Katana 3.2 released with a faster and more intuitive material creation UX

The new Katana release showcases an artist-focused material node graph UI with faster workflows. 3Delight NSI now allows artists to render from multiple cameras at the same time and has increased speed and reduced memory needs. Katana has been upgraded to USD 19.05, introducing the ability to use the Hydra render delegate system.

Highlights of Katana 3.2 include:

• Improved Material Node Graph System: A new UI on top of Katana’s powerful shading architecture. Nodes now show all the viable connections when required, enabling a fully exposed, left-to-right workflow. The new Shading Group node allows for the clean organization of a complex network, effectively becoming self-contained widgets.
• 3Delight NSI 1.5 series updates: Artists can now render from multiple cameras at the same time, making it much easier to judge the best choices for the look of an environment. SSS has been improved to use the popular Random Walk method. The 3Delight rendering plug-in is now multithreaded by default, with scene export times improved between 30% to 400%, and instance and VDB Volume rendering memory footprints improved by as much as 8x. 
• USD Hydra Upgraded to USD 19.05: As part of Foundry’s ongoing commitment to USD, we’ve upgraded our Hydra-powered viewport to USD 19.05. This introduces the ability to use the Hydra render delegate system.

Jordan Thistlewood, Group Product Manager, Foundry, comments: “Katana has been used on the world's most challenging CG productions for the last 7 years.  Katana 3.2 represents our belief that being the best requires constant innovation. The new material creation UX builds on top of what was already the industry's best architecture for the creation and management of materials during look development and shot production. We enriched the artist experience with the new UI and workflows, and with the UI engine we will be innovating the Katana look development experience for years to come. ”

Ivaylo Petrov, Lighting Artist, Worldwide FX comments: “Using Katana, some of our artists were averaging 20 shots per day. The actual record is 45 shots, from which almost 40 went to final. This is one of the ways Worldwide FX can output a lot more work than you would think when you hear that we are just five people.”

The full list of features for Katana 3.2 can be found here. To demo or purchase Katana 3.2 contact sales@foundry.com.