Skip to main content

Enigma Sunshine, Facebook Socialite on GoAnimate

In a some what futile effort to get my partner, Enigma, interested in GoAnimate I created a GoAnimate Custom Character based on her Facebook profile avatar. That's her avatar image on the right and in the image below is Enigma Sunshine, the character - whom was also named by my partner.

The character is actually meant to have green eyes, as in the avatar picture, but for some reason in the final animation the pupils show up black.

My partner spends a lot of time on Facebook so it's not hard to see where the inspiration for Engima Sunshine being a Facebook 'socialite' comes from.

I'm not a big fan of online social networks myself. I'd call myself a 'reluctant' participant. Particularly when it comes to real time chat. I prefer the old style message board forums to live chat (or even Twitter for that matter). I found coming up with a script for the first episode of Enigma Sunshine fairly difficult as result.

In fact, to try and find some inspiration, I created the entire opening sequence before the title, long before I had a script. What I finally came up with is nothing particularly new but it gets the series going and I hope you find it kind of fun all the same.

E1: Enigma Sunshine - Gary by etourist

Like it? Create your own at GoAnimate.com. It's free and fun!

The cartoon its self looks deceptively simple but I've actually spent weeks working away on it, planning out my sets and creating numerous custom elements. If you're interested to know more read on.

Set Design

Many GoAnimate cartoons tend to be flat and very two dimensional. Each scene has a back drop and you rarely get to see what the scene looks like from different angles. I've been trying to break this trend by creating sets of the same scene but from different view points beyond 'wide', 'medium' and 'close up' camera shots.

For example in the opening scenes you see a wide shot of Enigma's bedroom. Later in the intro you see her walk from the dressing table to her desk. Just before she sits at the desk the camera changes from somewhere in the middle of the room to looking at Enigma from directly behind the desk.

Then in the final part of the intro you see a shot of Enigma's Laptop screen, looking directly from Enigma's side of the desk, where you can clearly see the desk is actually up against the wall. See the images below (click the image to see the full size version).


Later in the cartoon you can see me do this again with the cafe. There's a shot from outside the window, an interior shot looking from where the window would be, then there is a second interior shot from the other side of Enigma and her friend's table with the window as a back drop.

You don't tend to notice these 'repositioned' camera angles because most of us are used to seeing scenes change like this in live footage on TV and in movies. However on GoAnimate it can be quite a challenge to do this using only the existing props and backgrounds.

Custom Props

Apart from the obvious custom props such as recreating Enigma's Facebook page and creating avatars for her 'friends' there are a couple of other custom props that you may have missed.

First, you'll see a mobile phone sitting on Enigma's desk. I know you never see her actually use it but it is, in fact, a custom flash prop created in Koolmoves. All GoAnimate Custom Characters have a 'talk on phone' action so I created this phone to look like the one they use - since GoAnimate haven't actually created the phone their characters use as a separate prop.

Second, you'll see Enigma's hands typing on her computer keyboard. Those hands are also custom made by me in flash, using Koolmoves. It's actually only one hand I made. I just flipped it for the other hand. GoAnimate have similar separate hands for their characters but for some reason they all are in a pointing position.

Voice Acting

I've described my process for adding voices before in my post about Harry Chalk. I never record voices until the animation is finished complete with speech balloons for everything that is said. I then adjust all the scene lengths so that you have time to read each speech balloon out loud.

I then play the animation through and record my voice reading each part, putting in as much expression and feeling into the words as I can muster. I usually do this three times through just to be sure I get at least one good reading of each line.


My partner has actually taken drama classes and performed in front of people but, just like most people, she was nervous about recording voices and doesn't like the sound of her own voice recorded.

She did crack up laughing at the beginning of her first take but pulled it together quickly. Just like me, it only took three takes for her to complete the voice work.

Usually the third take is the one I use with maybe bits and pieces from the first two takes where the voice sounded better. That's pretty much what happened with the voices for Enigma Sunshine.

Ambient Sounds and other Audio

If you turn the volume up a little louder than normal whilst watching Enigma Sunshine you'll notice at the Cafe there is the appropriate background noises for the scene, People talking etc.

