United3dArtists Archive

What is the best way to create a procedural animation movie?

First I tried to render to file and thought that if I
put start and end frame in the dialog box, I would get an animation file.
No, I got hundreds of identical jpgs.

Then I first started the animation and then the render to file.
I tried it, but not every object moved
And sure, the render to file did not start with the first frame.

Run a script that starts your Timer and calls the RenderToFile command:

Node.Value(Space.CurrentScene() + "/Timer Event", "Active") = -1
D3DView.RenderToFile('', '')

Ok thanks.
When I am back at home I will try to write such a script.

Also I made a Custom Timer Event that can be recorded in the Animation Editor:
vi ... 3341#p3341"

There is a video explaining it's use too on the same page.

So, first I tried your suggestion:
The timer starts and the files are saved, but some objects do not move.
(Again) I am working with my watch to animate. The balance-wheel works well, the anchor(?) too.
But everything after a scripted divisor (the whole remaining watch gear) don't move.

Any idea?

Hi Wigand.
Did the objects which are connected to the divisor move, before adding the RsTime functions?

If this divide operation is performed via script, and you have no activity after this operation
is performed, it sounds like there is a script failure.

Try this: at the end of the divide script, add a System.Alert:

System.Alert('Got Here')

If you do not see the system alert dialog displayed, then you have a problem in your script.
If you do not know where the error is, then you can move that System.Alert() function call
to various places in your script, to isolate the location of the problem.
In other words, you move that System.Alert() up, until you see it displayed when you run the script.
Once you see it, then the problem occurs right below the System.Alert() function call.

froo wrote:Hi Wigand.
Did the objects which are connected to the divisor move, before adding the RsTime functions?

They move.

After the 'render to file' operation is finished, the timer still works so I can see that
all the objects move right. But among the saved pictures I can rarely find pictures
with the correct movements. Why should the divisor script only works in timer mode
and not while saving files?

Some parts should only move in a small time window. Sometimes I think the
timer goes not smooth enough, so some frames of these object gets lost
You can imagine that I need very fast movements in a watch and very
slow movements too. First I tried keyframed animations, but it is really
hard to set the movements of a gear. A procedural animation should be the
better way.