Foundry releases Flix 7.0

Foundry has launched Flix 7.0, a “major” update to its pre-production software that helps studios manage editorial round-tripping, storyboard revisions and file versioning.

“Flix 7.0 opens the door for cross-discipline story development,” says Chris Andrewartha, Flix Product Manager at Foundry. “With our new Maya integration and upgraded API, it’ll be easier than ever for different teams and departments to collaborate. From 2D storyboards to 3D playblasts, all pre-production files are neatly organized in one central location so everyone is on the same page as they perfect and craft the story together — keeping projects on schedule and budget from the start.”

Due to the new integration with Maya, Flix 7.0 enables both 2D and 3D artists to collaborate from anywhere using Flix as a central story hub. Snapshots and playblasts can be imported from Maya into Flix 7.0 as panels and then round-tripped to and from editorial “in a few clicks.” Flix handles naming, storing, and organizing all files, as well as enabling teams to provide feedback or revisit older ideas as the story is refined.

As Flix also connects to Adobe Photoshop and Toon Boom Storyboard Pro, the Maya integration enables layout and storyboard teams to work in tandem. Teams can now collaborate concurrently to identify areas for improvement in the story such as timing issues “before they become complicated and expensive to change later in production.” 2D artists can bring Flix’s Maya panels into their drawing tool of choice so that they can trace over the viewport for faster storyboarding. 3D artists can reference 2D storyboard panels from Flix directly in Maya when building complex scenes or character models.

For studios who want to customize Flix to the specific needs of their artists, Flix 7.0 “makes building new extensions easier than ever” with a new Remote Client API. This API lets studios create custom tools that integrate with Flix using the same API as the built-in extensions for Maya and Photoshop. Documentation and example code for the Remote Client API are provided to help studios build custom integrations with their choice tools or to create entirely custom workflows. Flix 7.0’s new extension management system makes it easy for studio supervisors to test, update, and audit all extensions, with the added ability to deploy them across production from a single place.

Flix 7.0 also introduces single sign-on (SSO) support for additional ease of secure account provisioning. IT teams can now authenticate Flix users through their studio’s existing SSO platform. Flix also supports multi-factor authentication to provide an added layer of security.

Other new features in Flix 7.0 include a new metadata system. Scene data will now be stored directly on each Flix panel. For Maya users, for instance, global cameras, locators, and file path data will be recorded for assets selected in the viewer; updates and a new UI for the Flix Premiere Adapter eliminates previous version limitations and gives users a “slick, efficient editorial workflow”; the Photoshop extension has been rebuilt from the ground up, bringing users new UI customisation options and more and there are updated notification preferences — turn off automatic email updates each time a panel is published or changed, to limit unwanted noise.