7 ms·

Netflix Animation Studios Joins the Blender Development Fund as Corporate Patron

534 points by vidyesh 8mo ago

m3kw9 8mo ago
I wonder if devs leverage LLMs can catch up to the big boys in surprising speed. Netflix isn’t dumb
- IshKebab 8mo ago
  Blender's code is far beyond current LLM's abilities. Maybe in a few years... we'll see.
Geonode 8mo ago
This is great, but they should give more. I would love to see million dollar donations from every major tech company. It's nothing to them, and Blender is fundamentally changing the way we make digital media.
another_twist 8mo ago
Brilliant. Some of the animations that are put as showcases on the Blender site are absolutely phenomenal. This one https://studio.blender.org/projects/spring/ https://studio.blender.org/projects/spring/ particularly is my all time favorite.
- tomovo 8mo ago
  I loved Coffee Run and the BCON24 Identity. Brilliant stuff. When it comes to Blender itself the only regret I have is that they ended support for Intel Macs but I understand it's a burden to support older platforms.
  - lynndotpy 8mo ago
    For anyone who happens to have an Intel Mac and is discouraged, Blender 4.5 is the LTS version and is still supported until at least 2027, and Blender is accepting patches that improve support. https://devtalk.blender.org/t/deprecation-and-removal-of-macos-intel-builds-in-blender-5-0/38835 https://devtalk.blender.org/t/deprecation-and-removal-of-mac...
- lynndotpy 8mo ago
  There's also the 2024 film Flow. Really delightful movie, and is impressively rendered using Eevee (Blender's real-time renderer) and not Cycles (Blender's path-traced renderer).
BadBadJellyBean 8mo ago
I think especially since the UI overhaul in Blender 2.8 the project has been on a steep upwards trajectory. The software was always amazing, especially since it was free and open source, but the new UI and all subsequent improvements really put Blender on the map as a serious tool and not just an alternative for when you don't have money for the big players.
- Rapzid 8mo ago
  Not disagreeing but it's crazy 2.8 was going on 7 years ago. That's 1 less year than from the release of HTML to 9/11. It'd be like saying "Man the internet has been on such an upwards trajectory since HTML" in 2000 ;D
- mopsi 8mo ago
  That shows the importance of listening to users. I too tried to learn Blender before the UI overhaul, but with prior 3ds max experience, Blender was infuriatingly counterintuitive; for example, it used the right mouse button instead of the left to select objects. Felt like those deliberately annoying demo pages that make you select phone numbers from drop-downs and click on moving buttons to submit forms.
  - whizzter 8mo ago
    The context was also weirdly random, probably with some logic for longtime Blender users but just weirdly random. The usual context for modelling, [[[ Mode(model/uv/anim) -> Object/Mesh selection -> Face/Line/Vertex selection ]]] that is found [[[ (top-to-bottom)-(left-to-right) ]]] since Blender 2.8 and most other programs used to be placed [[[ middle of screen-top of screen-middle of screen ]]], just an insane order and that stuff was actually defended by Blender-die-hards (that probably used keybindings for these context switches anyhow). There is still things placed "weirdly", but once we got past that it became immensly better (and not rage-quit worthy).
- panarchy 8mo ago
  Other open source projects should take note. It seems like UX is a complete afterthought for most and any suggestions for QoL improvements are met with hostility by the small fervent community telling everyone to go fork themselves. Somewhat relevant XKCD: https://xkcd.com/1172/ https://xkcd.com/1172/
WhoCaresAboutIt 8mo ago
Very cool news. Personally, I'd love to see some more focus on game-dev workflows. The game asset pipeline still feels janky: texture painting exists, but not great, and baking textures/previewing results or baking from high poly to low poly involves a lot of manual node fiddling and rewiring. Export/iterate/build/test cycles are also pretty painful still.
- roflcopter69 8mo ago
  Yes I think there's still a lot of potential upside. But check out this collaboration between Blender and Godot https://godotengine.org/showcase/dogwalk/ https://godotengine.org/showcase/dogwalk/ I could imagine that in the not too distant future we might really have a completely open tools stack for making up to AA games (minus console SDKs which always are under NDA I guess).
wateralien 8mo ago
<3 Blender is a treasure and must be protected.
physicsguy 8mo ago
How does it compare to Maya these days?
- Joel_Mckay 8mo ago
  Blender still needs about 130 hours of course projects to become useful, but is a lot better in >5 due to better color handling and geometry nodes. Maya is frozen in time, and that is not necessarily a bad thing... Great video on getting 3D render preview speeds up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0GW8Na5CIE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0GW8Na5CIE Geometry nodes tutorials: https://www.youtube.com/@TheDucky3D/videos https://www.youtube.com/@TheDucky3D/videos Blender still needs plugins to be functional for content: https://tinynocky.gumroad.com/l/tinyeye https://tinynocky.gumroad.com/l/tinyeye https://sanctus.gumroad.com/l/SLibrary https://sanctus.gumroad.com/l/SLibrary https://flipfluids.gumroad.com/l/flipfluids https://flipfluids.gumroad.com/l/flipfluids https://artell.gumroad.com/l/auto-rig-pro https://artell.gumroad.com/l/auto-rig-pro https://bartoszstyperek.gumroad.com/l/ahwvli https://bartoszstyperek.gumroad.com/l/ahwvli https://polyhaven.com/plugins/blender https://polyhaven.com/plugins/blender