Foundry unveils Flix 7.0

Foundry has launched version 7.0 of its pre-production software Flix.

The latest edition is now integrated with Maya, meaning that both 2D and 3D artists can collaborate from anywhere in the world 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.

Flix takes care of naming, storing, and organizing all files, as well as enabling teams to provide feedback or revisit older ideas as the story is refined.

Flix also connects to Adobe Photoshop and Toon Boom Storyboard Pro, and combined with the Maya integration this enables layout and storyboard teams to work in tandem. This allows them to identify areas for improvement in the story such as timing issues early on. 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. Meanwhile, 3D artists can reference 2D storyboard panels from Flix directly in Maya when building complex scenes or character models, saving even more time.

Filx now also has a Remote Client API for users who want to customise the product to their artists. This lets studios create custom tools that integrate with Flix using the same API as the built-in extensions for Maya and Photoshop. There is also a new extension management system so studio supervisors can test, update, and audit all extensions, with the added ability to deploy them across production from a single place.

In addition, Flix 7.0 supports single sign-on and multi-factor authentication, with IT teams now able to authenticate Flix users through their studio’s existing SSO platform.

Other new features in Flix 7.0 include a new metadata system that stores scene information directly on the Flix panel, updates and a new user interface for the the Flix Premiere Adapter, a redesigned Photoshop plugin, and updated notification preferences.