FrameForge 3D will be demonstrating the latest version of its previs software at the Showbiz Software Store at 500 S. Sepulveda Blvd. in West L.A. E-mail Leimomi Coloretti to reserve your space.
Three of the seven films competing in the visual effects industry Bake-off on Jan. 25 at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences used Houdini from Side Effects Software. They include CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE and THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE. The Bake-off involves a 15-minute presentation to the Visual Effects Award Nominating committee, which will then create the final nomination list for the Visual Effects Oscar awarded each year by the academy.
Since its launch at 3December, Alias' Ahead of the Curve design competition is accepting designs from students that demonstrate exceptional creativity and skill. The deadline is May 31, 2006. Three winners will be chosen in each of the following categories: Automotive Design, Product Design, Film and Video, Games Asset Development and Graphic Design/3D Illustration.
Jupitermedia Corp. announced that its Jupiterimages division has acquired the assets of Animation Factory Inc., which includes the MediaBuilder Network of websites, (www.animationfactory.com) and (www.mediabuilder.com), from VA Software Corp. for $9.35 million in cash and the assumption of certain liabilities.
Autodesk Inc. has begun shipping Autodesk Combustion 4 software for Apple Macintosh. Combustion 4, Autodesk's desktop visual effects software consists of a powerful feature set, including vector paint, particles, effects, animation and 3D compositing. This new version for the Mac operating system streamlines the creative process for visual graphics creation by providing enhanced interoperability with third-party desktop applications, improved paint tools and workflow efficiency.
In this months Digital Eye column, Autodesks Tom Ohanian asks if there is such a thing as one-size-fits-all in todays accelerated production environment?
At the Digital Media Festival in Sydney, Australia, Autodesk Inc. launched its Toxik visual effects software running on the Linux operating system. Toxik software enables teams of digital artists to collaboratively realize feature film visual effects ideas, and is already available on the Windows operating system. With the introduction of Toxik software running on Linux, film studios and post-production facilities have more options for the back-end infrastructure and administration of their digital film pipelines.
Innoventive Software, Llc. announced that its previsualization and storyboarding software, FrameForge 3D Studio, is now available for Windows fully localized in French with a French Installation and Getting Started Manual included.
IMAGICA Corp. has added 15 seats of Autodesk Toxik software to its post-production pipeline, along with training from Autodesk Consulting. Autodesk has also released the first feature extension to the Toxik collaborative visual effects and compositing software. This extension, called Blend and Comp, contains tools that make frequent digital compositing tasks easier.
Artists at DAZ Prods., a developer of professional-quality 3D software and models, have applied state-of-the-art graphics technology from NVIDIA Corp. to the process of illustrating a new book for the holiday season.
Autodesks 3ds Max core software development team will provide two days of intensive training for game developers as part of Autodesk Universitys annual 2005 confab, with a special session presented by strategic partner Intel Corp. Held at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort in Orlando, Florida, from Nov. 29-30, 2005. The 3ds Max Developers Conference will teach users techniques and practices to customize production pipelines, build MAXScripts, efficiently transfer scene data and take full advantage of the open 3ds Max framework.
e-on software announced the immediate availability of Vue 5 Easel, the new entry level version of its award winning Vue product line. Vue 5 Easel will be retailing at $99 for physical products and $89 for electronic download versions with an introductory price tag of $79. At the same time, e-on software also announces an aggressive price drop on the Esprit product line for a limited period of time.
With the industry still abuzz over the new Autodesk/Alias alliance, VFXWORLD took the opportunity to find out what happens next by interviewing Autodesks Carl Bass and Marc Petit and Alias Doug Walker. You can read today what they have to say about making their 3D software packages more interoperable and how they plan on taking full advantage of the convergence between the entertainment and design worlds.
On the heels of last weeks momentous Alias acquisition, Autodesk Inc. has begun shipping 3ds Max 8, the latest version of its award-winning 3D modeling, animation and rendering solution. Created to address growing 3D pipeline complexity with new data management, character animation and speed/performance advancements, 3ds Max software will better help customers realize their creative 3D ideas for game development, film and video production and design visualization.
