Analysis of Facial Feature Design for 3D Animation Characters

Abstract

The facial features of animation characters convey information about the characters to audiences and make the characters more believable. Using multidimensional scaling, this study analyzed the differences in the facial features of 332 three-dimensional characters from the top-100 grossing animation films at the international box office. We also explored whether top character designers follow implicit design principles that vary with the gender, age, and role of the character. The study results indicate that (1) face aspect ratio, (2) nose length, and (3) distance from mouth corner to face edge are three crucial facial features in character design. The results of this study offer concrete suggestions for character design to help designers make suitable adjustments to the facial features of characters.

Notes

1 The ranges of the X and Y axes in Figure 13 differed due to the two more extreme examples among the elderly female characters.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kuan-Lin Chen

Kuan-Lin Chen is a PhD candidate in the Department of Institute of Applied Arts at National Chiao Tung University. He is also a character designer and 3D animator. His doctoral research focuses on virtual characters’ facial features and audiences’ impression of them. Chen received his BFA in fine arts from National Kaohsiung Normal University and MFA in Multimedia and Animation Arts from National Taiwan University of Arts. E-mail: [email protected]

I-Ping Chen

I-Ping Chen received his PhD in Biological Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1994 under the supervision of the late Prof. Russel De Valois, the director of the world-famous primate color vision lab. He made a turn in his academic career in 2001, shifting from vision neuroscience to art and design-related interdisciplinary studies. He is currently a full professor of the Institute of Applied Arts at the National Chiao Tung University and the president of Color Association of Taiwan. His research interests include visual perception, psychology of the arts, and psychology for design.

Chi-Min Hsieh

Chi-Min Hsieh is an associate professor at the Institute of Applied Arts at National Chiao Tung University, Taiwan. He received his PhD in Art, Science, and Technologies from Grenoble Institute of Technology in France. His research objective focuses on computing choreography, movement simulation, and dance notation. Currently his tech-art work integrates computer animation, interactive arts, and information visualization into performing art.