Usually I just have music running in the background to fill in the quite spots (as I do in Enigma's bedroom scenes) but, if you don't want to use music, ambient background noise is the other alternative.

You'll also notice I added footstep sounds when people were running and a head scratch noise for Gary when he's just staring at the table. Details in audio like this can really bring your animation alive and seem more real.


That pretty much covers my behind the scenes look at Enigma Sunshine. I am hoping to make this an ongoing series but anticipate it being something of a struggle given my reluctant participation in online social networks.

Of course if you have ideas for future scripts for Enigma then feel free to suggest them in the comments below.

Comments

  1. Really nice. Those sets are great. They work well to create different camera angles without actually having the character's facing change...

    ReplyDelete
  2. This is excellent. I did notice all the background sounds, even the door closing in the bathroom. But I'm still confused how you got the different angles. I'll go back and read it again.

    I'm going to think about some ideas for your series. One sort of sticks out now --- I have been getting slews of friend invites from old
    boyfriends--I'll call them a BLAST FROM THE PAST.

    Anyway, I'm sure all the gals on facebook are experiencing the same thing. As a gal, I found it, initially exciting making the re-connect. But it soon got ridiculous because as you move foward in your correspondences --- they burn out quickly from excitement to OH! Crap...what did I start?

    Just an idea that could, with your brilliance, be a funny thing to explore.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I like these posts, they actually shine some light in the creation process. Creating an animation that doesn't look difficult to do, while in truth it is quite complex, is probably what I would like to be able to do. As you've shown in here, the custom work doesn't have to be "stunning", but "effective". I think the arms typing was a fantastic idea, as it was the mobile phone. You are rigt, these details might not show up, but they add to make us viewers, get into the animation.
    Thanks for sharing TET, it's always a pleasure to come by here.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

This blog is monitored by a real human. Generic or unrelated spam comments with links to sites of dubious relativity may be DELETED.

I welcome, read, and respond to genuine comments relating to each post. If your comment isn't that save me some time by not posting it.

Popular posts from this blog

Inochi2D - Free Open Source 2D VTuber Avatar Rigging and Puppeteering Software (Part 1)

Inochi2D Creator - Free Open Source VTuber Software. If you've been looking for a way to live perform as a 2D cartoon avatar on camera, whether it be for a live stream or for pre-recorded content like educational videos, then VTuber software is a low cost (or even no cost) option worth looking into. In my previous post, How to Become a VTuber - 2D and 3D Software for Creating and Controlling Your Avatar , I took a brief look at the relatively new but completely free and open source Inochi2D  which I thought showed great potential for my own needs of creating a live performance character rig for my own TET Avatar that I use for all my promotional materials. While it is possible to live perform my character using Cartoon Animator itself, Reallusion's MotionLive2D capture system isn't great - with lip sync in particular. More importantly though, I can't exactly teach people how to use Cartoon Animator if I'm using Cartoon Animator to control my Avatar. What is Inochi2D

2D Animation Side Hustle - How to Package, Upload, Optimize, Price, and Promote Your Content in the Reallusion 2D Marketplace

T his is the final post in my four part, 2D Animation Side Hustle series on Selling in the Reallusion 2D Marketplace. I'll look at how to package up your content and upload it to the Marketplace, how to optimize your listings, price, and how to sell through your store backend as well as off site through social media and other channels. If you haven't read previous articles in the series click these links for Part 1 - Can You Make Real Money , Part 2 - Finding Niches , and Part 3 - What to Sell . Before getting started you'll need to register as a Content Developer in order to see the backend of your store on the Reallusion Marketplace . Packaging Content and Uploading to the Marketplace Since the release of Cartoon Animator 5 the software has a built in Package Manager that makes it easy to assemble and upload your Content to the Marketplace. Reallusion has a comprehensive, official video (embeded below) that quickly explains the entire process in less than seven minutes. 

