Marek Schneider
The man with the master plan (yeah cheezy i know)
What is the best way to go with creating a bipedal rig where the head is interdependent/independent
from the torso.
I was checking out CGChannel’s walkcycle girl video and th ehead was very centered while her pelvis swayed.
I know one could counter-animate the process but there has to be a better way.
Im not Marek but ill answer it anyway 
U can use a MoveTo to connect the Neck to the Spine. This way rotations wont be taken into account, wich mean NO counter animating that i hate.
U can also use a MoveTo to connect the Head to the Neck, with this u can rotate the Neck and the Head will stay put, make a simple scene and test it, hard to explain.
I tend to use MoveTo´s to attach all major limbs to each other, Arms to Spines, Hands to Arms, this way i always get independent rotations for them.
Happy Rigging :bounce:
ps: I forgot to say Expressions (MoveTo) in case it wasn´t clear 
I have always found rigs that allow this kind of “auto” leveling to produce the least natural motion. I’m sure I could be proven wrong but most of the time it is when the natural bumps and bobs and bounces that occur when there is a spine and weight of a head attatched to a neck are lost when you “auto” it.
In the “Chicken Little” rigs, the head, chest and hips were completely detatched from each other. Reasoning: the animator knows where he/she wants them, and hierarchal rigs cause them to animate ‘against’ the rig, ie: after posing, if you adjust the hip, you then have to correct chest and head.
Marek’s demo reel shows a great hybrid - a first layer has the chest and head under the hip parent hierarchy, but the hip itself can be animated independently. This is particularly valuable for toon rigs, but also useful for realistic styles within tighter limits.
Is this what you mean?
Hi Julez,
Am I the man with the master plan? I didn't know that - well, maybe I should try to take over the world then...:D
As for the head not following the body orientation, as Sil3 said: keep the head seperate from the body hierarchy (in my case I have the neck part of the hierarchy, but not the head), then use a moveto expression to attach it to the neck. I then use Mark's Dynamic Align function (or you could use the keyfader function) with a slider to have the option to have the head follow the body orientation, for those "I don't like automation, I wanna do it the hard way" animators (Hi Wegg :wavey: Just kidding! ;))
And if you want to have a complete non hierarchical rig à la Disney, just don't use the MoveTo expression ;)Thanks Maks and Sil, yeah thats what I mean.
BEST METHOD?!
So to moveto your rig. Do you position neck to the chest bone (and orientation) and then Activate the moveto.
or do you center it and snaps into place?
Do you do your feet like this as well?
Any advantage for the lower parts of the body?
And Maks you ever consider a tutorial video (free or pay)?
You have to move it into the right place in setup, or your mesh will get funky in animate mode, kinda logic, isn’t it? 
But you can use your moveto/align expressions to position it correctly and then use the CurrentToSetup script in the palette to copy the position over to setup, if you want. Or you can parent it first, then unparent in place.
Do you do your feet like this as well?
Any advantage for the lower parts of the body?
Yeah, you can keep the feet seperate from the leg hierarchy and then make them the IK goals for the legs - this way you always have rock solid feet on the ground, no slipping. But that really depends on your needs - if you e.g. need to have an option for animating the legs with FK this is not necessarily the best method.
And Maks you ever consider a tutorial video (free or pay)?
Well, considering is one thing, time another… :rolleyes:
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