Sole Gonzalez Romero
Super Spline Studios
Sole began her animation career producing explainer videos for Business Insider, where she developed a love for visually representing ideas in creative ways. In 2020, she made the leap into the video game industry as an Animation Intern at Super Spline Studios. Since then, she’s worked her way up to mid-level Animator, contributing gameplay and cinematic animations to a variety of titles. Sole’s passionate about character animation, focusing on creating work that feels natural, engaging, and plenty of personality.
Titles:
- Battleline Tactics
- Two Point Hospital
- Two Point Campus
- Dreamworks Trolls Pop!
- Empire of Sin
- King of Meat
- Warped Kart Racers
- Fall Guys
- Sonic Dream Team
Sole Gonzalez Romero is speaking at the following session/s
Animating Complex Emotions: Bringing Authenticity to Character Performance
After brief introductions, we’ll explore how emotions drive human experience and shape character performances. While basic emotions like joy or anger are easy to convey, complex emotions—such as trust or love—are more nuanced and prone to clichés. This talk introduces two psychology-based tools that help animators navigate emotional complexity: Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions and the Bodily Maps of Emotion study.
Emotional Complexity & Challenges
Emotions overlap and rarely exist in isolation. A 2017 UC Berkeley study identifies 27 distinct emotions, emphasizing their fluidity. In game animation, capturing this depth is challenging due to production constraints, gameplay priorities, and design limitations. Our method provides a structured approach to overcoming these hurdles.
Reference & Creativity
While reference is essential for animation, relying solely on it can lead to unoriginal performances. Inspired by Picasso’s idea that “great artists steal,” animators must study, internalize, and reinterpret references for unique, authentic character expressions.
Tools & Application
Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions helps animators explore emotional intensity and contrast, such as how joy and fear combine to create excitement. The Bodily Maps of Emotion study further informs movement choices by highlighting how emotions activate or deactivate different body areas.
Through hands-on exercises and workflow examples, this session provides practical tools to elevate performances beyond clichés, encouraging animators to integrate these techniques into their creative process.
Session Takeaway
- Attendees gain practical tools and techniques to simplify portraying complex emotions.
- They learn to blend character personality with authentic emotional depth, overcome common challenges in game animation, and move beyond clichés.
- The presentation inspires creativity, empowering animators to create performances that feel natural, engaging, and emotionally resonant.
Session speakers
