Animating Next-Gen Characters in Maya
Pluralsight
Course Summary
Learn a production workflow for game animation and time-saving methods for creating game-ready characters rigs, non-linear animation, and adding appeal. Software required: Maya 8.0 and up.
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Course Description
Learn a production workflow for game animation and time-saving methods for creating game-ready characters rigs, non-linear animation, and adding appeal. Contains over 6 hours of project-based training for artists learning character animation for next-generation games. Popular highlights include: Rigging Techniques for Games; Scene Organization; Custom Shelves; Creating Control Objects with MEL; Constraints; Advanced Spline IK Twist control; Alias Attributes; Binding Techniques; Rotation Order; Follow-through; Exaggeration; Arcs; Timing and Spacing; Weight; Cycling Animation; Animated Transitions; Character Sets; Trax Editor. You may use Maya version 8. 0 and up to follow along with the training. X-Ray Joints is the only feature that we discuss that is available in Maya version 2008 and up only. Software required: Maya 8.0 and up.
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Course Syllabus
Introduction and Project Overview- 9m 6s
—Preparing the Scene for Rigging 9m 6sAnimating Next-Gen Characters in Maya- 6h 0m
—Building a Custom Shelf 3m 17s
—Creating MEL Buttons to Generate Control Objects 10m 46s
—Constructing the Character's Legs 11m 4s
—Setting up Control Objects for the Legs 9m 57s
—Finishing the Leg Controls 6m 45s
—Building the Spine 5m 45s
—Rigging the Spine Using the Spline IK Tool 4m 50s
—Establishing the Hip and Chest Control Objects 12m 28s
—Finalizing the Spine Controls 5m 56s
—Efficiently Controlling the Neck and Head 5m 34s
—Finishing the Head Rig 9m 30s
—Building the Left Arm 9m 57s
—Controlling the Left Arm 9m 25s
—Custom Attributes for the Fingers 7m 13s
—Rigging the Right Arm 7m 42s
—Setting up the Forearm Twist via the Connection Editor 3m 19s
—Controlling the Shoulder Pads 7m 24s
—Manipulating the Back Hoses 8m 19s
—Utilizing Global Scale 7m 33s
—Adding Character and Sub-character Sets 6m 44s
—Binding the Character to the Skeleton 6m 46s
—Adding Influence to the Chest Plate and Shoulder Pads 7m 9s
—Painting Weights on the Hip 6m 41s
—Fixing the Deformations of the Fingers 10m 34s
—Adding Falloff to the Right Arm's Hose 10m 38s
—Modifying the Weights of the Back Hoses 8m 12s
—Choosing a Suitable Rotation Order for Control Objects 4m 44s
—Starting the Run Animation / Posing the Contact Position of the Run 8m 49s
—Animating the Peak Position of the Run 10m 10s
—Cycling the Run / Fine-tuning the Flow of the Lower Body 13m 1s
—Finalizing the Legs 11m 40s
—Shifting the Hips in the Z Axis 6m 42s
—Keeping the Upper Body Balanced Throughout the Run 5m 23s
—Adding Follow-through to the Upper Body and Head in the X Axis 7m 50s
—Animating the Twisting of the Upper Body and Head During the Run 6m 11s
—Wrapping up the Upper Body 5m 12s
—Starting on the Arms 10m 32s
—Finishing the Arms 9m 41s
—Animating the Shoulder Pads 8m 37s
—Adding Follow-through to the Back Hoses; Finishing the Run Cycle 8m 26s
—Upper Body Recoil for the Point Animation 4m 2s
—Enhancing the Planted Foot During the Point Animation 3m 4s
—Creating Arm Jiggle to Show the Weight of the Weapon 4m 43s
—Creating Animation Clips to Quickly Retrieve Animation Data 12m 28s
—Other Animation Examples 8m 12s
—Bonus: Animating Transitions 4m 42s
—Bonus: Removing Attributes from Character Sets 2m 5s
