ZibraVDB: real-time volumetric rendering in virtual production
[Sponsored] Deep tech firm Zibra AI reveals how ZibraVDB, its volumetric compression technology for Unreal Engine – and now also for Houdini – aims to revolutionize the creation and rendering of real-time VFX for virtual production, game development and CGI work.
ZibraVDB is the result of extensive research and development in compression technology, evolving from early experiments to real-world testing with alpha users.
Suitable for both virtual production studios using real-time workflows and game developers seeking efficient ways to integrate volumetric effects, ZibraVDB efficiently replays large VFX volumes stored in OpenVDB format within Unreal Engine, delivering up to 100x compression and rendering twice as fast as Unreal’s native SVT system. This performance makes it possible to use render volumes that were previously impractical in real-time environments.
Designed for both small studios and large production companies creating content in Unreal Engine and Houdini, ZibraVDB aims to optimize workflows and enhance rendering capabilities in virtual production and CGI, addressing common challenges faced in these sectors.
Addressing technical challenges in virtual production and CGI
Achieving high-quality VFX in real-time is a significant challenge in both virtual production and game development. ZibraVDB ensures that volumetric effects are rendered seamlessly and realistically, offering high visual quality for both close-up and wide shots.
Managing large volumetric datasets can be cumbersome, and slows down workflows. Traditional volumetric rendering approaches are based on sequential frame streaming to render the sequence frame by frame, but this approach is usually bottlenecked by storage system performance and data bus bandwidth. It is simply impossible to stream vast amounts of data, limiting the use of OpenVDB to small effects or offline rendering.
In contrast, ZibraVDB compression makes it possible to store a sequence in video memory, decompressing the frames required on the fly and rendering them. This approach enables real-time rendering of VDBs, and the visualization of volumetric effects at an unprecedented scale.
Virtual production and CGI work also often require studios to solve complex technical problems in physics and rendering. ZibraVDB is designed to provide the flexibility to develop custom solutions, addressing specific technical challenges, and providing functionalities tailored to the unique needs of a project.
These needs can vary greatly from project to project, requiring tools that can scale and adapt. By making it possible to adjust performance and visual quality, ZibraVDB can scale with project requirements, ensuring that it can handle a wide range of production scenarios.
In summary, ZibraVDB addresses critical technical challenges in virtual production and CGI by:
- Providing solutions for real-time volumetric effects
- Optimizing workflows through compression
- Enabling seamless real-time rendering
- Integrating smoothly with existing tools
- Offering custom solution development
- Ensuring flexibility and scalability
These qualities make ZibraVDB a practical and versatile tool for professionals in the industry.
Key technical features of ZibraVDB
ZibraVDB ensures high-quality visual effects without compromising speed or performance, enabling projects to run smoothly in real time and enhancing the overall experience for both creators and audiences.
Illumination
ZibraVDB offers the following illumination features to enhance visual realism and performance:
- Different light types: Directional, Point, and Spot lights
- Supports up to 15 light sources simultaneously
- Ambient lighting
- Blending with Exponential Height Fog
- Self-shadowing from all light types
- Toggle shadows from specific light types
- Shadows received from scene geometry
- Projected shadows from volume
- Reflections
Received shadows
ZibraVDB volumes can receive shadows from the scene using an implementation based on the Global Distance Field. It supports shadows from Directional, Point, and Spot lights. Users can toggle shadows from different light types to optimize rendering.
Projected shadows
ZibraVDB provides projected shadows for real-time VDBs, ensuring realistic integration of effects into the scene. Key aspects include:
- Support for all light types, allowing volumes to cast multiple shadows simultaneously
- Efficient performance with minimal impact, even with numerous shadows
- Seamless integration into standard rendering pipelines without altering Unreal Engine’s code
This feature maintains visual fidelity without compromising performance, allowing for exceptional-looking effects in scenes with multiple lights.
Reflections
ZibraVDB introduces a highly performant method for rendering precise, real-time reflections. Key features include:
- Accurate reflections that account for shadows and illumination by different light types
- Utilization of different mipmaps of the volume texture based on roughness
- The ability to specify manually which objects should reflect which volumes for optimized performance
Ambient lighting
This feature significantly enhances the visual quality of real-time rendering. Key features include:
- Control over both the intensity of the lighting and ambient occlusion
- High performance with no noticeable drop in frame rates when ambient lighting is enabled
Hardware-agnostic
While some alternative solutions are optimized for specific hardware configurations, or require specialized equipment to achieve their best performance, ZibraVDB is designed to function efficiently on any manufacturer’s hardware. With ZibraVDB, studios and developers can now use volumetric effects that were previously impractical for real-time environments.
Forward-looking
Looking ahead, Zibra AI is focused on optimizing its technology for PS5-class GPUs and porting it to consoles. The broader vision includes integrating ZibraVDB with professional tools such as Houdini and Maya, facilitating seamless workflow transitions from these tools to Unreal Engine, and minimizing manual intervention.
Now available for Unreal Engine and Houdini
We are launching ZibraVDB in two versions: for Unreal Engine and Houdini. ZibraVDB for Unreal Engine is already available for purchase. We offer pricing plans for both individuals and teams, with flexible pricing for larger studios, making it possible to choose the plan that best suits your project requirements and budget.
Zibra VDB for Unreal Engine
Studio plan
Designed for teams with over $250,000 in revenue or $1m in funding
Platforms: Unreal Engine, Houdini (Alpha Test)
Pricing options: Subscription-based or per-project pricing available
Render-only nodes: Custom pricing for render-only nodes with offline licensing.
Support: Priority support
Custom features: Tailored feature implementation based on your needs
On-set support: Available for large-scale productions
Pricing: Custom, based on requirements
Individual plan
Ideal for individuals or small teams with under $250,000 in revenue or $1m in funding
Platforms: Unreal Engine, Houdini (Alpha Test)
Perpetual rendering of created content
Support: Email support
Pricing: $29/month or $299/year
Buy ZibraVDB for Unreal Engine
ZibraVDB for Houdini
ZibraVDB for Houdini was introduced at the Houdini HIVE Event on 12 September 2024 and is now available in Alpha Test mode. The Alpha is free, but it is time-limited and requires pre-approval for participation. All approved participants will be expected to complete an exit interview and a survey at the end of the testing period to provide feedback.
Key features of ZibraVDB for Houdini include:
- Volume compression: reduces the size of VDB sequences
- Real-time volume decompression: faster playback of VDB files in the Houdini viewport
- Universal .zibravdb format: can be used in Unreal Engine for real-time rendering of VDB sequences
Apply for the ZibraVDB for Houdini Alpha Test
About Zibra AI
Zibra AI is a Ukrainian deep-tech company that builds AI-powered solutions for VFX and 3D creation for gaming, TV, filming, and beyond. The team comprises passionate gaming enthusiasts with expertise in VFX creation, 3D programming, and physics, backed by years of experience at top-tier gaming and tech companies.
Founded in 2021, from the start, Zibra AI’s mission has been to democratize the content creation process, enabling users to implement their ideas faster and more efficiently. Over the span of two years, Zibra AI has gained support from leading corporations in the industry and has become a 2022 Epic MegaGrant recipient and A16Z Games Speedrun first cohort member.
In 2023, Zibra AI’s flagship product, Zibra Effects, earned the prestigious status of a Unity Verified Solution and secured a spot in the newly launched Unity AI Marketplace. Zibra AI is a part of the Roosh Investment Group.