Central pattern generators (CPGs) are genetically determined neural circuits that produce self-sustained patterns of behavior that subserve innate motor activities essential for survival. In higher primates, CPGs are largely under neocortical control. Certain motor manifestations observed in parasomnias and epileptic seizures share similar semiological features resembling motor behaviors, which can be the expression of the same CPG. Epilepsy and sleep can lead to a temporary loss of control of neocortex on lower neural structures. We suggest that this transitory neocortical dysfunction facilitates the emergence of stereotyped inborn motor patterns that depend on the activation of the same CPGs.