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Animation Headline News

Toon Boom Teams With Electric Rain On 3D Plug-Ins

Toon Boom Technologies has teamed with Electric Rain to extend its support for 3D animation. These new plug-ins will feature a special edition that outputs in the USAnimation format, allowing USAnimation users to import 3D animation created with 3D Studio MAX, LightWave or XSI into the 2D world. Electric Rain is a leading developer and supplier of 3D to vector solutions with Swift 3D MAX, Swift 3D LW and Swift 3D XSI. "Toon Boom is pleased to offer its customers the option to integrate 3D animation created with the leading 3D animation software.

Software Headline News

Xara Launches Online 3D Heading Maker

Xara has launched its new desktop graphics software - the online 3D Heading Maker. The 3D Heading Maker allows potential customers to test-drive Xara's 3D desktop software, Xara3D, in real-time on the Xara Website, without downloads or any required installations. Users can create, customize and save text-based 3D graphics live on the Web page. Content can then be embedded in any third-party Website with all the same functionality.

Headline News

Digimation Ships Facegen Head Generator

Digimation, Inc. has shipped FaceGen, an all-purpose head generator for 3ds max 3 and 4. FaceGen is built around a series of published anatomical metrics for real-life male and female heads. With the software, users receive full control over each feature independently. FaceGen also offers a complete set of Custom Mesh components so that after users create their preferred head style, they can add a skeletal structure beneath that will fit perfectly.

Animation Headline News

Kaydara Ships Filmbox 3.0

Kaydara Inc. announced the release of FiLMBOX 3.0, the latest release of the company's real-time 3D content authoring and delivery tool. FiLMBOX 3.0 brings real-time mixed-media authoring capabilities to Apple computers, with support for Mac OS X. Enhancements made to the new edition include improvements to the Control Sets feature, enabling 3D artists to animate CG characters without having to program complex IK rigs and constraints as is usually required by this type of advanced feature.

Headline News

Maya Complete To Ship In September

Alias|Wavefront, an SGI company, has announced that its Maya Complete software for Mac OS X is scheduled to ship on or before September 25, 2001. Beta tester and 3D artist, Kevin Baille, said, "All of us here at The Orphanage are ecstatic about the progress Alias|Wavefront has been making with the OS X implementation of Maya. Being a completely Mac-based visual effects and production studio, we are extremely impressed by how easily Maya for OS X fits into and enhances our existing production pipeline.

Toon Headline News

Toon Boom Ships 2D Web Animation Software

Toon Boom Technologies, a leading supplier of 2D animation software, announced the commercial release of Toon Boom Studio v1.0 for Mac and PC. Toon Boom Studio increases productivity for digital animators with improved drawing accuracy, an automatic lip-sync feature, 3D scene planning and compact Flash-compatible file rendering for greater scene complexity. The software package also incorporates the feel of traditional animation with a rotating light table, "X" sheet visual representation of the work and a "flip-book" feature.

Animations Headline News

Truespace 3D Now Supports Flash

Caligari Corporation, a provider of 3D authoring technologies, has announced that its 3D modeling and animation package trueSpace 5.1 now supports Macromedia Flash. This is in addition to Caligari's existing support for Macromedia Shockwave3D, Director8.5 and Viewpoint Experience Technology. Web developers can now convert their trueSpace5.1 objects (including NURBS) and scenes to Flash format, including all trueSpace geometry, materials, lights, views and even advanced animation techniques such as script animations, bones and key-frame animations.

Headline News

Macromedia & Intel Team To Bring Flash To Mobile Devices

Macromedia, Inc. has teamed with Intel Corporation to optimize the Macromedia Flash Player for the Intel XScale microarchitecture utilizing the Intel Integrated Performance Primitives (IPP). As a result of this partnership, users will be able to experience high quality MP3 audio when playing Macromedia Flash content on devices built using Intel applications processors. The optimized code will be available to device manufacturers for use with the Macromedia Flash Player Software Development Kit (SDK) later this year.

