Character picker

On this page

Hotkeys
Toolbar
Context menus
- Canvas
  - Button
  - Image
  - Label

In the character picker, animators can create a 2D layout with simple buttons to select character controls in an animation scene. The picker layout is created in the character picker pane, where you can add images, buttons, and labels to create a custom layout for a character. The character picker pane is active when you are in the animate state. If you are outside the animate state, the character picker pane will be empty.

For information on setting up for the character picker and how to create a picker layout, see the character picker page.

When you enter the animate state, the character picker pane will be in pick mode or edit mode, indicated by the icon on the top toolbar. In pick mode, the pane is locked and the picker layout cannot be modified. In edit mode, the pane is unlocked for editing, and you can drag buttons and images from the catalog onto the canvas.

You can work within two different layers in edit mode - the background layer and the button layer:

Background layer

In the background layer, you can add images to the canvas that act as a guide for placing buttons. For example, if you are creating a picker layout for a biped character or a character’s hands, you could use biped or hand shapes as the background image.

Button layer

In the button layer, you can add buttons to the canvas that link to controls on the character rig.

To switch between the two layers, click the appropriate layer button on the top toolbar. Each layer has a distinct set of toolbar options.

Within each layer, you can have multiple views. Add a view by clicking above the canvas. Duplicate or rename a view by RMB clicking the tab.

You can also split a view into multiple sections by selecting Split View Left/Right or Split View Top/Bottom from the canvas' context menu.

Hotkeys ¶

In the table below, an “element” is a button, image, or label.

To...	Do this
Pan	drag or Hold `Space` and drag
Zoom in and out of the canvas	Do one of the following: Hold `Space` and drag Hold `Alt` and drag
Frame the canvas	Press `F`.
Pan and zoom to show the selected elements	Press `Space` + `G`.
Add a button	In the button layer, hold `⌃ Ctrl` and click on the canvas to place the button at the mouse position.
Show/hide the name of a button	Select the button and press `N`.
Select all the elements	`⇧ Shift` click the canvas.
Resize the elements	Hold `⇧ Shift` and drag to keep the element centered while resizing. Hold `⌃ Ctrl` and drag a corner of the element to keep the aspect ratio.
Move an element along the x or y axis	Hold `⌃ Ctrl` while dragging.
Swap the positions of two buttons	Select two buttons and press `S`.
Lay out the buttons when placing multiple buttons	When using Add Button per Control or Add Button per Selection Set, press `L` while dragging to toggle between placing the buttons in a line or a grid.
Lay out the elements in a grid	Select the elements and press `L`.
Toggle snapping to other elements on the canvas	Press `⇧ Shift` + `X`. This toggles the Snap to Items option.
Snap to 15 degree increments when rotating an element	Hold `⌃ Ctrl` while rotating.

The following options on the top toolbar are common to both the button layer and background layer.

Toolbar Options	Description
/ Pick/Edit mode	- The pane is in pick mode and the picker layout cannot be modified. - The pane is in edit mode and the picker layout can be modified.
Buttons	Enters the button layer and displays the button layer options on the toolbar.
Background	Enters the background layer and displays the background layer options on the toolbar.
Align	Aligns the selected elements: Align on the left Center horizontally Align on the right Align at the top Center vertically Align on the bottom
Distribute	Evenly spaces the selected elements: Evenly space the elements vertically Evenly space the elements horizontally
Select Mode	Select elements using Box Select or Lasso Select.
Menu	See the menu options.

The following options are available from the menu on the top toolbar.

Menu Option	Description
Import Layout	Imports a picker layout, overwriting the current layout.
Import Layout as New Tabs	Appends a picker layout to the existing layout as new tabs.
Export Current Tab	Saves the current picker tab to disk as a .json file.
Export All	Saves all the picker tabs to disk as a .json file.
Duplicate Tab	Makes a copy of the current tab.
Create from Rig	Creates buttons from the selected controls in the rig.
Replace Characters in Selected Buttons	For the selected buttons, replaces the button’s target character(s) with another character. For example, if a button originally targeted a particular character’s head control, this option replaces the character so that the button now targets another character’s head control.
Replace Characters in Current Tab	Replaces a character or multiple characters with another character in the current tab. All the buttons that targeted the original character now target another character.
Replace Characters in All Tabs	Replaces a character or multiple characters with another character in all the tabs. All the buttons that targeted the original character now target another character.
Show Target Controls in Tooltips	When turned on, displays a tooltip when hovering over the button that lists the button’s target controls.

Button layer ¶

The following options on the top toolbar are available in the button layer.

Toolbar Option	Description
Target	The control(s) associated with the button.
Set from Viewport Selection	Changes the controls associated with the button: Select the button. Select the new control(s) in the viewport. Click .
Edit Target Controls	Changes the controls associated with the button: Select the button. Click . In the window that pops up, select the new control(s) and click Accept.
Name	The name of the selected button.
Show/Hide Button Name	Toggles visibility of the selected button name.
Button Color	Click to change the color of the selected button.

Background layer ¶

The following options on the top toolbar are available in the background layer.

Toolbar Option	Description
Canvas	The canvas size.
Resize Canvas	Enters an interactive mode for resizing the canvas.
Canvas Background Color	Click to change the color of the canvas background.
Text	The label text.
Font Size	The font size of the label.
Label Color	Click to change the color of the selected label.

Context menus ¶

Context menus can be brought up by RMB clicking a button, image, label, or the canvas.

