Computer Graphics World

November 2008 form for future upgrades that can better take advantage of hardware advances, including multiple CPUs and advanced GPUs. Just this past summer at SIGGRAPH 2008, Softimage introduced ICE (Inter- active Creative Environment). ICE is de- signed to meet the demands of production managers and artists who need to develop and manage their own tools. Maya has led in this market, but it, too, is getting a little long in the tooth, and developers complain about the difficulty of programming in Maya. Softimage hoped to win over not just users, but entire teams with its node- based development platform. Meanwhile, Autodesk acquired French AI company Kynogon, which the company wanted to use to expand its role in the game development pipeline. By around SIG- GRAPH 2008, says Marc Stevens, general manager of Softimage, he and Petit realized they were both heading in the same direc- tion. "We had the same vision, and we were going at it from two different directions," says Stevens during the joint phone inter- view with Petit. About nine months ago or so, the Soft- image executive team took stock. ey were doing so as their parent company, Avid, un- der new management, was going through the process of analyzing the company. Stevens and Softimage product man- ager Bill Roberts realized that the op- portunities for 3D modeling and the animation market were well defined but limited. However, the opportu- nities within the entire development pipeline, especially the game develop- ment pipeline, were quite large. "We needed an investment to buy middleware and game-engine tech- nology," says Roberts. Avid, at the same time, decided it needed to focus on its core video and broadcast products, and the wheels were set in motion to find Soft- image a home where it could grow. e rumor mills have been pumping out theories about where Softimage might go. Obviously, given today's economic cli- mate and tight money, a leveraged buyout was unlikely. According to Stevens, several companies were interested. And within the industry, rumors have been flying for months, though most of the speculation has been around Apple; Autodesk was not mentioned much. "is isn't what we thought would happen," admits Roberts when asked about the deal. Autodesk's Petit points out that once he became aware of the opportunity, "we could not pass up that talent." Stevens is going to take Softimage into Autodesk, and he'll join Autodesk's execu- tive team. Autodesk says it will maintain the Softimage XSI product line, along with Autodesk's current stable of 3D content cre- ation tools, including 3ds Max and Maya. Max is increasingly becoming an engine for visualization, and Autodesk is strength- ening the links to Revit, its architectural product, via the common, open FBX format (originally from Kaydara, which was bought by Alias in 2004). In fact, says Petit, the real opportunity is in interactive 3D storytelling on all fronts, "including moviemaking, In- ternet interactive applications, virtual worlds, and even engineering." Making the 3D assets is just a tiny part of the job. Stevens and Petit want to improve development tools, expand their middle- ware products, create game-like interfaces, and expand the entire 3D market. Maybe the acquisition of Softimage by Autodesk isn't what anyone expected, and certainly there will be people who do not want this. But, the ideas and talents that these two companies can bring together could blossom into a broad range of new products and capabilities. For many Soft- image employees, there is probably a sense of relief now that the waiting is over and the big question has been answered. n Kathleen Maher is a contributing editor to CGW, a senior analyst at Jon Peddie Research, a Tiburon, CA- based consultancy specializing in graphics and multime- dia, and editor in chief of JPR's "TechWatch." She can be reached at Kathleen@jonpeddie.com. November 2008 News Analysis n n n n Stereoscopy is a hot area right now in terms of entertainment, and Autodesk is addressing this area in its Maya 2009 product. Just this past summer, Softimage added ICE, a transformative open platform, to XSI Version 7.

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