TUTORIAL 0: SHORT VIDEO
OVERVIEW
This tutorial will give you the tools to make a small scene and video in Unreal Engine.
When you export a project in Unreal, it will only be compatible with the operating system you are currently using. So if you are exporting on Windows, the project will not be able to run on Mac.
For this tutorial, we are starting with making a video because videos are much easier to share! This tutorial is intended for those who are completely new to Unreal Engine.
When you export a project in Unreal, it will only be compatible with the operating system you are currently using. So if you are exporting on Windows, the project will not be able to run on Mac.
For this tutorial, we are starting with making a video because videos are much easier to share! This tutorial is intended for those who are completely new to Unreal Engine.
HOW TO INSTALL
A main reason why Augury House uses Unreal Engine is for unlimited access to Quixel Megascans - a library of 3D assets and textures that are photoscanned from real world things! Use the links below to guide you through tthe basic installation process. For these tutorials, we are using Unreal Engine version 4.26.
Unreal Engine
Quixel Megascans
Recommended specs
Operating System
Processor
Memory
Video Card
Processor
Memory
Video Card
Windows 10 64-bit
Quad-core Intel or AMD, 2.5GHz or faster
8 GB Ram
DirectX 11 or DirectX 12 compatible graphics card
Quad-core Intel or AMD, 2.5GHz or faster
8 GB Ram
DirectX 11 or DirectX 12 compatible graphics card
Starting your Project
For these tutorials, we will be working from blank projects with scalable settings. Configure your settings to these screenshots.
Be sure to save your project to a place you’ll remember, and give it a name that will make sense.
Be sure to save your project to a place you’ll remember, and give it a name that will make sense.
TOUR OF WORKSPACE
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Main Panel:
> Viewport - This is where you will create your virtual space. To freely move and look around, press and hold the right mouse button while using the WASD keys.
Left Panel:
> Place Actors - This panel holds a collection of basic assets such as geometric shapes and lights. To use, simple drag and drop into your scene.
Right Panel:
> World Outliner - Anything you add into your scene will show up in this panel. This includes 3D assets, sounds, lights, and so on.
> Details - Whenever you select an item in your scene, all of its basic information will appear in this panel.
Bottom Panel: > Content Browser - This is the file explorer for your project. All of your content lives here.
> Sequencer - We will be using this tab a little later to build our video!
Quixel BRidge workflow
Quixel Bridge is full of realistic 3D assets, foliage, and textures. You can browse them by category in the left side bar under “home”.
You can also browse these assets under premade “collections” as well.
Since we’re using Unreal Engine, everything on Quixel Bridge is fair game!
You can also browse these assets under premade “collections” as well.
Since we’re using Unreal Engine, everything on Quixel Bridge is fair game!
To bring an asset into your project, click on one, and a right sidebar will appear.
In the bottom right, we can set the resolution of the asset as well as download it. Once the asset is downloaded, we can hit the export button to bring it into our project.
Go ahead and add a handful of assets into your project!
In the bottom right, we can set the resolution of the asset as well as download it. Once the asset is downloaded, we can hit the export button to bring it into our project.
Go ahead and add a handful of assets into your project!
When you use megascans, it will automatically organize your assets into folders in your content browser.
When you are ready, drag and drop the megascans asset into your scene!
As you arrange your scene, each object will have a three-colored widget like the ones below. These widgets will allow you to apply basic transformations to a given object, and can be toggled with the W, E and R keys.
Position Widget: W
Rotation Widget: E
Scale Widget: R
Setting up the sequencer
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Go to the cinematics drop down and select “Add Level Sequence”.
Go to the cinematics drop down and select “Add Level Sequence”.
Save your sequence to your content folder, and give it a name.
When you hit “save”, the sequence will be added to your world outliner, and the sequencer will open up in your bottom panel.
When you hit “save”, the sequence will be added to your world outliner, and the sequencer will open up in your bottom panel.
With the sequencer open, click on the “30fps” button and make sure “Show Time As” is set to “Seconds”.
In your sequence, you will notice a vertical green line and a vertical red line. These determine when the sequence will play and when the sequence will stop. Since our green line (aka “in point”) is at 0 and our red line (aka “out point”) is at 5, our sequence is set to be five seconds long.
Click and drag the Out Point to however long you want your video to be. Use the following shortcuts for easier navigation in the sequencer:
Zoom: Alt + Mouse Scroll
Move Left/Right: Shift + Mouse Scroll
Click and drag the Out Point to however long you want your video to be. Use the following shortcuts for easier navigation in the sequencer:
Zoom: Alt + Mouse Scroll
Move Left/Right: Shift + Mouse Scroll
making a video
Unreal Engine’s viewport can also be used to make virtual cameras. To do so, move your viewport to a shot you like, then click the top left dropdown menu and select “Create Camera Here”. You should see two types of cameras: the CineCameraActor and the CameraActor. Choose the CineCameraActor - this will be our main camera.
CineCameraActor: A virtual camera with more controls that emulate settings in real world cameras.
CameraActor: A basic virtual camera.To add your CineCameraActor into your sequencer, select it in the world outliner, and drag and drop it into your sequence.
The concept behind the sequencer is incredibly simple yet infinitely versatile. There are two essential compenents to the sequencer: time and numbers. Over a given period of time, we can assign number points called keyframes which can be used to control just about anything. Example: Say our sequence is five seconds long and we have a keyframe at the start of our sequence set at 0, and another keyframe at the end of our sequence set at 10. If we played the sequence, the number value would start at zero, then increase in value over five seconds before landing at 10.
In practice, we can attach keyframes to just about anything in order to change light intensity, control volume, change size, animate characters, morph textures, and much more. For this tutorial, we will use keyframes to create simple camera movement.
In order to create movement, we will be using the Transform function.
Transform bundles the values for spatial position, rotation, and scale.
Transform bundles the values for spatial position, rotation, and scale.
To add your first keyframe, scroll your header to 0.00 and press the small circular button.
A similar looking circle will appear on your sequencer which indicates your keyframe!
A similar looking circle will appear on your sequencer which indicates your keyframe!
In order to create movement, we will make a new camera that will only be used for its keyframe. Move your viewport to where you want you camera to end up, then add a new CameraActor.
For this workflow, we use the CineCameraActor for our main camera, and the CameraActors for all keyframes.
For this workflow, we use the CineCameraActor for our main camera, and the CameraActors for all keyframes.
Drag and drop the CameraActor into your sequencer.
Add the transform keyframe to the sequencer, and copy the keyframe with CTRL + C.
Scroll to the end of your sequence, click on the CineCameraActor’s Transform track, and hit CTRL + V to paste the keyframe.
To preview your video, select your sequence in the world outliner, then toggle the following options in the details panel.
After that, hit play in the top toolbar!
eXPORTING
Before exporting, we need to enable a plugin that will allow us to create our video at max quality.
To do this, go to Edit > Plugins.
To do this, go to Edit > Plugins.
In the search bar, type “prores” and enable the “Apple ProRes Media” plugin.
Once enabled, you will be prompted to restart Unreal Engine at the bottom of the panel.
Once enabled, you will be prompted to restart Unreal Engine at the bottom of the panel.
After restarting, click the highlighted film slate icon to export your video.
Change the Image Output Format to “Apple ProRes Encoder”. If needed, you can change the resolution to something else as well.
Finally, hit “Capture Movie” to start exporting your video!
Finally, hit “Capture Movie” to start exporting your video!
When your video is finished exporting, click the “Open Capture Folder” button on the bottom right of your screen to view the video in your file explorer.
