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Whispering Pines 10

"performed in a multimedia environment of 3-channel video incorporating interactive "live animation" techniques, hacked objects, and original electronic music."

This is interesting and inspired me to work on my topic which is chines puppet show. With live animation, user can use hands or body movements to do tracking to make puppets lively with different actions. Hacked objects can be use as a metaphor when puppet is sad/angry and so on to play around the expression/emotions.

Critique 2 Idea Development - Quick walk cycle using Puppeteer in DAZ Studio 1.7

Puppeteer allows you to create interesting animations by smoothly changing between keyframes using an intuitive mouse-based interface. This tutorial is going to show how to use Puppeteer to create a simple walk cycle that can be slowed down or sped up, even made more realistic or exaggerated, easily and on the fly. More complex versions of this technique can be used to get your characters dancing, to a rhythm you choose!

Step 1 - Enter Walter

For this tutorial, I will be using Walter, from the 3D Starter Pack, but you can obviously use any character you like. Start a new DAZ Studio scene, and load up Walter (by default, in Figures - > DAZ Characters).

Step 2 - The Contact Pose

The first thing to create is the “Contact” pose - the pose where the front leg is furthest forward, just as the heel makes contact with the ground.

You can either pose Walter using the image as a guide, or use the following values:

BODY: yTrans -9.58

Left Thigh: xrot 9.33

zrot -10.00

Left Shin: xrot 49.86

Left Toe: xrot -45.00

Right Thigh: xrot -40.00

yrot 2.87

zrot 6.87

Right Foot: yrot -9.74

Left Shoulder: xrot -50.00

yrot -70.00

zrot -50.00

Right Shoulder: xrot 50.00

yrot -70.00

zrot 50.00

Step 3 - Add a dot

Once you're happy with your pose, bring up the Puppeteer tab. Make sure the “Edit” option is checked, then click somewhere on the grid to place a dot. This dot represents the pose you have just created. When in Preview or Record mode, as you drag the mouse pointer over this dot, the character will assume the associated pose.

One of the things that makes Puppeteer so powerful is that you can place these dots anywhere you like - customizing the interface to the particular animation you're creating. For the purpose of this tutorial, put it a little to the left, as shown.

Step 4 - Second Contact Pose

Now it is time to create the other passing pose - when the other leg is in front, and the first leg behind. We could go through all the same setting up process as before, but it's quicker and easier to use the Symmetry function. Make sure you've got some part of Walter selected, then go to the Parameters tab, then click on the triangle at the top right corner. Select the “Symmetry…” item from the menu that pops up.

Nodes: Root

Propagation: Recursive

Direction: Swap Left and Right

Trunk Nodes: Mirror Y|Z Rotations

Once you have done that, add another dot to the Puppeteer grid, to the right of the first one.

Step 5 - The Passing Pose

Now we are going to create the “Passing” pose - that moment in the walk half-way between the two Contact pose, where the legs pass each other.

Again, you can use the image as a guide, or use the following numbers:

BODY ytrans 1.58

Left Thigh xrot -45.36

yrot -1.15

zrot -8.10

Left Shin xrot 80.05

Left Foot yrot 4.99

Left Toe xrot -21.89

Right Thigh xrot -14.69

yrot 1.07

zrot 8.19

Right Shin xrot 25.61

Right Foot xrot -9.21

yrot -4.74

Right Toe xrot -4.50

Left Shoulder xrot 2.65

yrot 3.25

zrot -69.26

Right Shoulder xrot -2.65

yrot 3.25

zrot 69.26

Once that pose is done, place a Puppeteer dot, between and below the two Contact pose dots.

Step 6 - Mirror The Passing Pose

Mirror the pose again, the same as in part 4. Place the fourth and final Puppeteer dot above the others, to form a little diamond.

Step 7 - Preview

On the Puppeteer tab, click the “Preview” radio button. While in Preview mode, you won't be able to change the pose dots - instead, the pose dots will change your character's pose.

To animate Walter, click and drag somewhere in the diamond of pose dots. As you move the mouse with the mouse button pressed down, you should get a feel for how this changes Walter's pose. Basically, as you move the mouse pointer closer to a dot, the closer Walter's pose matches the one stored in that dot. When the mouse pointer is between two dots, Walter's pose will be a blend of the two poses.

So, how to make Walter walk? The way the pose dots are set up, anti-clockwise circles will cycle between the poses in the correct order for a walk cycle.

By varying how fast you make your circles, you can vary Walter's speed. By making your circles wider or narrower, you can change how exaggerated the walk is. And most importantly, you can make these changes in real time.

Step 8 - Record

Once you've practiced a bit, you'll want to actually record a take.

Click on the “Record” option on the Puppeteer tab. This acts like the “Preview” option, except that as soon as you click on the main Puppeteer grid, DAZ Studio will record, stopping only when you'release the mouse button. Keyframes will be added to your animation as required.

If you're unhappy with the result, you can undo what you've done by clicking on the triangle at the top right of the Puppeteer tab, and select the “Clear Layer Animation” option.

