Animation Cache Operator
The Animation Cache operator records and plays back hair animation in real time. Rather than recomputing a simulation or deformation every frame, it reads pre-recorded strand animation from a cache, so heavy animated grooms play back smoothly and consistently.
How it works
Animation is stored in an Alembic (.abc) cache. You export the animation of your guides or hair to Alembic, and the resulting file is loaded into the Animation Cache operator for playback over the timeline. From then on the operator simply plays the cached frames, which is fast and repeatable.
Why cache animation
- Performance: play back a complex simulation without re-solving it.
- Stability: get identical results every time, with no frame-to-frame variation.
- Handoff: move animated hair through a pipeline as a self-contained cache.
Workflow
- Animate or simulate your groom - for example with the Moov Physics Operator.
- Export the animation to Alembic. See Alembic Export.
- Load the cache into the Animation Cache operator and play it back.
Related
- Alembic Export and Alembic Import - the cache format.
- Baked Hair - store a single fixed state rather than an animation.
- Moov Physics Operator - a common source of the animation you cache.
Missing Something? Let us know if this page needs more information about the topic.