Workflow Breakdown - The Descent by Adam Turnbull

Workflow Breakdown - The Descent from Adam Turnbull on Vimeo.

Links, enlaces et liens - GDC 2017 Edition

www.animstate.com/free-gdc-2017-animation-talks/
A list of all animation talks from GDC2017.

http://www.animstate.com/animation-exchange-2017-recording-feedback/
The link above contains links to each section of the excellent #ANIMX talk that was held during the latest GDC. Below is the full stream (8+ hours!) in case you want to watch the whole thing (as I did).


Watch live video from TwitchOffice on www.twitch.tv

Animation tips from Twitter and the GDC Tricks of the Trade talk

Rigging Dojo Animation Tips from Twitter and GDC Tricks of the Trade from Rigging Dojo on Vimeo.

Below is the link for the Trick of the Trade talk that happened on the last GDC (2016):

http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1023479/Animation-Bootcamp-Tricks-of-the

 Enjoy! Tons of info in this post :)

Allright Rig For Unreal Engine 4

This is the future of animation for video games.

Center of mass script by Richard Lico

Center of mass script from Richard Lico on Vimeo.

Change rotation curve colors in Maya

When I was working with mocap data at Ubisoft, one useful thing that I found when I was using Motionbuilder was that it was possible to change the colors of the curves in the F-Curve editor. You could change any curve color, either it was a custom parameter or the X rotation axis.

The most important benefit for doing this is that by changing the color of the most important parameters, they automatically become more recognizable.

Since working at Larian Studios here in Quebec I've been working exclusively in Maya, and I missed having this option. Not really because I have tons of custom attributes, but when I see the Graph Editor, it's hard for me to quickly recognize which curves are Translation and which Rotation. For example, in the image below, you can't really tell which is which.

Lucky me, there is a way to change the colors in Maya.

The only thing you have to do is (in the Graph Editor) select the attribute you want to change and then click on Edit and select "Set Curve Colors..."

This option will open a dialog with to panes or sides: One contains the attribute you selected and the other one the new color. Click on the color picker and select the color that you want for that attribute.

If you want to modify the color of additional attributes, just select them in the Graph Editor and click on the "Add" button in the Curve Colors dialog window.

Once you have change the colors, just close the dialog. In my case, after changing all rotation attributes, the result looks like this:

As you can see, now I know which are my rotation curves just by looking at the Graph Editor.

Some remarks:

• These changes are part of your Maya environment now. This means that, in my case, the rotation curves will always show this colors, no matter the object selected or which scene I'm working on.
• In the case of the rotation colors, I recommend changing to something similar than the precious red green and blue colors. This because the rotation manipulator will not change the colors to match this new setup, so in order to keep some link between the curves and the manipulator, is better to things similar.

I hope this helps.

Cheers!

P.D.- The rig shown in the images is the Joe Rig. You can find it here.

[GDC 2015] Animation of The Order: 1886

Creating Pixar anition controls by Harry Houghton

Maya - Creating Pixar Animation Controls Tutorial from Harry Houghton on Vimeo.

CGI Making of HD: "Making of The Peanuts Movie"

Maya 2012 : Namespace and prefix tips and tricks

Links, enlaces et liens

http://techartsurvival.blogspot.ca/2015/01/just-put-one-foot-in-front-of-other.html
Great tutorial on some technicalities about walk cycles.

http://blog.animationmentor.com/animation-as-visual-music/
Carlos Baena and another excellent post about using music for animation.

If your Persp camera starts orbiting around the wrong point in space, View>Pre Def Bookmarks>Persp #animTip #mayaTip pic.twitter.com/KTknW7UIKK

— Kiel Figgins (@KielFiggins) August 19, 2015

http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/maya-general/camera-clipping-problem/td-p/4887914
Great tip for orthographic cameras in Maya.

http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2013/12/why-birds-can-sleep-on-branches-and-not-fall-off/281969/
A good ready about the intricacies of the birds feet (espacially good for riggers).

Animation Workflow with Christopher Cordingley (CGTarian Animation Masters)

Intro To Character Rigging by Paul Neale

This is a long video but totally worth it. The video explains rigging in 3dsmax, but a lot of things are applicable to other 3D packages.

And if you're not following Paul in Youtube or Twitter, you're missing a lot of cool tips.

Hand Setup from Paul Neale

How to be an animator and still be happy

Another gem from animator Alvise Avati. There are a lot of tips in his speech, especially his workflow, which I agree with fully.



Found via Splinebomb

3ds max scripts to modify the timeline start and end values

I created a couple of scripts that allow me easily control the start and end of the timeline. They are fairly simple and will save you a couple of seconds each time you want to change your timeline.

