Animation - Disable Breakdown Timing averaging

[JPierro]

A simple request to disable the averaging that happens to the animation breakdown poses when you change the timing on your keys. There is no reason that Maya should move the timing on breakdown poses when you change the timing on the keys around them. 

As an instructor, Labeling poses breakdowns is a good teaching tool, unfortunately not practical in maya because of the averaging that occurs. 

Thank you ! 

[zewt]

But that's all that breakdown keys in Maya are.  If they didn't do that, they wouldn't do anything at all.  Can you describe what you're trying to use breakdowns for that would be useful if they didn't do this?

[JPierro]

I'll have to disagree with you on that. That is not what breakdown poses are. Breakdown poses do not average out your action. If you want smooth even movement that what in-betweens that you get from Mayas interpolation are for. 

Breakdown pose are meant to offset action in many ways, one way is in the timing. You should have total control of the timing on both of your keys & breakdowns. Just because you adjust one key, it does not and most of the time should not affect the timing you have set for the poses around it. 

Also, another issue with the averaging is that it does not snap the breakdowns to whole frame numbers, it leaves them on decimals. 

[JPierro]

Just to add to that ^ a little more- 

Breakdowns are nothing that can, or should be automated. The only use I see for what is already in maya at this point is the color coding which helps in labeling only. It is a good way to easily keep track of the pose to pose animation process of "Breaking down" a scene after you block it out with Key poses. 

Animators are constantly adjusting their timing as they breakdown a scene, and having Maya consistently adjust the timing of other poses is major problem. 

I'm assuming you are not an animator, otherwise you would probably understand that you want total control of all poses you create, that includes the the timing.  

[WaylonMiddleton]

If needed, give us the option to turn off the automation.

[JPierro]

Yes, thank you Waylon. An option in the animation preferences to turn off the averaging would be fine. 

[zewt]

Maya's "breakdowns" feature isn't what animators call "breakdowns".  It's a badly-named feature, but averaging the keyframe time is all the breakdown feature is:

https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/maya/learn-explore/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2017/ENU/Maya/fil...

"Breakdowns are special keys that maintain proportional time relationships with adjacent keys."

If you turned that off, they wouldn't do anything at all.  If you don't want time averaging, then you just don't want to use this feature.  Like I asked before, though, what do you actually want it to do?

[JPierro]

Yep, that I can agree with, it is a poorly named feature 😉 It does not have a connection to the animation process. As that feature stands now, it is useless. If you wanted to keep that relationship with your timing , you could just scale your keys. The one helpful thing it offers, is the color coding to label and keep track of your poses. 

In the traditional 2D animation process you would label poses, keys & breakdowns, it aids in the process, and also in follow up work. 

So, I would say that's all I would want it to do and that would be very useful. Color coding of the keys Red and Breakdowns Green. 

I think most animators would find that helpful, and like I said as an animation instructor, it would be very helpful as a teaching tool when working with students. 

[tj.galda]

You're right, this is a poorly named feature.  We're going to investigate a variety of options to implement to fix this process overall.  Closing off this particular request since we'll funnel those workflows into a variety of things: colour choices, being able to leave descriptions, tools to help manage your curves, etc.

[JPierro]

Nice, sounds good! Thank you Tj.galda.