2017

FBX Import Type box Select an FBX import type. Select Link to Original File to keep a live link to the
original FBX file, but without control over the components of the scene. Select Create Local Copy to have
control over the elements of the scene, but lose the link.
Keep FBX Frame Rate button Enable to use the frame rate of the FBX file as the frame rate in Action.
TIP It might be useful to enable Keep FBX Frame Rate when importing an FBX file before starting to build your
animation, otherwise the timing of your animation may be affected.
Bake FBX Animation button Enable to add a keyframe at every frame of the imported FBX file. When
disabled, Action translates the FBX keyframes to a comparable animation curve for comparable channels.
Create Media button Enable to load the textures of the geometry to the Media list. If a texture is used in
multiple geometry maps, it is loaded only once in the Media list. Not available if Action is accessed as a
Timeline FX.
Lights button Enable to import lights from the FBX format file.
Cameras button Enable to import cameras from the FBX format file. Free cameras are imported as target
cameras (with a point of interest).
Mesh Animations button Enable to import the FBX scene animations and preserve complex geometry
animations , such as nCloth animations.
Normals button Enable to import the model's normal information.
Working with FBX Scenes Linked to the Original Files
When importing an FBX file in an Action schematic, setting the FBX Import Type to the option Link to
Original File does not create a Geom node as the option Create Local Copy does, but rather creates an FBX
Scene node.
You cannot perform the same operations on an FBX Scene node as on a Geom node.
■ You can only parent Axis nodes.
■ You cannot parent it to other nodes.
■ You cannot select individual components; you always select the entire scene.
■ There is only one node in the Priority Editor for the whole scene.
If the linked FBX file is updated, click Refresh in the FBX Scene menu to update the FBX Scene node in
Action.
NOTE If the linked FBX file is moved or changes its file name, the FBX File Path field turns red to indicate that the
original file cannot be found, and the geometry in your scene is replaced with a "Missing FBX" text. In this case,
click the FBX File Path field to open the browser and locate the moved or renamed FBX file.
FBX Scene Settings
FBX Scale field Displays the factor by which to scale the FBX scene. Does not scale the camera if it has
already been extracted using the Extract Camera button. Editable.
Extract Camera button Click to extract the 3D camera from the FBX scene. It extracts and creates a new
3D camera node, scaled to the current FBX Scale . Once extracted, the camera is no longer linked to the FBX
scale: changing the FBX scale does not affect the camera. If you need to edit then rescale the camera after
changing the FBX Scale, delete the extracted camera and extract a new one.
566 | Chapter 15 Compositing in 3D Space with Action