Headline News

Alias|Wavefront Ships Studiotools Modeling Upgrade

Alias|Wavefront has shipped StudioTools 9.7, the company's latest upgrade to its CAID (computer-aided industrial design) family. Through a new filleting tool, StudioTools speeds the process and adds modeling power for rounding edges between adjoining surfaces in the model. By combining this function with StudioTools advanced evaluation tools, such as reflection maps, curvature maps, draft angle evaluation and cross-sections, designers can interactively manipulate the fillet and evaluate results immediately.

Headline News

Discreet Posts Latest Update For 3ds Max

Discreet has posted a downloadable update to version 4.2 for 3ds max. This update includes enhancements across the entire product that will ensure quality, workflow, performance and stability. Some of these enhancements include overall memory efficiency; performance increases in TrackView, TrackBar, Particles, RPF and ActiveShade; workflow enhancements in Skin, Custom Attributes, Render Elements, Subdivision Surfaces (HSDS, Meshsmooth), Parameter Wiring, Groups, ActiveShade and PolyObjects. The 3ds max update is downloadable from the Discreet Web site at www.discreet.com.

Headline News

Corel Announces Bryce 5

By Dan Sarto | Sunday, July 1, 2001 at 12:00am

Corel Corporation has announced Bryce 5, the latest version of its 3D landscape creation and animation application. Available for the Macintosh and Windows platforms, the program, part of Corels creative collection, is scheduled for shipment in July 2001. Bryce 5 is Corels first application designed specifically for Apples new Mac OS X platform. Corel plans to release a number of products for the new operating system over the coming months.

Studio Headline News

Carrara Studio Released

By Dan Sarto | Sunday, July 1, 2001 at 12:00am

Eovia has announced the release of Carrara Studio, a re-branded and souped up version of MetaCreations Carrara, a 3D graphics application for the Macintosh and Windows platform. Billed as the successor to Ray Dream Studio and Infini-D, the new program includes numerous bug fixes, as well as Amapi 3D v5, a complete NURBS modeler, Smart Pack, a set of 25 new plug-ins and Carrara QuickTour, an interactive tutorial.

Animation Headline News

High End 3D Animation Coming to An Orthodontist Near You

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, June 26, 2001 at 12:00am

A leading professor of orthodontics has announced the development of a process for animating a patients planned orthodontic treatment. The process, called 3-D CIMAS, three-dimensional craniofacial imaging and motion animation system, allows both the patient and clinician to see the exact propsed treatment and outcome before work is ever begun. The brainchild of Dr. Orhan C.

Animation Headline News

DigiCel Releases FlipBook SE 2D Animation Software

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, June 26, 2001 at 12:00am

Animation software developer DigiCel, Inc. has released FlipBook SE (Standard Edition), a 2D animation software program. The program give animators the ability to scan or shoot their drawings under a camera, in addition to drawing them on the computer itself using the programs built-in light table feature. As the drawings are captured, they are automatically positioned in a traditional style exposure and can be played back the moment capturing is completed. An editable exposure sheet lets animators experiment with timing changes while the scene is being played.

Studio Headline News

Three French CG Companies Partner To Launch Showroom 3D

Artrack, 3DVF Studio and 3D Corum, three French CG companies, have entered into a partnership to create Showroom 3D, an all-inclusive solution for 3D content broadcasting on the Internet. Showroom 3D offers virtual presentations of client products and events, as well as rich media advertising. Artrack is a 3D animation, multimedia and video digital studio, while 3DVF Studio offers technology solutions for CG and Web projects. 3D Corum Studio is the 3D and multimedia department of IGTECH, a high-tech company. For more information on the solutions they provide visit www.showroom3d.com.

Headline News

Electric Rain Releases Swift 3D Max And LW Plug-Ins

By Dan Sarto | Monday, June 25, 2001 at 12:00am

Electric Rain, Inc. announced the release of two new plug-ins for LightWave 3D and Discreet 3ds max users. The Swift 3D LW plug-in allows LightWave 3D users to render 3D scenes directly to a variety of vector-based file formats, including Flash (SWF), AI, EPS and the new XML-based SVG. Similarly, the Swift 3D MAX plug-in allows 3ds max users the ability to render 3D scenes directly from the 3ds max interface to the same set of vector-based file formats. Both plug-ins provide high accuracy 3D scene rendering, while staying true to colors, lighting schemes, camera views and animations.

