u/No_Reflection_9882

Hello,

We are currently a team of 3D animation students in the research and development phase of our graduation short film, and we are trying to optimize our production pipeline as much as possible.

Our short film is around 5 minutes long and features 5 main characters, with a large number of relatively short shots. The project notably includes a motorcycle chase sequence as well as a dance sequence, which involves a lot of fast movements, deformations, and interactions with clothing.

We are currently asking ourselves several questions regarding costume workflow and simulation:

• Should the clothes be directly integrated into the character skinning setup (without a fully modeled body underneath, only visible parts such as the arms or head)?
• Or would it be better to model a full body with the clothes layered on top?
• Would it be more relevant to mainly use dynamic rigs / nCloth in Maya?
• Or rather rely on full simulations in Houdini?
• Or perhaps use a hybrid solution, with simulations enabled only for specific shots or areas, while other parts remain fully skinned/rigged?