How to Bake Character Deformations into Editable Drawings in Harmony

Harmony provides two relevant commands. Choose according to what you need to do after conversion: edit drawings across a movement, or develop a new substitution pose.

Your next task	Command	Result
Clean up several poses or adjust drawing exposure timing	Convert Deformed Drawing to Drawings	A vector drawing sequence from the selected deformation range
Create one new substitution pose and continue deforming it	Convert to New Drawing and Add Deformation Chain	A new drawing with a corresponding deformation chain

The sequence workflow is documented in Converting Deformer Animation to Drawings. The single-pose command and its new transformation are documented in Converting Drawings to New Deformation Chains.

Use a practical decision test: identify the next change you intend to make. If you want to redraw an outline at several moments, choose the sequence command. If you want to establish a different base silhouette and animate it further with controls, choose the new-chain command. If the remaining correction is simply another adjustment to the existing deformation, consider finishing that adjustment before baking.

Save a separate scene version before conversion. This gives you a clear return point for the original artwork and its exposures. Baking commits the deformation’s shape to the drawing layer, although the deformer animation itself remains intact. Toon Boom identifies direct artwork editing as a reason to use this operation. What is baking?

The deformation group needs a Transformation Switch. If it is missing, select the affected drawing node, click Create New Deformation Chain in the Deformation toolbar, then switch back to Transformation 1. Toon Boom says this adds and connects the switch; you do not need to build another deformer. Baking also converts pencil lines to brush strokes. How do I bake a deformer?

Before selecting a long range, choose a short test section that contains a representative bend or stretch. Include a pose where the outline needs attention, rather than testing only an almost unchanged drawing. Record the intended start and end frames so you can check the selection against a concrete range.

Check your version if you use newer deformation types. Harmony 24 added baking support for Weighted Deformers, Mesh Warp, Free Form Deformers and Shape Aware Deformers. This matters when following instructions written for earlier versions. Harmony 24 Release Notes

Use this procedure when your goal is to clean up a movement as drawings:

1. In the Timeline, locate the drawing layer affected by the deformation.
2. Select the drawing cells covering the intended movement.
3. Choose Animation > Deformation > Convert Deformed Drawing to Drawings.
4. Wait for the Baking Drawing operation to finish.
5. Inspect the converted drawings before extending the operation to more frames.

The official manual confirms that the selected range becomes vector drawings, which can then be adjusted using drawing tools. Converting Deformer Animation to Drawings

Harmony automatically assigns the baked section to Default Transformation to prevent the deformation from being applied twice. The original transformation retains its animation. Avoid reassigning the baked drawings to that animated transformation during cleanup. How do I bake a deformer?

For your first inspection, compare three positions: the beginning, the strongest deformation and the end of the converted range. Then inspect the immediately adjacent frames. This comparison helps you separate an artwork correction from a selection-boundary issue before you start drawing.

For a single substitution, go to the desired frame, select its drawing and choose Animation > Deformation > Convert to New Drawing and Add Deformation Chain. The command is also available in the Deformation toolbar, and the resulting transformation is added to the transformation list. Converting Drawings to New Deformation Chains

Use this operation on one frame at a time. Toon Boom describes its result as a baked substitution with a duplicate deformation chain for separate animation. How do I bake a deformer?

After conversion, inspect the new drawing and its transformation assignment together. Make a small artwork correction first, then test the intended deformation adjustment. This staged approach makes it easier to identify which edit changed the silhouette. Keep the original scene version until the new pose works throughout the section where you intend to use it.

Work through the baked sequence in two passes. First, correct shapes: uneven contours, awkward curves and details that no longer follow the intended silhouette. Second, review the movement at playback speed. A correction that looks tidy on one frame can still produce a visible jump between neighboring drawings.

Baking also provides a drawing sequence whose timing you can change; Toon Boom specifically mentions moving from single-frame to double-frame timing. Treat that as a separate editorial choice after checking the conversion. Converting Deformer Animation to Drawings

Consider an illustrative selection from frames 1–12. If you decide to organize it into two-frame exposures, the six exposure positions begin at frames 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. Before making that change, check whether an important pose falls between those positions. Choose the retained drawings for their contribution to the movement, then adjust their holds; a regular spacing pattern alone does not determine which poses communicate the action best.

Finish this pass by inspecting the transition into and out of the baked section. Check that the first corrected drawing connects naturally to the preceding pose and that the final drawing connects to the following pose.

Editable vector artwork can still require a different editing approach after baking. If your next task needs pencil centerlines, Harmony provides Drawing > Convert > Brush Strokes to Pencil Lines. Select the relevant strokes with the Select tool in the Camera or Drawing view before applying it. The manual states that this conversion loses the brush stroke thickness. Converting Brush Strokes to Pencil Lines

Test this on a small selection before converting all outlines. Compare the contour, thickness and endpoints with the baked version. If the brush artwork already gives you the required shape, continuing to edit it may involve less cleanup than changing its representation again. Keep line conversion as a deliberate editing choice.

If Harmony reports that the rig must support multiple deformation chains, check for the required Transformation Switch inside the deformation group. If drawings disappear when baking newer deformation types, verify the Harmony version before repeating the operation. Toon Boom’s troubleshooting identifies both conditions. How do I bake a deformer?

For other unexpected results, return to the short test range and check one variable at a time: the selected drawing layer, the selected cells, the command used and the active transformation. Compare against your saved original before changing the rig structure. This keeps the diagnosis tied to a specific operation.

A useful stopping point is an editable drawing or sequence whose silhouette, stroke appearance, timing and boundary poses all match your intent. Once the short test meets those conditions, apply the same workflow to the remaining range and complete the artwork cleanup.

• How do I bake a deformer? — Toon Boom Help Centre
• What is baking? — Toon Boom Help Centre
• Converting Deformer Animation to Drawings — Harmony 24 Premium Documentation
• Converting Drawings to New Deformation Chains — Harmony 25 Premium Documentation
• Harmony 24 Release Notes — Harmony 24 Essentials Documentation
• Converting Brush Strokes to Pencil Lines — Harmony 25 Advanced Documentation