Graph Editor

A graphical representation of interpolation between animation keys that you can modify.

To open the Graph Editor:

• From the main menu bar, select Windows > Animation Editors > Graph Editor.
• From the view menu bar, select Panels > Panel > Graph Editor.
Note: Maya's Modern Graph Editor is an updated version of the Classic Maya Graph Editor, giving you a more intuitive approach to manipulating animation curves and keys in your scene. To switch back to the Classic Maya Graph Editor, activate the Classic option in the Graph Editor section of the Animation (Settings) preferences.

The Graph Editor is presented as graph view of scene animation so you can create, view, and modify animation curves various ways. For example, you can control interpolation between keyframes, extrapolation of curves, and change animation curves value and timing by altering the shape of animation curves using tangent handles.

Note: The Graph Editor is presented as graph view of scene animation so you can create, view, and modify animation curves various ways. For example, you can control interpolation between keyframes, extrapolation of curves, and change animation curves value and timing by altering the shape of animation curves using tangent handles. While the Graph Editor's color scheme is designed for high visibility, you can customize the colors in the Color Settings.

Other improvements include:

• The Move Tool is no longer needed to move keys
• Interactive keyframes and the ability to isolate curves
• Scrubbable Time Marker that moves anywhere you click on the Time ruler
• Resizeable play range
• Simplified view names. (Stacked Curves is now Stacked View , Display Normalized is now Normalized View and now there is an Absolute View.)
• Activate curve selection between keys by pressing M
• Customizable key and curve colors (See the Graph Editor section in the Color Settings)

The following table provides a overview of tasks using the Graph Editor:

To...	Do this
Place the Graph Editor in a scene view	Select the scene view in which you want the Graph Editor to appear, then select Panels > Panel > Graph Editor.
Turn on Pre-selection highlighting in the Graph Editor	In the Graph Editor menu bar, turn on Select > Pre-select Highlight. Tip: Change the highlight color with the Colors window. Select Windows > Settings/Preferences > Color Settings, then change the Pre-selection highlight option in the Animation Editors section.
Pan and Zoom in the Graph Editor	Same as with Viewport navigation: Pan: press Alt or Option (Mac OS X) key and middle-drag.) Zoom: press Alt or Option (Mac OS X) and drag or right-drag. Zooming is centered based on the location of the mouse cursor.
Zoom on a curve	Select the animation curve (see To select a curve,below) and click F to frame the selection.
Resize the Playback range	On the Time Ruler, click the edge of the dark region and drag to change the playback range. Stretch the playback range in the time view by dragging the flags on the Time ruler.
Scrub animation	Drag the Current Time Marker. To scrub along the Time ruler at the top of the Graph view, drag the Current Time Marker left or right. To scrub in the Graph view (below the Time ruler), press K to release the cursor lock. (The cursor is locked from scrubbing in the Time view to prevent moving keys/curves unintentionally.)
Move to the previous or next view	Use the square bracket hotkeys ([ and ]). These are the same hotkeys that let you move between camera views in the viewport. To navigate through views using these hotkeys, click in the Graph Editor then press left bracket ([) to move to the previous view, or right bracket (]) to move to the next view.
Filter mangled Euler angles	Select the mangled animation curves (for example, Rotate X, Y, and Z), then select Curves > Euler Filter.
Change the rotation interpolation type of existing curves	Use the Curves > Change Rotation Interp menu in the Graph Editor and Dope Sheet.
Set an FK/IK key curve	Use the Set IK/FK Key option in the K/FK Keys menu (Key > FK/IK Keys > Set IK/FK Keyin the Animation menu set.)
Select a key	Click the key on the curve.
Select a curve	Press M and click the curve (or Ctrl-drag-select).
Move a key	Select a key and drag it. To open the Move Key tool, select Edit > Transformation Tools > Move Keys Tool > Settings. You can also middle-click an empty area of the Graph Editor and drag to reposition selected keys.
Move multiple keyframes in time without changing the attribute value	Drag-select the keyframes to move. Shift-middle-drag the frames left or right.
Change views	Absolute view: Press 1 This view is the default. Stacked view: Press 2 Normalized view: press 3 Select View > Renormalize to revert back. Note: Curves are automatically renormalized when you turn on Display Normalized or the active curve list changes.

Related topics

• Keyframe animation and the Graph Editor
• Use the Graph Editor and Dope Sheet