Open Source Software (OSS) has become an integral piece of the ever-expanding animation and visual effects industry. With OSS firmly implemented into many studios’ production and development pipelines, what has been gained?

The Open Source Swimming Hole; C’mon In The Water’s Fine^h^h^h^h Murky

Date: Sunday, July 21st
Time: 2pm – 3:30pm
Location: Room 303AB

The challenges and benefits of using OSS will be discussed in an upcoming panel at SIGGRAPH 2013 in Anaheim on Sunday 21st July.

Professionals within animation and VFX will look back on their own innovations that have become widespread within the community, in addition to revealing what future developments are in the works.

Some of the key tech to be discussed will be Alembic, Ptex, OpenVDB, OpenSubiv and Blender.

A scene from DreamWorks Animation's Puss in Boots relying on OpenVDB for clouds.
A scene from DreamWorks Animation’s Puss in Boots relying on OpenVDB for clouds.

The panelists represent a community of developers and enthusiasts who encourage open collaboration, as they share their thoughts and experiences with the world.

  • Rob Bredow (Sony Picture Imageworks) 
  • Andrew Pearce (DreamWorks Animation) 
  • Bill Polson (Pixar Animation Studios)
  • Ton Roosendaal (Blender Foundation)
  • Kevin Gambrel (Disney Animation Studios)
  • moderated by Mike Seymour (fxguide)

The panel is 90 minutes and will cover issues such as:

  • Why are studios adopting OSS?
  • Do we need OSS?
  • What are some legality challenges that arise when implementing OSS into a company’s pipeline?
  • The benefits and disadvantages between closed source and open source software
  • The future of OSS in various studio settings?
  • Does OSS help with cost effectiveness in production?

For more on open source see the open source section of State of Rendering.

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