We used the same tried-and-true steps of creative development to get our lil’ squishy friend to dive into the toasty mug of cocoa. Through development of moodboards, styframes and an animatic before plunging into animation, we ensured delivery of maximum cuteness.
How do you wish your favorite people happy holidays? By creating an adorable marshmallow taking a plunge into a mug of hot chocolate of course!
Expertise
- Storytelling
- 3D Animation
- Character Animation
- Texturing
- Lighting
- Sound Design
Set the Mood and Trust the Process
Mood boards and style frames
We started by gathering inspiration from around the web, and chose a cute marshmallow as our main character. Then, we created the model and style using 3D and a hand-drawn texture for approachability.
Animatic Phase
During the animatic phase, we sketched out the actions and put them on a timeline to guide our story direction. These quick animatics help us see the final product and make big changes before we've poured too much time into each of the steps.
Hot chocolate with no liquid?!
To create the cocoa splashes we developed a quick and effective solution in Cinema4D. By combining a spline arc and a mospline, we could control the thickness and motion of the cocoa splash. Next, we placed in a cloner which added the complexity. Finally, we polished with a volume builder to give the shapes a fluid-like appearance.
Perfect form
Getting the 3D marshmallow rigged properly was essential not only for ease of animation but to get that slip and flop just right. This phase puts the “bones” into our 3D model, and we use those like little handles to set the keyframes and animate our character.
Hardware RenderFinal Render