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Adding and Customizing Item Animations

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弦乐 edited this page Aug 20, 2026 · 2 revisions

Adding and Customizing Item Animations

This guide explains how to use Blockbench to create a custom model and eating animation for an item.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, prepare the following tools and resources:

Install the Blockbench Plugins

  1. Open Blockbench.
  2. Open the plugin manager from the top menu.
  3. Search for and install Geckolib Models & Animations.
  4. Search for and install Camera.
  5. Restart Blockbench after installation to ensure both plugins are active.

Get the Template

Download basic_model_empty.bbmodel, then open it in Blockbench.

The template includes the basic structure required for item animations.

Customize the Model

You can freely customize the item model in the template. The model shown in Blockbench's Edit Mode is the model that will be held in-game, so use this view to create and adjust the appearance you want players to see.

Camera View

The camera view included in the template is approximately equivalent to Steve's first-person view in Minecraft, so it can be used to preview how the item will appear in-game.

Changes to the camera view in Blockbench cannot be applied in-game. The camera is only used for previewing your model and animation while creating them.

Create an Animation

After the model is ready, create the item animation. The animation name must be:

eat

The mod uses this exact name to identify the item's eating animation. Make sure the spelling and capitalization match exactly.

To keep the motion smooth, make sure the model in Edit Mode and the model at frame 0 of the eat animation are identical. A mismatch can cause a visible jump when the animation starts.

Add Sound Keyframes

  1. In the timeline, find the long pencil-shaped icon below the timeline. Hovering over it shows Animation Effects.
  2. Click it, then add a sound keyframe at the point where the sound should play.
  3. After adding the keyframe, check the left sidebar. It will show the sound keyframe settings, including Effect and Locator.
  4. Enter the sound keyframe name in the Effect field. This name is used to map the keyframe to a game sound.

The other sound keyframe fields can be left unchanged.

Add the Finished Keyframe

Near the end of the animation, add a command keyframe.

After selecting it, the left sidebar shows the command keyframe's Script field. Enter the following value:

finished

This tells the mod that the eating animation has finished.

Export the Files

When the model and animation are complete, use the following Blockbench export actions:

  1. Select File > Export > Export GeckoLib Model.
  2. Select File > Export > Export GeckoLib Animations.

Keep the base filename identical for the model, texture, and animation. For example:

exampleitem.geo.json
exampleitem.png
exampleitem.animation.json

Using matching names ensures that the mod can find the correct model, texture, and animation files.

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