Since I’m studying to be a character animator, I have begun to observe people and things in a new light. Take for example one of the greatest professional wrestling matches of all-time, Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat vs. “Macho Man” Randy Savage at Wrestlemania 3. Even though the big match at Wrestlemania 3 that year was the Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant showdown, Steamboat vs. Savage stole the show. It is amazing to watch both The Dragon and Macho Man tell a compelling story with athletic skill and body language only. Watch the 2nd half of this great match here:

Now hit the jump to see my film study of this match….

First off I always loved Ricky Steamboat, and you can see in the pictures below he tells a great story with his body.

From here, watch how his poses change for dramatic effect.

Now let’s take these two poses and use them as keys for animation.

Look at the lines of action that Ricky Steamboat and Randy Savage use. 

Lastly, let’s take a look at Macho Man’s flying elbow finisher. Look at the pose and line of action.

The line of movement will be a nice arc.

And the dramatic change in poses to to help further tell the story of the match. 

Let’s put this all together and key it out one more time.

Amazing! Hope everyone enjoyed my short film study.