So I’m finally getting to storyboard the sequence where we see Vanessa on her skateboard for the first time. Up until this point, we’ve only seen her as a misguided private school kid. We’ve never seen who Vanessa is when she’s a badass on a board.
This sequence takes place Vanessa’s fight with her mom. Now we’re seeing her negotiating the roads as a skater. These backgrounds will give me the chance to showcase the neighborhood Vanessa comes from. No frills. Not as golden and shiny as the fixtures at Silver Needle Academy, but it’s respectable and it’s home. But that’s only one goal of this sequence. The other goal is obvious: Show Vanessa can ride.
Vanessa is actually riding a surfskate board. If you don’t know what that is, great. Neither did I until a month ago. But I’ve recently learned that a surfskate board mimics a surfboard on the road. You ride it like a surfboard (not a street skateboard, like you’ll see in most media). So animating her skating is a different vibe. I have to capture the movement of her swaying to and fro as she’s riding to give us the feel of that surfskate experience (and also show us she can easily transition to surfing later). So what’s the secret to capturing this kind of fluid movement?
By doing it, of course. Getting myself back into skating and into a surfskate board gives me the movements I need to draw to show Vanessa weaving in and out of the long streets.
I’m especially proud of this foot pump animation. Learning this movement for myself lets me see what looks right and feels right. If my work is supposed to take you on a ride, I better learn how that ride works, right?
I’m so proud of this animation. I’m still working up to the heavier action surf sequences. This is the gateway drug.