Facial Rigging in 3ds Max
In this 3ds Max tutorial, we will learn tips and techniques for rigging a face in 3ds Max. Software required: 3ds Max 2012.
What you'll learn
In this 3ds Max tutorial, we will learn tips and techniques for rigging a face in 3ds Max. Step by step, we'll construct a facial control system that is robust and animator-friendly. We'll learn everything from how to create Morph targets to how to control Morph Targets with our own custom GUI. We'll also learn a fast and efficient way for deforming multiple objects as one unit, a technique for creating fleshy eyes, how to pin objects to a deforming surface, and also become familiar with 3ds Max's powerful Reaction Manager. By the end of this tutorial, you'll have the knowledge you need to create your own facial rigs that produce natural and entertaining expressions. Software required: 3ds Max 2012.
Table of contents
- Cleaning up the Scene Prior to Rigging the Face 12m
- Constructing the Bones to Deform the Head 10m
- The Neck Control 9m
- The Head Control 6m
- Dynamically Parenting the Head to the Neck 7m
- Finishing the Dynamic Parent Control for the Head 6m
- The Jaw Control 4m
- Limiting the Movement of Controls 8m
- Enveloping the Head 3m
- Improving the Deformations of the Neck and Head 9m
- Correcting the Defomations of the Jaw 11m
- Completing the Deformations of the Jaw 8m
- Correcting the Deformations of the Cheeks as the Mouth Opens 6m
- Drive the Cheek Deformation Target by the Jaw's Rotation 8m
- Rigging the Eyes 7m
- Creating Eye Controls 9m
- Connecting the Eyes to Their Target Controls 6m
- Dynamically Parenting the Eyes to the Head 9m
- Starting on Our Fleshy Eye Rig 9m
- Creating a Target That Will Trigger as the Character Looks Down 10m
- Mirroring Morph Targets 8m
- Finishing Our Fleshy Eye Rig 9m
- Setting up the Eyebrows 5m
- The Eyebrow Controls 10m
- Deforming the Eyebrows 11m
- Finalizing the Brow Rig 13m
- Starting on the Tongue Rig 9m
- Creating a Graphical User Interface for the Tongue Control 9m
- Connecting the Tongue's Rotation to Its GUI Control 9m
- Completing the Tongue Rig 3m
- Molding the Blink and Shock Targets 13m
- Finishing the Blink and Shock Targets 6m
- Creating GUI Controls for the Eyelids 6m
- Starting on the Smile Targets 8m
- Molding the Left Smile Target 5m
- Creating the Last Smile Target 3m
- Starting on the Frown Targets 7m
- Finishing the Frown Targets 4m
- Building a Sneer Target 8m
- Creating a Phoneme Target for the Letter F 7m
- Molding the U Phoneme 10m
- Mouth Shift Targets 12m
- Things to Consider When Tying Facial Morph Targets to GUI Controls 8m
- Pinning Objects to a Deforming Surface 11m
- Cleaning up the Control Rig 6m
- Selection Sets 2m
- Finishing the Control Rig 7m
About the author
Delano works avidly as an animation author at Pluralsight. Starting his career at animation studios like Shilo, Delano has developed a strong passion for his talents. His animation and rigging background help him teach and create some of the most-watched training on Pluralsight. A few of his favorite projects that he has contributed to include: Character Interaction in Maya and in Softimage, Rigging the Human Face in Maya, Rigging Sea Creatures in Maya, and Rigging and Animating Transforming... more