Using 3d still renders for 2d animation


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By mazinkaiser.zero - 2 Years Ago
Hi!
A long time ago I dabbled in 2d bone animation using Moho so I have a bit of experience about the workflow of chopping parts and putting them together for animation. However, since then I abandoned 2d drawing, I was not very good and got frustrated at how slow I improved. For that reason I got into 3d, specifically Daz, Character Creator, iClone, etc. Still, I'm very interested in animation but my Daz characters often use a lot of grafts (reason why I still haven't delved too much into CC4 or iClone8) and Daz is just awful for animation. So, I was wondering about using 3d still renders to make and animate characters in Cartoon Animator 5 but looking around I can't really find anyone doing it, be it CA5 or any other 2d animation app. In my head it seems like a decent, quicker option than learning full 3d animation on Blender but it kinda worries me I can't seem to find anybody doing it.
Is it because it won't look good? Much like how you need to draw things in a certain way I'd imagine you'd have to render things with certain lighting and poses to make it look good, but I might be wrong and it always will look bad? Or am I just bad at searching and there are people doing it?
Anyway, I'll be grateful for any overall feedback about this :)
By Peter (RL) - 2 Years Ago
Hi...

Cartoon Animator 5 creates characters from 2D photos and drawings so you could certainly use 3D still renders as the source for a character.

The process is the same for photos, renders or drawings so once you understand the workflow you will be all set.

The tutorials below will give you an idea of how it all works if you want to do the work inside CTA itself. They show using a drawing to create a Standard Character or a photo to create a FreeBone character but the same steps apply to a 3D rendered image as well.
By etourist - 2 Years Ago
This article from my Blog about rigging 2D characters from 3D characters for Cartoon Animator may give you some ideas.

Create 2D Animated Characters with 3D Character Creator Tools and Artistic Filters

So long as you understand that, once you go 2D, you lose the ability to view your characters from any angle, unless you make and rig the angles you need yourself. It's frustrating to me when people start using Cartoon Animator and then expect characters to be able to move like 3D characters. That's not how 2D works. Learn the limitations and work around them.
By mazinkaiser.zero - 2 Years Ago
Well, I haven't used Cartoon Animator but I dabbled at 2d character bone animation using Moho several years ago, so I'm aware of the limitations and theory.
Back then I was also learning how to draw but dropped it in the end because I just wasn't getting good fast enough and it was frustrating me. So I picked up Daz.
My main concern is not being sure if this kind of animation would look good using somewhat realistic 3d renders, I feel that maybe we don't mind when it's cartoon but 3d renders might
spark that "uncanny valley" feeling. At the very least I'm aware I'll have to avoid strong shading.
I'll probably end doing some tests using Moho but I was worried because I can't find anyone doing something similar and that just feeds my worry that it might not look good and be a waste of my time.
But if the test is successful then I'll look into getting CA5 because it seems to have tools to make easier the character creation and animation than Moho.
By Peter (RL) - 2 Years Ago
mazinkaiser.zero (8/15/2023)

My main concern is not being sure if this kind of animation would look good using somewhat realistic 3d renders, I feel that maybe we don't mind when it's cartoon but 3d renders might
spark that "uncanny valley" feeling. At the very least I'm aware I'll have to avoid strong shading.


For sure if you are after realistic natural looking human movement then iClone 8 and CC4 would be better suited to the task. As the name implies, Cartoon Animator is primarily aimed at creating 2D cartoon projects. That's not to say you can't have your characters looking realistic, and something along the lines of the Archer series (see below) could easily be created in CTA5.
By AutoDidact - 2 Years Ago
My main concern is not being sure if this kind of animation would look good using somewhat realistic 3d renders, I feel that maybe we don't mind when it's cartoon but 3d renders might
spark that "uncanny valley" feeling. At the very least I'm aware I'll have to avoid strong shading.spark that "uncanny valley" feeling. At the very least I'm aware I'll have to avoid strong shading.
Just my opinion, but if you are planning to split up actual Daz style 3D render and rig them as 2D parts for animation in CTA5 it wont look very good.
That is probably why you are not finding example of people using that approach.
What final look are you trying to achieve?
I own both CTA4 and MOHO 13.5.
because I want my 2D animation to have a sharp clear 2D Look just like the “Archer” series Video Peter just Posted
If I want a more traditional 3D rendered look I use Daz/Iclone/custom characters inside Blender and retarget Iclone motion Via my Auto Rig system in Blender.

For a Hybrid “3D animation with toon shading” look You might want to have a look at the ( underrated) built in toon shader system in Iclone.
I am just finishing up the final scenes of a complete animated film rendered in Iclone using its native Toon engine.
By 6fgxfzsgfddbc - 2 Years Ago
It looks amazing. Can you share your worklflow for getting this absolutely brilliant 2d look in Iclone. Is it Iclone 8?