INTRODUCTION

In this project, I was tasked with animating a fox jumping over a fence. Special attention was given to showing the fox hesitating before the jump to convey realism and intention. My responsibilities included the concept, ideation, and animation. The biggest challenge was to depict realism, weight, and correct body mechanics within the technical limitations.


ORGANIZATION, PLANNING & REFERENCES

The planning began with gathering references to make the jump and hesitation believable. Real wildlife footage of foxes served as a basis to refine anticipation, micro-movements, and timing. Initially, the project was intended as practice while I waited for rigs for other projects. However, after a short time, I decided to include the animation in my demo reel. I formed a team with a colleague who modeled the fox and handled the grooming, while also taking care of the environment, lighting, rendering, and compositing.


WORKFLOW ANIMATION

This project was my first and last demo project. At that time, I was still working directly in splines rather than using stepped blocking. I started the fox animation before all my other projects and, upon finishing it, I realized the progress I had made during the other projects and the fundamental mistakes I had initially made with the fox. First, I animated a rough walk cycle. Next, I animated the hesitation/tribble. The transition between walking and hesitation was challenging because the fox makes a slight turn to the right before the jump. This caused the controllers to twist, which I noticed later during the jump, as it led to unwanted deformations. I was able to fix these issues later. Using animation layers, I added smaller breakups in the walk cycle, such as looking up at the fence, movements in the ears, and eye movements. Since I had a good reference for the hesitation before the jump, it was easy for me to animate. However, I had to overcome the rig’s limitations, as the volume of the hind legs was heavily compressed. The jump itself was the most difficult part for me because the rig exhibited strong deformations whenever the chest and hips were not on the same level. Since the trajectories of the chest and hips differed greatly, I had to carefully check them with motion trails, optimize the spacing, and place the landing contact points precisely. The position of the rig’s clavicles also prevented proper angling of the forelegs, causing unsightly shoulder deformations that I tried to minimize. Foot plants and toes were later hand-keyed on an extra animation layer once the environment was finalized to avoid sliding. Secondary motion, such as tail and spine overlaps, supported the balance and made the jump feel livelier. Subtle details like eye movement and small ear movements increased intention and believability. Minor adjustments were also necessary due to the grooming, which I implemented at the end.


GROUPWORK & FEEDBACK

I maintained close contact with my team so that the animation was prepared in a way that CFX and the environment could build on it seamlessly. The rigger was able to make small improvements to the deformations based on my feedback. For lighting and compositing, the responsible artist and I held multiple feedback rounds to create a perfect setting. Additionally, I received weekly feedback for this project through reviews.


CHALLENGES, SOLUTIONS & LEARNINGS

The biggest challenges were the rig and the alignment of the controls after the fox’s rotation. The extreme leg movements caused strong deformations. Additionally, I realized very late that I had not analyzed the movements of a fox in enough detail. I remained unsatisfied with the walk cycle until the end, which led me to focus more closely on the body mechanics. Their movements are very quick and jerky, so I had to adjust the splines afterward to make the motions appear as realistic as possible. The jump trajectory had to be carefully controlled using motion trails to achieve a believable arc. Foot plants were meticulously keyed to prevent sliding. From these challenges, I learned how important micro-movements, clear holds, and clean arcs are. Weight shifts and exaggeration are crucial, even when anatomical extreme poses are limited by the rig.


CONCLUSION

The fox project showed me how crucial attention to detail, timing, and the precise coordination of body mechanics are for believable animation. The challenge of making the fox hesitate before the jump while staying within the rig’s limits sharpened my awareness of intention, weight, and subtlety in movement. In the end, the fox was able to jump not only believably and lively, but the animation also tells a small story of caution, deliberation, and energy.