Motion Library
Motion Library allows you to easily add premade animated motions like fighting, dancing, and running to your characters. Choose from a collection of over 350 motions and watch your puppets come to life in new and exciting ways!
Free example puppets
You are free to download and use these puppets however you want — no credit needed. To import a puppet, go to File > Import and select the .puppet file, or double-click it on your desktop.
Simple Example
A simplified front facing character — just a few layers and the bare minimum for behaviors and rigging.
Blobby
Blobby may be…well, a blob…but even their unique larger body and shorter limbs are fun to try Motion Library on.
Mo
Mo is a solid example of a forward-facing character, and is a good template to follow for any similar puppets you might have.
Ninja
Ninja is a perfect candidate for trying out some of the fighting moves. Try adding two puppets to a scene and having them battle!
Ninja Fight Scene
This is a full project with a 10-second example fight between two Ninja puppets. Look at the timeline to see how you can blend multiple motions together into a sequence.
MegaRobot
Yes, Motion Library does include some robot dance moves, but MegaRobot’s smooth joints are ready for any animations you might throw at him.
How do I use Motion Library?
- Download an example character above. Download one of the characters listed at the top of this site (or make your own — see the rigging explanation below). There are some characters on the home screen of the app that will also note that they are rigged for motion library in their description.
- In Record mode, twirl open the Motion Library behavior and change the Motion using the arrows or dropdown menu. These will immediately have your character start following the animated preset motions.
- Adjust the parameters if needed. Motion Library has a lot of parameters that can adjust certain qualities of the motions. The Orientation dial, for example, will change which direction the capture is applied to, which can make certain motions fit certain rigs better. Root Position is set to Reset at Loop by default, but you can also select Continuous or Treadmill for different results. Try adjusting different parameters to customize the animation to your liking. Outside of Motion Library, you can also adjust Body > Strength to reduce how strong the motions are.
- Record a motion. The “Record One Motion” button will immediately record a single loop of the current motion. This is the fastest way to build up a recording. By repeating this process for different motions and blending takes together, you can have characters seamlessly switch from one motion to another.
How do I rig a character for Motion Library?
- Make sure your character is rigged for Body Tracking. In the Body Tracking tutorial, we talk about adding the Body behavior and all the different handles to track things like your wrist, heels, knees, and more. In general, Motion Library characters should first be rigged for Body Tracking. One note: while the waist tag isn’t as important for body tracking, it is for Motion Library, so make sure to include it.
- Add the Motion Library behavior, and make sure it’s at the same level as the Body and Limb IK behaviors. Usually this is the root of the character, the same place where we put default behaviors like Eye Gaze and Face. If these are in different areas you may experience poor or non-working results.
Want to learn more about Character Animator?
- Watch our video tutorials to learn everything from getting started to advanced rigging at adobe.com/go/chtutorials.
- Download more free example puppets at adobe.com/go/chexamples and okaysamurai.com/puppets.