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At Autodesk University 2024, Autodesk makes announcements and share its vision of the Media & Entertainment industry.
3DVF is on site, and we will bring you back a few interviews. Meanwhile, here are the key points from the initial presentations.
Autodesk Praises the Industry’s “Resilience” and explains why the company is betting on AI
Autodesk offers its perspective on the upheavals that have shaken the industry in recent years: disruptions have been numerous, including COVID, strikes in Hollywood, the rise of generative AI, and changes in distribution impacted by platforms. Autodesk states that the industry has shown “resilience during years of transformation.” The company highlights several specific projects, including Inside Out 2, which has achieved the highest global box office for an animated film (not accounting for inflation). The success of the adaptations of The Last of Us and Fallout demonstrate that video games can be successfully adapted into series. We note that the upcoming series Secret Level confirms this trend. (See our article)
Autodesk adds that they “understand that content needs to be both compelling and profitable”, and the company is “committed to enhancing the performance and capabilities” of its tools. This is likely an acknowledgment that Autodesk cannot rest on its laurels to maintain its influence in the industry, especially with the emergence of competing tools. The company also explains that these advancements will include “integrating AI workflows to help automate tedious tasks, giving artists more space for creative iteration and storytelling.”
Of course, AI is controversial, and Autodesk is well aware of this: “AI is a hot topic in entertainment, more so perhaps than in any other industry.” But according to Autodesk, “despite the hype we will need solutions that can help augment pipelines without disrupting them, while keeping an eye on réinvention in the future.”
AI, straight ahead
This vision drives the latest advancements in some of its main tools, Autodesk explains. The company provides some details and examples:
- The ML Deformer in Maya, which allows for real-time character posing. The tool learns how a character moves from scene data, providing an approximation of deformations.
- Autodesk also mentions AI denoising in Arnold, which helps reduce rendering times.
- Another example provided by the company is the creation of intermediate frames in Flame using AI for slow-motion effects.
What’s New
After these reminders, it’s time for the announcements. Autodesk is enhancing the capabilities of Wonder Studio, a software acquired in May that aligns with its vision of combining AI with more traditional tools. Wonder Studio allows for the placement of 3D characters in live-action scenes, replacing an actor present in the filmed scene, mimicking body movements and the lighting of the real scene. The 3D elements can then be exported to 3D tools like Maya or Blender for finalization.
At Autodesk University, the company announced a new AI-based feature for Wonder Studio: Motion Prediction. Motion Prediction “anticipates character poses even when the view of an actor is obstructed by an object.” This feature “anticipates movement to produce more natural poses, with less shaking and noise.”
Autodesk also explains that its Autodesk Research branch is working on other advancements:
Autodesk Research is also pushing the boundaries of what AI can do for artists. A good example of this is Neural Motion Control, a prototype which enables animators to direct a character’s actions using a handful of keyframes and a neural network. This will save animators significant time, while maintaining the low-level control they are used to, enabling them to focus on crafting the character’s unique performance.
Autodesk Flow: why create an “industry cloud”?
Autodesk is also continuing the development of Autodesk Flow, a cloud system dedicated to the media and entertainment industry. The vision is to connect workflows, data, and teams throughout the production lifecycle, from concept to delivery. Flow relies on a data and asset management model still in development, but Autodesk University serves as an opportunity to showcase some new features and improvements:
- The user experience in Flow Capture has been redesigned to center on assets, making management and organization easier.
- The Flow Graph Engine API allows developers to run Bifrost graphs in the cloud, creating custom computing capabilities for their studios. This system is already in place at DigitalFish, which uses the Flow Graph Engine API to establish a computing and previs system for on-set effects, thanks to Apple’s Vision Pro. The idea is for the team to scan the set and create a digital twin. Flow Graph Engine then allows for mesh completion, enabling VFX artists to add 3D assets and simulations that react to the digital twin. Simulation takes place in the cloud, allowing the director to access the results. Another example of this API’s use is the Flow Retopology service available in 3ds Max and Maya 2025.
- Flow Animating in Context for Maya allows animators to access editing data, providing more context for their animations.
Autodesk reaffirms its commitment to the media and entertainment sector. We will of course closely follow upcoming announcements, especially when it comes to major updates for tools such as Maya, 3ds Max, Wonder Studio, and Golaem.
At Autodesk University, we also plan to discuss ongoing projects with the Autodesk teams and the place of the animation, VFX, and video game industries within the group’s overall strategy. We will soon have the opportunity to discuss this further.
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