QuickMagic → Cascadeur Motion-Cleanup Workflow
How to Clean Up QuickMagic MoCap Animation in Cascadeur
Import QuickMagic FBX motion, retarget it to a Cascadeur rig, reduce baked keys, stabilize foot contacts, correct poses, add physics-based polish, and export production-ready animation for Blender, Maya, Unreal Engine, Unity or another pipeline.
Workflow at a glance
Watch the original QuickMagic + Cascadeur workflow
This official Cascadeur demonstration shows the same high-level sequence used in this article: QuickMagic video mocap, retargeting, Animation Unbaking, Fulcrum Motion Cleaning, AutoPosing adjustments and a final AutoPhysics pass.
Before you start
You will need:
- A QuickMagic FBX animation export
- The Cascadeur desktop application
- A target character with a Cascadeur-compatible control rig
- The original performance video for visual reference
- A clear target frame rate and destination pipeline
| Artifact | What it looks like | Primary Cascadeur tool |
|---|---|---|
| Too many baked keys | Every frame is keyed, making editing slow and interpolation unclear | Animation Unbaking |
| Foot sliding or popping | A planted foot moves, floats, penetrates or changes length | Fulcrum Motion Cleaning + pose correction |
| Weak body pose | Pelvis, spine, knees, elbows or hands do not preserve the performance intent | AutoPosing + manual keys |
| Unconvincing jump or impact | Center of mass, trajectory or secondary motion does not feel physical | AutoPhysics, ballistic tools and manual timing |
| Jitter | Small rapid motion in the torso, head, hands or feet | Selective key cleanup, trajectories and reprocessing when necessary |
1Prepare a clean QuickMagic source export
Cascadeur can improve animation, but it should not be used to hide a completely broken source take. Review the QuickMagic preview before exporting.
- The correct performer is tracked throughout the clip.
- The full body and feet remain visible when full-body capture is required.
- There are no major left/right limb swaps.
- Root travel and facing direction match the source video.
- The selected frame rate matches the destination project.
- The exported skeleton or software preset matches the intended retarget workflow.
Save the untouched source as something like Character_Action_Source_QuickMagic.fbx. Export a new version rather than overwriting it after cleanup.
2Import the FBX animation into Cascadeur
- Open Cascadeur and choose File → Import → FBX/DAE.
- Use Scene when importing the full hierarchy, mesh and animation.
- Use Animation when applying the clip to a compatible skeleton already in the scene.
- Verify whether the source is Y-up or Z-up and use axis adjustment only when needed.
- Confirm the first frame, take selection, frame rate and animation length.
- Play the imported motion before creating cleanup keys.
3Prepare the target rig and retarget the motion
AutoPosing and physics tools work best when the target has a proper Cascadeur rig. A raw joint hierarchy can be imported and played, but advanced cleanup requires controllers, rigid bodies, a center of mass and correctly defined fulcrum areas.
- Import or open the target character.
- Create or validate the Cascadeur rig and AutoPosing controllers.
- Check the source and target reference poses.
- Map the QuickMagic source hierarchy to the target skeleton.
- Retarget a representative frame range first.
- Verify pelvis height, shoulder orientation, knees, elbows, wrists and foot direction.
Fix the retarget pose before trying to solve every error with cleanup tools. A bad reference-pose match can create persistent foot sliding, elbow inversion and shoulder distortion.
4Convert baked mocap into editable animation
Animation Unbaking converts a fully keyframed clip into a more editable animation with fewer keyframes and automatically selected interpolation. Cascadeur's current documentation describes three main operations:
- Prepare Keys by Fulcrums: adds keys where the active support changes.
- Adjust Keys and Interpolations: reduces baked data and chooses useful interpolation intervals.
- Adjust AutoPosing Lock State: expresses poses with a smaller set of active AutoPosing controllers.
Recommended unbaking method
- Duplicate the imported animation track.
- Start with the body or selected tracks rather than the whole character when possible.
- Run the fulcrum preparation stage and inspect the support changes.
- Adjust keys and interpolation with a conservative tolerance.
- Compare the new motion against the source clip and the original baked track.
- Keep more keys around impacts, fast direction changes and complex contacts.
5Fix planted feet with Fulcrum Motion Cleaning
Cascadeur defines fulcrum points as body areas contacting the ground, an obstacle or another object. Fulcrum Motion Cleaning detects supporting limbs and tries to keep their rotation pivot inside the support area.
Basic workflow
- Display and verify the fulcrum points.
- Identify the exact contact interval for the left or right foot.
- Enable Interval Edit Mode and select that frame range.
- Click the Fulcrum Motion Cleaning button.
- Inspect the foot, knee, pelvis and root together.
- Undo or reduce the affected range if the leg stretches or the pelvis jerks.
When foot cleaning is not enough
A planted foot can still slide if the root travels at the wrong speed, the target leg proportions differ from the source, or the retarget pose is misaligned. Correct root and pelvis travel before forcing the foot into a fixed world-space position.
6Correct important poses with AutoPosing
AutoPosing predicts a full-body pose from the controllers you move. It is useful for correcting key contact frames and preserving whole-body balance while editing a hand, foot, pelvis, chest or head controller.
