[help] exporting and maya plugin

i have a lip sync created in facefx but i'm having some problems opening it up in maya?

The file exported from facefx opens in maya without the model, if i add the model in how do i get all the poses to update?

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The .facefx file does not contain the model. In Maya, open your original .mb/.ma file. Then load the .facefx file in the plugin while your content is open. From there you can import poses or animations.

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So open the file and i opened up the facefx plug-in, then at top i went to file open>(the facefx file) and i get a list under reference poses and Nodes (fxBonePoseNode)

do i select each one of both and import?

When i selected one and click import, the model disappears.

Can you please give me step by step instructions to do this?

Hi Celia,

If your model disappears, then the FaceFX plugin is having difficulty importing keys onto one or more of your bones in Maya. This could be because the attributes are locked, they have the wrong controllers (a 3ds Max issue), or they being controlled by an IK rig or something else that is preventing FaceFX from inserting keys on the bones.

Try deleting any IK rigs and simplifying the model prior to importing FaceFX bone poses. You can also try to troubleshoot the issue by reducing the number of bones in the reference pose (usually to a single bone) to find out if only one bone is causing the problem.

Exporting bone poses should still work fine. Even when the FaceFX plugin is having trouble writing keys, it can read values from Maya and update the .facefx file. In your original question, you ask how to update the bone poses, so you may be able to bypass the entire writing-key issue if you are only trying to update the bone poses in the .facefx file. Just do File->Open, then export the bone poses you want to update, then do File->Save. When you load up the .facefx file in FaceFX Studio, the bone poses should be updated.

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i'm using an evolverpro model.

What do you mean the attributes are locked?

So i'm just using the facefx file and i don't need to export anything from facefx?

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What exactly is it you are trying to do? What do you want to accomplish?

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i just want to render the animation in maya

i don't know how to do it.

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Like Doug said, you probably have some locked attributes on your bones. That's generally the cause of things disappearing in Maya when setting keys.

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then is the locked attributes in maya or facefx?

Hi Cecilia,

Attributes can be locked in Maya.

If you are using an evolver model that was downloaded as an .MB file, the file comes with an FBIK rig that controls the skeleton. FaceFX can't set keys on the bones when the FBIK rig is controlling them. Delete the "fbikCharacter" and "humanIK" nodes in Maya, then try to set keys with FaceFX.

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so i need to first get rid of the "fbikCharacter" and "humanIK" nodes in Maya, then do the animation in facefx and then bring it back to maya?

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Right. When you bring animations into Maya via the FaceFX plugin, you can't have an FBIK rig driving the skeleton, and you can't have bones with attributes that are locked.

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so i unselect them from the list in the facefx plugin?