The Sponge Hits the Big Screen (Again)

In this new film, SpongeBob and friends get to go on yet another adventure, but this time, they get to do it not only in 2D, but also in 3D and live action. Man, this guy sure has seen quite a few different technical advances since his humble beginning. Anyway, for his new journey into 3D, the animators behind the little yellow guy and the others were hard at work to make him as lifelike as possible, setting him apart from a plastic toy.

Another challenge was getting their heights correct, both when they were tiny and when they grew to be 6 feet tall. Stand-in people wearing frames were used as reference for the characters in that situation. Since Plankon ended up being taller than the actor, so a holey plywood board was used for his height reference.

Next issue to tackle was lighting. Though it may not be directly visible to the audience, proper care had to be taken to sell the "lifelike-ness" of the film. Special tools were brought with the team as they went to film and entire scenes were modeled so that the lighting could be reflected onto the characters as they would in reality.

Despite the characters getting a new 3D makeover, they still needed to resemble their original animation style. For example, SpongeBob didn't turn very well in 2D, so his turns would often be quick, snappy, and accompanied by some exaggeration. The same had to be done for his 3D counterpart.

Lastly, in the scene with Patrick and the ice cream cone, different methods were tested to get the squishy and flowy look that the animators wanted. Originally, they made the ice cream out of a viscus fluid simulation, but that didn't quite produce the look the team was searching for, so instead the ice cream was morphed and animated that way. For the residue left on Patrick after smothering himself in the ice cream, the animation team applied a wet map to the surface of the ice cream, which not only effected Patrick, but it also effected the ice cream itself, becoming glossier and wetter the more it was interacted with.

I don't much care for 2D cartoons that turn into 3D. I don't personally like the result or the story line behind it, but I suppose I can appreciate all the technical advances that went into making this film a success. I learned about the struggles of animation teams to go above and beyond for the best possible film and what they did to achieve such a task. How do the wet maps work and how can they be applied? Other animators could possibly take inspiration from this. It could act as an encouragement to never give up and to keep searching for the right solution. Don't settle for anything less than satisfaction.