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3D hanging mobile
Hello All,
I need to create a 3D mobile for a client (yes, remember back to 8th grade science class). The agency made me a working model of the mobile in case I wanted to shoot it green screen. However, I think it would give me more creative control over the environment to simply create and animate it in AE. The actual mobile “nodes” would be simple enough to create and move in 3D space, but how would I make the support structure of the hanging mobile? Any suggestions are appreciated…
Dave
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4 Replies
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I replicated one of Calder’s mobiles in After Effects using expressions and parenting.
Set the anchor points of the pieces to the point where they connect to the wires. Use wiggle expressions to animate the X and Y rotations (these can be tied to expression controls for more finesse). Parent the pieces and use a null to drive the whole thing.
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Thanks for the reply. Were your mobile elements actually 3D shapes, or 2D? I’m pretty sure I understand your workflow setup. Do you have a finished movie you could share?
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You may need to spend a few hours exploring Expressions. They can solve most of your physics issues by dynamically linking one layer to another using springs or inertia/momentum settings. Random selection of script/expression sites:
https://www.aenhancers.com/
https://www.motionscript.com/mastering-expressions/simulation-basics-3.html
https://www.motionscript.com/mastering-expressions/table-of-contents.html
https://www.nabscripts.com/Downloads/downloads_en_1.php?id=7bogiesan
This is my standard sigfile so do not take it personally: “For crying out loud, read the freakin’ manual.”
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Thanks again…a lot of good information…can I borrow a copy of “Dan Ebberts for Dummies” from anyone?
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