What is a .MOT file?
A .MOT file is a type of file used in 3D animation and is known as a LightWave Motion File. It is created using LightWave 3D, which is a sophisticated software used for making animated and static 3D images. This software is popular in various industries like television, film, advertising, architecture, and video game development for creating detailed 3D graphics and animations.
The .MOT file stores 3D motion data in a simple text format. This data includes keyframes, which are specific points in time that detail the position, rotation, and scale of an object or camera in the 3D space. By saving these motions into a .MOT file, users of LightWave 3D can save the specific movements of objects or cameras and then apply these movements to other objects or cameras within their projects.
To create or save a motion in a .MOT file using LightWave 3D, you would typically go through the following steps: 1. Create your animation by setting keyframes for the object or camera. 2. Go to the 'Save' menu and choose 'Save Motion File' to save your animation into a .MOT file.
When you load a .MOT file in LightWave 3D, the software reads the keyframe data and uses it to animate the object or camera smoothly by interpolating, or filling in, the movements between keyframes.
The primary program used to open and work with .MOT files is LightWave 3D. Additionally, because the data in a .MOT file is stored in plain text, you can also view the contents of a .MOT file using a basic text editor like Apple TextEdit, though editing it in such a program is not recommended unless you know what changes to make.
LightWave 3D was originally developed by NewTek, but it is now developed and maintained by LightWave Digital.
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