liaisoncolin writes:
Hi everyone,
An indie animation studio just released a cool new tool, developed in-house, for free (disclosure: my client). Thought everyone here might want to check it out, since it opens up a production animation workflow from Unity to other 3D apps a lot easier. Posted release below so you can get the specifics. One thing to note, it says it's a Unity to Maya workflow BUT it also goes Unity to Blender (which is why I'm here).
E*D Films Releases Scene Track, its In-House Unity Media Exporter for Free
Award-Winning Indie Animation House Launches First Open Source Tool; Animators Can Now Easily Export FBX, MIDI, Image and Video Files from the Popular Game Engine
MONTRÉAL, Canada – March 21, 2018 – Today, E*D Films releases Scene Track: The Game Media Exporter, an open source animation tool that delivers four kinds of data from Unity to Maya. With the ability to record real-time gameplay to Unity’s Timeline, artists can now use the game engine as a production animation tool, opening up a fast and efficient workflow for scenes and characters.
First developed by E*D Films during the concept stage of their Elemented project, Scene Track opens up a bridge to the Unity-to-Maya workflow, allowing artists to harness the power of Unity to direct scenes, populate backgrounds and test ideas with a new sense of playfulness.
“Game engines are not only powerful, but affordable for filmmakers, which makes them a huge asset to small studios like ours,” said Daniel Gies, Art + Tech Director at E*D Films. “In Unity, we finally saw an opportunity to realize some of our more ambitious ideas without having to hire more people; we just had to find a way to record within the engine. So we built a tool and it’s completely changed our workflow. Now anyone can use it.”
With Scene Track, users can harvest Unity’s native data to speed up the animation process. As artists cycle through ideas, audio/visual data becomes available to the exporter, enabling artists to transfer what they need to other programs. Each export is non-destructive, encouraging further work and additions. The exporter also facilitates the smooth transfer of MIDI and video elements, making time-intensive processes like foley spotting and sequence revisions that much easier.
The announcement of the exporter coincides with the launch of E*D Films’ new store, which offers a wide collection of professional assets and tools to digital artists and filmmakers. The first round of products include Photoshop brushes, animated elements, and After Effects tools created by lead artist Daniel Gies during the studio’s many productions. With several productions in the works, the number of options are expected to expand in the coming months.
The store is now live. To download Scene Track, click here.
Pricing/Availability
Scene Track is available now on GitHub and the E*D Films store as a free, open source tool.
About E*D Films
E*D Films in an award-winning animation house, digital tools lab and full-service studio based in Montreal. Founded in 2007, E*D Films has become an industry favorite thanks to its unique style and unwavering commitment to sharing its processes and knowledge online. In 2018, E*D Films launched a store to provide access to the tools it creates during its productions, including the soon-to-be-released shorts, “Giant Bear” and “Retour à Hairy Hill.” E*D Films’ reel can be seen at:
