Flexpressions: latest facial animation tech in Blender

[beschizza]

Originally published at: Flexpressions: latest facial animation tech in Blender | Boing Boing

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[RadioSilence]

After 30 years this guy finally got an Amiga and Video Toaster | Boing Boing

Toaster, Blender… What’s next, George Foreman Grill?

[ubuntourist]

What’s the MPAA rating for “Sqworm”?

[geoduck]

“EWW” I think.

[Mungrul]

I have the nagging feeling that this is all “fair warning” on your behalf Rob, and one of these days I’ll load up BB to be confronted be a hideous infinite loop of Elizabeth Holmes staring into my soul forever with an unsettling grin, with said grin also replacing her eyes.

I know it’s coming, and I now know you have the tools to make it so, so it’s simply a matter of time until my psyche is shattered.

[SheiffFatman]

@beschizza

Animator Chris Jones’ magnum opus, though, is surely The Sqworm.

DO NOT WANT.

[beschizza]

@Mungrul

I know it’s coming,

Eyemouths are predictable, no? Better to never really know what’s coming

[Mungrul]

[AnyBuddy]

I can’t be the only one to think this… or maybe I am. It seems obvious that the key to getting to another level on these animated facial expressions is to make them operate less smoothly. Muscles don’t work in a perfectly continuous way. There should be small jumps/reverts during these movements to take them out of the “Check out how perfectly smooth this motion is” and into the “muscular motion can be jerky and random” bucket. Consider the motion of cartoonishly pursing the lips and pushing the mouth to the side. Just try that yourself. Feel the muscles in your cheeks moving in a noncontinuous way?

The timing also feels off. Like some movements are just animated for too long. And where are the microexpressions? I think in a couple of years, maybe less, there will be a “facial animation breakthrough” that incorporates these ideas.

[Whim]

Sure, Blender also has the tools to control the speed of an animated movement. I think either they wanted to showcase the gradations of facial expressions you can achieve, or they imagined it would be too much work to get the timing to look perfectly lifelike.
Micro-expressions are, like, barely perceptible, right? I know some people have tried subliminal advertising, but I see why they went a different direction here.

[Joshua_Albers]

Serious Messerschmidt face vibes.

Wikipedia: Franz_Xaver_Messerschmidt

[Brainspore]

@AnyBuddy

There should be small jumps/reverts during these movements to take them out of the “Check out how perfectly smooth this motion is” and into the “muscular motion can be jerky and random” bucket.