Canvas ¶

The following menu options are available when you RMB click the canvas as well as from the menu on the top left of the canvas:

Menu Option	Description
Add Button	Adds a button at the mouse position. If a control or multiple controls were selected in the viewport, the added button targets the selected control(s). If no controls were selected, the added button is not associated with any control. This option is available in the button layer.
Add Button per Control	Adds a button for each selected control in the viewport. For example, if 5 controls were selected, this adds 5 buttons. Click the canvas, then move the mouse to lay out the buttons. While positioning the buttons, press `L` to toggle between placing the buttons in a line or a grid. This option is available in the button layer.
Add Button per Selection Set	Adds a button for each selected selection set. For multiple selection sets, click the canvas, then move the mouse to lay out the buttons. While positioning the buttons, press `L` to toggle between placing the buttons in a line or a grid. This option is available in the button layer.
Add Image	Adds an image from disk. This option is available in the background layer.
Add Image from Viewport	Adds a snapshot of the viewport. This option is available in the background layer.
Add Image from URL	Adds an image from a URL. This option is available in the background layer.
Add Label	Adds a label at the mouse position. This option is available in the background layer.
Fit Canvas to Contents	Resizes the canvas to fit the images, buttons, and labels on the canvas. This option is available in the background layer.
Show Grid	When turned on, shows a grid on the canvas to aid in positioning elements.
Snapping	Options to help with aligning elements on the canvas. Snap to Items When turned on, elements snaps to other elements on the canvas. Snap to Grid When turned on, elements snap to the grid lines. This option is available when Show Grid is turned on. Grid Options Gravity - The strength of snapping to the grid. Grid Cell Size - The size of the grid squares.
Selection	Options when selecting multiple elements: Group Results in a single group selection for all the selected elements. Individual Results in individual selections for each of the selected elements. Preserve Button Sizes When turned on, the Preserve button sizes mode is automatically selected on the top left corner of the button selection. When you drag a corner of the button selection, the spacing between the buttons is scaled, but the button sizes remain the same. When turned off, the Scale button sizes mode is automatically selected on the top left corner of the button selection. When you drag a corner of the button selection, both the button sizes and button spacing are scaled.
Split View Left/Right	Splits the view into left and right views.
Split View Top/Button	Splits the view into top and bottom views.
Delete View	Deletes the selected view (after the view was previously split).

Button ¶

The following menu options are available when you click a button in the button layer.

Tip

You can click the top line in the button’s context menu to tear off the menu into its own window. You can also tear off the submenus under the Shape, Size, and Layout options.

Menu Option	Description
Edit Target Controls	Opens a window where you can select the character and control(s) that the button targets.
Set from Viewport Selection	Sets the button’s target control(s) to the selected control(s) in the viewport. Select the button. Select the control(s) in the viewport. Select Set from Viewport Selection.
Add from Viewport Selection	Adds the selected control(s) to the button’s target controls. Select the button. Select the control(s) in the viewport. Select Add from Viewport Selection.
Replace Characters	Replaces the button’s target character(s) with another character.
Edit Name	Sets the name of the button.
Show Name	When turned on, displays the button name.
Edit Color	Opens a color picker window to set a color for the button.
Default Behavior	Sets the transform handle mode for the target control when the button is selected.
Shape	Sets the shape of the button.
Size	Sets the size of the button. Fit to Name Resizes the button to fit the button name. Set to Minimum Resizes the button to the minimum button size. Match Size If multiple buttons are selected, the buttons are resized to the last-selected button.
Layout	If multiple buttons are selected, this submenu provides options for aligning (Align Left, Align Center Horizontally, Align Right, Align Top, Align Center Vertically, Align Bottom) and spacing out (Distribute Vertically, Distribute Horizontally) the buttons. These options are also available on the top toolbar. There is also an Arrange in Grid option, which lays out the buttons in a grid.
Reset Rotation	Resets the orientation of a rotated button.
Swap Positions	If two buttons are selected, this swaps the position of the buttons.
Mirror Button	Creates a button that targets the control on the other side of the rig. For example, if a button for the left hand is selected, Mirror Button creates a button that targets the right hand.
Show Controls	Displays the button’s target controls in the viewport.
Hide Controls	Hides the button’s target controls in the viewport.
Delete	Deletes the button.

Image ¶

The following menu options are available when you RMB click an image in the background layer. At the bottom of the context menu is a View section that has the same options as the canvas' context menu. They are available here in case the canvas is covered by other elements.

Menu Option	Description
Scale to Canvas	Resizes the image to fit the canvas.
Set Canvas Size from Image	Resizes the canvas to fit the image.
Bring to Front	Sets the image to be on top of overlapping images.
Send to Back	Sets the image to be on the bottom of overlapping images.
Flip Horizontal	Flips the image horizontally.
Flip Vertical	Flips the image vertically.
Reset Rotation	Resets the orientation of a rotated image.
Duplicate Image	Makes a copy of the image.
Delete Image	Deletes the image.

Label ¶

The following menu options are available when you RMB click a label in the background layer. At the bottom of the context menu is a View section that has the same options as the canvas' context menu. They are available here in case the canvas is covered by other elements.

Menu Option	Description
Edit Text	Edits the label text.
Delete Label	Deletes the label.

Character picker

Hotkeys ¶

Context menus ¶

Canvas ¶

Button ¶

Image ¶

Label ¶

Panes

General ¶

Animation ¶

Rendering ¶

Advanced ¶

Other ¶

Hotkeys ¶

Toolbar ¶

Menu ¶

Button layer ¶

Background layer ¶

Context menus ¶

Canvas ¶

Button ¶

Image ¶

Label ¶

Panes

General ¶

Animation ¶

Rendering ¶

Advanced ¶

Other ¶