Anybody know if there's a way to change the default curve interpolation method?

I'm aware that it is possible to set the interpolation as hold/linear/spline etc. after a the key has been set,
but haven't been able to find any place where I can set the default mode.

In the PWS, select the channels you want to change the default interpolation for. If the desired channels don't exist yet, you must create them. In other words, there must be at least one keyframe set for the property/properties.

Option A: Good for changing only a few channels.
In the PWS, under the Choreography you are working in, locate the channel(s) for which you want to change the default interpolation.
To the right of the channel(s) are three icons that look like they are connected. Usually they are a straight line, followed by a curved line, followed by another straight line (see the picture). The middle icon (the curved line) is the default interpolation method. Click on it and some new options will pop up.
Select the option you want.

Option B: Good for changing a large number of channels.
With all the channels selected, switch to Channel View in the Timeline.
Click once in the Timeline and hit [Ctrl-A] to select everything.
Right-click inside the yellow selection box (if each channel has only one keyframe on frame 0, the selection box will be very narrow).
And choose Curve > Interpolation Method ... and choose a default interpolation method.
Then, double-click inside the yellow selection box. A Channel CP Settings dialog box will open. Make sure the value for "Interpolation Method" is set to "Default". (Sometimes it is blank, or is set to something else).

Thanks for your answer, Holmes! I guess then, that I can conclude that there is no way to change the default interpolation method - i.e. the method set automatically by A:M without me having to set keyframes, select them and changing them.

Well, maybe a feature to consider in coming versions of A:M? :-)

It would be nice to, for example, tell A:M that every time I add a new camera to a chor, to automatically use Zero-Slope interpolation for translate/rotate keys instead of Spline Interpolation. But with the methods I mentioned above, I only have to change the default interpolation once, on the first frame, and every subsequent keyframe uses the method I chose .... so it really isn't too bad.

True, In the example with the camera it's not that big a deal, but if you want to animate all your characters (as I do) with a different interpolation method than the default for every bone and every control point, believe me it's a lot of tedious (and unnescessary) work!! :-/

In order to change the default interpolation for every animatable bone in a character, just pose the character on the first frame. (I always use seperate choreography actions for body motion and facial motion) So in the "Body" chor action, just pose all the body control bones. You do this already, so it isn't really an extra step. Then expand the chor action in the PWS until you see a folder named "Bones". Click on the "Bones" folder to select it. ALL the bones that you posed are selected. Switch to Channel View and follow the procedure I mentioned above. It may seem complicated, but after you do it a couple of times, it really is pretty quick and painless.

There is a way to automatically set keys on all desired bones without having to pose them on the first frame. I have done this a few times, but found that it doesn't save me that much time. I am sketchy on the exact procedure, but I think it goes something like this. Make a new Pose for your character. Name it something like "Key All Controls". Select each control bone in the rig and enter "0" for all the translate and rotate properties. This creates channels for all the bones. Save the Pose and close it. Leave the Pose's default value in the model's User Properties set to "Not Set". Drag your model into a Chor or Action. Now *DRAG* the pose from the Pose Slider window and drop it onto your model shortcut in the PWS [Edit - you have to drop it on the model in the CHor or Action WINDOW, not on the model shortcut in the PWS]. Channels will be automatically created on every bone.

You really should not be keying the Control Points _Ever_ , except for very specific instances where you are doing some kind of special muscle mode deformation in the chor and for some reason you can't set that up in a Pose. Leaving the Muscle Mode keyframe filter activated, and forcing keyframes on on all those control points, adds a ton of unnecessary data that A:M has to process, which will slow your real-time display down and increase the chances of technical problems happening.

OK, I just tried this again and in 15J+ you have to drag the Pose by the little + icon which appears to the left of the Pose name in the Pose Slider window. AND you have to drop it on the model in the Chor or Action WINDOW. It doesn't seem to work if you drag the pose onto the model shortcut in the PWS.

I've only scanned this thread so maybe this has been mentioned already but...

a fast way to set default interpolation on many bones at once is to CTRL or SHIFT select them in the PWS, do a bounding box around the curves then do RMB>Curve>InterpolationMethod>choose slope


Click to view attachment


This will affect all keys in the curves that you have not manually set a specific interpolation on (IOW, they are still set to ""default")


You can quickly select select a whole range of bones with SHIFT and selecting just the top and bottom ones in the range you want.