Cascadeur
AI-assisted, physics-based 3D character animation software
About Cascadeur
Cascadeur is a standalone 3D animation software for creating keyframe animation as well as cleaning up and editing imported and motion-capture animations. Its AI-assisted posing and physics tools dramatically speed up the animation process while producing natural, high-quality results. It works with .FBX, .DAE, .USD and other formats, making it easy to slot into virtually any game or VFX animation pipeline.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- AI-assisted AutoPosing makes creating natural, balanced poses far faster than manual keyframing
- Physics-based AutoPhysics tools produce realistic motion that is difficult to achieve by hand
- Generous free tier with the full animation toolset for non-commercial use
- Affordable Indie tier ($8/mo) for hobbyists and small studios under $100k revenue
- Annual subscriptions convert to a perpetual license after one year
- Works with .FBX, .DAE, .USD and .GLTF for easy pipeline integration with Unreal, Maya, Blender and game engines
Cons
- Free plan can only export the proprietary .casc format and is non-commercial only
- Specialized for character animation, not a full 3D modeling, texturing or rendering suite
- AI posing and physics tools have a learning curve for animators new to the workflow
- Commercial use requires a paid Pro or Teams license, which is pricier than the Indie tier
- Smaller community and tutorial ecosystem compared to established tools like Maya or Blender
Key Features
AutoPosing
A neural-network-powered smart rig that positions the rest of the body automatically as you move control points, helping you create natural poses faster
AutoPhysics
Applies realistic, physically natural motion to your animation while altering your keyframes as little as possible
Quick Rigging Tool
Drag-and-drop joints to auto-generate a rig, with one-click rigging for standard skeletons from Daz3D, Character Creator, Mixamo, Unreal Engine, MetaHuman and more
Animation Unbaking
Turns any baked animation where every frame is a keyframe into an editable one by automatically selecting keyframes and interpolation intervals
Video Mocap
Convert videos into animation, then clean up and edit the result with Animation Unbaking and Fulcrum Motion Cleaning for high-quality output
Secondary Motion
Use sliders to shake, bounce and overlap body parts, bringing idles and action moves to life
Copy/Paste Retargeting
Transfer animations between humanoid characters of different proportions in two clicks, regardless of skeletal structure
Finger AutoPosing Controllers
Intelligent controllers that dramatically speed up animating hand behavior and gestures
Broad Format Compatibility
Imports and exports .FBX, .DAE, .USD and .GLTF files for easy integration into existing animation workflows
Cross-Platform Desktop App
Runs as a standalone application on Windows, macOS and Linux
Pricing
- Complete animation toolset
- Rigging tools
- Physics-based tools
- Inbetweening tool
- Animation unbaking
- Export to .casc format only
- Non-commercial use only
- Everything in Free
- Export to .fbx and .dae
- Priority support
- Commercial use under $100k/yr revenue
- Billed annually, becomes perpetual after 1 year
- Everything in Indie
- Unlimited commercial use
- Dedicated chat support
- Animation retargeting
- Interaction with environment
- Scene linking tool
- AutoPosing for quadrupeds
- 14-day free trial
- Everything in Pro
- Centralized user management via admin dashboard
- Role-based permission system
- Dedicated Discord chat for the team
- 30-minute onboarding call
- 14-day free trial
Best For
Game Character Animation
Indie developers and studios animate game-ready character rigs and export them directly to Unreal Engine or Unity
Motion Capture Cleanup
Animators use Video Mocap, Animation Unbaking and Fulcrum Motion Cleaning to turn raw or baked mocap into clean, editable animation
VFX and Film Animation
VFX studios animate and clean rigs across multiple DCC tools for film, VR and interactive experiences
Action and Combat Sequences
Creators use physics-assisted tools to produce realistic action moves, jumps and combat with accurate body mechanics
Learning 3D Animation
Students and hobbyists learn keyframe and physics-based animation for free before moving to commercial projects
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