Blender Animation: How to Create a Smooth Character Run Cycle
Blender Animation: How to Create a Smooth Character Run Cycle Animating a run cycle is a fundamental skill for animators, whether you're working on game characters, short films, or animations . A smooth run cycle can add life and energy to your character, making your animation feel more natural and realistic. In this tutorial, we'll go step by step to create a looping run cycle in Blender . Step 1: Setting Up Blender for Animation 1. Open Blender and Set Up Your Workspace Open Blender and switch to the Animation workspace . Make sure you have a fully rigged character model . You can use: A pre-rigged model from Mixamo (free to download). Blender’s Rigify Add-on to create your own rig. If you don’t have a character, use a simple stick figure rig to practice. 2. Set Your Frame Rate Go to Render Properties (Camera Icon) → Set Frame Rate to 24 FPS (film standard) or 30 FPS for smoother motion. 3. Open the Timeline & Dope Sheet Use the Timeline (bo...