John Bigboote Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 SO- I joined in a 'Linked-In' discussion on free/inexpensive animation software... they were all talking about DAZ and Blender and I chimed in touting about my beloved A:M... like I do. And this OTHER guy replies: Richard Nash • Matt - Jeff Lew uses Animation master and apparently they use it for blocking out animation quickly at Pixar before moving the data to a rig in Maya. A superb and much overlooked product! Can this be true? Or is this an olllld rumour coming back for new blood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MMZ_TimeLord Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Wouldn't really surprise me at all. Jeff Lew and any other animator at Pixar that has used A:M would probably find it VERY easy to make quick characters, block in and do beginning animatics for a project. That being said, I would like to know if it's true or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted January 18, 2012 Hash Fellow Share Posted January 18, 2012 Jeff Lew is at Pixar? Has he ever been at Pixar? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted January 18, 2012 Hash Fellow Share Posted January 18, 2012 Jeff Lew uses Animation master and apparently they use it for blocking out animation quickly at Pixar before moving the data to a rig in Maya. A superb and much overlooked product! I can't imagine this being an efficient workflow if it even exists. "moving the data"... ??? The description doesn't make sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildsided Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I thought Pixar used it's own in house software called RenderMan to make their stuff Alson is the MMZ in MMZ_TimeLord a reference to the videogame series Megaman Zero. If so excellent taste sir, if not well forget I said anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
largento Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Barry Zundel works as a TD at Pixar ...in rigging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MMZ_TimeLord Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I thought Pixar used it's own in house software called RenderMan to make their stuff Alson is the MMZ in MMZ_TimeLord a reference to the videogame series Megaman Zero. If so excellent taste sir, if not well forget I said anything. No sir, it refers to something very basic that is a key to any good film. All three have yet to be verified in the same movie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serg2 Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 In Pixar uses its own development for 3D character animation - "Marionette" software. I wonder how this is similar to the AM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Rodney Posted January 18, 2012 Admin Share Posted January 18, 2012 At $79 a year PIXAR can easily afford to put A:M on the purchasing menu for every animator who works there. Many companies have a catalog new employees refer to when setting up their office. "I'll take two of those... and one of those... and four pencils... and one copy of A:M." PIXAR's proprietary software (Marionette) is more difficult to travel with so it wouldn't surprise me to see A:M and other programs in use by folks there. If they do use it, that'd definitely give them the leg up on their competition. (Note: Renderman isn't an animation software. It's rendering solution.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildsided Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 (Note: Renderman isn't an animation software. It's rendering solution.) Consider me told lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bigboote Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 Those pics looked pretty dated... the info might be too. I doubt Pixar is still using Silicon Graphics CRT monitors. Marionette, probably. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted January 18, 2012 Hash Fellow Share Posted January 18, 2012 Victor Navone mentioned here that the first few movies (before he got there) were done with no on-screen controls for the rigs, everything was manipulated with sliders on the side. That sounds primitive. From what I've read of Pixar's workflow, they model most things in Maya now, rigging... I'm not sure, then animate in "Marionette" (but don't actually call it Marionette among themselves for some reason) and render in "Renderman". I like that we can do the whole pipeline in A:M I recall seeing a short clip of the animation interface in one of those "Making of" TV specials. An animator was playing back a dialog scene he working on and as it played there was a window of sliders, much like our Pose Sliders window, that moved in real time, much like A:M sliders do, and I thought "hey, that looks a lot like A:M does." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Forwood Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 This video has quite a few shots of the interface that Pixar used on Toy Story 3. Lots of sliders! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*A:M User* Roger Posted January 19, 2012 *A:M User* Share Posted January 19, 2012 That guy in the screenshot up-thread looks a tiny bit like Robcat - Robcat, you have a doppelganger out there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vnavone Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Sorry, but A:M has never been used at Pixar, to my knowledge. All our anim software is proprietary, and in fact was recently rewritten. Brave will be the first film to have used the new software. It's only called "Marionette" outside of the studio. Internally we call it "menv" (MEN-vee), which is an outdated acronym meaning "modeling environment", I think. Wow, haven't been on this forum in years. Nostalgia! