Browsing Tag
Digital Production
64 posts
Animate re-animated
The King is dead, long live the King: Adobe caves, and Animate remains available with support and fixes, but no new features.
That’s It for This Year: Digital Production Wishes You Happy Holidays
Digital Production is taking a short end-of-year break. Back up your data, sort out the chaos folder, enjoy the holidays, and we will be back next year.
Beyond VFX dives into AI Ethics
AI meets VFX and ethics: Beyond VFX returns on 26 Nov 2025 with VES and ICE.ART. Join Ben Lock, Victor Perez, Frank Govaere & Dr Jana Sedlakova and Agon Ushaku for a free panel.
New add-on for Blender brings onion skinning layering into full 3D
the new “3D Onion Skinning” add-on for Blender gives you ghosted frames in 3D so you can see motion timing and spacing without flipping frames manually.
Autodesk launches Maya 2026.3 & Creative 2026.3
Maya 2026.3 packs Bifrost rigid bodies, Graph Editor channel sets, Flow connectivity, and an upgraded USD asset resolver.
Blender 4.5 LTS lands
lender 4.5 LTS arrives with studio-grade support; the Blender survey shows where users stand; and Blender 5.0 beta is already here, so its time to plan your upgrade.
After Effects Gets Hands-On: Victoria Nece Shows Off Quick Offset & Co.
At IBC 2025, I talked with Adobe’s Victoria Nece about Quick Offset, Smooth Zoom, and 3D compositing in After Effects. It’s tactile, fast and oddly fun.
RE:Vision Effects ups the ante with REZup V2 (and yes, it’s 4× sharper)
REZup V2 arrives with two new GPU-friendly ML models: general-purpose DNN 3 and face-focused DNN 2 and adds temporal denoising for cleaner 4× upscaling.
iPhones Go “Pro” with Final Cut Camera 2.0
iPhones just levelled-up: Final Cut Camera 2.0 adds ProRes RAW, genlock, open-gate, Apple Log 2, timecode and multicam workflow tools – free update arriving later in September.
Clay 4.Doh Update Sculpts Blender Workflow
Rahul Parihar’s Clay 4.Doh update expands his Blender clay toolkit with new tools, modifiers, shader improvements, and perpetual free updates.
Problem Solver for VFX | TD Meetup 19
Problem-solving is a key life and professional skill, especially for those working with technology. Technical artists and directors in visual effects, animation and games are constantly solving technical problems, such as software crashes and slowdowns. They create alternative workflows and write Python scripts to speed up the process.
Tomato Warfare: Milk VFX on Heads of State
Milk VFX Supervisor David Sadler-Coppard on how the team built thousands of CG tomatoes, exploding doors, and digital crowds for Heads of State.
UModeler X Personal Arrives Inside Unity Editor
UModeler Inc. has released UModeler X Personal: a Unity Editor plugin for modeling, rigging, painting, curve mesh and 3D text, ideal for indie and metaverse creators.
Photoshop 2025.7 adds smarter Remove, Firefly‑model control, and refined sharing
Photoshop 2025.7 (version 26.9) adds non‑destructive Remove from contextual bar, Firefly model chooser and share‑to‑apps export control
GSOPs 2.6: The Swiss Army Knife for Gaussian Splatting in Houdini
GSOPs 2.6 delivers free 2D/3D Gaussian Splatting editing, viewport rendering, mesh export, Karma and Solaris integration for Houdini 20.5.
No DRM, No Fuss: Digital Production Archive Now Online
The Digital Production archive is live: all issues as DRM-free PDFs via Dropbox, exclusively for subscribers.
Crossbow: Workflow Automation for VFX & Animation
Four years of R&D, zero spreadsheets, no more copy-pasting shot status—Crossbow promises a less painful way to manage VFX and animation projects. In this interview, Jindrich Cervenka explains what Crossbow shoots, why it matters, and why you still need a mid-range GPU.
Over 1,500 Free PBR Textures from LotPixel’s Library
LotPixel has released over 1,500 scan‑based PBR texture sets in JPEG format, with resolutions up to 8 K, and…
ICE Nexus: Now Streaming, Pixel by Pixel
ICE Nexus launches June 25 with Arcware, exploring real-time 3D pixel streaming, digital humans, and virtual showrooms in a free online event.
Share Your Thoughts On Editing, Snag a Reward!
Evans Research and Digital Production are doing Research - into Editors and their wishes, hopes and (Broken) dreams - tell us everything about YOUR workflow and opinions!
