Importing the FBX
Drag your exported FBX file directly into the Content Browser at the destination folder you want (e.g. /Game/MetaHumans/Optimized/FaceMeshes/). The FBX Import dialog will open.
Import Settings
These are the key settings to get right:
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Mesh | Skeletal Mesh |
| Import Morph Targets | ON |
| Import Materials | ON (materials will need reassigning afterward) |
| Skeleton | Select the existing MetaHuman skeleton (do not create a new one) |
For the Skeleton field, browse to /Game/MetaHumans/Common/Common/MetaHuman_ControlRig_Skeleton or the skeleton from your assembled character; the exact path may vary depending on your project. The important thing is to reuse an existing MetaHuman skeleton rather than letting UE create a new one, to ensure compatibility with the MetaHuman body and any existing animations.
Once imported, open the mesh in the Skeletal Mesh Editor and switch to the Morph Targets tab to confirm all 52 are present and working.
Material Reassignment
Materials will come in with generic names derived from the OBJ material groups (Skin, Teeth, EyeLeft, etc.) and will appear pink (missing) in the viewport. This is expected: you need to point each slot at the original MetaHuman material instance.
In the Asset Details panel of the Skeletal Mesh Editor, scroll to the LOD 0 material list and reassign each slot using the table below. Repeat for each additional LOD (lower LODs have fewer material sections).
Material Slot Mapping Reference
| Material slot name after import | MetaHuman material to assign |
|---|---|
| Skin / Skin_LOD* | MI_Head_Skin |
| Teeth | MI_Teeth |
| Saliva | MI_Saliva |
| EyeLeft | MI_Eye_Left |
| EyeRight | MI_Eye_Right |
| EyeShell | MI_Eye_Shell |
| EyeLashes | MI_Lashes |
| EyeLacrima | MI_LacrimalFluid |
| EyeEdge | MI_EyeEdge |
Note
Not all slots are present on every LOD. Lower LODs have fewer material sections. For example, LOD 3 typically only has Skin, Teeth, EyeLeft, and EyeRight. Only assign slots that actually exist on each LOD.
The MetaHuman material instances are shared assets located under /Game/MetaHumans/Common/ and are the same ones your original character already uses; no need to duplicate them.
Assigning to a MetaHuman Blueprint
To use the optimized face mesh in your scene, open your MetaHuman character Blueprint and find the Face Skeletal Mesh component. In its Details panel, replace the Skeletal Mesh Asset with your newly imported morph-target mesh.
You can then drive the morph targets via Live Link (set up an ARKit Live Link source and connect it to the Blueprint's morph target curve names, which match the ARKit blendshape names exactly) or via any other animation system that writes morph target weights, such as sequencer curves or Blueprint nodes.