New Version Provides Real-Time Simulation Toolset and Enhanced
Interactivity for Director-Driven Virtual Cinematography and
Animation-Intensive Productions
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 11, 2008 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 SimulationsAnimators 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 IntegrationMotionBuilder 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 ViewportMotionBuilder 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.
For a complete list of new features and enhancements in Autodesk
MotionBuilder 2009, visit
www.autodesk.com/motionbuilder.
Pricing and AvailabilityAutodesk 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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