Sometimes, an animator’s best model is themselves.
Emma Shih is one of the many, many to life.
Recently, she shared a short video, not of her animation work, exactly, but of her reference work: the live-action materials she used to properly create her scenes. Her reference, like it is for many artists, was herself, and it makes for a delightful video.
Watch as Shih acts out both sides of the iconic diner scene, and as she pulls off a pretty compelling Gwen Stacy. If there’s one thing about to learn about animation from this, it’s that most of your favourites start with someone doing something strange, alone, in a room for good reference material. If that doesn’t heighten your enjoyment, I don’t know what will.