When you're happy with the results, you can render your animation.

Step 9 - Next Steps

This is a very simple setup for a walk cycle. You can refine this easily enough, by adding more poses, in-between the four already created.

Instead of manually posing Walter, you can use the Preview mode to find the pose you like, then switch back to Edit mode to create a new dot. Arrange the new dots to create an octagon of pose dots.

You can load an audio clip - for example, some music - using the Audio item in the Edit menu. As you can vary the tempo of your walk on the fly, you can easily match Walter's walk to the right tempo.

The real power of Puppeteer is that you can set it up the way you like, to match your own style or the needs of you particular project. If you don't like anti-clockwise circles for your walk, you can set it up for clockwise circles instead. You can alter the position of the pose dots, and the distance between them, to match what works for you.

The possibilities are endless!

Critique 2 Idea Development - Puppeteer Animation in DAZ Studio

Daz Studio offers a virtual environment and toolset for the posing and animation of 3D character models and props. Unlike traditional 3D polygon modeling software, the 3D content is not actually created in Daz Studio. Rather, 3D models are imported from other software packages, such as 3D Studio Max or Maya, or purchased from various 3D character model retailers, such as Renderosity.

Critique 2 Idea Development - Kinect Interactive Puppet

I found this is interesting that could be apply in puppet show.

Two designers, Emily Gobeille and Theo Watson, have whipped up this digital puppet prototype with it. It's a 2D puppet that uses skeleton tracking on an arm to control the movement and posture of the puppet. They hacked it together in a day using open-source Kinect drivers, which is pretty cool.

Speed project - made in a day using openFrameworks and libFreenect.

Concept and Production by Design I/O
Emily Gobeille - Theo Watson
design-io.com

3D depth camera for arm tracking, courtesy of Microsoft and the open source / diy community :)

Critique 2 Precedence Study - Rod Puppet

Yuqin Wang is an outstanding artist; her stage career started early. By the age of 19, she had already sung and acted in scores of classical Beijing operas. Beginning in 1964, she directed her artistic energy toward puppetry.

Through years of research and experimentation, she brought new excitement to puppetry by weaving into it traditional opera techniques. She has played the lead role in more than thirty puppet shows, numerous movies and television programs. She has performed throughout the world, receiving critical praise everywhere.

In 2004, with Zhengli Xu, Yuqin Wang received the National Heritage Fellowship.

Zhengli Xu has performed as a Chinese rod puppeteer for over 40 years. Graduating from Beijing Puppetry Art School with a major in show production and direction, he spent many years studying under the great puppet masters of China. Like Mrs. Wang, he has traveled to many foreign countries to perform. Drawing on his many years of experience in puppet making, direction, performance and stage design, Xu produced and performed a large production of Maiden Pearl at The Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center in Portland, Oregon in September 1999 to critical acclaim. Mr. Xu designs and creates all the puppets, sets, staging and props, and selects the traditional Chinese music for the performances.

Awards:

• National Heritage Fellowship, with Zhengli Xu National Endowment for the Arts
• Excellence in Performance Award Association of Art and Culture, Beijing
• Best Artistic Expression, Children's Favorite Award 11th International Festival of Puppetry, Yugoslavia.

Critique 2 Precedence Study - String Puppet

String puppets are beloved and adored by children and adults alike. Many cultures have used

string puppets,also called marionettes, for entertainment, artistic and even religious and political

purposes. In different areas of the world, string puppets vary greatly in their function, design and

artistic execution.

Ancient World

1. There is evidence that marionettes were used as toys or entertainment for children in classical Greece. Dolls have been found alongside children in grave sites dating from this period. Archaeologists who unearthed these dolls found holes for string manipulation, leading them to believe that these dolls were in fact marionettes. Writings from Plato and Aristotle also mention puppet performances, confirming this theory.
2. Marionettes as Divine
3. String puppets have been associated with the divine. The term "marionette" means "little Mary," after the Virgin Mary of the Christian tradition. Some scholars believe this alludes to the fact that many Christian plays were performed with Mary as a puppet character. Others postulate that the term refers to the "divine" effect that is achieved by being manipulated from above by strings. This manipulation makes the puppets ethereal, as if floating.
4. Chinese Marionettes
5. The Chinese as well as the Europeans recognized the link between string puppets and the divine. Though many forms of puppetry exist in China, marionettes have traditionally had a specific function. String puppet performances were said to drive away evil spirits and were used to offer thanks and praise to the gods.
6. Here is the news about Taiwan glove puppet VS China QuanZhou string puppet.
7. Taichung, Taiwan was organize a special exhibition of cultural heritage, including an old master from China, a big show of puppetry's unique skills, through the hands of the 36 strings, not only can make moves like a real life-like, and even changes the expression in detailed.

As the video mentioned, the more of strings you used, the more flexibly of puppets.

Critique 2 Precedence Study - Stage Designs

From the image above, the stage design changing based on different stories. The purpose of doing this is to enhance the realistic scenes and convey the message clearly.