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To perform an animation retargeting operation, you first need to bring in the source animation skeleton or character you want to retarget from, and the character you want to retarget to. This page describes several ways to import animation skeletons, captures (skins), and characters into KineFX.
Unpack SOP characters or import from disk ¶
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If you have a stashed or bundled animation skeleton or character (stored in a
Stash SOP or 
Object Merge SOP), you can unpack the character data with a 
Character Unpack SOP. -
If you want to unpack a SOP character’s data stream that is saved on disk and then have the option of using the sequence on disk or in a live stream, you can use a
Character I/O SOP. -
If you want to import a SOP animation skeleton or character that is saved in a file on disk, use a
File SOP.
Bring in motion capture data ¶
You can bring motion capture data into KineFX in the following ways:
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Import Acclaim, BioVision, or Motion Analysis motion capture animation files with a
Mocap Import SOP or through Houdini’s File ▸ Import ▸ Motion Capture. -
Stream live motion capture data directly from Faceware Studio, Live Link Face, Optitrack Motive, Perception Neuron, Rokoko Studio, Vicon Shogun, or Xsens MVN with a
Mocap Stream SOP. -
Stream live raw motion capture data (UDP or TCP) with a
Mocap Stream SOP.
For more information on importing and streaming motion capture to KineFX, see working with motion capture.
Bring in agents from Crowds ¶
You can bring agents or agent clips into KineFX for use with SOP characters and MotionClips in the following ways:
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Generate a SOP animation skeleton from an agent with an
Agent Animation Unpack SOP. -
Create a MotionClip or multiple MotionClips (packed MotionClip) from an agent with an
Agent Animation Unpack SOP. -
Generate a SOP character from an agent with an
Agent Character Unpack SOP.
Tip
If the animation skeleton generated by the Agent Animation Unpack SOP has a different joint hierarchy than the SOP character you want to retarget to, you can constrain the animation skeleton’s joints to the target character using a 
Rig Copy Transforms SOP.
Bring in USD data from Solaris or other sources ¶
You can bring in the animation skeleton, character, or capture (skin) from a UsdSkel character (the Skeleton primitive underneath the SkelRoot primitive in a Solaris stage) in the following ways:
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Use a
USD Animation Import SOP to import the animation skeleton from a UsdSkel character. -
Use a
USD Character Import SOP to import a UsdSkel character. -
Use a
USD Skin Import SOP to import a UsdSkel character’s capture (skin).
Import FBX data ¶
You can import FBX files into KineFX in the following ways:
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Use an
FBX Animation Import SOP to import an FBX animation skeleton. -
Use an
FBX Character Import SOP to import an FBX character. -
Use an
FBX Skin Import SOP to import an FBX character’s capture (skin).
Import glTF data ¶
You can import glTF files into KineFX in the following ways:
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Use a
GLTF Animation Import SOP to import a glTF animation skeleton. -
Use a
GLTF Character Import SOP to import a glTF character. -
Use a
GLTF Skin Import SOP to import a glTF character’s capture (skin).
Bring in object-level character data or HDAs ¶
You can use the 
Scene Character Import SOP to import object-level characters or HDAs into KineFX.
For best results, do the following:
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Select the Scene Character Import SOP.
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In the Import tab, turn off every Type except Geometry. This imports only the geometry responsible for the skin deformation.
If there are issues with your character once it is imported into KineFX, see troubleshooting your characters.
Bring in character data from other DCCs ¶
Troubleshooting your characters after importing into KineFX ¶
Character’s global scale is off ¶
If your imported animation skeleton or character is dramatically larger or smaller than it should be, your animation skeleton or character may come from a source that uses different world units than Houdini (for example, meters vs. centimeters). To fix this issue, turn on the Convert Units parameter on the KineFX import node you used to bring in your character or motion data.
If your source and target characters are dramatically different sizes, you can use the 
Rig Match Pose SOP’s bounding box matching to automatically resize and conform their skeletons.
Skeleton is broken into separate joint chains ¶
If you import an animation skeleton or character into KineFX and parts of the hierarchy are no longer attached, you need to reattach the broken joint chains using a 
Skeleton SOP or 
Parent Joints SOP.
Control objects are missing or garbled ¶
If you import a character rig and the control objects don’t come through or the links between the control geometry and joints are broken, you need to reattach the control geometry to your character or attach new controls. For more information, see setting up control geometry.