Crab Scuttle Animation Tutorial

Animate a crab scuttle underwater

In this new animation tutorial we demonstrate how to create a locomotion cycle in Maya with a crab rig, showing how to take a complex motion, break it down - and make it simple.

A crab's sideways scuttle looks complex, but is in fact very easy to animate, by following this basic tutorial.  We start by animating a single animation curve, and then copy it across the crab rig. 

Crab Scuttle

Below is a two second video to show what we are aiming at.

Crab Scuttle - Work Method

https://vimeo.com/966470076

1. Start by animating a simple 16 frame walk cycle on the first set of the crab's legs. 
2. Once this is working, copy and paste the animation curves onto the second set of legs.  
3. Then, offset the curves by 8 frames.  
4. Then copy and paste the same curves onto the third set of legs, and then onto the final set of legs, offsetting the curves so that each leg offsets the one before.  
5. Turn on infinity curves on all the body parts. 

Crab Scuttle Tutorial

You can find the three Crab Scuttle Tutorials below. They are password-protected, but free for all our current students and recent Escapees.

Crab Scuttle Pt 1

https://vimeo.com/966470076

Crab Scuttle Pt 2 

https://vimeo.com/966471195

Crab Scuttle Pt 3

https://vimeo.com/966471941

Crab Rig by Truong

Free Crab Rig from Truong

The tutorial uses the free Crab Rig by Truong. The crab rig can be downloaded here.  The crab is a realistic eight-legged crustacean, perfect for learning creature locomotion.  Like most rigs, the crab has its quirks and foibles.  It has no texture map, but we can make it look good with some underwater lighting.

Underwater Caustics

In the second part of the tutorial we use Maya's Content Browser to add an underwater light effect.
1. Windows/Content Browser/FX/Fluids/Ocean Examples/Underwater Caustics
2. Select the Underwater Camera and Look Through Selected. This is your camera view
3. Scale down the Jelly (Scale to 0.01) and position the crab in front of the Underwater Camera.
4. Render a single frame using the Maya Software Renderer
5. Render a Sequence of Frames so that the crab scuttles in front of the Underwater Camera

The Escape Studios Animation Blog offers a personal view on the art of animation and visual effects.  To apply for one of our courses, follow this link.