Export Tools Unity
Export Tools
Export Tools contain all tools related to exporting data from Unity and publishing it to the server.
You can access them via the SYNK menu.
SYNK > Artist Toolbars > Export Tools
This will open the following tab:
Publish
This tool can be used once you’ve exported caches, cameras, or timelines (see the Export Tools Unity Export Tools Unity and Export Tools Unity tools).
Open the Publish window:
Via the Artist Toolbar: SYNK > Artist Toolbars > Export Tools
Via the SYNK menu: SYNK > Export > Publish
If you have exports available, they will show up when you open this tool, listed by category.
By clicking the corresponding buttons, you can publish the different types of exports, they will then be processed and linked to the server and Ftrack.
Publishing renders can be done with either only exr renders, or with jpg, exr and mp4 combined. When publishing only EXR, the other file review formats (jpg and mp4) will have to be generated using the Publish finalising renders action in Ftrack.
In case you plan to publish jpg, exr and mp4, it is important that all file formats are present, and that all were rendered at the same time. If this is not the case, publishing will not be possible for that specific shot and the missing or outdated formats will be listed.
Publish finalising renders Ftrack action
An action to publish finalising renders will be present on shots and sequences.
This initiates an exr to jpg conversion with burn-ins and mp4 creation of the jpg and upload/publish to ftrack.
This only initiates a publish if the mp4’s version is smaller then the exr-sequence version!
If a review mp4 already exists for the latest exr sequence the action will not launch.
Output paths are added to the nuke jobs to be able to inspect the folders.
Render
Open the Render window:
Via the Artist Toolbar: SYNK > Artist Toolbars > Export Tools
Via the SYNK menu: SYNK > Export > Render
Enter Play Mode Settings
IMPORTANT: Before you start rendering, make sure this Unity project setting (Project Settings/Editor) is set correctly as shown below. If it is not set like that, you will not be able to publish the render afterwards.
Render Tool
The formats in which the render will be done are preconfigured per task, by default the render tool starts with that task specific configuration but it allows you to override them.
We do this because you, for instance, don’t need 4K EXR in layout, 2K JPG will be sufficient. Also, some formats can be generated afterwards, with batch jobs on a deadline render farm. For instance, for lighting, you can only render 4K EXR and let the JPG and MP4 be generated afterwards.
You can make a selection of shots and then indicate which renders you want to record for these shots. After the selection is done, you can press the Open/Refresh recorder button. This will open the Unity Recorder window that will contain the render settings for the selected shots.
When all settings are correctly selected, press the Start Recording button in the Render export tool. If this button is not available, make sure that the Unity recorder is opened and up to date, by pressing the Open/Refresh recorder button.
Do not use the START RECORDING button in the Unity recorder!.
This is because our start recording button does some changes behind the scenes to ensure the recording is managed correctly.
When you click on Start Recording, play mode is started and the selected shot renders are recorded, they are available afterwards in the local Outputs/Renders folder of the project.
When only a few specific shots are selected instead of the whole sequence, the timeline will temporarily move those shots to the beginning of the timeline, so recording those shots takes less time. This will only happen though, when there is no warm up period selected.
Extra options
Save a copy of the full MP4 recording: By default, the renders are all split up by shot (image sequences as well as mp4 movies), when you activate this option, we also save an mp4 movie that contains the full recording you did (all selected shots). This can be a handy tool to use for local reviewing.
Immediately publish after rendering: Activate this option to let the tool automatically publish the shot renders after recording without further human interaction. Make sure you also specify the publish note when using this option. This can be a handy option for a full 4K render of a sequence: it can be started at night and the publish will be available in the morning.
Warm up period for physics simulations
When you have a physics simulation in your sequence, like an ocean with floating assets, you have to add a warm up period to the timeline to make sure physics are stabilized before the timeline starts playing the actual shots.
To do this, activate this checkbox in the sequence object:
When recording a render, use the Start Recording button in the Render export window instead of the button in the recorder window. This will make sure that the recording starts after the warmup period.
Turntable Rendering
If you are working on a shading, lighting or fx task of a character, deco or prop, the render tool will instead allow you to render a Review (mov and mp4 video + exr image sequence) of the corresponding asset in the task. It will show you the information to that asset, and the button to set up the review scene.
Setup the scene
Select the shading task of the asset and, if available, do an Asset Update.
Open the Render tool
SYNK > Artist Toolbar > Export Tools > Render
Set the desired render resolution.
Use Custom Review Setup: Setting is enabled by default and if available, a Custom Review Prefab is assigned when opening the tool.
Force Switch to Tex: render will use the textured asset instead of the rig
Use Custom Frame Range: Will let the user set a custom range to render
Press the Setup & Preview button to load the review scene which contains the ReviewSetup prefab. In it you will find the timeline, the render camera, lighting setup and the asset. By default, the asset will be in full view of the camera.
