Rigging and animating flat mesh in toon style for 2d eyes

mercuryraven · August 7, 2018, 9:30pm

hey guys, I need advice on stuffs…Guess I will start from the beginning. I am trying to use flat mesh for eyes in toon style. (not lattice modifier method)

So rather than 3d modeling the head from scratch and rigging the eyeballs. I am trying to practically slap the uv projected flat mesh on the head base.

Basically something akin to these (first guy didnt finish his tutorial, second guy just made anime eyes using curves just for fun so its not for animation, 3rd video is maya)

So far I tried two approach

Have the uv projected iris mesh slapped on top of the mesh using shrinkwrap modifier in projection mode. (Right)
Inverse method, have the outside be around the mesh like a mask using shrink wrap modifier in projection mode. (Left)

Now what I need to do is Rig the mesh so that I can easily modify it. This last part is proving to be troublesome…I am not that expert with weight painting. I have tried using bendy bone but that shifts the whole mesh. I have tried using hook modifier but the fall off isnt really correct, I have tried using lattice and wrap modifier but they all give me anomalies.

I know people would say to use shape keyes but they don’t really give you much control on the fly. Any advice for this would help me alot…I have been experimenting with these for the past days and I need to stop lol

here is the blend file (fixed, didnt package texture before): http://pasteall.org/blend/index.php?id=50116

oh yea, eye texture is not mine, its by JasonJeanChannel from deviantart

RNavega · August 9, 2018, 2:18am

“For toon eyes” – can you post some reference image(s) of what it should look like? So we can think about the desired result first.
It doesn’t need to be the exact reference (if you don’t want to share it for some reason), just something that looks similar enough to what you’re after.

mercuryraven · August 9, 2018, 6:39pm

I guess its something like Dillongoo’s animation.

I think he 3d modeled the head and then attached it to the body.

After filling the gaps and deleting unnecessary stuffs my render looks like this :

which is not close but its something I think ill be content with.

(I actually tried adding the eyelash but that also gets eaten by shrink wrap modifier soo…)

edit : note that I am just working with the makehuman model

RNavega · August 10, 2018, 8:17am

Very cool animation there.
That looks like a “3D anime” eye style, although his eyes are narrower than usual. You can find plenty of examples from Japanese sources. Here follows a dump, but you can find more on Pinterest, Google w/ 3DCG japanese terms etc:

What I took from researching this style is that the sclera part of the eyes is either hollow (kinda like this) or convex (like normal cartoon eyes with a bulgy round surface), and they can be welded to the head mesh or made separate. These are all creative choices and they all work, it comes down to taste and needs.
I personally think it’s better that the sclera is made separate to the face so you can have the eyelid deform with more freedom and less support loops.

Facial expressions can be done with shapekeys \ morphing.
You can use joints \ bones if you want, but I think the amount of work is bigger. This was done with joints for example (video1, video2).

If you need some reference you can download models from ASideOfChidori, I think some of them look like your ref. video. You can import them into Blender using the XPS Tools add-on. They come skinned to an armature, great for studying and making your own opinion of things.