Foundry releases Katana 8.0
Foundry has released Katana 8.0, the new version of its lighting and look development software for VFX and feature animation work.
The update extends support for USD workflows, adding the option to export USD data from Katana, and to roundtrip changes to a scene to other USD-compatible applications.
It is also now possible to create lights directly in Katana’s Native USD stage, and to manipulate lights and cameras directly in its Hydra Viewer.
Export USD data, and roundtrip changes with other USD-compatible applications
Katana 8.0 extends the software’s support for USD-based workflows, building on the Native USD framework introduced in Katana 7.0.
Users can now export USD data as well as import it, with two new nodes, UsdLayerDefine and UsdLayerExport, making it possible to export from Katana’s Native USD stage to a USD layer.
A new KatanaToUsd node converts Katana data to Native USD data, making it possible to roundtrip changes to a scene between Katana and other pipeline applications.
Support for USD’s pattern-based collections
The release also introduces support for USD’s pattern-based collections.
Artists can now use workflows similar to those with CEL, Katana’s native Collection Expression Language, inside the Native USD framework.
The change should make it easier to adapt Katana templates across multiple shots by creating rules that describe groups of objects within a scene that scale better with scene complexity.
Other USD-related features
There are number of new Native USD nodes, including UsdLight, which makes it possible to create lights directly on a Native USD stage.
It is also now possible to manipulate USD-native locators for lights and cameras directly in the Hydra Viewer.
TDs get new USD debugging tools.
Performance and pipeline integration improvements
Under the hood, Node Graph traversal has been “largely” ported from Python to C++, which should make working with large Node Graphs more interactive.
Scenes now also load “up to 2.5x faster” than in Katana 7.0 due to the changes.
In addition, a new Python Profiling section on the Performance tab helps to debug which part of Katana’s UI is causing scene slowdowns.
The update also moves Katana to the CY2024 spec for VFX Reference Platform.
Price and system requirements
Katana 8.0 is available for Windows 10 and Rocky Linux 9. It is available rental-only.
Since Katana 7.0, the price of existing Katana Interactive subscriptions has risen to $4,199/year, up $210/year. Katana Render subscriptions cost $339/year, up $16/year.
For new users requiring less than 10 interactive seats, Foundry now offers Team subscriptions, which cost $7,497 per three years for interactive licences and $627 per three years for render licenses.
Read an overview of the new features in Katana on Foundry’s product website
Read a full list of new features in Katana 8.0 in the online release notes
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