The Ultimate 3D Animation Tools List
Stop wasting time searching for scripts. As a professional animator, I know that having the right workflow is half the battle. Whether you are looking for Maya scripts to speed up your blocking, the best reference viewers, or essential Blender addons, I have curated this list of must-have tools. Here you will find the industry standards I use daily in production, along with my own custom AnimStarter tools developed to fix specific Maya frustrations.
Framerate Calculator
Let’s say your animation is a bit slow at 24 fps, and it works better at 30 fps. You want to know how many frames you should add or remove to adapt it?
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Open the "Framerate Adjuster" tool.
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Enter the original framerate (e.g., 24 fps).
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Enter the target framerate (e.g., 30 fps).
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Input the 1st and last frame from your animation.
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Click "Calculate".
The tool will automatically tell you how many frames to add or remove to adapt your animation to the new framerate.
Aspect ratio guide
Here’s how to use the Aspect Ratio Guide to find the corresponding dimensions:
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Select whether you want to enter the width or the height from the dropdown menu.
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Enter the known dimension (for example, a width of 1920 pixels).
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Choose the desired aspect ratio from the list (for example, 16:9 for a widescreen).
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Click on "Calculate and Show Rectangle."
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The tool will automatically calculate the missing dimension (for example, the height corresponding to a 1920 px width for a 16:9 ratio). It will also display a visual preview of the rectangle, adjusted to your settings.
Animation resources
Here is a collection of excellent resources for animators: books to learn animation, podcasts to get inspired, press and websites to follow the news, an animation festival calendar, reference footage, and so much more!
Don't forget to join communities to get help and create a network!