Animating in 3D Studio Max is not limited to just moving objects around or changing camera positions. Just about everything is animateable. If a parameter can be changed, then its a pretty good bet that you can animate that parameter changing. Likewise, if something can be modified, then that modification can be animated. The simplest way to animate in Max is using the Animate Button. When the Animate Button is depressed, any changes made within the scene at different points along the timeline will create keyframes. Max will then interpolate the changes that take place between these keyframes. Using object movement as an example, interpolation means that Max will calculate the position of the object at each frame between the two keyframes in order to create a smooth movement. This makes animating quick and easy to achieve.
What are Keyframes? In traditional animation, keyframes are the frames in which the most important actions occur. These are visualised in the Storyboard, which is drawn up by the Master Animators:
The Storyboard tells the story by showing visually the main points of action, i.e. the Key Frames, and describing in words the finer action, dialogue, camera shots etc that are taking place. This Storyboard is
then passed on the Junior Animators, who go about the time consuming
process of generating all the in-between frames. In Computer Animation however, whether 2D or 3D, the software takes on the role of the team of junior animators, generating the in-between frames for us through the process of interpolation. This basically means that the computer calculates the values of the various parameters in every frame between two key frames, generating a smooth transition. This does NOT however mean that you don't need to draw up a Storyboard for 3D Animation! Drawing a Storyboard is an ESSENTIAL part of any film-making process. We will cover storyboards and pre-production a little later. Right now, lets get stuck straight in and start animating.
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