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| Exercise: Cascading 3D Text |
Published by: Creative Finishing Training
Category: Animation
Skill: Beginner
Skill: Beginner
Use custom fonts in Flame, generate 3D text in Action and cascade the music notes on a 3D path by setting the animation keyframes manually. Tools used in this exercise: Batch, Action, 3D Text, manual keyframing.
Fast Forward: The Music Notes |
Exercise: Cascading 3D Text in Action
Click on the icon for a quick preview of the exercise and the final result.
Video: The exercise in fast forward! (01:27)
(click on image to open video player)
Download |
Download an archive that contains the footage as well as the setups used in this exercise.
Put these files in your Flame system: for example under the /usr/tmp directory.
To learn how to load material into the Flame Library, see the exercise:
“Loading an archive”
Images courtesy of: Version 2
MusiSync Font by Robert Allgeyer
Images are subject to copyright: please read the disclaimer at the end of this tutorial.
1. Copy the font file in the Font directory |
1. Download MusiSync_Font.zip and unzip the file.
2. Copy the file “MusicSync.ttf” to the directory:
/usr/tmp
Note that you can also put it to the default directory:
/usr/discreet/font
| Tip |
1. To toggle between Linux application press ALT TAB. 2. To unzip a file in Linux, open the Red hat file browser (Home), right-click the file and choose Extract Here. 3. To copy a file in the file browser, right-click it and choose Copy. Navigate to the font directory, right-click and select Paste.
2. Add an Action node and edit the node settings |
Start in Batch.
1. Drag an Action node to the Batch schematic.
2. Click the NodeSetup tab to edit the Action settings.
Under the Rendering options, keep Z-Buffer ON.
Enable Shading.
Under the Miscellaneous options, change Auto Image to Auto Image OFF.
Turn AutoKey OFF.
3. Load and connect the background |
1. Swipe left to access the Batch Node Bin.
2. Drag the Library node to the Batch schematic to access the Library.
3. In the Library, select the clip “Phonograph_comp_BG”.
4. Press Load.
5. Connect the clip to Action background tab.
4. Create the 3D text object |
We will create a 3D text in Action, using the MusiSync font.
1. Press ALT 2 to work with 2 view ports, Action schematic on the left, result on the right.
2. Double-Click the 3DText node in the Action tool bin.
Scroll the bin if needed.
3. Double-click the Geom node to adjust the 3D Text attributes.
4. Choose TrueType font.
5. Click in the Font box.
6. Navigate to the directory that contains the provided font and select “MusiSync” in the browser.
7. Back in Action, click in the text box and type ten music notes.
Note: Press SHIFT in the virtual Keyboard for more characters.
8. Adjust the following text attributes:
Size 100
Kerning 100
Depth 5
Video: Create the 3D text object (0:54)
(click on image to open video player)
5. Apply a texture to the music notes |
1. Select
2. Click on Add Media – from Lib.
3. In the Library, select the clip “Texture_Music_notes” and press load.
4. Select the Geom node in the schematic.
5. In the Action node bin, switch the tab from “Objects” to “Maps”
6. With the texture media selected, double-click the Diffuse Map icon in the Action node bin.
The diffuse map will attach itself to the text.
Keep the default Texture settings.
7. Double-click the Geom node and click on the Geometry tab in the text menu.
8. Set the Shine value to 90.
Video: Apply a texture to the music notes (0:32)
(click on image to open video player)
6. Animate the text size over time |
The notes will come out spinning of the phonograph one at the time. We will start by changing the text size over time using the animation hotkeys.
1. Select the Geom object in the schematic.
2. Click on the text Char Axis tab.
3. Start at frame 1.
4. Change the Prop Scale value to 0°.
5. Hold K and click on each of the Scale X, Y, Z field to set a keyframe at this frame.
6. Go to frame 20.
7. Set the Prop Scale value to 100.
8. Hold K and click on each of the Scale field to set a keyframe at this frame.
9. Scroll the timebar; at the moment the text animation is global.
|
| Tip |
Animation hotkeys: K-click set a keyframe at current frame. Del-click removes keyframe at current frame. Ctrl-Alt click resets channel to default value. SHIFT-double-click displays channel in editor.
Video: Animate the text size over time (0:38)
(click on image to open video player)
7. Generate Cascading Animation |
We will ripple the scaling across the text to make the notes grow one after the other using the text cascading functionality.
1. To cascade the character animation at every 10 frames, set the Cascade offset to -10.
2. Scroll the timebar; the animation ripples across the letters.
But we want it to cascade the other direction starting at the end.
3. Change the direction to Right to Left.
4. Change the Master Char to 10, the last letter.
5. Scroll the timebar.
Video: Generate Cascading Animation (0:27)
(click on image to open video player)
8. Spin the notes |
We also want to spin the letters a little bit by animating the rotation in time.
1. Go back to frame 1.
2. Hold K and click on the Rotation Y field to set a keyframe at default value 0°.
3. Go to frame 100.
4. Set the Rotation Y value to 360°.
5. Hold K and click on Rotation Y.
6. Scroll the timebar.
Video: Spin the notes (0:27)
(click on image to open video player)
9. Draw and adjust the 3D path |
A 3D path can be used for 3D text but also with any other object in Action.
We will draw a path for the music notes to come out of the phonograph.
1. Park the positioner at the last frame where we see all the letters.
2. From the Action node bin, switch tabs from “Maps” to “Objects”
3. Double-click 3D Path node.
4. Draw a path across the scene, starting inside the phonograph and ending outside the frame.
5. Add 4 points and click Finish or press M.
6. Look at the front and the result views to position the path in the scene as a nice S shape.
|
| Tip |
Front view hotkey is SHIFT 4, result view is F4.
Video: Draw and adjust the 3D path (0:43)
(click on image to open video player)
10. Make the music notes travel on the path |
We will animate the path offset value for the text to travel on the path.
1. Enable Auto Key to automate animation.
2. In the Action schematic, parent the 3D path to the 3D text.
3. Select the 3D Path object and set the Alignment on Path to Align OFF.
4. At frame 1, drag the Offset value until the first note char axis is positioned at the beginning of the path, inside the phonograph. The value should be around -30.
5. Go to frame 100.
6. Drag the Offset value until the last note has passed the phonograph. The value is approximately 30.
7. Press I to hide the object icons, scroll the timebar.
8. Press I again to show the icons.
Video: Make the music notes travel on the path (0:45)
(click on image to open video player)
11. Add a Light shader to the scene |
1. Double-click the Light node in the Action node bin.
2. Position the light to your liking.
Video: Add a Light shader to the scene (0:14)
(click on image to open video player)
12. Render the final result |
If you like you can render the setup.
1. Swipe left to access the Batch node bin.
2. Drag an Output node to the schematic.
3. Connect the Action Output (yellow tab) to the Output node.
4. Rename the node if you want.
5. Select the Output destination.
6. Press Process.
7. Press Play to see the result clip.
|
| Tip |
To increase the rendering quality of the 3D text and other geometries choose a higher sample rate under Action NodeSetup tab.
Video: Render the final result (0:58)
(click on image to open video player)
13. Next Tutorial |
To continue practicing with the next exercise, click on the following link:
