PowerAnimator

Power Animator

File:Poweranimator.jpg User Interface of Power Animator 8.5
Developer(s)	Alias Systems Corporation
Stable release	9.0 / November 1998
Operating system	IRIX, Windows NT, AIX
Type	Computer Graphics
License	Proprietary
Website	www.alias.com

PowerAnimator and Animator, the precursor to what is now Maya and StudioTools, was an expensive, complex, highly-integrated industrial 3D modeling, animation, and visual effects suite. It was the most widely used non-proprietary software in the visual effects and animation industries, and as such, it has had a long track record, starting with Terminator 2: Judgment Day in 1990 and ending in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace in 1999. PowerAnimator ran natively on MIPS based SGI Irix systems up until the late 1990s, when it was ported to the NT and AIX platforms.

The software

The software itself featured one of the most complex user interfaces ever created, which allowed for an incredible amount of control over scene parameters, but made many tasks, such as animation, cumbersome and non-intuitive. It was also expensive as well, apart from the enormous cost of SGI systems at the time. The standalone software retailed for $7,500, but was also sold with other modules, and a PowerPack containing all modules that retailed for $30,000 US.

Alias PowerAnimator 9.0 Documentation

• Animating in Alias 9.0 (436 pages) - Provides information to help you create basic animations, build skeletons, bring creatures to life using Inverse Kinematics, produce particles and special effects, and deform time using time warps.
• Basic Tools in Alias 9.0 (610 pages) - General tools that you'll use throughout modeling, animating, or rendering workflows.
• Data Transfer for CAD and Solid imaging in Alias 9.0 (212 pages) - Explains how to exchange 3D model data between Alias 9.0 and CAD packages.
• Games Data transfer in Alias 9.0 (130 pages) - Explains how to translate Alias files to games platforms such as Nintendo 64, Sony Playstation, and Sega Saturn.
• Learning Alias 9.0 (674 pages) - A thorough course in learning how to use the Alias design and animation software.
• NURBS Modeling in Alias 9.0 (554 pages) - Tools to create and modify NURBS curves and surfaces, as well as construction and evaluation tools.
• Polygonal Modeling in Alias 9.0 (120 pages) - Tools to create and modify polygons and polysets.
• Rendering in Alias 9.0 (562 pages) - Tools to define the look of your scene, create special effects, define how the scene will render, and create final rendered images and animations.
• Global Index for Alias 9.0

History

In 1997, John Gibson, Rob Krieger, Milan Novacek, Glen Ozymok and Dave Springer were presented with the Scientific and Engineering Award for their contributions to the geometric modeling component of the PowerAnimator system.

"The Alias PowerAnimator system is widely regarded in the computer animation field as one of the best commercially available software packages for digital geometric modeling. Used by many motion picture visual effects houses, it has been a benchmark for comparison of modeling tools and has had a major influence on visual effects and animation."

Ò==Game development== The software's most notable contribution to the entertainment industry was in game development, in particular included as a part of Nintendo 64's SGI-based developers kit and used for modeling, texturing, animation and realtime effects, of notable titles:

• Super Mario 64
• Mario Kart 64
• GoldenEye 007
• Turok: Dinosaur Hunter
• Turok_2:_Seeds_of_Evil
• The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Other titles include:

• Star Wars Arcade (1995)

Film

PowerAnimator was used to create the T-1000 character in Terminator 2: Judgment Day, at a cost of $460,000 per minute.

• Jurassic Park
• Batman Returns
• James and the Giant Peach - ("Sony Pictures Imageworks creates elaborate environments and complex composite effects using A|W software: PowerAnimator, Wavefront's Composer, Explore and Dynamation. SPI artists create 69 visual effects including a flock of seagulls, stylized ocean with waves, foam and spray.")

External links

• Animation Software Companies and Individuals In CGI
• PowerAnimator Bible
• [http://www.alias.com/eng/support/studiotools/qualified_hardware/QUAL/alias_9_02_ibm.html Alias 9.0 Qualification Chart