Pipeline for animation in Unreal Engine

In late 2016, in preparation for the game’s release, Epic Games began production on a three-minute cinematic trailer for Fortnite. Epic’s goal was to create a real-time animated short with the same quality as a pre-rendered sequence, but which would allow real-time navigation and interaction with the set during the production process.

While Unreal Engine was originally designed as a game development tool, its integration of many animation pipeline tasks—versioning, rigging, animation, editing, editorial review, changelist distribution, and others—make it an ideal tool for animation work as well. Its real-time rendering capabilities contribute to the mix, giving instant feedback for faster work and better results.

In a traditional pipeline, the need for a rendering step adds hours or days between changes and review. With real-time rendering, changes are visible almost immediately so work can continue. 

Read full whitepaper on Epic's website.