https://extensions.blender.org/add-ons/mpfb/ https://extensions.blender.org/add-ons/mpfb/ Recommended training (Some artists like it, and some don't ymmv): 1. (A) Complete Blender Creator: Learn 3D Modelling for Beginners https://www.udemy.com/course/blendertutorial/ https://www.udemy.com/course/blendertutorial/ * Basics of low-poly design in blender 2. (B+) Blender Animation & Rigging: Bring Your Creations To Life https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-animation-rigging/ https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-animation-rigging/ * Some more practice rigging * Export to game engine teaser 3. (B) The Ultimate Blender 3D Sculpting Course https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-3d-sculpting-course/ https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-3d-sculpting-course/ * Sculpting, Retopology, and VDM brushes * a few outdated examples, and annoying instruction style * basic anatomy * covers several workflows * Instructor is inexperienced 4. (A+) The Ultimate Blender 3D Simulations, Physics & Particles https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-simulations-physics-particles/ https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-simulations-physics-par... * Shader/Texture basics * Geometry node basics * Boid sprites * Hair and physics simulation * Camera FX, and post-render filters * Focused on Blender v4.3 * Instructions on how to export your assets to Unity 3D and Unreal game engines
dimgl 8mo ago
I really like Blender and it's an amazing product, but I can't get over the standard Blender keymap. The "industry compatible" workflow is more sane, but then I have to translate tutorials from the Blender keymap to the industry compatible controls, and they're not always 1:1
- Andrex 8mo ago
  That is indeed an unfortunate personal problem.
  - dimgl 8mo ago
    No it isn't. Many, if not most, people in the industry use Maya.
- flykespice 8mo ago
  "industry compatible"? You mean Maya keybinds ?
  - dimgl 8mo ago
    Blender has an input keymap for people who use Maya, yes. It's called "Industry Compatible". So yes, Maya keybinds.
  - flipthefrog 8mo ago
    Blender's limited support for the Universal Scene Description format is an immediate showstopper for most medium size to large studios.
    - em-bee 8mo ago
      how did netflix manage to use blender then? doesn't seem to be that much of a showstopper.
    - dimgl 8mo ago
      I actually thought Blender's support for USD was coming along nicely? I remember setting up a scene with Blender, USD and Unreal Engine and it worked pretty well.
margorczynski 8mo ago
How does that translate into real cash?
- zxcvasd 8mo ago
  well, what happens is netflix gives blender real cash. and thats the entirety of the translation
  - countrymile 8mo ago
    It's quite a bit of money, but a lot less than the equivalent Maya licenses. It would be great if more studios did this: $240k "Press release, tech blogpost, dedicated product manager for your area" https://fund.blender.org/corporate-memberships/ https://fund.blender.org/corporate-memberships/ Meta are paying $30k per year, which is crazy really, when you think how much Blender has assisted in getting content onto their platform. Nvidia is better at $120k, but again, think how many graphics card buys Blender cycles has driven.
    - eltondegeneres 8mo ago
      Unless the membership pages is locale-specific, I believe the Patron level fee is actually €240k, not USD.
mcraiha 8mo ago
If someone is wondering who the Aras guy is https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@aras/115971315481385360 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@aras/115971315481385360
- skrebbel 8mo ago
  Nesnausk! He made some pretty sweet demos too (as in demoscene). Eg https://m.pouet.net/prod.php?which=86463 https://m.pouet.net/prod.php?which=86463
- deleted 8mo ago
  [deleted]
mixmastamyk 8mo ago
Anyone know why Netflix doesn’t respond to their job site? I applied to several positions where I’m an exact match, with a decade of VFX and another decade of internet company experience in LA. Never heard a single word in response from them, for years. Reqs stay open a long time as well. What are they doing? Are they ghost jobs? They don’t even respond with a “no” form letter. (Lately their site is broken at the verify email stage, pin post returns 403.)
- doublerabbit 8mo ago
  Simply they don't bother taking down the advertisement once hired. It's the lowest priority of job for the hiring team and the role is normally forgotten about once the hire has been onboarded. I worked for an animation studio and they didn't take down roles.
  - bahmboo 8mo ago
    Companies don't take down listings for many reasons: make it look like they have more money to expand than they actually have, slow down the job seeker so their competition moves just slightly slower, there's no benefit in taking it down, if someone is actually reading the applications maybe an exceptional applicant will come that fits for another role in the company, drive up costs for the competition (hey boss everyone is hiring for my role so give me a raise), etc. [edit: gram mer and spolling]
    - mixmastamyk 8mo ago
      This sounds likely so thanks. However some of my best matched positions I've found on the site after a day or two after posting, as I check it regularly.
assaddayinh 8mo ago
We might see a transition of stable market toolware from subscription to open source yet
srinath693 8mo ago
Blender's UX evolution (2.8+, asset browser, USD) shows FLOSS can compete when funded right, Netflix's €240k push helps. Curious if Animal Logic shared their hybrid Maya/Houdini/Blender pipeline details?
deleted 8mo ago
[deleted]

