Chapter 7. Rigging and Muscle Systems

A rig is an organized system of deformers, expressions, and controls applied to a surface so an animator can easily and efficiently animate the surface. A good rig should be easy to use so the animator can concentrate on the art of animation without the technical aspects of rigging getting in the way. In addition, a good rig should be well organized so it can easily be changed, repurposed, or fixed if there is a problem.

Rigging as a practice is continually evolving in the industry. New technologies, concepts, and approaches emerge every day and are widely debated and discussed among professional technical directors throughout the world. While this chapter will offer advice on how to best approach creating ...

Get Mastering Maya® 2009 now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.