Tutorials

Tutorials & Production Workflows

Learn MotionSmith AI inside Unreal Engine.

Practical step-by-step tutorials for generating motion, building multi-segment performances, continuing existing animation, retargeting characters, and refining motion without leaving Unreal Engine 5.8.

MotionSmith AI on YouTube ➔ Technical Docs & Reference

01. First Motion 02. Multi-Segment Performance 03. Import + Continue 04. Retargeting 05. Motion Refinement

Installation & First-Time Setup

MotionSmith AI Animation Studio · Unreal Engine 5.8

Video Tutorial

Install MotionSmith, configure the Runtime and Meta Llama model, run Pre-Flight diagnostics, and generate your first animation.

Watch on YouTube ↗

Tutorial 01 · Beginner Start Here

Create Your First Motion and AnimationSequence

Generate a focused character motion, review it inside MotionSmith AI Studio, retarget it when needed, and create a standard Unreal Engine animation asset.

Step 01

Open MotionSmith AI Studio

Make sure the MotionSmith backend is ready, then open the Studio tab inside Unreal Editor. If this is your first run, complete setup and Diagnostics / Pre-Flight first.

Step 02

Write One Clear Motion Prompt

Describe the physical action you want the character to perform. Keep the first test simple and focused.

walk forward slowly while looking to the right

Step 03

Generate, Review and Create the Asset

Generate the motion and inspect it in the viewport and timeline. If the result is approved, retarget to the required character workflow and create the final Unreal AnimationSequence.

✓ Standard Unreal animation output

Tip: If the motion intent is wrong, rewrite the prompt before changing several generation settings at once. Focused prompts are easier to iterate and easier to extend later.

Tutorial 02 · Intermediate

Build a Multi-Segment Performance

Create longer performances one beat at a time. MotionSmith lets you approve existing motion, then continue from its tail instead of rebuilding the complete animation.

1

Generate the First Beat Start with one clear action and review it before continuing.

stand idle and scan the room

2

Continue with Add Segment Enter the next motion prompt and use Add Segment. MotionSmith preserves the earlier approved motion and continues from the previous motion tail.

walk forward cautiously

3

Add the Next Beat Continue the choreography with another focused prompt instead of writing the complete performance as one sentence.

stop and turn toward the sound

4

Review the Complete Performance Scrub and play the timeline as one continuous motion. If the latest beat needs revision, keep the approved earlier section and regenerate only the part that needs a different decision.

Recommended Segment Structure

// Build the shot beat-by-beat
SEGMENT 01 idle and scan the room
SEGMENT 02 walk forward cautiously
SEGMENT 03 stop and turn toward the sound

Director Tip: Use a transition action when the next beat changes direction aggressively. For example, plant the right foot and turn left is clearer than asking for an instant reversal.

Tutorial 03 · Intermediate

Import Existing Animation and Continue with AI

Use an Unreal animation you already have as the beginning of a performance, adjust it inside MotionSmith, then generate what happens next.

Step 01

Choose an Existing Animation

Start from an Unreal AnimationSequence already available in the project. If the source came from FBX or mocap, import it into Unreal first using the normal Content Browser workflow.

Step 02

Import and Adjust

Bring the animation into MotionSmith, review its position and orientation, and use the available transform controls when the motion needs to be repositioned before continuing.

Step 03

Add the Next Generated Segment

Place the imported motion into the working timeline, write the next physical action, then use Add Segment to continue from the imported animation tail.

take two cautious steps forward and stop

Imported and generated clips can be reviewed as one continuous performance before creating the final Unreal animation asset.

Tutorial 04 · Intermediate

Retarget Motion to Your Unreal Character

Transfer the approved MotionSmith performance to one of the included target workflows: Epic / Manny-based characters, MetaHuman, Character Creator, or Mixamo.

Included Target Workflows

Target	MotionSmith 1.0.0
Epic / Manny-based	Included
MetaHuman	Included
Character Creator	Included
Mixamo-based	Included

1

Finish the Source Motion First Generate, import, edit and approve the working performance before retargeting.

2

Select the Matching Target Workflow Choose the workflow that matches the target character type instead of mixing profiles from different skeleton families.

3

Select the Target Character Choose the intended target skeletal mesh / character in the MotionSmith retargeting controls.

4

Retarget and Review Run the retarget operation, then inspect the motion on the actual target character before creating the final animation asset.

Tutorial 05 · Intermediate

Refine Motion Without Regenerating Everything

Use MotionSmith's editing tools to make targeted changes after generation: transform adjustments, pose decisions, mirroring, root/path authoring and prop-based spatial review.

Tool 01

Transform Adjustments

Reposition or reorient imported and working motion when the character needs a better starting placement or facing direction.

Tool 02

Pose Hold

Adjust a pose and use the hold workflow when a specific pose needs to remain fixed across the chosen interval.

Tool 03

Mirror Pose / Mirror Animation

Mirror a pose or complete animation to create left/right variations while keeping the edit inside the MotionSmith workflow.

Tool 04

Root & Path Authoring

Use the available root/path controls to refine where the character travels instead of regenerating an otherwise useful motion.

Tool 05

Props as Spatial References

Load and position a prop in the authoring viewport to judge the character's movement against an object or scene reference.

Workflow Rule

Preserve Approved Motion

Prefer targeted edits or a revised next segment over regenerating the entire performance when only one decision needs to change.

Important: Props provide spatial authoring context. They do not imply automatic hand attachment or guaranteed physical contact solving.

Continue Learning

Build the motion. Review it. Keep what works.

Use the Examples page for prompt ideas, the Documentation page for complete technical reference, and the MotionSmith AI YouTube channel for video tutorials and workflow demonstrations as they are published.

Browse Motion Examples ➔ Read Technical Docs MotionSmith AI on YouTube

Sertan Koç (OneManStudio) © 2026 MotionSmith AI. All rights reserved.