# Animator user stories
Focusing on keyframe management.

## Beginner Animator

### Bouncing Ball
Things that person needs to know
* Press `I` to insert keyframes on selection
* Enable autokey
* How to use the Graph Editor

Nothing else should be required as a first step in terms of keyframe management.

### Walk Cycle
While this sounds like a prime use case for cycle aware keying, it is not. The first walk cycle will just be constrained by the scnene time range and loop that way. The only "hard" thing is to keep the first and last key in sync. This can be easily done in the dope sheet by copying and pasting the summary key.

## Experienced Animator new to Blender

Things they need to (re)learn for keyframe management.
* How to add keys to selection (`I`)
* more?

## Character Animation
TODO

## FX animation
While this is mostly simulation work, there are occasions when FX are animated by hand. An example would be rocks falling and bouncing/breaking on the ground. Especially in an NPR scenario things like this can be common if you need artistic control about the timing of things.

## Grease Pencil integration
Assuming the animator has to handle both, a 3D character rig and 2D Grease Pencil (GP) strokes. If the animation is done in a pose to pose fashion, the GP keys have to move with the 3D keys when moved since those 2 need to stay in sync. Things get a bit more complicated if the animation isn't strictly keyed on individual frames. In that case the animator needs quick feedback on his changes and quick access to keys of both systems to eyeball the timing relative to each other.

## Motion Graphics
Assuming they are not done using geometry nodes. This will be done mostly with autokey enabled. Either the user lets autokey do all the work and key channels they might not need. Or they are more particular, and key the channels needed beforehand and then let autokey only add keys to existing F-Curves.

## Having to fix someone elses shot in a studio environment
Fixing someone elses animation is like fixing someone elses code. Hard to understand what's going on and constant fear of breaking something.

### Redo a section of the animation
This means creating a key on all elements of the rig at the start and end of the segment that needs changing. Then deleting all the keys in between and redoing that section completely.

### Add a layer on top
If the change is only minimal, a layer on top is the less invasive option. The layer then contains only keys for a few controls.

## Motion Capture
TODO

## Advanced Cycling Animations
### Crowds
The classic example of an army charging into battle. There will be one or more walk cycles that procedurally get applied to each character. In addition to that, a bit of acting might be layered on top. This is a prime use case for animation nodes.

### Acting Shot
Think of two characters having a conversation while they walk from A to B. A possible solution is to make a walk cycle on a base layer and have that loop the entirety of the shot. The acting is then an additional layer on top. While feature film animators might not choose that technique because the timing of the steps needs to match their acting beats, it is likely to be used in TV animation where a lot of animation has to be produced quickly.