DAZ Prods. Inc., a leading developer of professional quality 3D software and models, will host the "Ridiculously Big CG Sale," an exclusive two-week promotion, Oct. 7-22 on the DAZ Prods. website (www.daz3d.com). This promotion offers discounts on products from top industry companies, including: Caligari, Eovia, Right Hemisphere, Strata Software, EVGA, Corel, E-Frontier, e-on software and TheBest3D.com. Starting Oct. 7 at 8:00 am, MT, each of these companies will offer one of their products at a 30-60% discount for one day each to everyone who is a registered member on DAZ's website.
eyeon Software Inc. has started shipping its core compositing application, Fusion 5. Features include: 3D compositions with lights, cameras and primitives, OpenGL acceleration with display views, and an essential change to ASCII files. These, and all of Fusion 5's advanced features, are the result of significant artist feedback.
Avid Technology Inc. announced the worldwide availability of SOFTIMAGE|XSI version 5.0, the latest edition of the companys flagship 3D animation software. Unveiled at the SIGGRAPH tradeshow in August, XSI v.5.0 software includes a wide range of powerful new features, including non-destructive character tools and a comprehensive set of migration tools for Maya users, all of which enable artists to meet todays demanding production deadlines while future-proofing their existing pipelines.
Pipelinefx has signed a reseller agreement with Rahul Commerce to market its enterprise-class render farm management software Qube! Remote Control throughout the Indian animation industry.
Rahul is the leading system integrator in entertainment software technologies in India. Under this agreement, Rahul will market and provide training on Qube! software through its offices in Pune, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad.
LookAhead Decisions Inc. (LDI) announced the release of its breakthrough software product for videogames and animation. Locust uses proprietary simulation-based look-ahead methods similar to those used by world-championship chess programs, except it handles in realtime aspects such as uncertainty, complex time/cost tradeoffs and dozens of parallel decision-makers.
Side Effects Software, developer of the award-winning Houdini family of 3D software, has appointed industry veteran Garman Herigstad as production consultant. Herigstad will leverage more than 19 years of experience in 3D animation and vfx at Digital Domain and Sony Pictures Imageworks to provide on-site production and training support to studios using Houdini software.
Side Effects Software offers learning opportunities at its training center within the Santa Monica office for the Fall/Winter 2005. The Houdini 8 Boot Camp is an intensive one-week introduction to Houdini for technical directors with at least 2 years professional experience using production-level 3D software. This intensive hands-on course, providing 30 hours of training over five days, offers a working knowledge of Houdini in production.
e-on software announced the September release of Vue 5 Easel, the new entry-level version of its award winning Vue product line. Vue 5 Easel will sell for $99.
Vue 5 Easel is specifically designed for digital artists and hobbyists looking for a simple introduction to 3D. With a rich and easy-to-use feature set, Vue 5 Easel will let newcomers to 3D create images and animations within minutes.
Going into its 10th year, QuakeCon remains true to its original mission as an event created by gamers, for gamers. Sponsored by id Software and other industry-leading software and hardware manufacturers, QuakeCon continues to be run by a dedicated group of 30 year-round volunteers and more than 200 on-site volunteers. Nearly 6,000 people attended QuakeCon in 2004, and the event has expanded to include QUAKE, QUAKE II, QUAKE III ARENA, QUAKE III: TEAM ARENA, RETURN TO CASTLE WOLFENSTEIN and DOOM 3.
According to leading marketing information provider, Sonys GRAN TURISMO 4 for the PlayStation 2 ranked top in sales for the first half of 2005. The NPD Group also reported retail sales of U.S. console and portable videogames hardware, software and accessories saw an increase of 21% during the first half of 2005 (January June), compared to the same time period last year. The videogames industry saw sales figures rise to more than $4.1 billion in the first half of the year compared to $3.4 billion in the first half of 2004.
With Illuminate Labs set to launch Turtle 2.0 at SIGGRAPH 2005, Xen Wildman provides a sneak peek of its new and improved features.
