Moho Forum

What is the best native file format to import into Studio Pro 7, if your ultimate objective is to apply bones to animate? In the Quick-Start tutorial, the user is instructed to import an "Anime Studio Object" which then accepts bones perfectly. What's the underlying file format of the Anime Studio Object? Is special software needed to create them?

Short of this, which file type is the most trouble-free? Thanks.

These questions have different answers, depending on which way you come at them! An "Anime Studio Object" is just an Anime Studio file which you can re-import. So, obviously, if such a file contains characters which have been rigged, etc., this is the easiest file type to import, because all the preparatory work has been done.

Other file types can be either vector or bitmap format. This forum has echoed to the howls of protest about importing vector (Adobe Illustrator format) files over the years -- the general consensus is, if you want vector files, the best solution is to construct them in AS.

If you are talking about importing bitmap files, in my opinion the best format is 32-bit png format (or 24-bit files with transparency, in other words). These files give you a clean object with a transparent background -- when constructing characters, this is what you want.

Hope this helps.

Thanks for your answer. Are you saying that in the Quick Start tutorial, the Frank character was already rigged when imported? That it simply accepted new bones? Seems like a misleading teaching example. Would Smith Micro do that?

Frank isn't rigged when he is imported. You have to add a bone layer and drag frank into it then add bones as by the instructions for that tutorial.