Each animation in The Neutral—from the first keyframe to the last—takes around 6 hours to finalise.

Before keyframes though, we have to concept exactly what Remy’s gonna do—including the target mood, the narrative reasoning and the general timings.

In this post we’ll do our best to shed light on just one of the myriad ways to draft and implement an animation for an in-game character.

But first—backstory.

Method & Madness

Remy’s two mother figures—Yaa and Esperanza—are as different as they’re incredible, and the paths they’ve taken to get there reflect that divergence clear as day.

Method

Esperanza is a world-class violinist driven by this insatiable flame to be the best in the world. To that end, she’s dedicated sleepless nights towards practicing and perfecting her craft.

And from those same flames burn bright Remy’s pursuit of greatness—instilling an air of poise and precision in every one of her movements.

Madness

Yaa, on the other hand, is a composer renowned for exactly two things—her excellence, and her inability to read sheet music. The fact that she commands such respect and attention can be summed up with one lovely word:

Madness.

And it’s that same madness Remy fell in love with so long ago—adorning her actions with heart and sincerity.

…

These two schools of thought are the building blocks of each of Remy’s in-game animations.

All motions are made with the intent to showcase Remy’s prowess—the method.

While every tiny little detail we add to her actions is in the name of personality and flair—the madness.

The Idle Animation

Origin

Remy as a performer has two distinct mentalities—Pre-performance and Flow.

As for Flow, well…

Flow is the moment during a performance. When one is so engrossed in every single second that they haven’t the time to think, or worry, or care. It’s a vulnerability—both weakness and strength simultaneously—calling for the attention of all who witness to witness it all.

The Idle animation is very much not Flow. The Idle Animation is everything that happens before and after Flow.

The preparation. The release.

Source: Olympic.org Source: Olympic.org Source: USA Today Sports

Remy’s idle animation is a magnification of the moments leading up to, and immediately trailing, a performance. When her mind is racing through millions of possible outcomes.

It’s Remy at her most grounded, and it shows in the weight of her motion.

We took a page out of that focused mentality that figure skaters enter right before the music starts. And in particular, from the poses they strike. It’s in the beginning or end of the performance that emotions run deepest and the humanity of the performer bleeds through unapologetically—the madness, if you will.

Dissection

So what exactly is her Idle animation comprised of? There are three areas of her body to consider:

Arms

Chest & Head

Legs

Arms

Her shoulders bob in time with each breath taken. Without that bobbing, not a lot is lost visually, but with it we get to tell this discreet tale of the weight Remy carries.

Her arms are another story—they linger ever so slightly before beginning a beat anew. That slightest delay lends an organic, and practiced, air to her rhythm. Her left arm keeps upwards for a few frames even as she begins breathing out. And her right arm similarly takes its time before changing trajectory.

And lastly, her fingers—they serve as secondary tells to the timing of each breath. Notice how her left arm’s fingers flex faster than her right arm’s. This is done for much the same reason her arms and breathes move in different times—to affirm Remy’s calm and clear mental when tense.

Every one of these details is meant to tell the same story—Remy is in control.

Head & Chest

Motion for these two areas is very straight forward. Her chest expands and contracts to measured breathes, and the entire time she waits, Remy keep her head slightly down in order not to lose sight of whatever she’s focused on internally.

Legs

For her Idle, the positioning of Remy’s legs is meant to leave her in a very deliberate, and very anticipatory posture. But people don’t stand like that—and that means the anticipation of her pose isn’t readily known.

It’s that uncertainty that holds the viewers’ attention—eager to wee what happens next. And Remy, she knows this.

“Witness me,” she says. Without a word spoken.

Summary

All of this—this pensive moment before the Flow kicks in—isn’t unique to Remy at all. In fact, most performers have that calm before the storm kicks in. It’s a rhythm, a meditation, a quiet. And then it’s gone.

But in so many ways, that moment—it lasts forever. And placing it in the Idle animation felt the most fitting way to pay homage to a silence that for some feels without end.

Until, of course, it does.