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View Full Version : Calling all the Xpresso genii, please need your help.

Uncle-Ox
06-12-2005, 03:47 PM
Hi

I've got something I'd like to try out with my character's cloth hair but in order for it to work, I need to get an Xpression going for which I don't have an idea of where to start.

Ok, here's what needs to happen:
My character is already animated (a running cycle to be exact). What I now want to do is to have her body move around underneeth her head with her head fixed at its current global position. So, in actual fact, what would happen, is that the neck and the rest of the rig wil continue moving with the same offsets, rotations and positions in relation to the head but the head will actually be standing dead still. It would be as if the head has become the new center of the universe. If I just fix the head's global rotation and position to eg. a null, the head does become stationary but the rest of the body continues to move in relation to the world and loses it's relation to the head (the neck stretches out). I need it to be like if you were to mount a camera to the head which looks at it. So from the camera's point of view the head will be standing dead still but the rest of the body will be moving along merrily.


Can someone please help me out with this?
Srek
06-12-2005, 04:23 PM
Sounds hard to achieve to me. Why not simply make the camera a child of the head then?
Cheers
Björn
Uncle-Ox
06-12-2005, 06:57 PM
Hi

Srek, I mention the camera just to better explain what it is I want to achieve. Making the camera the child of the head would be an easy thing but I need the head to actually be still an not just look like it is. It would be as if an invisible clamp is holding the head and the body keeps on performing it's running cycle.

Yeah, I know... If it's so difficult to explain, just think how difficult it is to do. :)
tcastudios
06-12-2005, 07:18 PM
Not certain what end result you are looking for but, take Srek's idea one step futher might be an idea. That is make a Null as a Child of the head (or use xpresso to keep it at the same location) then place the whole scene incl. Camera under that Null.
You can then animate the Camera as per normal, orbiting the figure, and it would look as if the body "have its own life". Maybe?

Cheers
Lennart
Cactus Dan
06-13-2005, 12:06 AM
Howdy,

Well, I think your solution would depend on what your rig's hierarchy looks like. If I understand correctly what you are trying to achieve, then a lot would depend on what kind of spine set up you have. You may end up having to just edit your keys or FCurves, so that your animation keeps the head in position and place the axis of your Character Null at that pivot point (assuming you have everything pertaining to your character inside a Null object). That's going to be a very difficult task if you're using an FK inherited rotation spine setup.

Adios,
Cactus Dan
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