Animated test: slithering snake

Animated test: slithering snake                                                                                                              12/12/2022

 

These are the latest stills from my attempt at animating a Pictish-style snake prior to adding the patterns on top.  I used a reference image from Adobe Stock to make the keyframes for the animation, and then added my own in-betweens to make the animation more fluid.  I decided that if a next keyframe's movement was too sudden, it needed a keyframe.  I also had to consider the aura that the character movement was giving off.  Snakes generally have an unsettling, alien connotation, so the movement had to reflect that to a certain extent.  This type of animation is going to be the basis for one of my Pictish visions in the second scene of my final project, and this animation is going to be imprinted on a metal surface, which is fitting for a snake's smooth, scaly texture.   Once I am happy with the flow of the character, I will make it resemble the Pictish snake more closely.   It's also worth noting a snake's skeleton can contain up to 1800 bones, which allows for their flexibility, so there will be a certain degree of leeway.

 

Figure 1: Snake animation cycle: https://stock.adobe.com/images/animal-animation-sequence-copperhead-snake-cartoon-vector/445074224?as_campaign=ftmigration2&as_channel=dpcft&as_campclass=brand&as_source=ft_web&as_camptype=acquisition&as_audience=users&as_content=closure_asset-detail-page

 

Figure 2: Pictish snake: https://openvirtualworlds.org/omeka/items/show/387#?c=&m=&s=&cv=&xywh=-1152%2C0%2C3922%2C1981