| Lip Sync Animation: Using an X sheet
Animating dialogue can be a time consuming process, but there are a few simple steps you can take to make it easier and help speed up the process. One of the things you can do is to use a virtual exposure sheet (X sheet) as is used in traditional animation. Doing this with dialogue animation will let you know what word and mouth shape are coming up in the animation and where they can be found in the timeline.
Importing sound files
Import your sound file into Flash by choosing File, Import and then browse to the file you want to use. Make sure that your layers are NOT locked, otherwise your sound will not import.
Click on the layer on the timeline where you want the sound to start and then create a keyframe (F7)
In the properties box select your sound file from the drop down menu and make sure your sound settings are set to "Stream". This enables you to hear the sound file as you scrub back and forth in the timeline. |
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| After you have made a blank keyframe on your layer in the timeline, the "Sound" option will be available to you in the Property Box. Here, no sound has been selected from the drop down menu yet, and the default setting for the sound is set to "Event". |
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| Once the sound file has been imported, it will be available from the "Sound" drop down menu. Make sure to change the sounds' properties from "Event" to "Stream". This will make enable you to scrub through the timeline and hear your audio track as you work. |
Getting the text into the timeline
Create a new layer in the timeline above the sound file layer. This layer will act as the X sheet. On this layer you will type in the lines of dialogue as heard in the sound file. This is especially helpful in scenes with lots of dialogue. Press "Play" by hitting the "Enter" or "Return" key to hear the sound file play. This will allow you to hear what words are being spoken. You can also use the Time Slider to scrub back and forth and listen to individual parts of the sound file and hear only certain sections instead of the whole file.
In the timeline, find where the first word starts and enter a blank keyframe. Go down to the property box, and in the input field, type the first word. This text will now appear above the sound layer in the timeline, letting you know what word starts at what point in the file. |
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In the Property box, click inside the "Frame Label" box to make it ready for text input. |
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Begin typing in your text and when you are done hit the "Enter" or "Return" key. |
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The text will appear in the layer where you have entered a keyframe. |
It's a good practice to spell out the words how they sound to the ear rather than always using their correct spelling. The reason for doing this is to get you to the right mouth shape quicker. For example, with the word "shop" could be spelled "sh-ahhp". Even though the word is spelled with an "O", the mouth pose for the character should be the "AH" mouth rather than using the "O" mouth. |
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Try to spell the words out as they sound rather than always using their correct spelling. This helps you to know which mouth shape to use. |
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