Check out this clip from Duncan Jones' Moon. I was privileged enough to see an advanced screening of the flick this Monday and I very much enjoyed it.
This is a pretty fantastic movie for animators to watch. Sam Rockwell does a really tremendous job in the film and while the above clip is not the best display of Sam's talents, he does do some nice and interesting things in it.
Let's look at them with our animation/acting spectacles, shall we?
+ At the beginning, Sam is trying to sell Gerty on letting him out to investigate the outer shell. He's also slightly distracted with the tool in his hand and the leaky pipe. Later, the negotiation between Sam's desire to get outside and Gerty's stalwart denial of the request causes Sam's attention to fully commit. He stands up, looks Gerty right the....screen, puts his hand on his hip and gives hit is all. And it works.
This is a nice moment to keep in mind when animating an exchange between two characters of different wants. As the negotiation extends and desires are not met, the negotiator's commit more fully.
+It's always a good idea to tilt the head of your character. Even a simple head tilt can loosen up a character. Look how extremely canted Rockwell tilts his head around the 21 second mark. I don't know if I would ever think to tilt a character's head that far in an animation when delivering dialogue, but look at how well it works in this moment. Sam's intention is not to intimidate Gerty into getting what he wants, so he avoids being aggressive towards him. I think this crazy head tilt helps reinforce that. He leans into Gerty, but he keeps his head tilted as not to be too aggressive. When a puppy tilts his head to you it's cute and disarming, not aggressive, right? Weird analogy, I know, but roll with it.
+As a physical action, the secondary action that Sam performs as he's folding the tool and putting it in his pocket is very nice. It's not just a simple "put tool away" action. The tool is giving him some resistance and the extra effort is reflective throughout the body. That little crook of the neck and head as he finally folds the tool is a nice little flourish.
+Another great bit of physical action is the way Sam stands up from his kneeling/seated position. It's a very labored, unusual, and unique method of standing up. He doesn't just stand up, he starts to rise and braces heavily with the right arm on the ledge and shoulder on the wall. At one point, he almost uses his head to help get himself stable. It's a painful, deliberate action that keeps the character true to what the audience knows of him from prior scenes (trying to keep this spoiler free). :)
+The last shot. Now, we don't know if Sam is trying avoid stepping on something out of frame, but look how he crosses passed Gerty. He's way up against the wall almost as if he feels guilty for convincing Gerty to let him out. He knows he's pushed Gerty into doing something he didn't want to do, so he doesn't flaunt it or get too close to Gerty as if not to be insulting. It's a neat little thing there.
If you get a chance to see the movie, I highly suggest it. I can't wait to watch it again just to study more of Rockwell's VERY solid acting. Highly recommended.
Stay tooned!
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