Softimage Announces New Toonz Plug-in for SOFTIMAGE/DS Version 3.01

Business Wire, March 8, 2000

Business/Technology Editors

MONTREAL--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 8, 2000

--Integrates 2-D Cel Animation Into SOFTIMAGE|DS--

Softimage Co., a subsidiary of Avid Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVID), announced today the exclusive availability of a new plug-in from Digital Video, Toonz DS 1.0, for the SOFTIMAGE(R)|DS version 3.01 system.

Toonz DS 1.0 gives artists and editors the ability to work on 2-D animation from within the SOFTIMAGE|DS software. Artists can now complete 2-D animations alongside audio, editing, painting and compositing in a single, seamless environment. This powerful new plug-in is fully integrated into the SOFTIMAGE|DS interface by means of a special `Toonz Container' that gives artists direct access to many of the sophisticated tools found in the Toonz standalone system, including 2-D ink and paint, Xsheet and cel animation.

"Digital Video's Toonz software has been an invaluable tool on the production of countless feature films, videos and commercials ranging from Studio Ghibli's Princess Mononoke to Beavis and Butthead. The Toonz plug-in is the first third-party standalone product to be fully integrated into the SOFTIMAGE|DS system," comments Maurice Patel, Softimage's Technical Product Manager, Compositing and Effects.

Toonz DS 1.0 provides users with many of the modules and toolsets available in the standalone product. Artists use the same `Scan' and `Cleanup' standalone utilities to input line drawings and then work within the SOFTIMAGE|DS system to paint Toonz animated layers using `Inknpaint', creating exposure sheets using `Xsheet' and animating painted cels with the `Camera Stand'. Clips from the SOFTIMAGE|DS system can be dragged and dropped directly from the browser to the Toonz `Xsheet' where they can be linked to pegbars and used within the animation scene. The SOFTIMAGE|DS clips from this point work seamlessly with Toonz FX and animation layers.

The Toonz DS 1.0 plug-in includes a guided tour - a multimedia presentation of the software available both in English and French. The tour is divided into different sections showing Toonz product features as they relate to production workflow, from scanning the original drawings to the final exposure sheet compositing. Also provided is a detailed user manual in Adobe Acrobat PDF format.

The Toonz DS 1.0 plug-in comes with the following modules:

Setup: This module allows users to easily set up their SOFTIMAGE|DS system to better run Toonz. Facilities can customize default settings on a per-user basis and/or adapt their settings to the particular project specifications.

Scan and Cleanup: The `Scan' module provides artists with the full image-scanning capabilities for which Toonz is renowned. Users can scan their line drawings at the highest quality, either in black and white or grey tones. Backgrounds and overlays can be scanned in full 24-bit color and used in the SOFTIMAGE|DS exposure sheet with any TWAIN compatible scanner. Toonz also uses proprietary drivers for several scanners. `Cleanup' allows artists to process their scanned line drawings in order to make them align on the `Camera Stand'. Images can be perfectly aligned with reference to their pegholes and black and white scans can be anti-aliased. Cleanup can also automatically identify pegholes and align-scanned images correctly. Cleanup also allows users to treat any TIFF image created by other software packages as a standard Toonz TZU file.

Inknpaint: Paint animated layers using a wide range of powerful, versatile tools according to defined color models and/or palettes. Tools can be used in combination with modifiers in order to apply them to a range of frames or to several areas of the image simultaneously. Many of the tools can be used in both the `Inknpaint' and `Camera Stand/Preview' windows. `Inknpaint' can also be used to define reference points for placing textures or linking animated Xsheet layers.

Palette Browser: A sophisticated palette tool allows artists to have perfect control of the inking process. Palettes can be created interactively by superimposing characters on composited scenes. Colors can either be saved individually or as palettes, and the presets can be reloaded later for use on a different animated layer. Names can be assigned to colors and special effects applied both to the inks (lines) and paints (fills). Artists can also apply textures and patterns to their colors, including textures derived from their own imported image files.

Camera Stand/Preview: Create complex movements and animations for objects, simply and efficiently, using this digital version of the traditional vertical rostrum camera. Move the camera, the table and pegbars to create keyframe animations that can then be edited using the SOFTIMAGE|DS Animation Editor. This module allows perfect control of the motion and timing of the animation. A preview mode allows the animator to see exactly how selected frame of the cel animation will be rendered.

Xsheet: The Powerful Toonz Xsheet is fully available in the plug-in version. This can be used to create an exposure sheet containing a mixture of Toonz animated layers, scanned images and SOFTIMAGE|DS digitized clips. The editing tools allow the artist to quickly organize frames and layers, create cycles of drawings and duplicate layers, amongst other things. Special Toonz effects can be applied directly to the contents of any column in the Xsheet. Effects range from blur to matte and from emboss to warp. SOFTIMAGE|DS effect can also be applied to the container (post composite) or on any SOFTIMAGE|DS clip used in the XSheet (on the container's timeline).