Author: Joji Mathew

MAXON understands that making a transition into 3D graphics and animation can be a daunting proposition for artists already pressed for time keeping up with the ever evolving progression of more traditional graphics technology. With that in mind, they have crafted CINEMA 4D, a software that is intuitive yet amazingly powerful. Using this application, a… Continue reading Introduction to CINEMA 4D part_1

Marvelous Designer played a crucial role in my projects. I mainly used Megascans assets, tweaking them into something entirely new. But with Marvelous, I found I could add a lot of complexity to MYsets without much effort. Fabric created in Marvelous looks real, intricate, and beautiful, and it’s surprisingly easy to work with. This was… Continue reading Why did I decide to use Marvelous Designer? How did it help you serve art direction?

To convert the Marvelous Designer file into a clean topology, I utilize Maya’s Transfer Attributes tool. After exporting, I save two sets of files named boot3D and boot2D. The boot3D f ile is the direct export from Marvelous Designer, while the boot2D represents the 2D pattern version obtained by right-clicking and selecting “Reset 2D Arrangement.”… Continue reading Explaining the process of moving between Marvelous Designer and other software.

Clothes If the body is modeled and skinned under the clothes, a good practice is to transfer the weights from the body to the clothes. This way, they will perfectly stick to the body. Select the clothes objects, then the body (holding Shift, the target first, then the source), press F3 > type “Transfer Mesh Data” >… Continue reading Auto-Rig-part 009

Skinning Binding Select first the character meshes objects, then the armature while holding the Shift key. Click the Bind button to bind. Bind Engines Heat Maps: Default engine, works best with watertight meshes (closed mesh) Voxelized: If meshes are not watertight (e.g. multiple layers of clothes, props, complex topology…), consider using this engine. However, this doesn’t always lead to… Continue reading Auto-Rig-part 008

Picker Panel Setup The picker addon must be installed first. If you haven’t done it already, you might want to split the 3D viewport into two areas, one view to display the character and one view to display the picker panel. How to do this: Click at the top right corner of the 3d viewport,… Continue reading Auto-Rig-part 007

Positionning the Reference Bones The reference bones are the guides used to align the final rig bones position and rotations. Whether your character is not supported by the Smart function (not a biped) or if you simply need to edit the reference bones position, here is how to: Adjust the bones positions so that they… Continue reading Auto-Rig-part 006

Spline IK options IK Splines are useful bone chains to rig ropes, tentacles… It can also be used as a replacement for the default FK spine. It’s recommended to keep 1 spine bone though, to keep the c_root_master and c_root controller, and parent the root bone of the Spline IK to it. IK Spline Count Number of bones for… Continue reading Auto-Rig-part 005

Wings Add feathers bones to the arm, forearm and hand bone with various settings. Arm Feathers: amount of feathers for the arm bone Forearm Feathers: amount of feathers for the forearm bone Hand Feathers: amount of feathers for the hand bone Feather Subdivisions: amount of bones per feathers, to curve its shape (example below with… Continue reading Auto-Rig-part 004

Neck Options Count Number of neck bones Note To export to Unreal Engine as a humanoid rig: 1 neck bone is required to match the UE4 Mannequin 2 neck bones are required to match the UE5 Mannequin Twist Bones Add neck twist bones, for better deformations when the head twists (rotates along the Y axis).… Continue reading Auto-Rig-part 003