Moho 14 Released - Still the Best 2D Animation Software for Indy Animators on a Budget

Moho 14 Released. Regular readers know I am a Reallusion, Cartoon Animator advocate through and through. Hands down I would recommend Cartoon Animator 5 first over Lost Marble's Moho 14 to anyone who is just starting in 2D animation, is a team of one, or just needs to animate as quickly as possible. However, feature for feature, Moho is, arguably, the best 2D animation software for the rest of us who can't justify a Toon Boom Harmony , or Adobe Creative Cloud subscription (and even with their applications Moho is very competitive on features). You can get started with Moho Debut for just USD$59.99 which is a cut down version of Moho Pro but it still has the most essential features needed for 2D animation. While Moho Pro is a whopping USD$399.99 (Cartoon Animator, which only has one version, is just USD$149.00) upgrades to new version numbers come down to a quarter of the price at USD$99.00. Even though Reallusion just released features like Motion Pilot Puppet Animation and

Wonder Unit Storyboarder - Free Storyboarding Software for People Who Can (or Can't) Draw

Wonder Unit Storyboarder.  As an independent and solo animator I'm always tempted to try and skip storyboarding my animated shorts because they're usually only single scene sketch comedy type jokes. As a result I have many unfinished projects that kind of petered out due to having no clear finishing line. Storyboarding your productions, no matter how small, gives you a step by step guide of every shot that needs to be completed (no planning shots as you animate). It also allows you to create an animatic that gives you a rough preview of the finished production. In short, you shouldn't skip storyboards as they, generally, increase the chance of the project being completed. Disclaimer - I'm Not a Fan of Storyboarder Upfront, Wonder Unit's Storyboarder  is not my preferred storyboarding software. However it's completely free, has a number of very compelling featu

The Ultimate Independent Animator's App and Resource List 2019-2023 - Animation and Video Life

Image created with Cartoon Animator 4. Being an independent animator is not like a studio animation job. There's so much more to do that is indirectly related to the actual task of animating. Over the years I've sought out many apps, tools, and services that can help me achieve that one single task, expressing myself through animation. Below is my Ultimate Independent Animator's Resource List for 2019-2022. It started out as a list of free or low cost apps that could help you in every stage of producing either 2D or 3D animation, and then just kind of grew from there. You may not have been looking for a Time Management App as much as you needed something to get you started in 3D animation but when those commissioned projects start coming in you'll have a head start on maximizing your time. All the apps and services on this list had to meet two main criteria: They had to be useful and relevant to an Indy Animator/artist. The base app/service had to be US$

Start Your 2D Animation Side Hustle - Sell Your Cartoon Animator Characters, Props, Scenes, and Motion Files in the Reallusion 2D/3D Marketplace

Have you thought about starting a side hustle selling your original Cartoon Animator assets in the Reallusion 2D/3D Marketplace ? In this article, the first in a series on selling in the marketplace, I'll give you an overview of what's involved, why you should give it some thought, and whether you can earn enough to quit your day job (or at least have a worthwhile side hustle). If you're an artist with any kind of drawing skills, and you're creating your own original characters, props, scenes, and even motion files for your Cartoon Animator projects, then setting up your own store in the Reallusion Marketplace should be a no brainer. You're making content already, it doesn't cost you anything to set up, and Reallusion only takes a 30% commission from each item sold. (If you think that's a lot, I'll address that further down). Don't be put off if you think your art skills aren't up to professional standards. There are plenty of artists with naïve

Prome AI Sketch Render Tool - Your Tradigital Clean Up and Colorist Artist for Character and Background Design

Random character head, Biro sketches drawn by TET (left). Render by PromeAI (right) using Prome's Sketch Render tool set to 'Comon:Cartoon, Render Mode: Outline'. W hile I don't do New Year Resolutions, one of my plans for the year ahead is to do more of my own art. Specifically character design drawn in an actual, physical sketchbook.  To that end, I have been spending the last half hour of most days drawing a page or two of random biro sketches in my sketchbook and posting the pages to my Instagram account  (this link will take you to one of my posts). These sketches are mostly practicing my skills because I don't really draw regularly anymore. Here is a tip, if you do this kind of sketching, and push yourself to keep doing it, you will see many drawings that could be taken further, even if you don't have anything they're suited for just at the moment. Which is where my second favorite AI Image Tool (after Leonardo.ai )  PromeAI comes into play. PromeAI