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Animation Master
...is the most powerful and affordable spline based modeling and animation program available. Specifically designed for classic character animation, the drag and drop, customizable interface and powerful motion tools give you the control that is required to tell your story.
Since A:M is geared toward character animation, it gives you the ability to build libraries of actions and characters that can be reused over and over. Its cross platform compatibility makes A:M an excellent choice for studios with multiple types of systems.
Features
* SPLINE BASED MODELING, ANIMATION, AND RENDERING allows smooth organic models and natural freeform motions. * BONES MODE for easy IK construction. * INVERSE KINEMATICS to interactively pose articulated characters. * SKELETAL, MORPHING, AND BENDING ACTIONS IN COMBINATION all three kinds of object and character motion can be overlapped and used in unison. * TIME BASED MOTION "EASE" for accurate acceleration and deceleration of movement. * TRUE PATCH-BASED "UV DECAL" MAPPING using bit mapped images that are locked to a surface and distort properly when an object bends and twists. * D3D or OpenGL real-time rendering. * MOTION LIBRARIES so that a complex action needs to be built only once and then used over and over again. Includes motion capture input & motion control output. * LIP SYNCH KEY FRAMING for assembling lip shapes with automatic inbetweening. * TECHNICAL SUPPORTTop notch and totally free.
Interface
* Integrated, User Friendly interface, with easy turning, zooming, and navigation features. * D3D or OpenGL accelerated for a smooth tactile feel in all areas of the interface. * MFC based interface allows for completely customizable options including color schemes, tool bar placement and customizable keyboard shortcuts. * Drag and drop interface technology fully implemented for easy object manipulation. * Create scenes with as many characters, lights, cameras, and props on the stage as you like. * Modeling , creation of Actions and choreography can all be done in the same window from any view . * Proportional Zoom; finer zoom control in choreography. * Centered Turn; turn about the local coordinate system. * Global Axis Translates; option to move control points in world space instead of screen space. * Multiple, re sizable Windows; have two action windows, or set up three modeling windows in a traditional triview layout. * Drag able, dock able panels; put the panels anywhere you want on the screen or hide them completely. * Simplified Operation; tools operate in a more "standard" fashion. * Save Interface State; projects maintain their window's layout for next use. * Interrupt drawing to increase drawing speed. * Specify automatic reload of last project at startup. * Limit memory usage. * User controllable rotate snap angle. * Object Instancing * Intuitive Object Manipulators; uniform for lights, cameras, characters, props, etc. * Markers/Rulers * Fully editable Timeline Window * Customizable Folders in the Project Workspace * Multi-Select in the Project Workspace * Previews of most files in file dialog * Interactive tutorials using MS agent technology * A:M Community chat window
Modeling
* No more inefficient polygons! Model with flexible Hash patches. * Start from a Library of example characters. * Curved lines move easily to allow for quick manipulation. * Complete selection of real-time tools combined with point-and-click sculpting makes object creation easy. * Model over a Rotoscope image. * As many Rotoscopes as you like can be loaded into any view. * Seamlessly integrates "bones" into low-density, unibody models. Characters (or objects) are built as a single model, then bones are inserted any way you like to for the "skeletal" IK basis for your character. * Un attach; disconnect "attached" points while modeling. * Insert Control Points; automatically adds control points to those hard to get to splines. * Perspective Modeling; option to model while viewing the object in perspective. * Nested Hide; hide more points when some already hidden. * "Lasso" or free form group tool included with standard group tool for easy selection of multiple control points. * D3D or OpenGL shaded real-time mode when modeling instead of wire frame. * Patch Hooks to reduce resolution and eliminate creasing * Bias Handles for easy control of spline curvature. * Optimized Polygon export. * Unique object manipulators for translating scaling and rotating. * Specific grid sizing for use in creating precise scale objects. * Grid can also be toggled on and off. * variable lathe cross sections. * User definable Undo and Redo. * Uniform Normal Face Control for Polygonal output . * Paste and Extrude offsets. * Cut, copy and Paste * Flip or Mirror a selected group of points around any axis. * True Type Font and AI Import * Locked Control Points * Copy/Flip/Attach * Polygon Import * Lock Control Points * "Distortion Mode" Deformation Tool
Animation
* Patch-based animation allows smooth, flexible movement. * Complex movements are simplified; unique bones motion offers lifelike bouncing and twisting. * Complete skeletal and muscle control features. * Inverse Kinematics (IK) for creating skeletal based motion. * Character animation with lip-synch made easier. * Stride length to prevent a character's feet or tires from slipping as they move. * Action Overloading; applying layers of Actions to a character so that it can "walk", "talk", and "clench" its fists simultaneously. * Action Range; choose only a range of frames, Hold, or Wait from an Action * Rotoscope facial movement in Muscle with sequenced backgrounds. * Poses. * Lock Bones. * Sophisticated Key frame controls. * Many different kinds of real-time constraints for perfect anchoring, picking up objects, and animated paths; Including: Aim At, Kinematic, Path, Translate To, Orient like, Aim Roll At, Spherical Limits, Surface, Scale Like and Scale to Reach. * Flocks, Crowds and Swarms * Powerful Channel Based motion control. * Scrub Bar. * Action Undo. * Action Objects;for animating props, even other characters seamlessly within an action. * Force Objects;apply dynamic forces any way you like. * Rotoscoping * Action Blending * Copy/Paste Mirrored Action * Pose Sliders (frame ranges can be saved in a pose). * Kinematic Rotational Stiffness * "Continuous Play" Scrubbing * Animated Camera Rotoscopes * Onion Skinning * Kuper camera motion data import * Hard and Soft Body Dyanmics; including cloth, springs, masses and collision detection between objects. * Automatic assignment of geometry to bones * Smartskin for perfect joints * Relationships for creating smart characters. * Weighted CP blending * Animated distortion boxes
Rendering
* Sub Surface Scattering * Image Based Lightening * Radiosity and Global Illumination * Ambient Occlusion * Caustics * Global Illumination * Ray tracing of transparency, reflections and shadows for visually realistic
results.
