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12 cgw a p r i l • m ay • j u n e 2 0 2 1 would be driven more from the front of her spine," says Malcon Pierce, head of anima- tion. "Her rig had to be really versatile – we needed to get the highest performance range with the fewest controls possible." This allowed the animation team to achieve consistency without limiting the number of people animating this character. Nevertheless, Sisu contains more controls (both FK and IK) than a typical Disney Ani- mation character. Numerous sim setups also were needed for her fins, hair, tail. Her hair, like that of the other characters, was simulated and groomed with Tonic, an in-house tool, by the tech anim team that was originally devel- oped and used on Tangled. "The artists are getting better at producing very complex hairstyles. [Young] Raya's braid was actually hand-plated in the soware," says Pierce. In fact, Amy Smeed, head of animation, estimates that for this film, there was more collaboration between the anima- tion and tech animation teams than in any previous film. Of course, this being Disney Animation, there was the drive to create something that has never been seen before. One of those truly unique characters is the Druun, an ethereal, amorphous, and destructive spirit born out of human conflict. With a single touch it can turn a person to stone and mul- tiply; although repelled by water, it can only be destroyed with the power of the dragon. An effects/simulation character made of a purplish, smokey haze, the Druun's shape and overall timing was craed by animation, while effects placed a magical spin on it. "The Druun have a sort of character to them, but we didn't want them to have actual per- sonalities," says Odermatt. "Yet, they have an incredible presence in the film." The Druun's rig was generated in Houdini. That rig was then handed off to an artist who would animate it for the needs of a shot, while retaining its overall character. "It's very multilayered. There's an internal web and the emissivity part in the center, and the outer parts of swirl encircling that. All of those are part of this greater effects rig with controls and knobs that are available to a shot artist," explains Odermatt. Waterworks As stated earlier, water was one of the uni- fying elements of Kumandra, and in the film, it takes many forms, from the subtle, to the apparent, to the fantastical. "The impor- tance of water was a huge visual thematic in the film. Sisu is a water dragon based on the Naga [also a shapeshier], which brings water and life, so water just became this reoccurring motif in the film that was extremely important," Hall points out. Sisu's special magical power is water-re- lated: She is a strong swimmer. She is also able to conjure up atmospherics such as fog and mist, powers bestowed on her by her brothers and sisters. In other scenes, Raya's guardian ancestors are represented by suspended water droplets, while the stream in the temple defies gravity and flows backward. "We had just finished Moana, so we knew we could realize water [which was rendered in Hyperion]," says Shurer. "Many of us, Fun Facts n The scene with the largest number of animated characters takes place underwater and fea- tures 23,836 animated fish. n Raya's fighting style was inspired by pencak silat from Malaysia and Indonesia, and weapons modeled from Kali and Arnis martial arts in the Philip- pines. Her distinctive sword was inspired by the keris, revered in countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia. n Namaari's fighting style was inspired by Muay Thai kickboxing and Krabi-krabong from Thailand. n Nearly 70% of all sequences in the film have work from crowd animation. n The welcome soup prepared by Raya's father was inspired by Thailand's Tom Yum soup. In the film, he shows Raya (and the au- dience) how to actually make it. n Inspired by garments found throughout Southeast Asia, the costumes in Raya used drap- ing-based designs rather than pattern-based designs used in previous films. The various clans each have their own physical features, clothing, and hairstyles.