A tangible interface for high-level direction of multiple animated characters

Many training, education, and visualization environments would benefit from realistic animated characters. Unfortunately, interfaces for character motion specification are often complex and ill-suited to non-experts. We present a tangible interface for basic character manipulation on planar surfaces. In particular, we focus on interface aspects specific to 2D gross character animation such as path and timing specification. Our approach allows for character manipulation and high-level motion specification through a natural metaphor - the figurine. We present an example interface for designing and visualizing strategy in the sport of American football and discuss usability studies of this interface.