Melowilo Animation LTD
3D Flipbook Animator
I created this addon because I needed it myself, for an ongoing project. I needed something that can work in any style around this Flipbook concept at speed.
The basic concept is very simple. 3d Flipbook Animator sets up a system to plays back a collection of any 3D Meshes. However on top of this basic concept I build a comprehensive toolset to make this into a fast flowing workflow. From the basic tools for the core operations to the more advances time-saver toolsets.
In the process I discovered the Hybrid Armature Workflow where you are able to Sculpt Keyframes on rigged armature characters or objects, and use both Sculpting AND the Rig Animations at the same time.
This is also a general editing tool for Alembic Sequences. Anything where the mesh can be snapshotted can be turned into a Flipbook and it can then be edited with all the addon tools. It is indeed the missing Edit Mode for Alembic or Simulated Sequences.
I created over 2 hours of Video Tutorials with Practical Examples
Here you can learn about all the tools included in this addon. The basics are very easy to pick up, but you can dive deeper and find the workflow that suits you best.Look for the chapters in the video if you need to refresh your knowledge at any point.
Create Stop-Motion style 3D Flipbook animations in Blender.
The addon gives you frame-by-frame control but also 'Hybrid Frame-by-Frame' where you can create inbetweening with Morph Blend Frames.
New Hybrid Armature Workflow
You are able to Sculpt Keyframes but also Animate the Armature Rig at the same time.
The missing Edit-Mode for Alembic Sequences.
Game Engine Friendly
Export as Alembic or USD Sequences OR Multiple Options to Bake it to Shape KeysOther Key Features:
1. Core Flipbook Management
- Collection-to-Flipbook Conversion: Converts any collection of meshes into a
single Geometry Nodes-driven object that updates per frame.
- Unified Extraction: Extracts animated meshes, Curves, Metaballs, and Text
into sequential frame-by-frame mesh snapshots.
- Hybrid Armature Flipbooks: Creates sequences that maintain Armature
modifiers and vertex groups, allowing for a mix of skeletal animation and
vertex-level editing.
- Sequence Merging: Combines two different flipbooks (geometry and materials)
into a single new sequence.
2. Advanced Frame Editing
- Per-Frame Sculpt/Edit Mode: A specialized "Edit Mesh" toggle that
automatically handles visibility, allowing you to sculpt or model individual
frames while scrubbing the timeline.
- Multi-Frame Editing: An "Edit Entire Flipbook" mode that puts all meshes in
the sequence into Edit Mode simultaneously for global adjustments.
- Onion Skinning: A GPU-accelerated overlay that shows "ghost" versions of
previous and subsequent frames in Red and Green (Wireframe or Solid modes).
- Dynamic Visibility: Automatic logic that hides the source collection and
only shows the relevant frame mesh during playback or editing.
3. Vertex Animation & Morphing
- Morph Blending: Interpolates vertex positions between two frames (Start and
End) across a range, with support for Easing (Linear, Ease In/Out, etc.).
- Vertex Clipboard: Advanced Copy/Paste system for vertices:
- Local/World Paste: Paste positions based on local mesh space or world
coordinates.
- Relative Paste: Paste the movement delta from a stored baseline,
allowing you to transfer specific edits between frames.
- Paste Blending: A slider to control the influence (0% to 100%) of the
pasted vertex data.
4. Sequence & Range Operations
- Range Tools: Delete, Duplicate, Reverse, or "Ping-Pong" (Duplicate +
Reverse) specific frame ranges.
- Timeline Markers: Automatically generates markers on the timeline labeled
flipB_START and flipB_END for the active sequence.
- Hold Frames: "Hold Before" and "Hold After" toggles that create static
meshes to fill time before the flipbook starts or after it ends.
5. Hybrid Rigging & Modifier Tools
- Skeletal Transfer: Copy vertex groups and weights from a source object and
apply them to the entire flipbook sequence.
- Deform Baking: "Apply Deforms" permanently bakes Armature poses into the
mesh data for a specific frame or the entire range.
- Modifier Batching: Copy a modifier stack from one frame and paste it across
the entire sequence or specified range (e.g., adding a Solidify to 100 frames at
once).
6. Shape Key Integration
- Flipbook to Shape Keys: Converts a multi-object flipbook sequence into a
single mesh with Shape Keys.
- Automated Animation: Automatically keys the influence of those shape keys to
recreate the original animation on a single object.
- Manual/Nth Frame Selection: Choose to convert every frame, every "Nth"
frame, or only specific manually selected frames.
7. Utility & Workflow
- Topology Analysis: Scans the flipbook to detect ranges with matching vertex
counts (critical for morphing and vertex copying).
- Material Management: Batch apply materials to specific slots across all
frames and "Sync Materials" to ensure the Geometry Nodes sequencer
recognizes them.
- Split by Material: Automatically duplicates the flipbook and splits it into
separate objects based on material assignments (useful for specific export
pipelines).
- Safe Export Mode: A "Bake Mode" toggle that disables the internal visibility
logic, preventing crashes when exporting to Alembic or USD.
- Batch Normal/Smooth Control: Quickly set "Shade Smooth" or Flip Normals for
the entire sequence at once.
