Unreal Engine Take Recorder Guide: How to Record Cameras and Animation

Unreal Engine’s Take Recorder captures level actors, camera moves, and other supported sources directly in Sequencer. The workflow, described in Epic Games’ official documentation, can be used to record animation and virtual production and manage multiple takes. For architectural visualization, it can also be used to capture camera moves or animated elements in a scene for later editing in Sequencer. The documentation does not specify a particular Unreal Engine version, so the steps below are limited to the menus and features described on the page.

1. Enable the plugin and open the recording panel

1. From Unreal Engine’s main menu, go to Edit > Plugins. Search for Take Recorder and tick the box next to it. Take Recorder is a plugin, so the recording tool will not work if you skip this step.

2. Restart Unreal Engine after enabling it. According to the documentation, a restart is required to make the plugin available.

3. If you plan to capture performance or motion data from a Live Link session, enable the Live Link plugin using the same method. This plugin is optional, and enabling it also requires a restart.

4. Make sure the project contains the actors you want to record. The documentation lists a project with a playable character and actors to record as a prerequisite; it also notes that you can use the Third Person Template instead.

5. Open the Take Recorder panel from Window > Cinematics > Take Recorder. If no sequence is open, the tool creates a new, empty sequence. Its time display is synchronized with Take Recorder’s time display.

2. Choose recording sources

1. In the Sources section of the Take Recorder panel, click +Source and choose the type of source to record. The documentation lists Any Actor in the level, Camera Cuts, Level Sequences, Live Link, microphones, recently spawned actors, the Player actor, and World or Level assets. You can also drag an actor from the Outliner into the Sources panel.

2. Check that the source is recordable. Take Recorder can capture a source only if it has both a recorder and a corresponding track that Sequencer can play. Tracks that can be keyframed are given as an example; actor properties that cannot be keyframed are not recorded. If you do not select a recordable source, an invalid-source icon appears instead of the Record button.

3. When you add an actor as a source, use the Record Type option to choose the recording type: Project Default, Possessable, or Spawnable. Project Default follows the project setting; the other two options specify the type directly for the recording. If the source is attached to a parent actor, consider the Record Parent Hierarchy option. If this option is disabled, transforms are recorded in local space for a Possessable actor and in world space for a Spawnable actor.

4. Use the Recorded Properties list to capture only the properties you need. Properties you disable will not be added as tracks when recording finishes. For an animation source, entering names in Include Animation Names records only the listed bones or curves; for example, entering root includes only the root bone. You can specify unwanted names in Exclude Animation Names.

5. Add a Camera Cuts source if you also need to record camera changes. According to the documentation, the tool tracks the active cameras throughout a recording; when the active camera changes, it creates a new camera actor and a camera cut section. This lets you capture different camera transitions in the same recording.

3. Set up Slate details and record

In the Slate section, you can set the recording name, take number, marked frame, frame rate, description, and recording speed. Click the Take or Slate fields to enter custom names and numbers. Setting these details before recording makes it easier to distinguish takes of the same scene. The tool can also store metadata with takes; the source documentation gives a character name and a shot description as examples.

1. Set the Slate and take number. If you try to enter a take number that has already been used, Take Recorder displays a warning and shows the previous take’s location. Clicking the warning advances the number to the next available one.

2. Choose the required frame rate for recording from the Frames Per Second menu. The documentation does not list the available numeric values, so it is not possible to recommend a specific frame rate. The Record Speed field changes the recording speed and the engine’s overall time dilation value; when recording into a populated sequence, slowing playback can make it easier to follow the action.

3. After checking the recording source and Slate details, click the red Record button in the Take Recorder window. You can also start recording from the Record button in Sequencer’s playback controls. This second option records the selected actor into the current sequence and does not require the Take Recorder window to be open.

4. While recording, use the Add Marked Frame button to add a marker at that point. These markers help you find specific moments in the recording later. To finish recording, click Record again or press Esc; the take is saved.

4. Review recordings and adapt the workflow for architectural visualization

Take Recorder supports creating multiple takes for a scene or action. This lets you capture different motion or performance attempts without deleting the first recording. Open the latest recording with the Review Last Recording button, or access previously saved takes through the Takes Browser. While reviewing an earlier recording, the Return button takes you back to the pending take sequence, and Start New Recording begins a new recording based on the selected take.

For architectural visualization teams, a practical use is to bring camera moves and recordable actor properties from a scene into editable sequences. The Camera Cuts source represents changes in the active camera in the recording; other sequences can also be added as sources. However, with a Level Sequence source, sequence playback is supported only during a gameplay or simulation session. So, when setting up a shoot, confirm in advance which sources will actually be recorded and in which session the sequence will play.

Common mistakes

• Enabling the Take Recorder plugin but not restarting Unreal Engine.

• Pressing Record before adding a source or checking whether a recordable track is available.

• Overlooking a previously used take number. Take Recorder displays a warning, but it is still useful to check the numbering in your recording setup.

• Forgetting to set the Subject Name field for a Live Link source or to enable the Live Link plugin. If you plan to use Live Link, verify the session and source settings before recording.

• Ignoring the Record Parent Hierarchy option for an actor attached to a parent hierarchy. With the option disabled, whether transforms are recorded in local or world space affects the result.