More About Animations

As I develop Uncle Sweeter's personality, I think about dialogues, which causes me to think about animations that can support his character. This process follows a classic design principle that states, "form follows function." This is the opposite of building or buying a figure and then working out a character based on what the figure can do.

1. Uncle Sweeter falls asleep during the show, so closing eyes are a minimum requirement. I want to make his chest rise and fall as he snores, too. I'm working on that. It's probably just a manipulation detail, but the torso has to support it. Eyes closed, head downward and leaning to one side, jaw opening and closing, chest rising and falling.
   
2. Uncle Sweeter shows disdain and surprise, particularly when I wake him. His right eyebrow goes down and his left eyebrow and eyelid go up. One control makes that happen. It will probably be the same control that closes both eyelids.
   
3. I'm working on another animation that I'll keep close for a while. It's something I've never seen, but it is easy to build and has strong comedic potential. I want at least one opportunity to use it before having it show up on dealer tables.