Does static head on (walking) animation work?

Hello. I’m getting started with pixel art.
I plan to work with a very expressive character. I want her to have their expressions independent of the movement.
However, if the head moves, the eyes and mouth must move as well, but to create every combination of eyes positions wouldn’t be practical…
So, I wonder if I could just make idle, walk and other animations with the head static, not moving at all. In this case, I could animate the eyes independently.

I want some advice, opinions: these animation with static head feel natural? Every guide suggests to slightly move the head in walking animation…

Here is a gif with idle animation, walking animation, jump and push.
(Notice that the head in push animation is in other position. It already break the rule of eyes in the same position).
Suggestions?

juli_animation

I like your animation and like you’re experimenting with pixel art. I think you could use a few fundamentals to improve the art.

As far as the animation goes, you might consider using multiple layers for the head and grouping them so that when you edit the layers you can change the eye position and shape, hair flowing, face expression, head position, etc…

Aseprite Videos:

I like your animation and want to help anybody wanting to learn. Here are two things to consider.

1: There are a lot of workflow examples available on the internet that can provide you with ideas.

2: You have to be the one who decides in the end what looks best and what you can do effectively.

1 Like