Animation Retargeting: The Decisions That Matter
Transferring animation from one character skeleton to another, even when proportions differ.
Imogen Clarke
At a glance
- Unreal Engine includes an IK Retargeter
- Unity Humanoid avatars allow animation sharing
- Proportions different limb lengths require adjustments
- Mixamo Adobe's service offers auto-rigging and animations
Why it matters
Why it matters: Retargeting reuses motion capture and animation libraries across characters, saving time and cost.
Best practice
- Match skeleton hierarchies and naming
- Set up retarget poses carefully
- Check feet and hands for sliding
- Fix contact points after retargeting
- Test animations on each character
Common pitfalls
Watch out for:
- Assuming retargeting works without cleanup
- Mismatched rest poses
- Ignoring foot sliding
- Retargeting between very different body types
When to call in a specialist
Bottom line Bring in help when animation libraries serve many characters.
Where this comes from
- Unreal Engine Documentation — IK Rig Animation Retargeting
- Unity Documentation — Retargeting of Humanoid animations
The figures and practices above come from the sources listed.
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