Check out this study by Andy Lomas on how create intricate forms of plant and coral like structures by using a digital simulation of flow and deposition.

Ballistic Publishing has released Exotique, a book devoted to showcasing CG characters created by accomplished digital artists worldwide. Exotique presents 228 examples of character artwork by 113 artists from 37 countries.

"Autodesk Technology Goes Prime Time in House, Lost, Nip/Tuck and Other 2005-2006 Television Shows"
Focusing primarily on systems tools, the P.R. mentions work by Look Effects, A52, Digital Dimension, Cinegroupe, Encore Holywood, Imaginary Forces, Level 3 Post, Meteor Studios, MFX, Modern Videofilm, Pixel Blues, R!OT, Rainmaker, The Post Group, and Zoic Studios.

Gugila released GroundWiz, procedural terrain map for 3ds max. It uses layers combined with fractal algorithms to create natural looking terrain maps. Infinite detail is possible due to a procedural nature of layers. Images and other 3ds max maps can also be used to add color and bumpiness to each layer. In addition, GroundWiz imports Terragen world files. Lite version is free for personal use. Visit www.gugila.com for more information.   [ more... ]

Busy Images Inc. has released v1.3.4 of BusyRay renderer which is available for 3ds Max 5 to 8. New features: Alpha channel support, free version has now all features of commercial version but renders are watermarked, time limit for preview rendering is added. Visit www.busyray.com for more information and demo.

Next Limit has annouced the official release date for Maxwell v1.0. The day will be november 22. According to Next Limit, after careful consideration they decided to change previously announced date and wait for a few more days and make sure everything is ok.

Richard Rosenman has officially launched the DOF PRO support forum. Feel free to check it out and register, even if you are not yet a DOF PRO user. There will be lots of useful information pertaining to depth of field simulation in computer graphics as well as some quality user and studio gallery work in the months to come.

Free CAD/CAM Employment Resource.

"3d-Palace is pleased to announce the release of their new training DVD "Stormbringer": A step by step modelling, animation and texturing tutorials set for the creation of the "Firefly Class" transport ship based upon the TV Series "Firefly" by Fox and the newly released motion picture "Serenity" by Universal."

New great images created with Matt Fairclough's upcoming Terragen 2 have been posted by Olivier Cousinou, Luc Bianco, Oshyan Greene and Matt Fairclough himself. Check 'em out!

Israel-based Master 3D Design specializes in the development of real-time 3D educational applications, training simulations, archaeological recreations and games. 3D elements are created using Max. "Over the years computers and computer technology has grown by leaps and bounds. Some of the greatest advances have been made in the field of graphics and particularly in the area of real-time 3D. And yet these advances have not always been used to advance mankind." So begins the text at M3DD's "About" pages, visit M3DD.com for more.

Find out more at Maxtor.com.

Close on the heels of UTV’s outsourcing pact with US-based BKN Media,UTV's facility will expand to house 200 animation technicians, in the next three months.  UTV also announced a resource re-allocation from  60/40 Maya/Max  to 20/80 Maya/Max.

OpenOffice.org has released version 2.0 of the OpenOffice productivity suite with many new features including enhanced PDF export for its Writer module. OpenOffice 2.0 is highly compatible with other productivity suites and is free to download, use, and distribute. If you find the idea of having your PCs inhabited by animated office assistants worrisome, then OpenOffice is definitely worth checking out.

On Saturday, November 12, 2005, the Academy of Machinima Arts and Sciences will present the 2005 Machinima Film Festival - a full-day of Machinima (animated filmmaking using 3D video game technologies), taking place at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens (NY).

Check out the list of Selection Categories and Awards. - $10 admission - sounds pretty interesting.

Interesting final 'graph in the article:
"We always look for ways to add value to our customers, and if we can acquire, we're happy to do so" Kross [ADSK VP Mfg Solutions] says. "We've learned how to make acquisitions work. They're hard to do, particularly in software companies. But my division has done probably seven in the last two years, and I think it's helped us with really strong people and new solutions for our customers, so we always look."

Andy Murdock (Lots of Robots) is developing a commercial character rig system that gathers all the best tools and ideas he's come up with while working for many years on his films. According to the information posted at LotsofRobots.com, 'Automatron' is made "for the animator that needs total, fast and easy control over every single parameter of a character skeleton. A procedural walk/run/act creation system will get your characters walking around in minutes. A pose snapshot library will save and playback your characters body poses and hand poses." Visit LotsofRobots.com for more.

Ryan Lesser reviews 3DS Max 8 for VFXWorld: "... instead of spending literally hours unwrapping a model (...) it now takes about 10 minutes and the entire job is done for you."

[UPDATE 2005-10-17] OAS "hiring binge"
[2005-10-11] Genndy Tartakovsky ("Dexter's Laboratory", "Samurai Jack", "Star Wars: Clone Wars") to head up creative at Orphanage Animation Studios, a new venture being started up by the founders of The Orphanage. Article here.

