The 0 to 1 Process
Motion Capture & Data Strategy
We utilized the OptiTrack system to record complex sword-fighting choreography. The primary challenge was managing occlusion during close-combat sequences.
Post-capture, I brought the raw data into MotionBuilder. Since the raw dance/fight mocap didn't come with a mesh, I inspected the take in MotionBuilder first and retargeted it to a Mixamo character to verify bone rotations before export.
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MetaHuman & Live Link
I established the Live Link connection to stream animation data directly from MotionBuilder to Unreal Engine 5. This allowed for real-time visualization of the performance on our target assets.
Problem Solving: I encountered a retargeting error where the MetaHuman's forearms were twisted unnaturally. This was due to a mismatch in the T-pose definition between the source data and the MetaHuman skeleton, which I resolved by adjusting the bone mapping in the retargeting settings.
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Multi-Character Blueprinting
We selected a medieval cathedral environment (Assassin's Creed Unity style). I created a modular Blueprint system where the Knight and Assassin characters could share a single animation skeleton.
This was crucial because our raw MoCap file contained data for both actors simultaneously. By mapping two character Blueprints to their respective data streams, I could drive the entire fight scene from a single source file, ensuring perfect synchronization.
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Control Rig & Sequencer
The final stage involved heavy cleanup using Control Rig to fix jitter and foot-sliding. Since the raw data often "ignored" the physical weapons, I had to manually constrain the sword assets to the hand bones and clean up the intersection points.
Using the Level Sequencer, I keyed camera movements to follow the action dynamically, adjusting focal lengths to emphasize the intensity of the combat before sending to the Movie Render Queue.
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