Why Animators Need Stepped Curves

Stepped Curves in Maya

Why do animators need to work in Stepped Curves? Many animators resist using Stepped Curves when they first start learning animation. Spline Curves feel much more intuitive, because Maya does the interpolation for you.

However, for most character acting shots, and any shot which is basically pose-to-pose, Stepped Curves are a much more powerful tool, and one which it is very important for animators to master.

Why Do Animators Need Clean Curves?

Graph Editor in Maya - keep those curves clean

Recently a new student at Animation Apprentice asked this question: "Why it is necessary to have clean curves [in the Graph Editor]? Can we just ignore them as long as the animation looks good?"

This is a good question. After all, the audience will only see the final result, not the curves in the Graph Editor.  So, why bother keeping the Graph Editor clean? What is the point?

How Does The Graph Editor Work?

Check out this cool gif from http://i.giphy.com/ which explains in a simple diagram how the Graph Editor in Maya works. It's a beautifully simple graphic and shows you the meaning of stepped curves (top left), linear curves (top, second from left) and spline curves (top, third from left). These are the three most commonly used settings in the animator's tool kit. For animators first starting out in Maya, it's a great way to get familiar with the Graph Editor.