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Autodesk Announces MotionBuilder 2009 3D Character Animation Software
Tuesday 12. August 2008 - New Version Provides Real-Time Simulation Toolset and Enhanced Interactivity for Director-Driven Virtual Cinematography and Animation-Intensive Productions
At SIGGRAPH 2008, Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK) today announced Autodesk MotionBuilder 2009 software, the latest version of its real-time 3D character animation solution for games, film, and television projects. The 2009 version offers high-quality visualizations within the 3D viewport, an intuitive toolset for real-time simulation, and expanded scripting capabilities for tighter pipeline integration. MotionBuilder 2009 will be showcased at the Autodesk booth (#501) during SIGGRAPH 2008, at the Los Angeles Convention Center Aug. 12-14.
“Autodesk MotionBuilder 2009 is one of the most significant releases of the software since its inception,” said Marc Petit, Autodesk’s Media & Entertainment senior vice president. “This version includes improved workflows for technical directors, as well as an increased focus on interactivity with capture, simulation and high quality rendering in real time. It lets animators be more productive, and puts total creative control into the hands of directors and cinematographers.”
“Autodesk MotionBuilder has long been one of the most powerful and reliable character animation tools on the market — both for keyframing and motion capture processing,” said Petr Mores, senior animator at Crytek GmbH, and MotionBuilder beta tester. “As an animator, I love the new rigid body physics and Rag Doll solvers in the 2009 version, which help to perfect a multitude of movements that would otherwise be quite painful to capture realistically. Technical directors will also be happy to see the new Python script editor and ability to create custom UIs, which will allow them to fully integrate MotionBuilder into pipelines like ours.”
Key Highlights of Autodesk MotionBuilder 2009
Real-time Simulations
Animators now have the ability to perform rigid body dynamic simulations inside the software, giving them a more efficient workflow for producing realistic animations. Support for real-time collisions prevents interpenetration of characters, objects and other scene elements. This is particularly useful for those looking to efficiently edit 3D animations involving characters interacting with objects. Also, the addition of a Rag Doll solver allows users to perform simulations dynamically, such as a character falling and hitting the ground. Artists can control the behavior of their character easily by layering animation on top of this simulation, for increased realism.
Enhanced Pipeline Integration
MotionBuilder 2009 enhances support for industry-standard digital content creation applications, so that both technical directors and developers can integrate the software into a production pipeline and bring data across, quickly and accurately. The Python scripting language now includes a full script editor with syntax checking and command highlighting, which enables technical directors to create custom tools and scripts more efficiently. Enhanced support is also available for workflows involving MotionBuilder and the Autodesk 3ds Max software’s Biped system or the Autodesk Maya software’s Full Body Inverse Kinematics (FBIK) character rig.
Real-Time Rendering in the Viewport
MotionBuilder 2009 provides support for advanced hardware shaders, improving the quality of the real-time display in the viewport. New Normal Mapping CG shader support allows artists to work with existing normal maps created in Autodesk Maya, Autodesk 3ds Max or Autodesk Mudbox software and view them in real-time in the viewport. Furthermore, the new Light Attenuation CG shader lets artists achieve greater levels of subtlety and realism by giving them more control over the attenuation and fall-off of their real-time lighting. Also, MotionBuilder now supports version 2.0 of the CgFX library, enabling animators to take advantage of the latest CgFX shader technology.
Pricing and Availability
Autodesk anticipates that MotionBuilder 2009 will be available in October 2008. The software will be available for 32-bit and 64-bit Microsoft Windows operating systems, now including the 64-bit Microsoft Windows Vista Business operating system. The Autodesk suggested retail price for MotionBuilder 2009 software is US$3,995*. The Autodesk suggested retail price to upgrade from MotionBuilder 7.5 to MotionBuilder 2009 is US$995*.
Autodesk Subscription with Gold Support is available for purchase simultaneously with the product or upgrade purchase. The Autodesk suggested retail price Subscription with Gold Support for MotionBuilder is US$795* per year. Subscription with Gold Support customers qualify for access to the latest software updates, valuable product extensions, telephone and web support, a comprehensive knowledgebase and e-learning materials.
*International pricing may vary.
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