Uploaded February 2016 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Want to know more? Visit 2danimation101.com/art-of-character-animation
For the Body Language Course visit: 2danimation101.com/body-language-in-character-animation
Hi, Sydney here for 2danimation101.com This is the 4th video in the Art of Character Animation Series, so if you are new here, check the other 3 short videos. Ok.
So, what I will talk about today is: How to express emotions with your characters.
Ok. Let’s say you have a character. You already decided what she likes and hates.
Then, you take your character and put her in a situation.
According to Professor Joseph LeDeux, in his book “The emotional brain”; her brain will check if the situation is a threat or not.
Let’s say she sees someone she likes very much.
She will feel excited. Right?
But this situation could be threatening to her, because she realizes she didn’t brush her teeth this morning, so she might be having bad breath.
Then he spots her and says hi from the other side of the street. He is now approaching.
What do you think she is going to do next?
The situation is threatening. Not in a way in which she could die, or anything like that, but in a way that maybe he will find her repulsive after smelling her bad breath.
So again. The question remains. What do you think she is going to do next?
How do you think she should be standing? What face will she do? How will her arms behave? Her legs…
You see, this is where your research in body language can pay back big time.
For example, this face, in which she looks embarrassed, is different than this other face, in which she looks even scared.
Which one should you pick? You see? Knowing about body language can help you get a lot of options in your mind before animating.
So, this is how you express feelings with your characters.
You imagine options and choose a way to move her arms, legs and all the parts of the body to express emotions.
That’s why I strongly suggest you read about body language, check some tips on the internet on how to spot body language cues.
If you don’t want to do any of that, well, I have a new course coming up soon, in which I will explain, with a lot of visual examples, the science of Body Language in character animation.
If you want to know more, check the link to see if this course can be helpful for you.
But anyway. Maybe you don’t like me, and that’s ok, you don’t have to :)
But, I DO strongly recommend that you go and do some research on body language or read some books.
This will make you an awesome character animator, because you will know how to express feelings and make them look alive.
Ok. I hope applying these techniques help you in your journey to become an excellent artist who knows how to do awesome character animation. How to make them look alive…
Bye bye for now, and I will see you in another series.
Want to know more? Visit 2danimation101.com/art-of-character-animation
For the Body Language Course visit: 2danimation101.com/body-language-in-character-animation
Hi, Sydney here for 2danimation101.com This is the 4th video in the Art of Character Animation Series, so if you are new here, check the other 3 short videos. Ok.
So, what I will talk about today is: How to express emotions with your characters.
Ok. Let’s say you have a character. You already decided what she likes and hates.
Then, you take your character and put her in a situation.
According to Professor Joseph LeDeux, in his book “The emotional brain”; her brain will check if the situation is a threat or not.
Let’s say she sees someone she likes very much.
She will feel excited. Right?
But this situation could be threatening to her, because she realizes she didn’t brush her teeth this morning, so she might be having bad breath.
Then he spots her and says hi from the other side of the street. He is now approaching.
What do you think she is going to do next?
The situation is threatening. Not in a way in which she could die, or anything like that, but in a way that maybe he will find her repulsive after smelling her bad breath.
So again. The question remains. What do you think she is going to do next?
How do you think she should be standing? What face will she do? How will her arms behave? Her legs…
You see, this is where your research in body language can pay back big time.
For example, this face, in which she looks embarrassed, is different than this other face, in which she looks even scared.
Which one should you pick? You see? Knowing about body language can help you get a lot of options in your mind before animating.
So, this is how you express feelings with your characters.
You imagine options and choose a way to move her arms, legs and all the parts of the body to express emotions.
That’s why I strongly suggest you read about body language, check some tips on the internet on how to spot body language cues.
If you don’t want to do any of that, well, I have a new course coming up soon, in which I will explain, with a lot of visual examples, the science of Body Language in character animation.
If you want to know more, check the link to see if this course can be helpful for you.
But anyway. Maybe you don’t like me, and that’s ok, you don’t have to :)
But, I DO strongly recommend that you go and do some research on body language or read some books.
This will make you an awesome character animator, because you will know how to express feelings and make them look alive.
Ok. I hope applying these techniques help you in your journey to become an excellent artist who knows how to do awesome character animation. How to make them look alive…
Bye bye for now, and I will see you in another series.
