TVPaint Newsletter - December 2011

• TVPaint Animation 10 : Professional and Standard Editions
• Architecture
• New animation tools
• New storyboard and animatic tools
• New drawing tools
• Interface
• Other improvements
• How to upgrade ?

December 6th 2011 : TVPaint Developpement releases the 10th version of the TVPaint technology ! After 3 years of development it is now official : TVPaint Animation 10 - Professional and Standard Edition is available in our webstore. Enjoy the new features' list below and do not hesitate to upgrade your 8 and 9 versions !

TVPaint in 32 and 64 bit

TVPaint technology is now available in 32 and 64 bit versions, for Windows and Linux (only 32 bit for Mac, 64 bit versions will come soon). The 64 bit version allows the use of more than 3,2Gb of RAM in your machine, contrary to the 32bit version. Now feel free to create High Definition projects without experiencing any slowdown, even when using huge custom brushes.

Moreover, in order to increase the software's response (test and development in octocore computers) compatibilities with multicore processors have been improved.

Internal AVI

TVPaint Développement team has created an internal AVI format for its software. This format proposes different compression levels and does not depend on any codec in your computer. Thanks to that format, you will obtain the same export quality, whatever your operating system (Windows-Mac-Linux) and / or the linked codecs.

Groups

TVPaint 10 now allows you optimized management of groups which can be spotted by name or color code. Groupings allows you to organize your layers, sound tracks and storyboard clips in as an identified unique group which have access to linked options such as display, disable, select, apply FX, change timing... and others.

Sound tracks and layers within an identified group will remain synchronized even if you move them within a timeline.

Create instances more easily

TVPaint Animation 10 allows you to create a new instance anywhere in the timeline. This is very useful, because you do not have to create your images manually: draw and animate, frame per frame, without caring about creating instances. TVPaint Animation will generate automatically the instances.

Move, insert or copy your images instantaneously

With TVPaint Animation 10, moving, copying and inserting an image selection across the timeline will be as easy as pie. The time when you had to copy and paste is over! Select, then drag and drop and you’re done.This great feature is also usable with Xsheet layers.

New Faux-fixe modes

Faux-fixe has been improved again and now contains 3 new modes : repeat, ping-pong, and random.

The Out-of-Pegs

This great new extension of the lightable allows you to temporarily move, scale and rotate the lightable images of the surrounding frames in order to make inbetweening easier.

Image Mark Panel

In order to make navigation easier within a timeline it is now possible to mark your images with separate colors: key images, breakdowns... A dedicated panel is now available in order to help you mark and navigate from one image to another.

Name an instance

The image-mark is not sufficient enough ? Double click on an instance's head and a window will appear in which you can enter a frame’s name.

Optimization of the clips' management

Just as you can group sounds and layers, TVPaint Animation 10 now allows you to organize your clips. Moreover, you are also able to :
• activate or deactivate a clip. The clip is preserved but will not show during the animatic's playback. This is particularly useful when editing scenes.
• lock or unlock clips' positions. You will be able to edit their content (animation, duration, dialog...), but you cannot modify their order.
• merge the current clip with another one into a single clip.

Edit your animatic's duration with a simple click

With TVPaint Animation 10, modifying your animatic's duration is child’s play. Use the Timeline view and stretch any clip within your animatic; then play back—the result is instantaneous.

Export your storyboard in PDF

Now, TVPaint Animation can directly export your storyboard in PDF. Thanks to this form of export it has become now possible to print your storyboard panels for your next meeting or your storyboard book.

Passe-Partout and 4/3 borders for the camera tool

New functions have been added for the camera tool :
• Passe-partout helps you to visualize your camera's point of view
• 4/3 borders is very useful when working on a 16/9 project, in order to check the display on a 4/3 screen.

New Tool Bin

As usual, a new version of the Tool Bin is again available with many new tools and papers. Paint roller, chalk, Chinese brushes ... we are certain you will enjoy many of these new tools!

Brushes history

Have you ever lost a custom brush because you had forgotten to save it ? Now, thanks to a brush history feature, you have access to all these brushes from the time you opened the software.

New drawing modes

Two new drawing modes appear in the tool panel for the Pencil brush and custom brushes :
• Pencil brush now has a « soft » mode.
• Custom brushes can be now in « smear source » mode. This mode allows you to define a source via the « shape settings » panel, in order to smear the colors from the source with the current A color. This feature is really incredible for rotoscoping with a painterly effect.

Color panel

Two new great features have been added for the Color panel :
• picker tab and mixer tab : resize the as you want and make them bigger
• HSV mode : right click on the picker tab to use the Hue, Saturation, Value mode.

Line smoothing

TVPaint now includes in the « Shape settings » panel a line smoothing feature, allowing you to make the inking step easier. Thanks to this feature you will not have to anymore experience shaky lines where not desired.

Improved drawing recorder

Now, the drawing recorder allows you to choose between two modes : « Display » and « Current layer ». The last one allows you to record a stroke or a drawing and preserve the alpha channel at the same time.

Resize drawing tool with Z

Do you remember what the key Z does when using a custom brush ? Yes, it resizes your custom brush. Now, with TVPaint Animation 10, you can do the same with any drawing tool (except mechanical and text tools, of course).

« Black eye » and other tools

In the Sketch panel RGB, you will notice colored mechanical pencils and a new icon with a black eye. This black eye hides colors on the current layer and displays black strokes only during 1 second.

New interface

Some colors of TVPaint’s interface have been changed to better answer most users' needs while other themes are available as well, particularly if you prefer a more colorful look. Old-timers should also notice with pleasure some new graphical changes in the interface :
• The layer stack has been made over to optimize the need to save space while preserving functionality. Now you will better notice an activated alpha channel, whether you are using a mask or a light table, or when your layer is active or if a layer is locked or not.

• Menus have been reorganized to make for easier use on Tablet PCs and other laptops with less screen resolution.

New rooms

Following user feedback, TVPaint Développement now offers new “rooms” to streamline your workflow. In addition to the original workspace, you will find :
* a room dedicated to sketches
* a room optimized for making corrections (teachers and professionals should particularly welcome this)


* a room similar to the original workspace but using the color scheme of TVPaint Animation 9.5

Of course, you can still create your own versions, for instance a room dedicated to spotting sound tracks for lip-synching.

The export panel is more practical

The export panel has been reorganized for easier and more intuitive exportations.