Hi Folks, just to let everyone know that following a positive discussion with Reallusion last week, I sent my latest AFP (advanced face puppet) system to them on Monday this week for testing/ evaluation.

Whether this new animation approach (or a derivation of it) will ultimately be incorporated into iClone, sold separately by RL, or whether I release this myself is yet to be decided - but I'll let everyone know the outcome as soon as I can via my YouTube channel, as well as this forum - meanwhile, thanks for bearing with me - as well as RL

Regards - Mike (3Dtest)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKtjihhZQ_qmxEmbBzxt-nQ

Hi Folks, please do read the readme document which comes with the AFP - there's info in there about how to make more realistic animation using the system, as well as important tips on modelling for animation.

My worry is that those who don't read the documentation will simply use the profiles without an AFP avatar (which has essential additional morphs, and default morph improvements which the system is designed for), and without considering the factors involved in both facial animation itself as well as good modelling for facial animation - whereby the results will not be as effective as they could be.

The system is extremely powerful if you can use it as it's designed to be used.  But you do need to read the documentation, If not, you might get a few more facial wiggles out of it than with iClone's default profiles - but you won't be able to realize the full potential.

So please. please, please read the documentation - it's written for everyone who really wants to do better facial animation with iClone

Regards,

Mike (3Dtest)

hi hj,

sorry, but from your screenshots it looks to me like second one is the standard default avatar - where indeed there are no tongue morphs, none of the additional morphs (and no doubt none of the improved default morphs either).

If you are using an  AFP avatar (either the new default or the AFPx avatar), then the new morphs, including tongue are retained in CC, 3DX and iC6.

Short of the user manually removing the morphs in 3DX, the only circumstances in which they won't be retained are:

* if you swap the AFPavatar for another which was built with the stock default (which doesn't have the improved and additional morphs) 

From the readme documentation:
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5) Compatibility:

The new default avatar remains a standard CC avatar and is fully compatible for modelling in Character Creator, editing in 3DXchange, as well as animation in iClone.

The new avatar is also backwards compatible in everything except complete replacement eg: if the new avatar is swapped out for the stock default (or a model created from the stock default), then facial animation quality will be reduced due to absence of the additional morphs.

In order to use earlier models effectively with this system, the user can morph-in the earlier character's base mesh in 3DXchange or via Character Creator, and apply textures manually.

NB: The user can also apply a pre-existing character's head and head textures to the new default avatar directly in iClone

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Basically, if you don't have the additional morphs (tongue included), then you're not actually using an AFP avatar: at some point you've swapped it with the stock default, or a model built from the stock default - without following the rules described in the readme. I guess one point of difficulty for folks might be thinking that loading their own previously built iAvatar somehow 'meshes' with whichever default you have in CC, which I'm afraid it doesn't: if you load a new project, it replaces the avatar - hence to use previous models with an AFP avatar you need to morph them in, and apply textures manually (and/ or as described in the readme, apply heads to AFP avatars in iC6). There's no way around this I'm afraid - but it is worth doing if you want to get the best of the AFP system.

Hope this helps!

Regards,

Mike (3Dtest)

Ok hj, 

Whilst that's not exactly a clear of full description of your workflow (!) - I believe what you're doing is this:

* you're loading the AFP avatar into CC (from the Base folder or from file > open project)
* then you're loading another avatar from your Base folder onto it - eg from 'essential morphs' or another content pack - upon which CC asks you if want to 'load project or replace costume only'  
* you then click 'load project' - which means you've just replaced the AFP avatar with a stock default avatar

It's important to realize that the models in the base folder aren't simply morphs which mix with the avatar you have loaded in CC. They're complete avatars (projects), which if you load them, replace the existing avatar altogether - which is why you keep replacing the AFP avatar with a stock default.

So If you want to use an AFP avatar - do not replace it with a non-AFP avatar. 

If you want to use morphs from avatars in the Base folder - make sliders from them and apply them to the AFP avatar. If you want to use textures from avatars in the Base folder - export them from those avatars and apply them to an AFP avatar manually. You can also apply morphs and textures via 3DXchange.

Regards,

Mike (3Dtest)