534 points by vidyesh 8mo ago

m3kw9 8mo ago

I wonder if devs leverage LLMs can catch up to the big boys in surprising speed. Netflix isn’t dumb

IshKebab 8mo ago
Blender's code is far beyond current LLM's abilities. Maybe in a few years... we'll see.

Geonode 8mo ago

This is great, but they should give more. I would love to see million dollar donations from every major tech company. It's nothing to them, and Blender is fundamentally changing the way we make digital media.

another_twist 8mo ago

Brilliant. Some of the animations that are put as showcases on the Blender site are absolutely phenomenal. This one https://studio.blender.org/projects/spring/ https://studio.blender.org/projects/spring/ particularly is my all time favorite.

tomovo 8mo ago
I loved Coffee Run and the BCON24 Identity. Brilliant stuff. When it comes to Blender itself the only regret I have is that they ended support for Intel Macs but I understand it's a burden to support older platforms.
- lynndotpy 8mo ago
  For anyone who happens to have an Intel Mac and is discouraged, Blender 4.5 is the LTS version and is still supported until at least 2027, and Blender is accepting patches that improve support. https://devtalk.blender.org/t/deprecation-and-removal-of-macos-intel-builds-in-blender-5-0/38835 https://devtalk.blender.org/t/deprecation-and-removal-of-mac...
lynndotpy 8mo ago
There's also the 2024 film Flow. Really delightful movie, and is impressively rendered using Eevee (Blender's real-time renderer) and not Cycles (Blender's path-traced renderer).

BadBadJellyBean 8mo ago

I think especially since the UI overhaul in Blender 2.8 the project has been on a steep upwards trajectory. The software was always amazing, especially since it was free and open source, but the new UI and all subsequent improvements really put Blender on the map as a serious tool and not just an alternative for when you don't have money for the big players.

