Maya, used to create this scene, leads the pact for character animation tools, but some say the latest version of 3D Studio Max will close the gap. © Alias|Wavefront.

As a 3D animator, you are probably an expert in one software package. You live or die by not only your artistic skills, but also your in-depth knowledge of your chosen animation package. Your ability to create great animation is only realized once you can control your tools effortlessly. Sometimes, however, it is this very same specialization that determines the companies or clients for which you can work. There are often postings on job boards that read: "LightWave Character Animator Wanted" or "Maya Effects Artist Needed." Most animators cannot afford the time or the money to become fluent in more than one 3D program, so it is important to choose your killer app wisely. Which 3D packages will get you work, and which ones will leave you feeling unwanted?

For the purposes of this article, let's subdivide the 3D animation market into three categories: games, broadcast and film. Each of these industries has its own special requirements and tends to favor certain 3D software. 3D for games requires strong polygonal modeling and texturing tools, as well as an open SDK for hooking assets into the game code. Animation packages for broadcast rely on versatile effects, ease of use and beautiful, quick renderers. Finally, film animation software must have great animation controls, customizable interfaces and the ability to interact with other software, such as RenderMan or in-house tools. These are general guidelines, of course, not hard-and-fast rules. Many games now include pre-rendered cinematics — creating them requires tools similar to those used for broadcast and film animation. Some film effects shots have been done with more mid-level packages than you might expect.

While Oddworld, a top game producer, uses 3D Studio Max for real-time game play, Maya is used for their games' cinematics. © Oddworld.

The Right Tool For the Job
Games: 3D Studio Max reigns supreme. With nearly every development house using it, the game artist needs to know Max. Two other strong applications in this field are Maya and Softimage, but even with Microsoft Xbox middleware commitments to Maya, listings on Gamasutra.com's job board reveal close to 90% Max penetration into the game art market.

Broadcast: There are some commercial studios who stick with Mac tools, so Electric Image and LightWave are strong here; with the release of Maya on the new Macintosh OS X we'll see how long this holds true. On the Windows side, LightWave, Max, Maya and Softimage come up most frequently, but this is still fairly open territory, as there are so many boutiques doing broadcast work, and the right artist can sometimes choose their toolset.