How do you balance the timing and spacing of the mouth shapes in lip sync animation?

Lip sync animation is the process of creating mouth movements that match the dialogue of a character. It is a crucial skill for any traditional animator who wants to bring their characters to life. In this article, you will learn how to balance the timing and spacing of the mouth shapes in lip sync animation, using some basic principles and tips.

1 Why timing and spacing matter

Timing and spacing are two essential elements of animation that affect the speed, smoothness, and realism of the motion. Timing refers to how many frames it takes for a movement to happen, while spacing refers to how far the object moves between each frame. In lip sync animation, timing and spacing determine how well the mouth shapes match the sound and the emotion of the dialogue. If the timing and spacing are off, the lip sync will look unnatural, sloppy, or out of sync.

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Alex McDonnell

Management Analyst
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- Animation traditionally breaks down mouth shapes into key frames that hit certain syllables like â€œOhâ€ â€œAhâ€ â€œEeeâ€ â€œAyâ€ â€œTâ€ â€œThâ€ â€œSâ€ â€œMmâ€ â€œ Vvâ€ â€œBbâ€ â€œRrâ€ â€œKâ€ etcâ€¦ When a word is animated with selected mouth shapes to mach the dialogue at keyframe moments, all the in between frames get smoothed out. Then you get the illusion of animated dialogue syncing.

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2 How to break down the dialogue

Before you start animating, you need to break down the dialogue into smaller units of sound and meaning. This will help you plan your mouth shapes and their timing and spacing. There are different ways to break down the dialogue, but one common method is to use the phonetic alphabet, which represents the sounds of speech with symbols. You can find online tools or charts that show you how to transcribe the dialogue into phonetic symbols. Then, you can mark the symbols on your audio track or script, and identify the key sounds and words that need more emphasis or expression.

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Sarah W.

Content strategist and social media manager | Helping businesses with campaign management and activation
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The old school way would be to take a compact mirror and practise saying the words. Watch your mouth move - you'll notice it only moves in certain motions. A great resource is the academy of Aardman, creators behind Wallace and Gromit and Morph - and you can see shapes created.

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Alex McDonnell

Management Analyst
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Breaking down dialogue on movies such as Madagascar 1 and 2, Over The Hedge and Shrek. The production dialogue is utilized by the editors to lay down into a temporal timeline as a bed against story animatic picture, so that animators can later use the timing and audio to animate to. Because movies are scripted, most of these recordings from the actors are organized by line numbers in the script. The master recording needs to be broken down into individual audio clips that correspond to the script line numbers so that editors can find and drop those clips into the sequence timeline for each scene. In addition to the clips matching line numbers, a good AE will attach transcriptions of the dialogue as well as efforts.

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3 How to choose the mouth shapes

Once you have broken down the dialogue, you need to choose the mouth shapes that correspond to each sound and word. There are different sets of mouth shapes that animators use, depending on the style and complexity of the animation. One simple set is the Preston Blair mouth chart, which consists of 10 basic mouth shapes that cover most of the sounds in English. You can find this chart online or in books, and use it as a reference or a starting point for your own mouth shapes. The key is to choose the mouth shapes that best suit your character's design, personality, and mood.

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4 How to time the mouth shapes

After you have chosen the mouth shapes, you need to time them according to the audio track and the emotion of the dialogue. The general rule is to match the mouth shapes to the peaks and valleys of the sound wave, which indicate the changes in volume and pitch. However, you also need to consider the context and the intention of the dialogue, and adjust the timing accordingly. For example, if the character is speaking fast, you might need to shorten or skip some mouth shapes to keep up with the pace. If the character is speaking slowly, you might need to hold or repeat some mouth shapes to create pauses or emphasis.

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5 How to space the mouth shapes

Finally, you need to space the mouth shapes according to the smoothness and realism of the motion. The general rule is to use more frames and smaller changes for slow and subtle movements, and less frames and bigger changes for fast and exaggerated movements. However, you also need to consider the style and the appeal of the animation, and adjust the spacing accordingly. For example, if you want to create a realistic and natural lip sync, you might need to use more in-between frames and variations of mouth shapes to show the nuances and details of the speech. If you want to create a stylized and expressive lip sync, you might need to use fewer in-between frames and more extreme mouth shapes to show the contrast and impact of the speech.

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6 How to polish the lip sync

The last step in animating is to refine the lip sync. You can do this by playing back the animation and comparing it with the audio track and script. Itâ€™s also helpful to get feedback from other animators or viewers, to make sure the dialogue is understood and felt. As you go through the animation, you should look for clarity and accuracy of mouth shapes, synchronization and alignment with sound, expression and emotion, consistency and continuity of mouth shapes, and smoothness and realism. With a polished lip sync, your animation will be clear, convincing, and engaging.

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Jason Theaker

Animation Lecturer, Programme Lead Animation BSc
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I often tell students to consider the emotion first. Which parts of the dialogue is the key emotional points. I then encourage students to block the animation, without touching the face at all. This helps them develop their body acting first before they rely on the face expressing and talking. The most interesting and engaging part of dialogue is to reveal the subtext in the acting, but not to animate too closely to the dialogue. Itâ€™s VERY hard to do, but lots of research, observation and immersing yourself in the character is very helpfulâ€¦

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7 Hereâ€™s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that donâ€™t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Directory

How do you balance the timing and spacing of the mouth shapes in lip sync animation?

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1 Why timing and spacing matter

2 How to break down the dialogue

3 How to choose the mouth shapes

4 How to time the mouth shapes

5 How to space the mouth shapes

6 How to polish the lip sync

7 Hereâ€™s what else to consider

Traditional Animation

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