Mustafa Morad’s Datacolor LightColor Meter Adventure
Discover how Datacolor's LightColor Meter can enhance your workflow and save you from unnecessary post-processing in a free webinar on April 3.
Adobe Photoshop 26.5: New Tool
Adobe’s Photoshop 26.5 introduces new tools for VFX artists, from better 3D painting to enhanced compositing functions. These features promise smoother workflows for digital artists.
KitBash3D Assets Now on Envato: Worlds for Sale
Kitbash3D and Envato partner up: 3D assets now available via Envato Elements’ subscription.
LightWave 2025: Something is coming
LightWave Digital unveils LightWave 2025, introducing RIPR for real-time HDR previews, enhanced Rhiggit tools, LW Construct for rapid asset creation, and a versatile Cel Shader for stylized rendering.
ASUS ProArt Display 5K PA27JCV
Let's not faff about: 5K Screens? Really? I tested one, and here are the results - the Use Case is not what you might think it is.
MoonRay 1.7: DreamWorks’ Renderer Gets a Shiny Update
DreamWorks Animation releases MoonRay 1.7, introducing PortalLight, enhanced NVIDIA GPU acceleration, and Cryptomatte support in hdMoonRay.
Terragen 4.8 & Sky Update: Shaping Clouds and Worlds
Planetside Software releases Terragen 4.8 and updates Terragen Sky, introducing GPU previews, cloud exports, and a cloud-painting tool for CGI and VFX professionals.
AI Meets 3D: Meshtron Spins Up Smarter Meshes
Meshtron uses AI to generate 3D meshes with speed and flexibility. A promising tool for VFX, games, and real-time workflows—simplicity remains key.
From Sketch to Scene: Clay Pencil Turns 2D into 3D in Real Time
Clay Pencil transforms 2D sketches into 3D animations in real-time, leveraging Blender’s node-based Geometry Nodes system.
LayerPainter Update Enhances Painting Workflow in Blender
The LayerPainter add-on for Blender gets updated with improved UI, new features for texture painting, and added functionality for VFX workflows.
Population V2 Add-on for Blender Enhances Crowd Simulation
The lightweight Blender add-on Population introduces updates for faster, more flexible crowd simulations tailored for VFX and animation workflows.
Black Friday 2024: Best Deals for Post-Production Pros
This year’s Black Friday brings discounts on DaVinci Resolve, FilmConvert Nitrate, and OWC hardware—essential tools for post-production workflows.
New Kizzle Splatter Node Enhances Adobe Substance 3D Designer
Kai Mergener’s custom Kizzle Splatter Node streamlines pattern creation in Substance 3D Designer, offering new procedural texturing capabilities for 3D artists.
Free Brushstroke Tools Now Available for Blender from Blender Studio
New brushstroke tools for Blender—free from Blender Studio—offer expanded control for digital sculpting and painting.
Study Explores Automated 3D Mapping for VFX and Game Development
Researchers investigate ActiveSplat, a cutting-edge system for automated 3D mapping, offering new possibilities for VFX and game production.
Foundry Announces Modo’s Retirement: A Final Version Before End-of-Life
Foundry announces the end of Modo development, shifting focus to core products; support for Modo 17.1 will continue until contracts expire.
Let’s Fix it in Pod 02 Jobs and A.I. with Benjamin Wild
In this episode, Bela and Christoph tackle the possibilities and challenges that Machine Learning and A.I. are offering to the vfx industry.
D5 Render 2.9: Enhanced Terrain and Workflow
D5 Render 2.9 updates: Terrain tools, AI-based lighting, and pipeline optimizations for smoother real-time rendering.
“Grease Pencil” hPaint for Houdini
hPaint now extends Grease Pencil-like features for Houdini 20.5 in one easy to use HDA.
Blender Pack Saves Your Back: 2,000+ Interior Assets for 3D Artists
Skip the furniture store—this 2,000-item Blender pack brings diverse, ready-to-use interior assets straight to your VFX pipeline.
Substance 3D Modeler released! v1.15: New VR Feature
Adobe’s Substance 3D Modeler v1.15 brings VR sculpting enhancements and improved stability for 3D artists.
Fab Marketplace by Epic Games
Fab, Epic Games' new content marketplace, is now live. Artists can access 3D assets for VFX, games, and post-production projects. Expect updates as the platform stabilizes.
