3D rendering software used by Pixar
Pixar RenderMan
(also known as
RenderMan
)
[1]
is a
photorealistic 3D rendering
software produced by
Pixar Animation Studios
. Pixar uses RenderMan to
render
their in-house 3D animated movie productions and it is also available as a commercial product licensed to third parties. In 2015, a free non-commercial version of RenderMan became available.
[2]
Name
[
edit
]
To speed up rendering, Pixar engineers performed experiments with parallel rendering computers using
Transputer
chips inside a
Pixar Image Computer
. The name comes from the nickname of a small circuit board (2.5 × 5 inches or 6.4 × 13 cm) containing one Transputer that engineer Jeff Mock could put in his pocket. During that time the
Sony
Walkman
was very popular and Jeff Mock called his portable board Renderman, leading to the software name.
[3]
Technology
[
edit
]
RenderMan defines cameras, geometry, materials, and lights using the
RenderMan Interface Specification
. This specification facilitates communication between 3D modeling and animation applications and the
render
engine that generates the final high quality images. In the past RenderMan used the
Reyes Rendering Architecture
. The Renderman standard was first presented at 1993
SIGGRAPH
, developed with input from 19 companies and 6 or 7 big partners, with
Pat Hanrahan
taking a leading role.
Ed Catmull
said no software product met the RenderMan Standard in 1993. RenderMan met it after about two years.
[3]
Additionally RenderMan supports
Open Shading Language
to define textural patterns.
[4]
When Pixar started development,
Steve Jobs
described the original goal for RenderMan in 1991:
"Our goal is to make Renderman and Iceman the system software of the 90s," Mr. Jobs said, likening these programs to
PostScript
, the software developed by
Adobe Systems Inc.
for high-quality
typography
.
?
Lawrence M. Fisher,
[5]
During this time, Pixar used the
C language
for developing Renderman, which allowed them to port it to many platforms.
[1]
Historically, RenderMan used the
Reyes algorithm
to render images with added support for advanced effects such as
ray tracing
and
global illumination
. Support for Reyes rendering and the
RenderMan Shading Language
were removed from RenderMan in 2016.
[6]
RenderMan currently uses
Monte Carlo
path tracing
to generate images.
[7]
Awards
[
edit
]
RenderMan has been used to create digital
visual effects
for
Hollywood
blockbuster movies such as
Beauty and the Beast
,
Aladdin
,
The Lion King
,
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
,
Toy Story
,
Jurassic Park
,
Avatar
,
Titanic
, the
Star Wars
prequels, and
The Lord of the Rings
. RenderMan has received four
Academy Scientific and Technical Awards
. The first was in 1993 honoring
Pat Hanrahan
, Anthony A. Apodaca,
Loren Carpenter
,
Rob Cook
,
Ed Catmull
, Darwyn Peachey, and
Tom Porter
.
[
citation needed
]
The second was as part of the 73rd Scientific and Technical Academy Awards ceremony presentation on March 3, 2001: the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
' Board of Governors honored
Ed Catmull
,
Loren Carpenter
and
Rob Cook
with an
Academy Award of Merit
"for significant advancements to the field of motion picture rendering as exemplified in Pixar’s RenderMan".
[8]
The third was in 2010 honoring "Per Christensen, Christophe Hery, and Michael Bunnell for the development of point-based rendering for indirect illumination and ambient occlusion." The fourth was in 2011 honoring David Laur. It has also won the Gordon E. Sawyer Award in 2009 and The Coons Award.
[9]
It is the first software product awarded an Oscar.
[10]
Notable studios using RenderMan
[
edit
]
North America
[
edit
]
United States
[
edit
]
Canada
[
edit
]
Europe
[
edit
]
United Kingdom
[
edit
]
France
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
Ponting, Bob (February 27, 1989).
"Renderman Imaging Gets Vendor Support"
.
InfoWorld
. Vol. 11, no. 9.
InfoWorld Media Group
. pp. 19, 21.
- ^
"Free Non-Commercial RenderMan FAQ"
.
RenderMan home
.
Pixar
. Retrieved
December 16,
2014
.
1. When will Non-Commercial RenderMan be released? We are now targeting early 2015 for final release. [...]
- ^
a
b
"Pixar's RenderMan turns 25"
. 25 July 2013
. Retrieved
2019-04-21
.
- ^
"Pixar unveils RenderMan 21 | CG Channel"
.
www.cgchannel.com
. Retrieved
July 22,
2016
.
- ^
Fisher, Lawrence M. (2 April 1991).
"Hard Times For Innovator In Graphics"
.
New York Times
.
- ^
"Pixar ships RenderMan 21 | CG Channel"
.
www.cgchannel.com
. Retrieved
July 22,
2016
.
- ^
"RenderMan: under the (new) varnish"
. May 14, 2015
. Retrieved
July 22,
2016
.
- ^
"Pixar's RenderMan a true lasting effect | Hollywood Reporter"
.
www.hollywoodreporter.com
. 11 August 2008
. Retrieved
2020-12-18
.
- ^
"Pixar's RenderMan | About"
.
renderman.pixar.com
. Retrieved
2021-03-05
.
- ^
And the Oscar goes to...
, IEEE Spectrum, 2 April 2001.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
|
Feature films
|
|
---|
Short films
| Original
| |
---|
SparkShorts
| |
---|
Feature-related
| |
---|
Series
| |
---|
Compilations
| |
---|
Other works
| |
---|
|
---|
Television series
| |
---|
Television specials
| |
---|
Franchises
| |
---|
Associated
productions
| |
---|
Characters
| |
---|
Documentaries
| |
---|
Disney attractions
and experiences
| |
---|
Products
| |
---|
People
| |
---|
See also
| |
---|
|