Datasheet
18■n Chapter 1: Learning the Basics of Lip Sync
Using the Sync Tool
In this Maya scene, we’re going to continue using the slider, the shapes that slider con-
trols, and what we’ve learned about syncing by viseme to take all of it for a test run. Let’s
do a silent practice word, why, which is one of the easiest for this particular rig.
If you’re finding that the frame numbers aren’t lining up for you, give your preferences a look
and make sure they’re at 24 fps; film. In Maya, you can find the option for frame rate under
Windows
➔
Settings/Preferences
➔
Preferences
➔
Settings. Other programs will have this set-
ting, but you may have to poke around a bit to find it.
First analyze the word by sound and equate that with visemes. Sound out why and you
should end up with something like OO-UH-EE. OO and EE each need specific shapes,
whereas UH is merely open. The way I like to do things is to first key the Narrow/Wide
stuff and then go back and get the Open/Closed stuff. That said, this sync is so incredibly
short we’re just going to set the height as we go. The goal here is to whet your appetite
with sync and these sliders. By the end of the book, you’ll have an array of sliders hooked
up to a myriad of shapes and a great character face to play, or even work, with.
In your scene, on frame 0, set a key with your control at 0,0 positionally. Your mouth
should be in its default state: Closed, halfway between Narrow and Wide, much like in
Figure 1.4. If yours doesn’t match this perfectly, close enough is good enough. This first
key is something referred to as capping and will be discussed in more detail later.
Now on frame 10, move the slider down and to the left, until it looks like a good OO.
X, Y values of –1, –0.2 should be about right, as in Figure 1.5. Set a key! You’ve just set the
OO part of why, or of OO-UH-EE.
Now go to frame 30 and move the slider to the right. That should put it at 1, –0.2, as in
Figure 1.6. Set a key! You’ve just set the EE part of why. All that’s left to do is take care of
the UH part.
Moving back to frame 20, simply pull the control down so that it opens the mouth in
the middle of the word, as in Figure 1.7. Try –1 in Y. Set a key! You’re done.
You’ve keyed the visemes in the word why: OO-UH-EE. Play it through a couple of
times—not bad for a few seconds’ work. Identifying visemes all on your own steam and
working through the special cases will take a little time, but not too much.
Now, I recommend going back and looking at the phrases we’ve dissected in this
chapter, using your new toy. This little rig really is the start of how we’re going to get
into some very complicated performances, and it illustrates quite well the less-is-more
approach I’m preaching. There will soon be an army of sliders and controls just like this
one, each custom-made for different motions and shapes.
The setup we just did could directly be translated to work on some beautiful shapes
and characters. It’s just a matter of getting them built so we can use them. We’re only
playing with a circle for now, but that’s so you can get some practice with the basic
Figure 1.4
A default mouth
Figure 1.5
OO of OO-UH-EE
Figure 1.6
EE of OO-UH-EE
Figure 1.7
UH of OO-UH-EE
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