book

Unreal Engine 5 Character Creation, Animation, and Cinematics

by Henk Venter, Wilhelm Ogterop

June 2022

Beginner

598 pages

12h 58m

English

Packt Publishing

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Who this book is forWhat this book coversTo get the most out of this bookDownload the example filesDownload the color imagesConventions usedGet in touchShare Your Thoughts
Technical requirementsWhat is 3D modeling?Understanding 3D sculptingIntroducing BlenderThe user interfaceElements in the 3D ViewportInteracting with the 3D world in BlenderAxes and transform orientationsManipulating objects or their componentsExploring Blender's modeling toolsExtrude regionBevelLoop CutInset FacesMerging faces, edges, and verticesProportional EditingUsing modifiers in BlenderThe Mirror modifierSubdivision Surface modifierUsing Blender's sculpting toolsBrush settingsRemeshBlender's sculpting brushesOther sculpting toolsLine Project toolMesh Filter toolSummaryFurther reading
Technical requirementsPreparing Blender's UnitsModeling a Robot Drone characterModeling the shape of the bodyCreating eyesAdding a shoulder and a ball jointAttaching a KitBash meshModeling the armExtruding the custom shapeSummary
Technical requirementsLoading the file containing the reference imageBlocking out your modelExtruding and duplicating mesh partsSubdividing the meshSculpting the primary formsFixing problem areasFlattening an area of the meshHow to fix surface artifactsAdding secondary and tertiary formsUsing masking in 3D sculptingAdding the final polish to the sculptureGenerating the low-resolution meshDecimating the mesh in BlenderUsing Instant Meshes for auto-retopologySummary
Technical requirementsWhat are textures and materials?TexturesMaterialsUnderstanding UV mapsUV unwrapping the Alien Plant modelFixing shading issuesCreating UV seamsUV unwrapping the Alien Plant modelTriangulating the Alien Plant modelExporting the Alien Plant meshUV unwrapping the Robot Drone modelUnderstanding texture bakingIntroduction to xNormalPreparing the Robot Drone model for xNormalPreparing the low-poly meshPreparing the high-poly meshBaking texture mapsSummary
Technical requirementsIntroducing the basics of Quixel MixerConfiguring your project and Mixer fileQuixel Mixer's UI and shortcutsTexturing the Robot Drone in MixerLoading the Robot Drone model into Quixel MixerAdding texture mapsAdding paneling detailsTexturing the Robot DroneUsing material ID maps and masksTexturing the Alien Plant in MixerExporting your materials for use in UESummaryFurther reading
Technical requirementsIntroducing UE5What can you do with UE?New features in UE5Free sample projectsExamples of animation projects that were made in UE5UE terminologiesSetting up your projectViewport navigationMost useful shortcutsUE's UIDocking the Content Browser panelThe Viewport menu barSummary

