I’m working in Unreal Engine 5.7 and I’m animating a skeletal mesh snake for a cinematic using Sequencer.
The snake already has a slither/walk animation that I’ve keyframed and blended in Sequencer, but now I want it to follow a curved path (like an S-shape) while its body actually bends to match that path instead of just the root following the spline.
I’ve found a few Blueprint examples (using Poseable Mesh and Set Bone Transform by Name) and some Control Rig spline tutorials, but I’m confused about how to integrate those with a snake that’s already animated in Sequencer.
My questions are:
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Is there a way to make a skeletal mesh conform to a spline while still playing its existing animation?
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Can this be done directly in Sequencer, or does it require a Control Rig or a custom Animation Blueprint?
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If using a Blueprint that procedurally sets bone transforms every frame, how does that work with a Skeletal Mesh that already has animation tracks in Sequencer?
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Would I need to replace the Skeletal Mesh with a Poseable Mesh, or is there a better workflow?
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Is there a standard cinematic workflow for this kind of “snake following a spline” setup?
The goal is something like this:
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The snake follows a spline path.
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The spine/body bends naturally to match the curve.
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The existing slither animation is preserved instead of being completely overridden.
If anyone has experience with this workflow, or knows of a tutorial that demonstrates it, I’d really appreciate the help.
Thanks!