Introduction to the Animation system
Information about the Animation system in Unity Studio.
Read time 2 minutesLast updated 16 days ago
Use the Animation system to add motion and visual effects to your GameObjects to make your scenes more dynamic and engaging.
Animation methods
Unity Studio provides the following methods to help you create animations:- Animation component: Use to animate a single GameObject and its children.
- Animation Director: Use to coordinate and animate multiple GameObjects on a shared timeline for complex or cinematic scenes.
Animation clips
Use animation clips to define how an object's movement or properties change over time. Use keyframes within the clips to set specific values at specific times, and Unity Studio interpolates between them to create smooth motion. You can assign the clip to one or multiple GameObjects via the Animation component to play those changes on the object. For instructions on how to assign and edit an animation clip, refer to Assign an animation clip.Animation component
The Animation component plays animation clips on a GameObject and controls how they run (autoplay, looping, easing, start/stop). Assign a clip to the component, and the GameObject will follow the clip's recorded changes.Animation Director
The Animation Director lets you animate the animation clips of multiple GameObjects on one timeline. When you use the Animation Director on an object, it automatically adds an Animation component and animation clip to the object if it doesn't have them already.Animate with keyframes
The Animation Timeline window lets you edit the keyframes of animation clips. Keyframes are like snapshots of your object's properties (such as position, color, or visibility) at specific points in time. When you create an animation, you set keyframes at different points on the timeline. Unity Studio then automatically interpolates the values between those keyframes to create smooth transitions. For example, if you want an object to move from one position to another over 3 seconds:- Set a keyframe at the start of the animation, with the object at the position you want it to start at- for example (0,0,0).
- Set another keyframe at 3 seconds.
- Move the object to the position you want it to move to- for example (5,0,0).
Video tutorial
The following video tutorial explains how to:- Use the Animation component to animate a single object.
- Use the Animation Director to animate multiple objects.
Unity Studio - Animating Your Scene: Motion & Effects