Rapzid 8mo ago
Not disagreeing but it's crazy 2.8 was going on 7 years ago. That's 1 less year than from the release of HTML to 9/11. It'd be like saying "Man the internet has been on such an upwards trajectory since HTML" in 2000 ;D
mopsi 8mo ago
That shows the importance of listening to users. I too tried to learn Blender before the UI overhaul, but with prior 3ds max experience, Blender was infuriatingly counterintuitive; for example, it used the right mouse button instead of the left to select objects. Felt like those deliberately annoying demo pages that make you select phone numbers from drop-downs and click on moving buttons to submit forms.
- whizzter 8mo ago
  The context was also weirdly random, probably with some logic for longtime Blender users but just weirdly random. The usual context for modelling, [[[ Mode(model/uv/anim) -> Object/Mesh selection -> Face/Line/Vertex selection ]]] that is found [[[ (top-to-bottom)-(left-to-right) ]]] since Blender 2.8 and most other programs used to be placed [[[ middle of screen-top of screen-middle of screen ]]], just an insane order and that stuff was actually defended by Blender-die-hards (that probably used keybindings for these context switches anyhow). There is still things placed "weirdly", but once we got past that it became immensly better (and not rage-quit worthy).
panarchy 8mo ago
Other open source projects should take note. It seems like UX is a complete afterthought for most and any suggestions for QoL improvements are met with hostility by the small fervent community telling everyone to go fork themselves. Somewhat relevant XKCD: https://xkcd.com/1172/ https://xkcd.com/1172/

WhoCaresAboutIt 8mo ago

Very cool news. Personally, I'd love to see some more focus on game-dev workflows. The game asset pipeline still feels janky: texture painting exists, but not great, and baking textures/previewing results or baking from high poly to low poly involves a lot of manual node fiddling and rewiring. Export/iterate/build/test cycles are also pretty painful still.

roflcopter69 8mo ago
Yes I think there's still a lot of potential upside. But check out this collaboration between Blender and Godot https://godotengine.org/showcase/dogwalk/ https://godotengine.org/showcase/dogwalk/ I could imagine that in the not too distant future we might really have a completely open tools stack for making up to AA games (minus console SDKs which always are under NDA I guess).

wateralien 8mo ago

<3 Blender is a treasure and must be protected.

physicsguy 8mo ago

How does it compare to Maya these days?

Joel_Mckay 8mo ago
Blender still needs about 130 hours of course projects to become useful, but is a lot better in >5 due to better color handling and geometry nodes. Maya is frozen in time, and that is not necessarily a bad thing... Great video on getting 3D render preview speeds up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0GW8Na5CIE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0GW8Na5CIE Geometry nodes tutorials: https://www.youtube.com/@TheDucky3D/videos https://www.youtube.com/@TheDucky3D/videos Blender still needs plugins to be functional for content: https://tinynocky.gumroad.com/l/tinyeye https://tinynocky.gumroad.com/l/tinyeye https://sanctus.gumroad.com/l/SLibrary https://sanctus.gumroad.com/l/SLibrary https://flipfluids.gumroad.com/l/flipfluids https://flipfluids.gumroad.com/l/flipfluids https://artell.gumroad.com/l/auto-rig-pro https://artell.gumroad.com/l/auto-rig-pro https://bartoszstyperek.gumroad.com/l/ahwvli https://bartoszstyperek.gumroad.com/l/ahwvli https://polyhaven.com/plugins/blender https://polyhaven.com/plugins/blender https://extensions.blender.org/add-ons/mpfb/ https://extensions.blender.org/add-ons/mpfb/ Recommended training (Some artists like it, and some don't ymmv): 1. (A) Complete Blender Creator: Learn 3D Modelling for Beginners https://www.udemy.com/course/blendertutorial/ https://www.udemy.com/course/blendertutorial/ * Basics of low-poly design in blender 2. (B+) Blender Animation & Rigging: Bring Your Creations To Life https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-animation-rigging/ https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-animation-rigging/ * Some more practice rigging * Export to game engine teaser 3. (B) The Ultimate Blender 3D Sculpting Course https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-3d-sculpting-course/ https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-3d-sculpting-course/ * Sculpting, Retopology, and VDM brushes * a few outdated examples, and annoying instruction style * basic anatomy * covers several workflows * Instructor is inexperienced 4. (A+) The Ultimate Blender 3D Simulations, Physics & Particles https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-simulations-physics-particles/ https://www.udemy.com/course/blender-simulations-physics-par... * Shader/Texture basics * Geometry node basics * Boid sprites * Hair and physics simulation * Camera FX, and post-render filters * Focused on Blender v4.3 * Instructions on how to export your assets to Unity 3D and Unreal game engines

dimgl 8mo ago

I really like Blender and it's an amazing product, but I can't get over the standard Blender keymap. The "industry compatible" workflow is more sane, but then I have to translate tutorials from the Blender keymap to the industry compatible controls, and they're not always 1:1

