Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
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D E PA R T M E N T 43 KEYFRAME OPPORTUNITY NOKK While Gale's character required collaboration and multiple tests, another spirit known as the water Nokk provided its own set of challenges. The origin of the Nokk or Nixie, as it's sometimes called, is a shapeshifter from old Norse tales that often takes the form of a horse— one that can grow as large as you need it to cross the water but might drown you if you aren't true of heart. "The concept of a water spirit was really intriguing to me," says Jennifer Lee. "Elsa is connected to water in a different way; there's a fundamental principle in water that has to do with life." The idea of creating a horse made of water that moves below and above the surface of the sea presented a set of unique issues but Lee knew the team could handle the challenge: "There hasn't been one thing we've thrown at them that they said 'no' to." Illustrator Annette Marnat began exploring the shape of the horse—how much water was needed to describe it and how abstract it could be. Then they explored the interaction between the Nokk and the dark sea, imbuing the mane and tail with the qualities of water. "We were trying to figure out how long the mane would be—would it be more ethereal? Would it feel more like hair?" says Bresee of the conversations that occurred during the initial phase of exploration. "The tail and mane were two main areas that we could inform the viewer that this was a creature made of water," adds Head of Effects Animation Marlon West. "We liked this curtain-like, fountain [effect]." Next, Animation Supervisor Svetla Radivoeva studied a horse's anatomy and locomotion to shape the performance of this warrior horse, a wild stallion that needs to be tamed. She quickly learned that a horse's ears scan around like human eyes— wherever the ears are turned, that's where the horse is looking. Ears can also show emotion, for example, folded back in anger. But since the horse is made of water without a solid surface on the face, they did a test to see how expressive the Nokk could appear. They also examined the hooves taking off from the surface of the sea. Radivoeva applied the concept to the CG puppet animated in Maya to stretch the hooves so the effects team could build on top and create the appearance of the hooves breaking up into water as they lift off the surface of the sea. Some tests made the legs too wobbly and affected the silhouette and performance. It took collaboration to find the right balance. Moreover, the horse made of water gallops on top of another moving surface—waves of the dark sea. "The ocean is a big challenge—it ranges from calm to chaotic so the performance is very different. We had to find contact points on the [surface] and generate splash from there," explains Effects Animator Joyce Tong. "We built a very basic setup for the artists to use [for] a rough first pass. For the last 20 percent, the artist has to dial the settings and generate additional effects elements." The effects team worked closely with tech animation to ensure seamless collaboration. Sometimes, the splash WINTER 2019 43 Then, the visual development team would create a simulation constructing the pieces as if made from real world materials. "They're ultimately tailoring these in 3D," says Lee. "They would test it to see how it moved. If it didn't move in an appealing way, they would find another way of constructing it so it would move more ethereally." One liberty was taken—sheer fabrics were not available in Norway at the turn of the 20th century. That's when Elsa's magic comes in to play. Any embellishment that has specularity— such as sequins or beads—is created by Elsa and made from her icy powers. That logic extended to the stunning sheer overlay coat that she wears.