Outrageous Ostrich
One of my university lecturers, Veno Prendergast, approached me with an opportunity to collaborate with a group of VFX students. I was excited to join the team to animate an ostrich.
Analyzing the references…
Understanding the importance of realistic movement, my first step was to gather extensive reference footage of ostriches in motion. I studied the material closely, breaking it down into key poses to guide a more accurate and believable animation process.
Breaking down the motion
A comedic twist!
The short film’s story follows an ostrich running dramatically across the savannah, until it's humorously revealed that the entire scene is being filmed in a studio against a green screen. This twist added a fun, comedic layer to the project and influenced my animation approach.
My primary focus was on perfecting a convincing run cycle, while also infusing the ostrich with a strong, rageful personality to enhance the humor and character of the piece.
While I'm proud of the final result, time constraints meant I couldn’t fully realize every aspect of the animation, and as seen in the video, the piece is still a work in progress.
That said, the experience was incredibly rewarding. It was a pleasure to collaborate with such a talented team (Henry Ottley, Max Davies, Kirill Sinakovs), and I’m grateful to have contributed my skills to help bring their vision to life.
