quadrupeds, showcasing versatility in animation techniques.

Animation Flexibility

• The animator mentions that while they animated on twos, adjustments can easily be made to fit different styles or preferences, indicating flexibility in animation methods.

Community Engagement

• The speaker encourages viewers to follow their social media accounts for additional sketches and works, fostering community interaction and support among followers.

Acknowledgments