Cineversity

This is driving a bit nuts. I am trying to animate some text as a write on similar to what I would do in After Effects. In AE I would make individual masks for the letter forms and painstakingly key frame changes in the masks to reveal the letters as if they were being drawn on.

I am finding a bunch of tutorials online that show how to draw a stroke on the letters using sweep nurbs but that is not the effect I want.

I tried using some splines to reverse paint out my letter forms but I am getting edges appearing.

Please help.

Hi edgepark,

I hope I get your idea correctly, “noSweepNURBS”, just as in Ae.

You can switch the MoSpline to Spline use, and drag your Spline then into the spline field. Animate e.g., the “End” parameter and done. (See scene file)

I have used here Hair, but you might find even simpler set ups, by just using just Sketch&Toons;, which might be even more appropriate to mimic the Ae aesthetic.

All the best

Sassi

Thank you Doc. However I am using the the Broadcast edition so I do not have the hair plug-in. I have included the project file I have attempted to try. Maybe that explains better.

I will have a look into that file—I just created a Sketch and Toons Version. See below.

The main two things for this version is to add the Animated and uncheck the Render>Clip Strokes to screen option.

I left the MoSpline inside as alternative option, but that is not a must include object for S&T.

Talk to you soon.

Thank you Doc. However Broadcast edition also doesn’t include Sketch and Toon either. I do appreciate the help thus far.

Yes, I created it before I knew that you have the Broadcast version. I attached it (not to annoy you) but for other people who follow the thread.

I’m looking into your file right now.

As it is an individual work, procedurals for those letters are not simple.

Perhaps you give this a shot. The idea is to avoid producing all the geometry (letters and subtract objects) and start directly on the Spline base. I have a simple version attached here, with a few points in the PLA (Point Level Animation) only.

It needs adjustments (in case of “polygon flicker” in the Phong as well the “Fillets-Steps”)

Perhaps you give it a shot.

Simpler would be to have for the letters INDEPCML it’s own little set up and compose the sign from there in the technique described above and go with time adjusted copies to work

Good Luck

Thanks again Doc. That does seem like a bit more easier to handle then the mess I have been dealing with.
Thank you so much.

You’re welcome edge park.

Please test this carefully, as I mentioned the Fillets might need some attention.

All the best
Sassi

I think this is certainly a theme of a broader interest, so here are two more methods.

In the file “...21.c4d” I have an idea with the Character Tag>Pose Morph. I certainly think that this is only a sketch, but I hope it is an idea of how to get points moving on a spline, while just moving some sliders the Pose Morph interface. If done accordingly to the letter, it should work pretty fast. Most letters need only the ideas in file “...11.c4d” thought.

If you get after a while a nice little library of these animate-able splines, for the use in the Spline Mask, this kind of work should be done much faster. Analysis the leter and the targeted animation, then apply the most fitting method to it, and if needed animate some points of the letter itself via PLA.

Another file, and I hope “you” don’t mind. ;o)

This contains two methods, one based on Spline Primitive combination/animation and the second one is a manually, with only a few “animations keys”. Just to show that some analysis before saves some time later.

Let me know if you like to see more! Perhaps some examples with the Spline-Profile, which allows (with the Spline-Mask to cover) for many letters L, H , l, T, “Z” and thingk about teh combinations of such set up.