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Forwood Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Wow! That's conclusive! Great to see you here, Victor! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Rodney Posted January 22, 2012 Admin Share Posted January 22, 2012 Great to see you again Victor. Thanks for the clarification. Oh, and... way to kick off the celebration of 25 years of Hash Animation by dropping in! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fuchur Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Sorry, but A:M has never been used at Pixar, to my knowledge. All our anim software is proprietary, and in fact was recently rewritten. Brave will be the first film to have used the new software. It's only called "Marionette" outside of the studio. Internally we call it "menv" (MEN-vee), which is an outdated acronym meaning "modeling environment", I think. You have to know it. Hi Victor... very nice to see you again . Wow, haven't been on this forum in years. Nostalgia! Which really is a pitty... See you *Fuchur* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
largento Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Seeing this again, I think this is one of those grapevine stories. Jeff Lew did start out using A:M for his Killer Bean Forever project, then switched to Maya for the actual production. I do know that he did a blocking version that he used as a template for the finished piece. Some (or all) of it may have been done using A:M. (Although my memory of watching his making of stuff makes me think he'd already switched by then.) It sounds like the story was "enhanced" by saying that Jeff Lew was at Pixar and that this was a common practice for Pixar animators. The confusion might have even been that person mixing up Jeff Lew with Victor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bigboote Posted January 22, 2012 Author Share Posted January 22, 2012 VICTOR NAVONE! Thanks for the pop-in!!! Hope you can make more appearances. We'll take anything you have... stories... rumours...anecdotes! tell us about your role in Brave... tell us about working with MENV... tell us what it is like to pull-in to the parking lot at Pixar every morning!!!! Rodney- maybe you can put 'Alien Song' up on the main forum page so newcomers can see Victor's A:M swansong from 10 years ago that got him noticed by the Pix. GOOD TO SEE THAT Monster Eyeball, VICTOR! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerry Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Thanks for clearing that up, Victor! Welcome back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkwing Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 VICTOR NAVONE! Thanks for the pop-in!!! Hope you can make more appearances. We'll take anything you have... stories... rumours...anecdotes! tell us about your role in Brave... tell us about working with MENV... tell us what it is like to pull-in to the parking lot at Pixar every morning!!!! Rodney- maybe you can put 'Alien Song' up on the main forum page so newcomers can see Victor's A:M swansong from 10 years ago that got him noticed by the Pix. GOOD TO SEE THAT Monster Eyeball, VICTOR! Alien Song is one of the primary reasons I chose Animation: Master Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerry Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 VICTOR NAVONE! Thanks for the pop-in!!! Hope you can make more appearances. We'll take anything you have... stories... rumours...anecdotes! tell us about your role in Brave... tell us about working with MENV... tell us what it is like to pull-in to the parking lot at Pixar every morning!!!! Rodney- maybe you can put 'Alien Song' up on the main forum page so newcomers can see Victor's A:M swansong from 10 years ago that got him noticed by the Pix. GOOD TO SEE THAT Monster Eyeball, VICTOR! Alien Song is one of the primary reasons I chose Animation: Master Ditto! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fae_alba Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 SO- I joined in a 'Linked-In' discussion on free/inexpensive animation software... they were all talking about DAZ and Blender and I chimed in touting about my beloved A:M... like I do. And this OTHER guy replies: Richard Nash • Matt - Jeff Lew uses Animation master and apparently they use it for blocking out animation quickly at Pixar before moving the data to a rig in Maya. A superb and much overlooked product! Can this be true? Or is this an olllld rumour coming back for new blood. John, which linked in group was that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bigboote Posted January 22, 2012 Author Share Posted January 22, 2012 LinkedIn Group: FOR ALL YOUR 3D ANIMATION, VFX, GRAPHICS & 3D GAME ART REQUIREMENTS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xtaz Posted January 23, 2012 Share Posted January 23, 2012 Victor Navone Group: Apprentice "This is a joke. This is all a joke." - Edward Blake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Rodney Posted January 23, 2012 Admin Share Posted January 23, 2012 Victor Navone Group: Apprentice That's forum apprentice. Has nothin' to do with animator ability or status. (yeah, stating the obvious) Victor's got some serious schoolin' ahead of him if'n he's gonna hang with us. Speaking of which... I'd love to hear about what you've been up to 'Animation Collaboration'. Hope you are seeing success in that. Feel free to talk it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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