Three Components of Communication

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7% —– Oral (What we say, the words we use)
38% —- Vocal (How we say, the tone we use)
55% —- Visual (Body language, Facial Expression)

“Visual” is where character animation plays a big part! :D

For character animation, this can be a useful list of the possible meanings of body language:

BODY LANGUAGE
Rubbing chin
Body not facing the other person
Fiddling with pens, keys etc
Finger pointing
Hands in pockets
Scratching head/neck
Looking at the other person when speaking
Frowning
Looking around the place
Slouching
Eyes looking up when talking
Eyes looking down when talking
MEANING
Uncertainty, deciding, considering
Not interested
Nervous
Angry, accusing, authority
Depressed, insecure, feeling cold
Confused, puzzled, frustrated
Focused, attentive
Confused, disagree, unhappy
Not interested, bored, distracted
Not interested
Recalling, thinking
Thinking of a reason, likely an excuse

Hmm, if I have time, I intend to grow this list because it can come in useful when deciding on acting choices! :D

Excel in Customer Service

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I attended a course about customer service excellence recently. This is not exactly a CG related article but I thought it might be useful to some. =) So, I’m here to share…

When dealing with challenging customers, first, Deal with your feelings.
We need to understand that we cannot control others’ behaviour but we can always control ours. It’s very common that we can get very irritated by our customers however we must not show it because it won’t help the situation.

Listen to what they have to say, our customers want to be heard. Allow them to relay their concerns thoroughly without interruption and maintain eye contact through the process.

Empathise with your customer. We do not necessarily have to agree with their claims but we have to accept it and help them from there.

Clarify what problems the customer has faced and what they want eventually. Ask appropriate questions to get more information in order to help them.

It’s time to Take action and before that, you have to be sure of policies and limitations of what solutions you (in your position) can offer. If it’s beyond you, suggest alternatives or refer the customer to the proper authority, or else, try to agree on a solution and work on it.

If it’s required that you Refer them to the proper authority, maintain the responsibility for solving the problem. Follow up with customers until their problem is solved.

Cheers!

Kyle Balda’s 3D Animation Masterclass

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Useful tips on how to approach a 3D character animation dialog shot (above)

I am working on a super short animation right now. It’s a 2 person dialog.
I felt slightly lost in terms of my workflow and hence I went to flip through notes from Gobelin’s Summer School! In particular, Kyle Balda’s lessons is really helpful! Not only do I now have a clearer mind on how to approach my shot, I am totally inspired now! :D

Do take precious notes when attending masterclasses or courses! They are really useful!
Alright, I’m off to animate!

Oh, I found this clip of a demo he did for June 2009 issue of 3D World Magazine. This 10 minutes clip is a summary! :) Enjoy!

Studio

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The studio is coming together, check it out! :D

Note: “Studio Shot” added to portfolio.