Andrex 8mo ago
That is indeed an unfortunate personal problem.
- dimgl 8mo ago
  No it isn't. Many, if not most, people in the industry use Maya.
flykespice 8mo ago
"industry compatible"? You mean Maya keybinds ?
- dimgl 8mo ago
  Blender has an input keymap for people who use Maya, yes. It's called "Industry Compatible". So yes, Maya keybinds.
- flipthefrog 8mo ago
  Blender's limited support for the Universal Scene Description format is an immediate showstopper for most medium size to large studios.
  - em-bee 8mo ago
    how did netflix manage to use blender then? doesn't seem to be that much of a showstopper.
  - dimgl 8mo ago
    I actually thought Blender's support for USD was coming along nicely? I remember setting up a scene with Blender, USD and Unreal Engine and it worked pretty well.

margorczynski 8mo ago

How does that translate into real cash?

zxcvasd 8mo ago
well, what happens is netflix gives blender real cash. and thats the entirety of the translation
- countrymile 8mo ago
  It's quite a bit of money, but a lot less than the equivalent Maya licenses. It would be great if more studios did this: $240k "Press release, tech blogpost, dedicated product manager for your area" https://fund.blender.org/corporate-memberships/ https://fund.blender.org/corporate-memberships/ Meta are paying $30k per year, which is crazy really, when you think how much Blender has assisted in getting content onto their platform. Nvidia is better at $120k, but again, think how many graphics card buys Blender cycles has driven.
  - eltondegeneres 8mo ago
    Unless the membership pages is locale-specific, I believe the Patron level fee is actually €240k, not USD.

mcraiha 8mo ago

If someone is wondering who the Aras guy is https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@aras/115971315481385360 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@aras/115971315481385360

skrebbel 8mo ago
Nesnausk! He made some pretty sweet demos too (as in demoscene). Eg https://m.pouet.net/prod.php?which=86463 https://m.pouet.net/prod.php?which=86463
deleted 8mo ago
[deleted]

mixmastamyk 8mo ago

Anyone know why Netflix doesn’t respond to their job site? I applied to several positions where I’m an exact match, with a decade of VFX and another decade of internet company experience in LA. Never heard a single word in response from them, for years. Reqs stay open a long time as well. What are they doing? Are they ghost jobs? They don’t even respond with a “no” form letter. (Lately their site is broken at the verify email stage, pin post returns 403.)

doublerabbit 8mo ago
Simply they don't bother taking down the advertisement once hired. It's the lowest priority of job for the hiring team and the role is normally forgotten about once the hire has been onboarded. I worked for an animation studio and they didn't take down roles.
- bahmboo 8mo ago
  Companies don't take down listings for many reasons: make it look like they have more money to expand than they actually have, slow down the job seeker so their competition moves just slightly slower, there's no benefit in taking it down, if someone is actually reading the applications maybe an exceptional applicant will come that fits for another role in the company, drive up costs for the competition (hey boss everyone is hiring for my role so give me a raise), etc. [edit: gram mer and spolling]
  - mixmastamyk 8mo ago
    This sounds likely so thanks. However some of my best matched positions I've found on the site after a day or two after posting, as I check it regularly.

assaddayinh 8mo ago

We might see a transition of stable market toolware from subscription to open source yet

srinath693 8mo ago

Blender's UX evolution (2.8+, asset browser, USD) shows FLOSS can compete when funded right, Netflix's €240k push helps. Curious if Animal Logic shared their hybrid Maya/Houdini/Blender pipeline details?

deleted 8mo ago

[deleted]