Bricks in Motion
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I'm wondering, what is a good way to get a minifig head and hair/hat to move together nicely?
Also, since minifig's are such a big part in terms of movement in brickfilms, maybe make this into a minifig movement discussion thread.
This problem has plagued me for years. I know exactly what you mean and have no idea how some animators deal with it. My guess it that you just have to get a hat/hair piece that isn't very loose... I dunno, somebody enlighten me please. 
I usually fold a little piece of masking tape in half, place it on the head and then put the hat/hair piece on.
I also sand down the neck stud a bit so the head will turn freely.
Those are good ideas. Might give them a try.
If it's a 'sit-on-top-of-the-head' type deal, just twist the head, and the hat should move with it. If it doesn't look right, adjust the hat until all is well. If it's a 'wrap-around-the-head' type thing, put your thumb on the minifigure's face, and your index finger on the back of the helmet/hair, then turn it all. With a firm enough grip they will spin together.
If the hair/hat is tight, it should spin with the head. If it's loose, turn the head and then get the hair in place.
The biggest problem is not so much the hair/head not lining up as it is the legs/body twisting with the head. That's a lot harder to fix, and fairly tough to avoid. That's when you bring in your super-stiff legs, or your not-so-tight head.
First of all, having a stiff head will do you no good. None at all. So before you go along animating anything with a figure, it's a really good idea to just twist the head a whole lot. The head will then come to a point where it is slightly more loose, after that you can't really make it any more loose by twisting it. It won't be REALLY lose though, don't worry, only loose enough so that it's easy enough to twist without as much resistance which can cause some big problems.
It should now be much easier to move the head smoothly without messing up a hairpiece.
Unfortunately, though, at this point the hairpiece can still be accidentally moved. It can be especially problematic if your character has a loose helmet that prevents you from touching the face, however, still shows the figures eyes or something. To counter this, simply apply a bit of sticky stuff the top of the figure's head, and replace his/her hair/hat/helmet.
If applied correctly, the stick should allow you to move the head by holding the hair rather than he face, which is very easy. I've done this in most of my films since How to Not Rob a Bank.
The only downside is that changing the hair/hat/helmet later on will take a bit of time as it can take a little while to remove the stick.
If you've done it properly, it shouldn't take long at al the dab the residue out from the hair and head. However, if you've been a bit careless in its application, it could take several minutes of trying to get a little bit if stick from a tiny nook in a knight's helmet.
It's best to apply the stick very lightly around the stud on the minifigure's had. Try to stay away from the stud itself.
For sticky stuff, I use a kneadable eraser, since it doesn't dry out, it's grey, and is easily removed from aa surface by simply dabbing it with some of the stick.
Sticky stuff also has many other applications in brickfilming.
I would avoid using tape, as the residue from tape can be somewhat more difficult to remove.
All these answers were really helpful 
.
@squid I've only put sticky stuff in a few hats before (not for animating but for putting hats on helmets and other smooth things) and I have found out one of the hardest hats to get stick outbof is a top hat due to grove around the tube any ideas on how to avoid that?
All these answers were really helpful
@squid I've only put sticky stuff in a few hats before (not for animating but for putting hats on helmets and other smooth things) and I have found out one of the hardest hats to get stick outbof is a top hat due to grove around the tube any ideas on how to avoid that?
If you accidentally twist a top-hat it really isn't a problem.
Top-hats look exactly the same from any angle.
The only problem would be if you were close enough to see tiny scratches, or it was a special printed top-hat, or you have a rubber-band on it.
You could just go ahead and put some stick in there, then use a toothpick to get it out of the nook. Or possibly a needle if that doesn't work.
I was sticking it to P Squidy's head not a minifig's.
Sticky tack can be your best friend for these situations.
I also like to make reference points compared to the head. For instance, one of the characters I regularly animate is a female minifigure, Angela. The space between two of the bangs on her hairpiece makes an arc. When centered properly, it perfectly cradles her right eyebrow. When I move here head, I match the eyebrow up. I usually twist the head low on the head, too.
Sometimes it's good to move the hair when the head moves. Here's an excerpt from my book, "The Holding Our Own Guide to Brickfilming":
"When animating girls with flowing hair, apply delayed secondary reaction
technique on their hair, so that it looks more organic and free-flowing. [let
the hair continue to move after the head stops, then 'snap' back into
position."
I also keep the hair one frame of animation behind the head in these cases, so it looks like the hair is being pulled by the head as it moves.
If it's a 'wrap-around-the-head' type thing, put your thumb on the minifigure's face, and your index finger on the back of the helmet/hair, then turn it all. With a firm enough grip they will spin together.
I use this technique all the time and it works quite well.
I also like to make reference points compared to the head. For instance, one of the characters I regularly animate is a female minifigure, Angela. The space between two of the bangs on her hairpiece makes an arc. When centered properly, it perfectly cradles her right eyebrow. When I move here head, I match the eyebrow up. I usually twist the head low on the head, too.
I also do this as well. It's easier when the head already features printed hair, such as Alex's head. His buzzcut hairpiece likes to move around a lot, but I'm generally able to line it up by using the print on his face for reference.
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