CAMBRIDGE ANIMATION OFFER FREE TRIAL

CAMBRIDGE Animation Systems, makers of Animo software, are offering a free ten-day trial version of Swiffworks, a new plug-in that delivers Macromedia Flash output to users of Alias|Wavefront's Maya.
Swiffworks is based on the Maya scene interpreter developed for Cambridge’s Inkworks plug-in, used in the feature film ‘Rugrats in Paris’. The trial version can be downloaded from Cambridge's web site at www.cambridgeanimation.com.
Simon Ruffles, Cambridge’s Marketing Manager, said: "Maya users now have the ability to easily produce Flash output that doesn't compromise the quality of the animation. This is particularly important in being able to show work on the Internet, which is quickly becoming an important venue for animators and producers."
The new plug-in allows users to choose a Swiffworks material or use the default Phong material provided by Maya. Swiffworks materials provide the following added capabilities: Independent control of ink lines and painted regions, allowing line thickness to be animated and coloured separately from the painted areas and control over the colour, width and generation of ink lines, including folds, silhouettes, region lines, borders and intersection lines.
The Swiffworks renderer is fully integrated into Maya 3.0.1 and includes support for Maya Render Global Values, additional options based on those values, and a choice of IRIX or NT platforms. (CD)