Technical requirementsImporting your 3D assetsImporting texturesThe Texture EditorCreating materialsThe Material EditorThe Static Mesh EditorPreviewing your models with lightingSummary
Technical requirementsWhat is MetaHuman Creator?Getting access to MetaHuman CreatorLaunching MetaHuman CreatorMetaHuman's UICreating a photorealistic female sci-fi characterCustomizing the shape of your character's facePreviewing your character with animationsAdding your MetaHuman to Unreal Engine 5Customizing your character's clothingSummary
Technical requirementsSetting up the basic elements of your 3D movie setAdjusting the scene's exposureAdjusting the Viewport's Field of ViewUsing Quixel Bridge to acquire free 3D assetsCustomizing your material instancesThe Material Instance Editor's UIEditing your Material InstancesUsing Albedo Tint for the Rock assetsUsing Nanite on your rock assetsUsing asset filters in the Content Browser windowBuilding the 3D movie setSummary
Technical requirementsThe fundamentals of lighting in 3D graphicsRealistic and stylized lightingThe three traditional lighting techniquesTypes of light sources in UE5Using Lumen in your UE5 projectsPreparing your projectAdding a Sky Atmosphere systemLighting your 3D movie setAdjusting your Key light (Light Source)Adjusting your first Fill light (SkyLight)Adding a second Fill light (DirectionalLight)Adding atmospheric visual effectsAdding FogLight ShaftsLens Flare and Light BloomSummaryFurther reading
Technical requirementsPreparing our 3D model for the skeletonImporting the Alien Plant into BlenderBest practice when importing your modelPositioning and scaling the Alien PlantParent/child hierarchies in 3D softwareCreating a skeleton for the Alien PlantCreating the skeletonCreating a parent/child relationshipMaking a long joint chain for the main stemMaking the skeleton for the branchesSummary
Technical requirementsIntroduction to skinning in BlenderPainting skin weightsSkinning the Alien Plant mesh to the skeletonSkinning the Alien PlantSummary
Technical requirementsCreating a skeleton for the robotOpening, positioning, and scaling the robotBody and left arm bonesRenaming and parenting the bonesUsing the Symmetrize tool Checking and editing the local joint orientations of the jointsWhat is the local orientation of a bone?Editing local bone orientationsSkinning the robot to the skeleton in a rigid wayPreparing the model and collapsing modifiersSkinning the robot body partsAssigning exact skin weights to verticesSummary
Technical requirementsIntroduction to the Control Rig EditorLoading the Control Rig tools in UEGetting the Alien Plant and its skeleton into UECreating the Control Rig node on the Alien PlantUnderstanding the Control Rig Editor interface layoutCreating basic Control Rig controllersCreating two simple control shapesDeciding on the controllers we needCreating all the controllersOrganizing the controllers in a hierarchyPositioning the controllers on the jointsControlling the Alien Plant skeleton with the controllersPractical setup for three basic nodesCompleting the animation rigSummary
Technical requirementsWhat is IK?Understanding IKCreating the controllers for the robot characterExporting the robot and its skeleton from BlenderImporting the robot into a UE projectCreating the Control Rig controllersOrdering the control objects in the correct hierarchy and linking them to jointsController hierarchyPositioning the controllers to line up with the bonesLinking bones to controllers in Rig GraphCreating an IK controller and testing the whole rigGetting bone orientations of our arm bonesSetting up an IK controllerTesting the IK setupSummary
Technical requirementsOverview of the Sequencer interfaceOpening the Sequencer and adding the Alien Plant animation rigSequencer interface overviewSetting keyframes for animationWhat are keyframes and curves in computer animation?Setting keyframes for the Alien Plant Control RigEditing keyframes and animation curvesSummary
Technical requirementsAnimation A: idle cycleUsing the Poses tool in UE5Animating the idle cycleAnimation B: movement cycleAnimation C: action animationSummary
Technical requirementsGetting MoCap animations from MixamoGetting MoCap animations from the UE MarketplaceRetargeting MoCap animations to a MetaHuman skeletonImporting Maximo MoCap into UESetting up retargeting on the Mixamo skeletonSetting up retargeting on the MetaHuman skeletonRetargeting Mixamo MoCap animation to the MetaHumanSummary
Technical requirementsPlanning Your MoCap editBaking the Stand_Up MoCap to the Control RigOverview of the MetaHuman Control RigEditing and cleaning up the Stand_Up MoCapChanging the clipping plane in UE Lining up the MoCap with the ground plane and the root Fixing floaty feetImproving the standing poseCleaning up Sitting PoseFixing the hands with the Snapper toolSummary
Technical requirementsImporting all the scene assets and positioning them in the sceneMigrating UE content between projectsAttaching the body armor to the MetaHuman RigPreparing character and Level AssetsImporting animations onto our charactersImporting Mocap animations onto the MetaHumanImporting Mocap animations onto the Robot DroneImporting animations onto the Alien PlantCreating cameras and animating themUsing multiple cameras and cutting between themRendering our final sceneSummary
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Content preview from Unreal Engine 5 Character Creation, Animation, and Cinematics

Chapter 16: Creating a Simple Swaying Animation Cycle in UE5 Sequencer

In the previous chapter, we made a Control Rig for our Robot Drone, but in this chapter, we're going back to our Alien Plant animation rig to animate it. The Alien Plant Control Rig was a simple forward kinematics (FK) setup, and it would be a good starting point to learn the basics of animating in Unreal Engine Sequencer (UE Sequencer). At this stage, we can start breathing life into our animatable characters and objects by making them move the way we want them to.

Animation is not simply making something move from A to B. It is a whole art form in itself and it takes a lot of practice to get really good at it. In this chapter, we will start with the basic building blocks ...