Getting Sequencer’s Animations to Work
Converting Maya animations into Unreal Engine 5 presented a number of difficulties throughout production. UE5’s Sequencer became the main tool for putting together shots once the rigging problems were fixed and clean animation FBXs were imported.
- Organising animation clips into the correct shot “containers” inside the master level.
- Ensuring animation assets were bound to the correct skeletal mesh (a recurring issue when meshes and animations originated from different files).
- Manually adjusting start and end frames to prevent multiple clips from playing simultaneously at the same level.
- Using separate sub-sequences and shot-specific tracks to maintain control over timing, transitions, and character poses.
Cameras in UE5 played a major role in shaping the film’s tone and storytelling. The process involved:
- Creating CineCameraActors for each shot, using real cinematography principles such as depth of field, focal length changes, and controlled camera movement.
- Animating cameras directly inside Sequencer using transform keyframes, easing curves, and anchor points for smooth movement.
- Building dynamic movement for dramatic chess moments, slow push-ins, orbit shots, and tracking the character’s emotional beats.