Creating Runtime Cinematics in Unreal Engine 5

Character Animation & Interactive Gameplay Workflow with Bill Buckley

This 3-hour UE5 workshop guides artists through the process of seamlessly integrating character animation with interactive gameplay using Unreal Engine 5. Focusing on key tools and techniques, the workshop demonstrates how to use trigger planes, animation montages, level sequencers, and Unreal Engine's new Control Rig animation feature to craft gameplay experiences that tell a compelling story. 

Instructed by Bill Buckley, the workshop begins with a look at how to implement trigger planes, which act as interactive zones within the game world, activating animations or events when the player enters or interacts with them. From there, he explores level sequencers to create cinematic sequences that can be triggered in response to player actions, enhancing the storytelling experience further. The tutorial also covers animation montages, allowing artists to synchronize complex character animations with gameplay actions. Bill also dives into Unreal Engine’s new Control Rig, a powerful tool that allows students to author animations directly within Unreal Engine; this technique dramatically speeds up iteration time and enhances the workflow for developing character content, allowing artists to adjust animations and quickly see results in real-time.

By completing the workshop, artists will have gained practical skills in combining animation and gameplay mechanics, enabling them to create interactive, narrative-driven experiences. This knowledge will be valuable for developing dynamic game worlds, where character movements and story elements are tightly integrated into the player's actions and decisions.