Run a Template before you spend anything
Opens one of the built-in example projects: it already contains footage and one of Autodesk's own characters, and finishes far faster than a normal job.
Why this one: Templates are pre-processed and run on the supplied characters, which the documentation says lets you "generate results without using up render time" — the only way to see what finished output looks like before the month's credits are gone.
Tweak: While you are in there, look at the list of export elements — knowing which are separate downloads changes what you would go out and shoot.
Shoot ten seconds the way the documentation asks for
One person, full body in frame, against a background they do not overlap with, in even light and with as little motion blur as you can manage.
Why this one: Flow Studio publishes a ranked list of which body parts its tracker most needs to see — head first, then legs, then hips and torso, then arms. Framing decided before you press record is worth more here than anything you can adjust afterwards.
Tweak: The docs' own words are "shoot wider, then crop in."
Take the movement only, and skip the character
Runs the clip through AI Motion Capture mode, which returns a file of body and hand movement instead of a finished video. You apply that movement to a character inside Blender, Maya or Unreal.
Why this one: By the credit rate quoted above, movement-only processing costs roughly a fifth of what full character replacement costs on the same footage. It is also the one mode that does not require a Flow Studio-ready character at all.
Tweak: Choose USD rather than FBX if you want every bone: the docs say FBX delivers "only retargeted bones" while USD delivers all of them.
Put your own character through the validator before you upload it
Installs Autodesk's free Blender or Maya add-on — from the Downloads page on the official help site, not a search result — and runs the same check the website runs, on your own machine and instantly.
Why this one: Flow Studio will not take an arbitrary 3D file: it wants a rig whose name ends in the tag BODY, at least one bone representing the hips, a T-pose, and under 1,500,000 polygons. Failing that check after an upload costs you a round trip; failing it locally costs nothing.
Tweak: The Downloads page also has example characters for Blender, Maya and FBX — copy one's bone naming rather than guessing.
Use the Canvas to fix a frame, not to make a film
Canvas is a separate workspace of connected boxes where you can send a rendered shot and then generate or edit still images and video with hosted generation tools.
Why this one: It is the one part of Flow Studio where you type a description of what you want instead of uploading it, and it sits on the same canvas as your rendered shot, so a background fix never leaves the project.
Tweak: The documentation's own advice for writing those descriptions: describe one main object or character per request, use "clear, literal descriptions instead of cinematic or narrative language," and for anything you intend to animate later, ask for a neutral pose with the limbs separated. We could not confirm from the public pages whether Canvas is included on the free tier or what each generation costs in credits — check the cost the interface shows you before you run one.
