Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Concept of Morphing
The Blend Shape Deformer
Facial Rig Setup for a Character
youtube.com/watch?v=a3KW9NoVJn8&list=PLIi3DnFfUZQGbbQzwHenUy-KEr3BTNQS5&index=30&t=468s
1. Concept of Morphing
In 3D animation, morphing (or shape interpolation) is the process of smoothly transitioning a base mesh into a target shape with a completely different expression or form.
The Rule: The base mesh and the target mesh must have the exact same vertex order and count. You cannot add or delete vertices, edges, or faces; you are simply moving the existing vertices to new spatial coordinates.
Simple Example: Think of a simple flat plane. Morphing is taking that plane, pulling the center vertices upward to create a mountain shape, and using a slider to animate the transition from flat to mountain.
2. The Blend Shape Deformer
In Maya, morphing is executed using the Blend Shape deformer. Let’s create a classic "Smile" expression using a simple target method in Maya 2023.
🛠️ Practical Example: Creating a Smile Blend Shape
Create the Base: Create a primitive sphere (Create - Polygon Primitives - Sphere). Name it Base_Head.
Duplicate for the Target: Select Base_Head and hit Ctrl + D to duplicate it. Move it to the side. Name this duplicate Target_Smile.
Sculpt the Expression: Select Target_Smile. Enter Component Mode (Press F9 for vertices), select the vertices where a mouth would be, and pull them upward and outward to simulate a smile.
Apply the Deformer:
First, select the modified Target_Smile mesh.
Hold Shift and select the Base_Head mesh (Order matters: Target first, Base last!).
Switch your Maya menu set to Rigging using the drop-down menu in the top-left corner.
Go to the top menu: Deform - Blend Shape. Click the box icon next to it to reset settings if needed, then click Create.
🎛️ Where to find it in Maya 2023:
To control your new blend shape, Maya 2023 has a dedicated editor:
Go to the top menu: Windows - Animation Editors - Shape Editor.
Inside the Shape Editor, you will see a slider named Target_Smile. Drag that slider from 0.000 to 1.000. You will see your Base_Head instantly morph into a smile!
3. Facial Rig Setup for a Character
When building a professional facial rig for a character, rely on the Shape Editor's modern workflow. You don't even need to manually duplicate meshes anymore. Maya 2023 lets you sculpt targets directly on the base mesh using the Shape Editor.
🏃♂️ Step-by-Step Production Workflow:
Step A: Initialize the Blend Shape Node
Select your clean, finalized character head geometry.
Open the Shape Editor (Windows - Animation Editors - Shape Editor).
Click the Create Blend Shape button at the top of the editor window. This creates a main blend shape node (e.g., blendShape1).
Step B: Create and Sculpt Target Shapes
With your blend shape node selected in the editor, click Add Target.
Rename this target logically (e.g., blink_L, jaw_open, brow_raise_R).
Notice that a red Edit button automatically lights up next to the target name. This means Maya is now recording your vertex adjustments.
Grab your sculpting tools (Mesh Tools - Sculpting Tools - Grab Tool) or standard vertex selection tools, and shape the face (e.g., close the left eyelid for blink_L).
Click the red Edit button again to turn it off and save the shape.
Step C: Driving the Controls with UI
Animators don't want to dig through the Shape Editor to animate a face; they want visual controls on their screen.
Create a small NURBS curve circle (Create - NURBS Primitives - Circle) and place it next to the character's face to act as a joystick controller.
Restrict its movement so it can only move up and down between 0 and 1 on the Y-axis.
Open the Set Driven Key window: Key - Set Driven Key - Set...
Set the NURBS curve as the Driver (using Translate Y).
Select your blend shape target in the Shape Editor and click Load Driven (using the target weight value).
Key the controller at 0 when the blend shape weight is 0, then move the controller up to 1, slide the blend shape weight to 1, and hit Key.
Concept of Morphing
The Blend Shape Deformer
Facial Rig Setup for a Character
youtube.com/watch?v=a3KW9NoVJn8&list=PLIi3DnFfUZQGbbQzwHenUy-KEr3BTNQS5&index=30&t=468s
1. Concept of Morphing
In 3D animation, morphing (or shape interpolation) is the process of smoothly transitioning a base mesh into a target shape with a completely different expression or form.
The Rule: The base mesh and the target mesh must have the exact same vertex order and count. You cannot add or delete vertices, edges, or faces; you are simply moving the existing vertices to new spatial coordinates.
Simple Example: Think of a simple flat plane. Morphing is taking that plane, pulling the center vertices upward to create a mountain shape, and using a slider to animate the transition from flat to mountain.
2. The Blend Shape Deformer
In Maya, morphing is executed using the Blend Shape deformer. Let’s create a classic "Smile" expression using a simple target method in Maya 2023.
🛠️ Practical Example: Creating a Smile Blend Shape
Create the Base: Create a primitive sphere (Create - Polygon Primitives - Sphere). Name it Base_Head.
Duplicate for the Target: Select Base_Head and hit Ctrl + D to duplicate it. Move it to the side. Name this duplicate Target_Smile.
Sculpt the Expression: Select Target_Smile. Enter Component Mode (Press F9 for vertices), select the vertices where a mouth would be, and pull them upward and outward to simulate a smile.
Apply the Deformer:
First, select the modified Target_Smile mesh.
Hold Shift and select the Base_Head mesh (Order matters: Target first, Base last!).
Switch your Maya menu set to Rigging using the drop-down menu in the top-left corner.
Go to the top menu: Deform - Blend Shape. Click the box icon next to it to reset settings if needed, then click Create.
🎛️ Where to find it in Maya 2023:
To control your new blend shape, Maya 2023 has a dedicated editor:
Go to the top menu: Windows - Animation Editors - Shape Editor.
Inside the Shape Editor, you will see a slider named Target_Smile. Drag that slider from 0.000 to 1.000. You will see your Base_Head instantly morph into a smile!
3. Facial Rig Setup for a Character
When building a professional facial rig for a character, rely on the Shape Editor's modern workflow. You don't even need to manually duplicate meshes anymore. Maya 2023 lets you sculpt targets directly on the base mesh using the Shape Editor.
🏃♂️ Step-by-Step Production Workflow:
Step A: Initialize the Blend Shape Node
Select your clean, finalized character head geometry.
Open the Shape Editor (Windows - Animation Editors - Shape Editor).
Click the Create Blend Shape button at the top of the editor window. This creates a main blend shape node (e.g., blendShape1).
Step B: Create and Sculpt Target Shapes
With your blend shape node selected in the editor, click Add Target.
Rename this target logically (e.g., blink_L, jaw_open, brow_raise_R).
Notice that a red Edit button automatically lights up next to the target name. This means Maya is now recording your vertex adjustments.
Grab your sculpting tools (Mesh Tools - Sculpting Tools - Grab Tool) or standard vertex selection tools, and shape the face (e.g., close the left eyelid for blink_L).
Click the red Edit button again to turn it off and save the shape.
Step C: Driving the Controls with UI
Animators don't want to dig through the Shape Editor to animate a face; they want visual controls on their screen.
Create a small NURBS curve circle (Create - NURBS Primitives - Circle) and place it next to the character's face to act as a joystick controller.
Restrict its movement so it can only move up and down between 0 and 1 on the Y-axis.
Open the Set Driven Key window: Key - Set Driven Key - Set...
Set the NURBS curve as the Driver (using Translate Y).
Select your blend shape target in the Shape Editor and click Load Driven (using the target weight value).
Key the controller at 0 when the blend shape weight is 0, then move the controller up to 1, slide the blend shape weight to 1, and hit Key.