Polyboost 2.1 has been released. Update includes support for 3DS Max 8 and new additions and improvements. Interface has also been updated. Preview video available on website. Visit www.polyboost.com for more information.

Neil Blevins has added to his collection again with 1 new script, groupWithPoint (Apparently maya users should know what this is). As well as other scripts being modified and a new feature for the UI added updated scripts available here.   [ more... ]

VRay.info has published an exclusive technology preview of the new features that will ship with the upcoming VRay version.   [ more... ]

Read the article. (French)

Bangalore-based Dhruva Interactive are looking for experienced 3DS Max Modelers, Texture artists as well as Trainee Artists. Read on for more.   [ more... ]

Neil Blevins has added 2 new scripts (viewportControl and selectionRandomizer) and has modified 4 others (transformRandomizer, putPivot, sLib, and wireBundler), all available from Neilblevins.com.

Latest version of Houdini delivers new Dynamics Architecture with integrated Rigid Body, Cloth and Wire solvers along with Light Linking, character animation enhancements and more. More information at SideFX.com.

OpenGL 2.0 hardware support, Multishift tool with editable history, and full support for Windows XP Pro x64 among improvements in release 8.5. Read the whole PR at NewTek.com.

An interview with Dave Wharry, Vice President, Global Sales & Marketing, Alias, and Marc Petit, Vice President of Product Development and Operations, Media & Entertainment, Autodesk done for Highend3D.com.

The announcement is up at Autodesk Media & Entertainment pages. A demo version is available for download.

The new pricing corresponds to a 30% decrease in price for NatFX for 3DS Max. Also of note, NatFX for 3DS Max 8 is now available. Visit Bionatics.com and read on for more.   [ more... ]

Los Angeles ACM SIGGRAPH will be screening all the animated shorts presented at this year's Electronic Theater. Screening takes place on Tuesday, October 11 at the Digital Cinema Laboratory. Visit la.siggraph.org or read on for more.   [ more... ]

Metin Seven has posted a brief review of Power Booleans: "... effectively replaces the default 3ds Max Boolean tool with better and more powerful functionality."

"HDR to HDTV easily matches the difference that HDTV makes over SDTV." A good point indeed, no need to buy HDTVs yet, then. Bit-tech.net takes a look at BrightSide Technologies' DR37-P HDR display. (Note: link points to page #5 of article, skipping previous HDR theory pages which readers will most likely be familiar with)

New pics at 3D Artists gallery. Check 'em out!

Just got off the media "press" conference call. Some notes:
* timeline: 4 to 6 months until the deal closes
* Alias President and CEO, Doug Walker, will stay on in a transitionary roll, but expects to "leave Alias" some time after the aqcuision is finaled.
* the deal was for the aquision of Alias (Maya, StudioTools, etc.) for $186 million "cash"
* Alias made $86 million in revenues last year
* Alias currently has 600 employees in different locations (so.cal and toronto)
* The two companies will remain independant until the deal closes
* The deal does not impact any current product plans or release schedules
* Initial plans sound like the intention is to maintian Max and Maya as products and to focus development on inter-operability between the two (Workflow, pipeline, PLEASE!)
* audio of the press conference will be available at www.autodesk.com/press
* Alias personell and products will be integrated into the "proper" ADSK business divisions, with entertainment products falling under Autodeask Media and Entertainment division (montreal?), and design applications being moved to the ADSK design tools division (san francisco?)
* Rebranding? Alias has a "premier" name and ADSK plans to use that name "in any way possible" -- the Discreet name is currently tied to AME systems tools. No mention of changes/branding with regards to 3ds Max. No commitments to any final names

Autodesk's main acquisition info portal -- ooh! a powerpoint!
FAQ (see note on this here)
Investors Press Conference Webcast
links will be added as things become available.
  [ more... ]

Autodesk today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Alias, the privately held developer of Maya for $182 million. Read the press release here.
[Update - editorial comment from cptvideo: "HOLY CRAP!"]
News also up at Yahoo Finance.

A free and very impressively put together art book showcasing some of today's top digital artists (link on page 2 of article). http://www.cgfocus.com/ArticleDetails.cfm?ArticleID=310

The amazing human model, Reality LE, is now for sale $49.95 (for personal use only). This model set is a human musculoskeletal reference for anyone wanting to model humanoid characters. It is the same as the $4995 version, which is so accurate that it is used to train doctors.   [ more... ]

Take a look at the new trailer for Pixar's upcoming feature film.

Check out this great short film by Vincent Berger, a French architect who seems to have spent many hours in front of his drawing board. The animated short somehow points to the dawn of art history, when each stroke was believed to have an effect on reality (and the quest for realistic representation began). Not created with Max, but definitely worth checking out.

Richard Rosenman and Martin Vicanek have released the second version of Depth of Field Generator Pro. New features include batch/animation support, a new Highlight preservation algorithm and an enhanced Bokeh visibility algorithm.