I would normally use the CTRL + ALT + Mouse buttons to change the values or move the timeline (with the middle button), however, when working on long scenes, it can be a bit of a pain to a frame as start or end.

So this little scripts will do the job. Here's a brief description so you know what each script does:

• UpdateStartZero: It will reset your timeline start value to Zero.
• UpdateStartTime: It will update the start value of your timeline to the current position of the slider. So, let's say your timeline goes from 0f to 500f and you want it to start from 333f. Just place the timeline slider to frame 333 and run the script.
• UpdateEndTime: Same as StartTime but for the end value.

I'm planning to create some other scripts to update the end value further from the current value (i.e., to change it to 500f if your timeline currently goes to 400f) and to offset the whole timeline by a certain value, but I'll see if I need them.

If you want more control, you can also try the timeline script that is part of the JJTools package. Actually, I recommend to install the package regardless, it has some REALLY useful tools, like the Clever Move and Rotate.

Installation

As with most of 3ds max scripts, just drag-n-drop the files into the viewport. I would recommend you put them in one of your Quad menus for easy access.

Downloads

UpdateStartZero
UpdateStartTime
UpdateEndTime

Cheers and have fun!

Animating a sequence in The Boxtrolls

Seriously, StopMotion animators are a special breed of animators.

Found via Carlos Baena Twitter:

Good old friend/roommate Jeff Riley Boxtrolling: http://t.co/Nj9u4GtnkJ
— Carlos Baena (@Carlos_Baena) March 20, 2014

Improve your workflow: Easy steps to make 3ds max (more) user friendly

Note: I will be updating this post whenever I find a tool that could impact your workflow and help you work faster. So, bookmark this page so you can check it later.

When I was at the 3D school, my favorite program was 3dsMax. I thought it has some features that could be better, but overall the ups where more than the downs. Then, I left school and get my first job and my first project was using Maya. And I have to say I was reluctant to make the switch, but after a while

Maya is my favorite 3D program. Coming in a close second is now Motion Builder. Sadly, the one that was my favorite is now third in my rankings. That's 3ds Max. This is mainly because I find that my workflow is slower than with any other software. Some tools (in my opinion) are poorly designed and they impact my workflow.

However, there are some things you can do to speed up and enhance your workflow.

Changing the hotkeys in 3dsMax to scrub the timeline faster

This set of hotkeys will increase your workflow so that all the playback controls will be together.

- Change the default Next/Previous Key hotkeys (by default, they are assigned to the "," and "." keys) to the Left and Right arrows.

- In 3dsMax and map the KeyMode Toggle function (known as "NextPrevious Key Mode Toggle") to the Down Key, so that you can easily switch between Next/Previous frame to Next/Previous Key.

- Change the hotkey of the UP Arrow key to play the animation.

Zooming in the Graph Editor

These set of changes in the Quad Menus will greatly improve your zooming workflow in the graph editor, making it a bit friendlier.

First, let's find the correct quad, since there are a couple with similar names.

Now, how to set it up. I'll show you what looks mine:

I added a couple of zooming and key-moving tools to help me out when I'm working on the Graph Editor, which is, like, all the time. Where to put the tools is up to you. I place them in that particular order for no reason really. You can do the same or find some other one that suits you better.

The Zooming tools (Values and Time) will help me zoom in one specific direction at a time. The Move Key tools do the same thing but with selected keys. So, Move Keys Horizontally will move keys in time only, while vertically in value only.

NOTE: CTRL + SHIFT + Zoom Tool will disable the default proportional zoom of the tool, hence achieving the same effect but I feel you have less control over the zoomed area.

Make the hotkeys work in the Track view

If you want to enable most of the hotkeys so they also work while the Curve Editor (or any trackview, for that matter) just activate the Keyboard Shortcut Override Toggle (toaster button).

Change position of Scale Value bar with script

I have recently uploaded a tool to update the position of the scale value tool bar in the Curve Editor. Don't know what I'm talking about? It's the annoying brown line that is always hard to find. Well, get teh tool and install it. It will save you time, guaranteed! ;)

Trajectories made better!

If you already don't know about Eric Legaré DTools, then you're missing a lot! Especially the trajectories tool called DTrajEdit. Basically, it's like the default trajectories, but better. You can even attach a trajectory to a polygon on your mesh! How cool is THAT!?

Link here

Tween Machine for 3dsMax

A friend of mine just shoot me a link about a "Tween Machine" script for 3dsMax. If you don't know what that is, it's basically a tool that existed in Maya (a script made by someone) that allows you to easily add inbetweens into your animation.

Well, it happens that artist Michael Smith created the same tool for 3dsMax.
Head over his website and check out his tutorials.

Link here.