Wednesday, September 5th, 2012 Posted by Jim Thacker

Maxon ships Cinema 4D R14

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=–ACZcPzQGk

Maxon has unveiled released Cinema 4D R14, a major update to its 3D modelling, animation and rendering software with a feature set that highlights the diversity of its user base.

New modelling toolsets
Key features in version 14 include a new sculpting toolset, making Cinema 4D one of the first non-specialist modelling packages to offer this kind of brush-based workflow.

Technical modelling also gets a boost, with new interactive workplane modes, dynamic guides and a completely redesigned snapping system.

Improved animation and effects workflows
If you work in VFX or animation, there are quite a few features that should appeal, including a new camera animation system, aerodynamics, better rigid bodies and soft body plastic deformation. Still no fluids, though.

Like 3ds Max 2013 and LightWave 11.5, interoperability with After Effects has been increased. Cinema 4D R14 boasts “a new seamless connection to Nuke”, although this is one way, via OpenEXR.

Support for the Alembic data-interchange format has also been added.

Universal appeal
There are also a number of shading and rendering features that would benefit most users, including new wood grain, weathering and ‘normalizer’ (normal mapping) shaders; and improved GI and SSS.

The UI and display have also been updated, with soft shadows in the viewport, and features like ‘Commander’: a smart search box that enables users to execute any command by typing the first few letters of its name.

Cinema 4D R14 will go on show publicly at Siggraph 2012. There are no shipping or pricing details yet.

Updated 5 September: Cinema 4D R14 is now shipping. Read the news release, or download the demo.

ORIGINAL PRESS RELEASE (Excerpts)
Today, MAXON unveiled CINEMA 4D Release 14, (R14) a milestone release of the industry-leading 3D motion graphics, visual effects, painting, and rendering software application. Leveraging more than two decades of 3D graphics programming innovation, R14 delivers breakthrough performance including a new, fully integrated sculpting system, camera matching functionality, exchange plugins to two key applications – The Foundry NUKE and Adobe Photoshop Extended – and improved integration with Adobe After Effects. Motion graphics/VFX artists and visualization designers will benefit from features that accelerate productivity to produce spectacular 3D content more fluidly and collaborate with increased efficiency.

CINEMA 4D Release 14 Highlights:
The following is a brief overview of the over 200 productivity-boosting features in CINEMA 4D R14, available for both Mac OS X and Windows.

Digital Sculpting: Dynamic sculpting tools give artists complete control to create finely detailed models. A powerful layer system offers maximum flexibility. Complex sculpted objects can be “baked” into displacement and normal maps applied to low-poly meshes for efficiency.

Camera Enhancements: The Camera Calibrator offers an integrated solution to match 3D camera images to a 3D environment – ideal for architects and matte artists. The Motion Camera, Morph Camera and Camera Composition Helper quickly frame a 3D scene following well-established composition rules. The Camera Focus Picker allows users to interactively set focal distances.

Integration: Seamless integration with The Foundry’s NUKE compositing application allows direct export to a NUKE project with multi-pass layers, including full support for OpenEXR and FBX files. The Photoshop Extended exchange plug-in enables opening and manipulating CINEMA 4D scenes into a Photoshop 3D layer. Enhanced integration with After Effects brings new levels of performance to directly import/export native CINEMA 4D files.

Read a full list of features in Cinema 4D R14