Layering Facial Expressions

You may create a custom Motion Clip to add special facial expressions or body movements by utiling puppeteering techniques.

 
Using Puppeteering

Go to a time frame where you wish to start puppeteering, then click the Face Puppet button (Shortcut: P) on the tool bar to access the Face Puppet panel. Take the project for example, make the eyes look around the audience when the actor moves up to the stage.

First Recording - Eyes

  1. Click the Clear Selection button to unselect all of the highlighted facial features in the dummy image, then pick both the eyeballs.
  2. Click the Record button and press the Space Bar to start recording the motion.
  3. Move your mouse left and right slightly to shift the eyeballs. Press the Space Bar again to stop recording.

    Actor's eyeballs shift along with the mouse cursor.

Second Recording - Head

  1. Click the Clear Selection button to unselect all of the highlighted facial features, then press the 3D Movement and the Rotate Head buttons.
  2. Make sure that the Blend data on next recording is activated in order to perform multi-layer recording.
  3. Click the Record button and press the Space Bar to start recording the motion.
  4. Move your mouse left and right slightly to tilt the head. Press the Space Bar again to stop recording.

    Actor's head tilts along with the mouse cursor.

  5. Playback to observe the animation results, to make sure that the actor will shift his eyes and tilt his head a bit looking nervous and uncertain. For fine-tuning the animation, you may layer subtle expressions by setting the facial or body keys that belong to the Motion Clip.