Headline News

Cambridge Releases Animo 4.0 With Flash Support

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, June 19, 2001 at 12:00am

Cambridge Animation Systems has announced Animo 4.0, the newest version of their flagship cartoon animation system. Available this month from Cambridge and their distributor network, the new version includes a number of new features, greater performance and the ability to output work in Flash format. Animo 4.0 users now can reduce their Flash file output size and optimize their content for the low bandwidth of the Internet through special controls such as disabling filter nodes and disabling animation of any bitmap image.

Headline News

Alias|Wavefront Ships Maya 4

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, June 19, 2001 at 12:00am

Alias|Wavefront has begun shipping Maya 4, the latest release of the companys industry leading 3D animation and visual effects software suite. The new release boasts numerous enhancements and optimizations designed to improve the programs overall ease-of-use and efficiency, with particular focus on rendering, character animation, brush and paint tools and games related functionality. The new release includes enhanced functionality and usability in several key areas. Focused improvements have been made throughout Maya to upgrade the UI and streamline the production workflow.

Tools Headline News

Phoenix Tools Releases Origami 2.0 & New Maya Shader

Phoenix Tools, an Italy-based computer graphics software developer, announced the release of Origami 2.0, a high-end set of modules and utilities for Softimage|3D, and a new Maya Shader plug-in. Origami 2.0 allows users to extract or reconstruct the lost 3D information from a set of photographs or a motion sequence. The new package is faster and easier, with greater reliability, giving the user a complete set of tools for all the steps that constitute the complex process of camera tracking and 3D reconstruction.

Headline News

Toon Boom Ships ToonShader

By Dan Sarto | Tuesday, May 29, 2001 at 12:00am

Toon Boom Technologies has announced the release of ToonShader, the latest addition to the USAnimation system. ToonShader lets Alias|Wavefront's Maya users import their 3D models and motion capture data directly into USAnimation, giving animators the ability to bring a 3D flair to their 2D animation as well as ouput to all media platforms including the Internet. "Alias|Wavefront is very pleased to welcome USAnimation and ToonShader to the family of integrated plug-ins available for Maya," said Tom Reyburn, developer relations manager for Alias|Wavefront.

Animation Headline News

Cambridge Animation Bringing Animo To Mac OS X

By Dan Sarto | Friday, May 25, 2001 at 12:00am

Cambridge Animation Systems has announced Animo for Mac OS X, Apple's next-generation operating system. Animo integrates 2D and 3D animation for development of feature films, animated television series, commercials, games and multimedia projects. "Mac OS X's UNIX-based foundation, advanced Internet features and stunning graphics capabilities make it an ideal platform for digital animation production," said Ron Okamoto, Apple's vice president of worldwide developer relations.

Headline News

Toonz 4.5 Released

By Dan Sarto | Friday, May 25, 2001 at 12:00am

Italys Digital Video S.r.l., developers of the 2D animation package Toonz, has started shipping the new 4.5 release for the Windows NT/2000, Irix and Linux operating systems. The new version of Toonz provides a number of new features, including Flash support, a new palette extraction tool, native support for new scanners, DDR to VCR control, new effects, a new wizard button to make batches more efficient and others.

Headline News

Caligari Releases trueSpace 5.1 with Shockwave3D Output

By Dan Sarto | Thursday, May 24, 2001 at 12:00am

3D authoring technology vendor Caligari Corporation has released trueSpace 5.1, the newest version of its 3D modeling program that now features new support for Macromedia Shockwave3D and other web output capabilities. The company lowered the price for the stand-alone version of trueSpace, as well as launched a new paid subscription-based "proTeam" program of online tools, training programs, libraries and support services.

Game Headline News

Microsoft And Microids License Discreet’s Gmax Game Customization Tools

By Dan Sarto | Wednesday, May 23, 2001 at 12:00am

On Thursday, May 17, 2001, Discreet announced licensing deals with both Microsoft and Microids to include gmax consumer customization tools in each game developers upcoming game titles. This integration of gmax, a product derived from the same code base as the industry-leading 3ds max, means developers can offer customers a flexible, customizable environment within the game where they can create, modify and trade content with fellow players.

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