Frame by Frame

Hello and welcome back! The past few weeks have been busy ones for us here at Short Sleeve Studio! Here are a couple updates:

Voice Acting

Darragh sent out our casting package and we got back over 950 auditions! A veritable legion of unholy acting talent clamoring to breathe life into our wonderful characters. Darragh told me that such a large number, while uncommon, is not surprising. Most AAA video games these days don’t have a lot of character work which can be more interesting from an actor’s perspective (not to mention the players).  I’m certain it’s also a symptom of the current job market, but I like to think it’s mostly because our characters are so wonderful.

I’m here to tell you, it’s very difficult to maintain an objective view when you’re listening to over 100 auditions.  I don’t know how Darragh does it, but I have newfound respect for the work he does.  It’s also quite a lot of fun!

Backgrounds

We have well over 80% of our backgrounds completed and the background artwork for the entire first act has been integrated into the game.  It’s very exciting to see Voodoo Detective walking around in his natural habitat.

But I’m not here to prattle on about the various milestones we’ve reached. Today, I want to talk a little more about our animation process. As I mentioned in my previous post, we’re working with an animation studio in Toronto called Little Blackstone. They’re a lovely, talented, professional bunch and it’s been a pleasure working with them. Yay, Little Blackstone! I’ll be referring to them as LBS henceforth for the sake of my fingers.

The Process (no relation)

Acting Reference

Voodoo Detective (the game) has around 872 animations at this exact moment.  A lot of those are not hand-drawn.  For instance, when the inventory slides onto the screen, that’s done using code.  However, there are probably still well over 600 hand drawn animations that LBS will be working on.

It all starts with an acting reference Eric and I provide.  Here are a couple examples. I have been told it can be a little overwhelming to behold so much acting prowess radiating from one source, but do try to battle with your natural sense of awe.

Eric Fulton - Actor

Eric Ackerman - Actor

We’re playing the harmonica! Could you tell? Great! I’m glad you liked it. Sometimes we also provide specific references from film or television or the real world.

Blocking

Once we’ve delivered our acting references, and used smelling salts to revive anyone who’s swooned from our stunning performances, LBS begins work on the blocking pass of the animation cycle.  They give us a few key frames of the animation that show the actor’s progress through the action.  From there we deliver any feedback we have or, as is most often the case, overwhelming praise for a job well done.  Here is an example blocking pass.  This one actually has more than a few frames, so it’s a little different from some of the others.

Animation and Color

Once the blocking pass feedback (or lack thereof) has been addressed, LBS moves on to the animation pass.  Here they add in color and any frames missing in between the key frames (this is called inbetweening).

After we receive the animation pass, all that’s left is for us to give any remaining feedback (usually none), pour out a glass of champagne, and call it a day!

Call It a Day!

Speaking of calling it a day, I’ve got to get back to work!  Thanks so much for reading!  It’s a real gas getting to share these moments with you.  I look forward to sharing even more in the future!  Until then, I hope all your days are full, happy, and healthy!

Love,
Eric Fulton