CGNetworks Exclusive First Look
Learning 3D Character Animation DVD
By Tito A. Belgrave, {date} Jeff Lew has been a character animator in the visual effects industry since 1997 working on various feature films including 'Matrix Reloaded', 'Looney Tunes:Back in Action' and 'X-Men'. He is also the creator of 'Killer Bean 2', one of the most viewed animated short films ever. Currently, Jeff is taking a break from visual effects production to work on his own animated films and also create valuable training material for aspiring CG artists. His training DVD, entitled “Learning 3D Character Animation with Jeff Lew”, has just been released and is available for purchase via his website. The DVD is broken up into 3 sections. Part 1 covers “Tools and Technical Methods” associated with the art of animation. Part 2 covers “Artistic Principles and Applications”, and the Part 3 takes you through a full exercise on everything taught. One shining aspect of this DVD is that it’s not software specific, which means you can learn everything you need to know without the worries of applying it to a particular 3D application. Tools and Technical Methods
Jeff begins the DVD with a general introduction to animation and what you’re about to learn. This section introduces the viewer to the technical aspects of animating within any given 3D software with character animation tools. Learning the importance of world space, hierarchy, keyframing methods, timing and the use of the graph editor or function curves, are invaluable to any animator. Jeff eases you into these aspects painlessly. Other aspects covered in this section are character setup, 3D keyframing, and the use of the dopesheet editor. Artistic Principles and Applications
This immense section is broken down into 14 parts and covers the most important aspects of character animation. Each section is broken down and presented with live examples showing the principles in action, and most importantly, the proper way of using them. 
Character design and rotoscoping are also covered in this section, where Jeff explains how specific character designs can affect audiences in unexpected ways. He goes on to explain the importance of style and readability in your characters so that audiences have a better grasp and understanding of your characters. While rotoscoping isn’t an absolute must, Jeff explains the strengths/weaknesses and its use for animators using it as a starting block. This section alone is worth its weight in gold as the most important aspects of animation with live examples are covered. Complete Animation Example
By now, you would have learned many important aspects of animation and you’re ready to get your hands dirty with an exercise. In the last and final section of the DVD, Jeff takes you through a complete animation depicting a character jump and kick routine with audio. This section is 5 hours of real animation work edited to approximately 58 minutes of video. Although compressed to 20% of the real working time, you shouldn’t have any real problems improvising to accomplish your own unique animation. The real importance here is that you learn how to evaluate a problem and solve it while keeping a flowing pace to your animations. Summary
After watching Learning Character Animation I felt revived as I was able to take away a lot of valuable lessons and material from sitting through it. The real importance here is how the video was presented -- Jeff’s body language and live examples communicate far more accurately the characterization trying to be attained. If you’re seriously considering getting into character animation, the information and lessons presented in Learning Character Animation is invaluable and will prove useful in any setting. [CGN] Learning 3D Character Animation is available from Jeff Lew's website for USD$54.95 plus shipping and handling. Discuss Jeff Lew's new DVD on CGTalk.com
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