This thesis presents a prototype system for generating animation control systems for isosurface-based characters that blurs the distinction between a skeletal rig and a particle system. Managing articulation and deformation set-up can be challenging for amorphous characters whose surface shape is defined at render time and can only be viewed as an approximation during the process of defining an animation performance. This prototype system utilizes conventional scripted techniques for defining animation control systems integrated with a graphical user interface that provides art directable control over surface contour, shape and silhouette for isosurface-based characters. Once animated, these characters can be rendered using Rendermans RIBlobby implementation and provide visual feedback of fluid motion tests. The prototype system fits naturally within common practices in digital character setup and provides the animator control over isosurface-based characters.

Current production methods for creating a motion system for a deformable digital character model involve providing an underlying joint structure based o of a T-Pose, A-Pose or another arbitrary bind pose of the character. A bind pose is required to establish the skeleton-to-geometry spatial relationship that will be used as a mathematical reference to determine geometry deformations in animated poses. Using a set of human motion capture performances as input animation, the impact of the standard T-Pose and A-Pose on the stretching and compression of human character model geometry is compared relative to novel mean poses derived from each performance. Results demonstrate that using an averaged joint position of each specific performance as the bind pose for the performance reduces the overall deformation of the model. Appropriate applications of the mean pose as a bind pose could impact the resources required to repair deformation artifacts in animated deformable digital characters.