If any environments and sets scenes are needed, they should be loaded by the user.
Characters turntable needs to be customized.
Please refer to this point for more Shading in Unity
Press the Start Render button to begin recording. Do not use the button from the Unity recorder window.
Turntable Batch Rendering
If the currently selected shading task corresponds to an environment or set asset, the window will instead give you the option to batch render multiple assets once, one after the other.
You must add assets you want to render to the list, and then start the render. If custom prefabs exists they will be picked up automatically.
You can preview the asset render by clicking on the Setup & Review button in the asset list.
Export Layout Caches & Cameras
To publish caches to Ftrack for Animation Preparation files, first export them locally using the Cache Export tool.
Open the Cache Exporter window:
Via the Artist Toolbar: SYNK > Artist Toolbars > Export Tools
Via the SYNK menu: SYNK > Export > Caches
IMPORTANT: For each sequence, you have to export both the sequence caches and the shot caches!
The sequence cache export cannot be done together with the shot exports, you can however export multiple shots at once. So in theory only two export runs are needed for a full cache export:
one for the sequence
one for all the shots.
When you select a sequence or a shot, you can see beneath it which caches will be exported.
After selecting what you want to export, click on the BEGIN EXPORT. This will trigger the start of playmode. During playmode, the timeline will be played and all exports will be made.
Static environment caches are exported in FBX format,
animation caches in ABC format.
Cameras are exported in abc format by default but FBX exports are also possible. (via the camera export format dropdown)
When everything is exported, playmode will automatically stop.
Exported caches will be available in the Outputs/Caches folder, ready for publishing.
Start timeline at first exported shot
When you only want to export one or a few shots, you could gain some time by letting the timeline skip the shots at the start that you don’t want to export.
Export static environment checkbox
When you select the sequence for export, an extra option becomes available: ‘Export static environment’. This should always be checked, only when you are absolutely sure nothing has changed to the static environment and you want to gain some time, you could uncheck this and only export the sequence level animation caches..
Export Timeline
Shot timing modifications should only be requested by the director.
First make a render of all shots that got modified (we need to export the audio with a timeline update)
Next, Reload Ftrack Data to make sure you have the latest otio information.
When that’s done, you can proceed with the export:
Open the Timeline Exporter window:
Via the Artist Toolbar: SYNK > Artist Toolbars > Export Tools
Via the SYNK menu: SYNK > Export > Timeline
Just like for the cameras and the caches, you also have the opportunity to export and publish the updated timing information of the shots, if required, through the Timeline Exporter tool as an OTIO file.
You can now publish the timeline changes from Unity. (See Publish)
After publishing the exported timeline, you will need to run one additional action on ftrack: SYNK Otio To Ftrack
We are experiencing some issues with the local action, so for now it is best to run the action through Deadline:
Before publishing any renders, run Reload Ftrack Data one last time in Unity.
Now you can publish your renders.
Export Env Dressing
This tool is currently unsupported.
Physics Based Recorder
This tool was used for Crest-dependant simulations. This information might not be applicable for other simulations.
First the project requires extra assets to be imported:
Via the SYNK menu: SYNK > External Dependencies > Physics Based Recorder > Import
Some sequences contain assets that are dependent on physics simulations. The alembic exporter cannot correctly export these kinds of assets, so there are extra steps involved in order to do these exports. A pre-bake of the physics based assets is needed to record the simulations into animation clips. Those baked animations are the ones that will be used by the alembic exporter, not the physics based. The Physics Based Recorder tool allows you to prepare these bakes. It displays a list with all the assets in the sequence and shots that have physics simulations.
Clicking Add Recorders adds the PhysicsBasedRecorder script to those assets.
Then, a full render of the sequence needs to be done. When the render is finished, there will be a new folder in the project containing all the recorded clips.
Clicking Remove Recorders will delete all recorders previously created.
Copy objects to all shots will make a copy of all the physics based objects into each shot, and will also remove any physics components from them, create tracks in the shot timeline, and assign the recorder animation clips to each.
Adjust All Parent Constraints will first disable the original physics based objects, enable the physics-less baked copies, and adjust any parent constraints in the shots to make sure they are linked to the correct objects. This can be reverted by clicking on Reset All Parent Constraints.
When the parent constraints are adjusted, a regular cache export can be performed.
For sequences in which there is an ocean simulation, a cube grid is needed in order for the animators to have a reference of how the ocean waves move during the shots. This needs to be done before baking the caches. There is an additional tool to create a grid of cubes with certain parameters, in which the maximum number of total cubes will never be greater than 900. It needs the transform of any other object that is located at the ocean height level. You can specify the grid’s width and length (in amount of cubes), as well as the distance between the cubes.