You're reading from Virtual Filmmaking with Unreal Engine 5

Product type Book

Published in Feb 2024

Publisher Packt

ISBN-13 9781801813808

Pages 480 pages

Edition 1st Edition

Languages

Concepts

Animation

Author (1):

Hussin Khan

Table of Contents (23) Chapters

Preface

1. Part 1:Pre-Production: Project Development and Gathering Resources

2. Chapter 1: Getting Started with Unreal Engine

3. Chapter 2: Understanding the Principles of Photography, Film Cameras, and Lenses

4. Chapter 3: Understanding the Art of Storytelling and Creating Your Storyboard

5. Part 2: Production: Creating the Environment

6. Chapter 4: Importing 3D Objects and Creating Levels

7. Chapter 5: Creating Environments with Quixel Megascans

8. Chapter 6: Creating and Applying Materials to 3D Meshes

9. Part 3: Production: Adding and Animating Characters

10. Chapter 7: Creating Actors with Unreal Engine MetaHumans

11. Chapter 8: Retargeting the MetaHumans for Unreal Engine 5

12. Chapter 9: Adding Animations and Facial Expressions to Your MetaHuman Characters

13. Part 4: Production: Shooting the Scene

14. Chapter 10: Adding and Animating Virtual Cameras Using the Level Sequencer

15. Chapter 11: Enhancing Set Dressing, Retiming Shots, and Adding Niagara Particles

16. Chapter 12: Setting the Mood with Lighting and Adding Post-Processing Effects

17. Part 5: Post-Production: Adding Post-Processing Effects and Music

18. Chapter 13: Exploring Color Management, Additional Camera Settings, and Rendering Your Shots

19. Chapter 14: Adding Sound and Finalizing Your Virtual Film

20. Index

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21. Other Books You May Enjoy

Appendix: Creating Material IDs Using Blender

What is character rigging?

Before we jump back into UE to start animating our characters, you must understand the concept of character rigging. Character rigging (sometimes referred to as skeletal animation) is the process of creating a digital skeleton or structure for a character model in animation. It is a technique used to define the range of movement for a character or object, enabling actions, gestures, and movement.

Figure 8.1: Digital skeleton in UE5

During character rigging, an artist takes a static character model and adds a series of interconnected bones to create a skeleton. These bones serve as a framework that allows animators to manipulate and control the character’s movements. By assigning specific movements and constraints to the bones, animators can create lifelike movements and expressions for the character. Without rigging, characters would lack the ability to deform and move freely, making it challenging to bring them to life...