Prioritize these poses
- Foot plant, toe-off and landing frames
- Direction changes and turns
- Hands contacting props, walls or the ground
- Maximum compression and extension
- Jump takeoff, apex and landing
- Strong silhouette and acting beats
Use AutoPosing to establish the main body relationship, then inspect individual knees, elbows, wrists and fingers. Do not lock more controllers than necessary; excessive locking can make interpolation stiff.
7Add selective physics-based polish
AutoPhysics analyzes the animation and displays a physics-based suggestion using the Physics Assistant. It can help with center-of-mass movement, trajectories, smooth rotation, compensation, separation and secondary motion.
Safe AutoPhysics workflow
- Enable Physics Assistant without applying the result.
- Compare the physics ghost with the intended performance.
- Mark important acting and contact poses as priority frames when necessary.
- Correct impossible geometry or timing manually if the assistant shows no valid solution.
- Apply physics only to the interval and features that improve the motion.
- Review contact, timing, silhouette and character intent after applying.
Manual cleanup priorities after the automatic tools
| Area | What to check | Recommended correction |
|---|---|---|
| Feet | Sliding, toe penetration, heel float and abrupt lock transitions | Refine contact keys, fulcrum intervals, pelvis travel and transition timing |
| Knees | Popping, backwards bending and sudden direction changes | Correct key poses, pole direction and target leg compression |
| Hands | Mesh penetration, lost prop contact and excessive wrist jitter | Add contact keys, correct wrist orientation and preserve gesture timing |
| Pelvis and root | Vertical drift, wrong travel speed and unstable facing direction | Correct trajectory before locking feet or adding secondary motion |
| Spine and head | Noise, stiff torso and loss of performance intent | Smooth selectively and restore meaningful balance or acting keys |
| Timing | Slow impacts, weak anticipation or unnatural pauses | Retiming selected intervals while preserving contact frames |
8Export and validate the cleaned animation
- Select File → Export → FBX/DAE.
- Use the Animation preset for motion and skeleton without the mesh.
- Use Scene when the destination also needs the character model and hierarchy.
- Export only the intended objects and frame range when appropriate.
- Match the destination frame rate, FBX type, units and axis convention.
- Import the exported result into a clean validation scene or the target engine.
Final quality checklist
- The complete frame range is present.
- The character faces the correct direction and has the correct scale.
- Planted feet remain stable without knee stretching.
- Root movement matches the stride and intended travel.
- No new pops were introduced by unbaking or interpolation.
- AutoPhysics did not remove important performance style.
- The exported skeleton maps correctly in the destination software.
- The final file plays correctly after reimport.
Common QuickMagic-to-Cascadeur problems
| Problem | Likely cause | Recommended fix |
|---|---|---|
| Character is rotated or lying down | FBX up-axis or coordinate conversion mismatch | Reimport with the correct axis settings instead of rotating all animated joints. |
| Animation is missing or truncated | Wrong preset, take or frame range | Import with Animation enabled and verify take-time and start-frame settings. |
| AutoPosing controls do not appear | The target lacks a valid Cascadeur rig or AutoPosing setup | Generate or update the rig and confirm the required humanoid mapping. |
| Fulcrum cleaning stretches the leg | Incorrect contact range, target proportions or aggressive settings | Shorten the selected interval, correct the root/pelvis and test default settings first. |
| Unbaking changes the performance | Tolerance is too high or too many tracks were processed together | Restore the source and unbake selected tracks with more conservative settings. |
| AutoPhysics creates an unwanted pose | The physics solution conflicts with the intended style or impossible constraints | Use priority frames, edit the pose/timing manually and apply physics selectively. |
| Exported animation loses the cleanup | Wrong objects, interval or export preset | Use the Animation or Scene preset deliberately and validate the exported FBX by reimporting it. |
Frequently asked questions
Can QuickMagic FBX animation be imported into Cascadeur?
Yes. Cascadeur imports FBX joint animations. Use the Scene preset for a complete source scene or the Animation preset when applying motion to a compatible existing skeleton.
What does Animation Unbaking do?
It converts fully baked animation into a more editable result with fewer keyframes and automatically selected interpolation. It is especially useful for motion-capture and asset-animation cleanup.
How do I fix foot sliding in Cascadeur?
Verify the fulcrum points, select the planted interval and apply Fulcrum Motion Cleaning. Then correct root or pelvis travel and refine contact poses with AutoPosing or manual keys. Blend the contact transitions instead of locking the foot abruptly.
Should I apply AutoPhysics to the entire clip?
Usually not. Use Physics Assistant to locate weak intervals, protect important performance poses and apply only the corrections that improve physical credibility.
Why is the imported animation facing the wrong direction?
The FBX up axis or coordinate conversion may not match the source. Reimport using the appropriate Y-up or Z-up and axis-adjustment settings.
Which Cascadeur export preset should I use?
Use Animation when the destination already has the character or a compatible skeleton. Use Scene when the target also needs the mesh and full hierarchy. Always validate the exported file in the destination application.
Can Cascadeur completely replace manual mocap cleanup?
No. Its assisted tools reduce repetitive work and provide useful pose and physics suggestions, but the animator still needs to judge timing, contacts, silhouette, character intent and pipeline compatibility.
Related QuickMagic guides
Generate editable motion, then polish it in Cascadeur
Process a performance in QuickMagic, export the correct FBX and use Cascadeur's animation and physics tools to create a production-ready result.
