Assets are objects that you can add to a scene, including characters, devices, elements, shaders, .fbx files, and so on. Assets are listed in the Asset browser in a hierarchical tree structure. You can add them to the scene by dragging them from the Asset Browser folders. You can also create favorite paths in the Asset browser to make shortcuts to your own .fbx files. See Adding a favorite path.
PrevisMoves assets includes a 100 useful animation files in the FBX format.
These animations are primarily moves that offer coverage for frequently encountered scenarios, with walking, running, jumping, crawling, falling, fighting, and idling categories, as well as those that involve furniture or weapons.
Using these animations, you can combine, blend, and layer to block out or pre-visualize your scenes in less time, or use as a starting point for further refinement.
You can drag Python scripts to the Viewer window to either execute a task, add to the scene, or both. Use the scripts to automate workflows, customize the interface, or speed up processes that are time consuming when executed manually.
The Python scripts are located in the following location of the installation directory:
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\MotionBuilder <version>\bin\config\Scripts.
See Executing a script.
The Character assets help you create a complete map of your character model's structure and link it to a motion source for animation.
From the Asset Browser you can select Actor, Actor face, Character, and Character face templates to use when working with character models and character head models, as well as a 3ds Max Biped Template and Character Extension.
See the following:
The Asset browser Commands folder contains assets you can use in the Story window to insert Command clips that let you build animation. There are three types of Command assets: Application Launch, Hide Models, and Show Models.
See Create command clips for information on how to add these assets to your scene.
The Asset browser’s Constraints folder contains constraints that you can use to create relationships between objects in your scene. Use constraints to make a character pick up an object, have a camera follow a character, manipulate other objects in relation to each other or use the keyboard or mouse to trigger events
See the following:Decks let you control, monitor, and synchronize the recording or playback of a VTR (Video Tape Recorders) from within MotionBuilder.
MotionBuilder supports two decks:
A device is either a special software component or a separate piece of hardware that connects to your computer using a serial, ethernet, or other connection. These devices can include voice and sound devices, or a separate piece of hardware, such as a joystick, mouse, or keyboard.
For information on how to use a device in your scene, see Animating with Devices .
The Elements folder contains a variety of 3D objects that you can add to the scene. For example, you can add a camera or light to adjust the way you view the scene, or you can add a 3D cube to test the effects of certain shaders. You can add video to a scene by first adding a Plane element, and you can build a skeleton using the Skeleton Root and Skeleton reference. The include:
See Add element assets to a scene.
A curve that can be attached to a constraint to create an animation path. Dragging this asset into the Viewer window lets you create a set of points that make up a spline.
A 3D cube object. You can use cubes to test shaders, textures, materials or create environmental effects using the Particle shader.
A general purpose object you can use for everything from character rigging to creating floor constraints.
A property that lets you create text comments for information sharing. You can add notes to individual objects in a scene, or groups of objects.
Refer to Attaching and removing Notes and Note properties for more information.
An axis that you can parent to other objects for additional transformation. To learn how to hide nulls in your scene, see Hiding nulls.
A flat 3D object that you can use for walls, floors, to display video clips, and to create shadows and reflection maps. See Applying shadows to objects.
The Primitives folder within the Elements folder contains basic shapes (or Primitives) you can use as basic models for testing. You can animate, transform, and apply materials and effects to Primitives. Use the polySphere element in the Asset browser when you require a sphere model for Physics solves (such as Rigid body, Joint, or Ragdoll). The Elements Sphere element has geometry that may produce unpredictable results.
The Rigid Body Physical property enables you to create real-time collisions you can use to prevent interpenetration of characters, objects, and other scene elements. The Ragdoll Physical property enables you to simulate and record collisions and collapses on characters with Control rigs. The Joint Physical Property enables you to create physical links between two objects that are solved by the Physics Solver. These physical links then let you reproduce behaviors such as hinges, a ball and socket joint, and so on.
See the following:
The Shading Elements assets include assets for materials, textures, layered textures, and shaders.
You can assign materials to the surface or faces of an object to simulate different substances, such as wood, metal, cloth, or skin. Used alone, materials affect the color and glossiness of objects. Used with textures and shaders, materials let you simulate surface detail, transparency, reflectivity, and displacement.
See the following:
Textures let you add surface detail using an image or video. The Texture asset in the Shading Elements folder is meant to be attached to a material or Layered texture. See the following:
A Layered Texture asset lets you blend multiple images and videos, then add them to a material as if they were a single media. The Layered Texture asset in the Shading Elements folder is meant to be attached to a material. See Blending multiple textures.
For other types of Layered textures, see Choosing texture types.Apply Global Lighting textures directly to the model and use them with shaders. You have the option of creating layered or standard single-layered Global Lighting textures. See Choosing texture types.
Shaders control the way the surface interacts with the lighting in the scene, creating color, specularity, reflection, transparency, shadowing, and refraction effects. You can use them with materials and textures to create various surface effects.
See the following:
Solving is a term for the result of all calculations, rigs, and settings when using the character or physical solving engine. The Physics solver world is a reflection of dynamic elements from a scene, that is any object with a property attached to it.
See the following:
The Tutorials asset folder contains various assets required to do the MotionBuilder tutorials.