Animator Tethers – face, lips and mouth
Cinderella may have peered into a magic mirror and beheld different facial expressions of happiness, sadness, anger and serious contemplation. Attachments between the skin and underlying muscular fascia translate different force vectors into visible emotions guided by a metaphorical musical keyboard in your brain. The artist’s line of the mouth takes into account these separate dynamic planes.
Tethers around the mouth allow for movement and different facial expressions.
The nasolabial folds tether the skin to diverging muscular fascias serving as a border between the central face and cheeks. They also translate these underlying muscular forces into animated facial expressions.
Tethers correspond to animation lines on upper lip.
Tethers at the oral commissure facilitate smiling and frowning.
Paralysis with Bell’s Palsy or Botulinum toxin eliminates facial skin creases showing how dependent our expressions are on the attachments between the skin and the underlying muscles and fascia.