New Cloth Creation Toolset for Houdini: A First Look
Houdini Artits introduce a new cloth and curves creation toolset basend on the drawing of Curves.
Blackmagic Camera 1.4 Update for Android: Xperia Support and More
BMD has rolled out version 1.4 of its Camera Control app for Android, now supporting Xperia devices.
Blender Plug-ins by Jesse Miettinen Now Free to Download
The Developer made his Blender plug-ins free, offering new tools for artists to streamline their workflows.
Inkscape 1.4 Released
Inkscape 1.4 is now available, delivering significant performance upgrades and new tools that will benefit digital artists, VFX…
SpeedTree 10 : Workflow and Performance
SpeedTree 10 is out, offering a streamlined workflow, improved integration with major platforms, and faster processing for 3D vegetation creation.
Timeline Tools von The Foundry 2
Color, Comp und Conform! Nuke and Nuke X are the de facto-standard in node-based compositing. But even seasoned Nuke artists have often had little or no contact with the closely related reviewing and finishing products.
The power of the crowd
Looking back: In DP 03 : 2015, Lighting Boy Studio realised the film project Le Gouffre. A Kickstarter campaign brought the animated film over the finishing line. An animago AWARD-nominated short film.
Flight of fancy | Retro article
Review: In DP 06 : 2014, the second instalment of Planes rotated its way into the inbound flight path. Disneytoon Studios increased the budget for software licences and personnel at the time - but does the film come close to Disney-Slash-Pixar major productions such as Frozen or Brave?
War of the Worlds | Retro Articles
Review: In DP 05 : 2005, ILM chased special effects through a brand new pipeline for Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds film. A test run with time pressure - in the middle of a big-budget production.
Between HFF and VHS | Retro article
Looking back: A special film school opened in Mannheim in DP 06 : 2014. The non-profit organisation Flimmermenschen views film as a holistic cultural phenomenon. An educational programme for students, hobbyists and newcomers to the industry.
Star for Stuttgart | Retro article
Review: In DP 06 : 2014, we went into conversation with performance capturing pioneer Andy Serkis - chatting about Planet of the Apes. An encounter at FMX 2014.
Nvidia’s Omniverse gets an extensive update!
DeepSearch is being modernised, new connectors are to ensure better collaboration - and Omniverse is to become more performant and user-friendly in general.
More locations, more VFX!
Looking back: In DP 03 : 2015, we found out that Rise Visual Effects Studios has been around since 2007 - eight years later, in 2015, it even had four locations. Founder Florian Gellinger explained to us how the expansion of the VFX business was achieved.
Interview zu Cloud Atlas
Review: In DP 02 : 2013, we spoke to Florian Gellinger, founder of VFX studio Rise, about the David Mitchell film Cloud Atlas. The sci-fi epic was realised by: the Wachowski siblings.
Colourful balls
Review: In DP 01 : 2013, a world-famous manufacturer of sugar water commissioned a commercial from Bent Image Lab. Grading artist Jalal Jemison was responsible for the bright red colour typical of the beverage brand. An interview.
A new journey begins
Review: In DP 01 : 2013, Weta Digital went back to Middle-earth with Peter Jackson. For the prequel trilogy "The Hobbit", the New Zealanders transferred fantasy author J.R.R. Tolkien's prequel to the big screen.
Sleep Tight – A modern horror tale
"From the edge of a forest, the werewolf steps into the moonlight; in front of him lies a small settlement by a forest lake."
This sentence comes from an early version of our script. A lot happened from there to the final film. The old-fashioned settlement became a big city, the forest lake became a hill with modern flats and the werewolf became a werewolf.
Making-of Krautscape
Review: In DP 04 : 2014, we let the engines roar in the racing game Krautscape by developers Mario von Rickenbach and Michael Burgdorfer - including procedurally generated racetracks. A game project from the Zurich University of the Arts.
Cloudy with a view of Houdini
Review: In DP 03 : 2014, we climbed into the opening scene of the bestselling film adaptation of The Book Thief. Rise Visual Effects Studios realised a long cloud sequence including a 3D tracking shot with Houdini. How do artists create the perfect cumulus cloud?
Rubinrote VFX
Review: DP 03 : 2013 took a closer look at the film adaptation of the young adult novel Ruby Red. We spoke to Professor Jürgen Schopper, Supervisor Mortimer Warlimont and VFX Producer Katja Müller about particle effects, the filmability of Spiegel bestsellers and the magic of VFX shots.