Sympathetic Doesn't Have To Mean Likable

Sympathetic Doesn't Have To Mean Likable from Jennine Lanouette on Vimeo.

Likeability VS Vulnerability in your characters is the difference between sympathy and EMPATHY in your work.  You want your audience to EMPATHIZE with your characters.  I was looking at some pitches yesterday from students for new comedic acting pieces and many were pretty brutal with anger, pain or intensity of emotions that needed more backstory.  If you do not set-up the character in some way to have a vulnerable moment where we see motivations for these actions, they just feel like an empty, soulless character.  Look for ways to show the vulnerability in your characters, even if it's just a micro-expression and you can have them do most anything in your shots.

Three Fairies Pencil Tests by Ollie Johnston

...via http://aghostwillfollowyouhome.tumblr.com/

Facial Reference Library

Over the years, I have used this tool I created called the Facial Reference Library (both when I have led teams on shows and taught animators in schools).  I built it to explain the different lines of action in the face when a human/animal is experiencing an emotion.

My teaching philosophy encompasses leaning by sight/visual, text and finally by doing it yourself.  This document covers all three for each emotion.  You have a dictionary definition of the emotion and a description of the lines of action that happen in the face along with a simple emoticon that shows those changes. In addition, there are several images for each emotion take from all over the internet from google, flickr, etc. to show the range of that emotion and how the expression plays out on the face.

The FRL is a tool my animators use and love, and now I offer it to you publicly here for free to use.  I worried about doing so, because many of the photographs used to show each emotion are not mine, they are just photos I have found over the years on the Internet.  But, in the name of learning I believe that is okay.  I am not offering this tool for money, so hopefully people will see the good in sharing these images with everyone.

Have fun!

Facial Reference Library