Installation

MotionAtelier installs as a Houdini package: one JSON file and one folder, copied into your Houdini user packages folder.

Requirements

• Windows.
• Houdini 20.0, 20.5, 21.0 or 22.0. MotionAtelier uses Houdini’s own Python and Qt, so you install nothing else. The same package works in every supported version.
• Other Houdini versions skip the package, and the panel does not appear in them.

Houdini	Python	Qt binding	Tested build
20.0	3.10	PySide2	Not tested; same Python and Qt binding as 20.5
20.5	3.10 / 3.11	PySide2	20.5.445
21.0	3.11	PySide6 6.5	21.0.792
22.0	3.13 / 3.11	PySide6 6.8	22.0.429

See Supported Houdini versions for what “tested” means.

Install

1. Download MotionAtelier-<version>.zip (currently 0.4.2) from the project’s Releases page.

2. Close Houdini.

3. If an older MotionAtelier is installed, delete its MotionAtelier folder from the packages folder. Version 0.4.0 changed the folder layout, so an old copy must not stay behind.

4. Open the archive. Inside MotionAtelier-<version>/packages/ are two items:

   • motion_atelier.json
   • the MotionAtelier folder

5. Copy both items into your Houdini user packages folder, for example:

   %USERPROFILE%\Documents\houdini21.0\packages\

   Use houdini20.0, houdini20.5 or houdini22.0 for other versions. Create the packages folder if it does not exist. Repeat for each Houdini version you use.

The result should look like this:

houdini21.0\
└── packages\
    ├── motion_atelier.json
    └── MotionAtelier\
        ├── python\motion_atelier\…
        └── python_panels\motion_atelier.pypanel

Caution

Copy the contents of the archive’s packages folder, not the archive’s top folder. motion_atelier.json locates the code as MotionAtelier next to itself, so the JSON file and the folder must sit side by side.

Open the panel

1. Start Houdini.
2. In any pane, open the + tab menu.
3. Choose New Pane Tab Type ▸ Misc ▸ MotionAtelier, or Python Panel ▸ MotionAtelier.

The panel can be docked like any pane tab or floated in its own window.

Check the installation

A working installation shows:

• the MotionAtelier header, with SHAPE set to Ease;
• the default Sine S-Curve in the graph;
• the status line Read-only preview — scene unchanged;
• Get Keys and Commit Keys enabled at the bottom.

Then try the Quickstart.

Where your data is kept

Recipes, history and settings are stored in a MotionAtelier folder inside the Houdini user preference directory, for example %USERPROFILE%\Documents\houdini21.0\MotionAtelier\. Each Houdini version has its own preference directory, so each version keeps its own recipes, history and settings.

The folder holds library.json (recipes), history.json and settings.json. Every save is atomic and keeps one .bak backup. See damaged data files.

Uninstall

1. Close Houdini.
2. Delete motion_atelier.json and the MotionAtelier folder from the packages folder.
3. Optional: to remove your recipes, history and settings, also delete the MotionAtelier folder in the Houdini user preference directory.

Installation problems

Symptom	Cause and fix
MotionAtelier is missing from the pane-tab menu	The files are in the wrong place. Check that motion_atelier.json and the MotionAtelier folder are side by side in houdiniX.Y\packages\ for the Houdini version you started.
Missing in one Houdini version only	Each version reads its own packages folder. Copy the package there too.
Missing in an unsupported version	The package only enables itself in Houdini 20.0 to 22.x. This is expected.
Errors after upgrading from a version before 0.4.0	The old MotionAtelier folder used a different layout. Delete it and copy the new one.
Get Keys and Commit Keys are disabled	The panel cannot reach Houdini’s scene interface. Restart Houdini. If it persists, check the Houdini console for errors and report the problem.

More: Troubleshooting.