Animating Clones within Cloner object

[lightningad]

Thanks to your help, Dr Sassi, I have a Cloner Object with an 18x18x1 matrix of clones that have been individually coloured to create a picture...but my next problem is that i need to animate them so that they move into position one at a time, as if the picture is building itself one brick at a time.

I have tried using a Plain Effector but that just affects the entire Clone object.
Step Effector does some re-positioning, but i cannot get the clones to move as if individuals - with each clone taking the same duration to move to get a sequence that starts with an empty window then builds up brick by brick by flying in each brick from off screen. All i can figure out is where the overall time for the move has a start point with the clones all stretched apart, and an end time where they all finish the move together. In other words - each clone should take 12 frames to move from off screen to final position, with a 4 frame gap between each move starting. Hope that makes sense!

thanks
Adam

CV4_2023_drs_23_MGpm_02 - step effector animation_0001.c4d [step effector animation.zip]

[Dr. Sassi]

Hi lightningad,

Thanks for the file.

There are several ways to do it. But keeping the image on the Grid puts one method in the foreground, and it is not the Inheritance Effector.

Based on the settings used here, the Grid has no dimensions in the direction of the clones flying in. So that requires an old trick, roughly from 2006, when MoGraph came out.

The idea is to move all clones a little apart and do the exact opposite later. In this way, all is the same. So where is the advantage?

Between the two, we can now use a Linear Field (back then, it was the falloff). As usual, it is all about information flow and differentiation.

Please have a look at the file below. The distance they travel is the Position value of the Plane Effector. The movement of the Linear Field expresses the progress.
To adjust the Linear Field, switch off the "Plain" and "Formula -" Effector to see where the Clones are.

BTW: The sorting in the Effector List matters.

If you wonder what the ID means in the Formula entry field: Each clone has an ID. So, that number (0-323 in your case, means that these numbers are used when a clone is calculated. One after the other. Clone "one" means that all values in the Position field will be multiplied by 1. ID 2 produces twice, and ID 3 three times the amount.
For a clear understanding, and (showing off a little bit ) in 2006, we had no Plain Effector, so my idea was to put just one into the formula Field, which is, in essence, what the Plain Effector is today, the simple version of a Formula Effector.

Enjoy

CV4_2023_drs_23_MGpm_11.c4d

[lightningad]

Holy flying bricks, Batman!

Exactly what i was hoping for, and i have no clue how you ever figured that out!

Iam slowly working my through that file to get my head around this concept....thanks very much

[Dr. Sassi]

You're very welcome, Lightning.

My mantra here is "information flow" and "differentiation".

Perhaps how to filter information or make them accessible is the idea.

You get there, I have no doubt, keep in mind that I had so far "some" time to play with it

My best wishes