* Powerful hybrid-rendering * D3D or OpenGL real-time previews can be saved as output. * Super fast, High quality hybrid renderer. * HDRI-Output by * Selectable Specular Color. * Mirrors with adjustable settings. * Alpha buffer rendering for combining computer animation with live action. * Antialiasing. * 32-bit, variable, unlimited resolution rendering. * AVI animation playback within the software. * Bound Rendering; Quick Render or Ray Trace only a portion of the screen. * TV Safe and Title Safe indication. * Transparency Averaging. * Antialiased Image Maps. * Shadow Maps * Gamma Correction. * Show or hide render in progress. * User selectable reflection limit. * Motion Blur. * Extensive render status meters. * NTSC safe color. * Photon Mapping. * Soft Shadows * Film Grain * Bloom * Soften * Dither * Dynamic Range (gamma correction) * Field Rendering * Line Geometry * No "anti-alias" option (Game Sprites) * Film Tint; presets like "black and white" or "sepia tones" * Stereo Rendering * Shadow Buffers and "Shadow Only" Buffers * Exportable lighting maps, vertex colors for game engines * Selectable Soft Shadow Color * Fully Customizable Toon or Anime Style Shader/Render
Materials and Object Attributes
* Ability to apply custom textures, images and object Attributes to individual patches. * Image Maps Locked to the surface through use of UV coordinate system. * UV Editor for interactively adjusting how a map lies on geometry. * Glass with Refraction and Caustics. * Image types include color, bump, transparency, reflectivity, diffuse, specular, ambiance, mirror, gradient and cookie-cut maps. * Textures you define, modify, save and reuse. * Integrated Algorithmic Perlin Materials Editor. * Flatten; unroll a segment before applying Decals. * System Color Dialog uses your platform's standard 24-bit color dialog to choose and change colors. * Displacement and Fractal Maps. * Edge Transparency. * Environment Maps. * Gamma correction can be applied to Image Maps. * Supports 32 bit Image Maps * Frame Control of Animated Maps; so that image maps can cycle, skip frames, hold, wait, or "ping pong". * Unique Decal (image map) manipulator allows you to scale, reverse and position an image in real-time . * See through Decaling. * Maps automatically cached for interactive map editing though use of any third party paint program. * Tile able Image Maps. * Spherical, Cylindrical and Planar Projection Mapping. * Animatable Material Attributes. * Material Effector Objects. * ATX class 3rd party Material plugin support. * EXR, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, TIFF support and more * Trasparent Density * Translucency * Reflection Falloff * Material "Bump" attribute"
Effects
* Volumetric Lights. * "Dust" objects for animatable smoke, fog and steam. * Glows. * Lens Flares. * Depth of Field. * Turbulence. * Light Projection Gels. * Hair with controlable Hairsystem. * Particles; streaks and blobbies. * Particle "Sprites" for stunning special effects. * Object Weathering.
Other Features
* Motion capture input from a number of different sources * Controllable, targetable, colored lights with colored shadows. * Multiple Cameras. * Non-perspective camera for scrolling game screens. * You can perform most functions, such as modeling, animating, and texturing from the camera's point of view. * Audio load/save for synching. * Complete Game and Export SDK including real-time model and map export, action export, viewer and source code. * Multiplane style layer compositing and cameras. * Lipsync Dopesheet and Phoneme creation tools. * HAMR-Realtime-Engine for the Web or Standalone
IMAGE FORMATS SUPPORTED
* Load: EXR, HDR, TARGA, JPEG, TIFF, PICT(mac only), AVI, Quicktime. * Save: EXR, TARGA, PICT(mac only), AVI(pc only), Quicktime.
More Infos on: Hash Inc. - Producer of A:M
[http://www.patchwork3d.de/ Autor's Website
- This page was last modified 23:57, 18 May 2007.
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