Work in progress article!
Please check back later for the final version.
Key Features
- Visual editor via ImGui
- Custom draw commands for timeline and keyframes
- Transform manipulation gizmo
- Custom file format for storing timeline data
- Undo/Redo system
Introduction
This is a simple tool we built for an assignment where we could make any tool we wanted. I collaborated with Philip Eriksson to build a timeline tool because we both had similar ideas for what we wanted to build. Making it together meant that we could finish it faster and better than if we had done it alone.
Our goal was to make something we could use in our game projects. We mainly planned to use it for moving our camera for scripted events, but it works for any object with a transform component. Having a visual tool makes the process easier for every discipline, since having to write code or ask animators to create animations for simple camera movements can be very limiting and time consuming.
We took inspiration from Maya and Blender, borrowing common keybinds to keep it familiar, and have tested it with animators, level designers, and technical artists to ensure it’s easy to use.