Siggraph exhibitors want 3-Democracy

Although dominated by market leading 3D animation and modeling companies such as Alias and Discreet, the message from many of the smaller players exhibiting at the Siggraph exhibition and conference in Los Angeles this week is that the 3D industry needs to be democratised.

Leading the way is Avid which used Siggraph to announce a price drop for its Softimage XSI package to $495 (£270) in a move the company says is “ushering in 3-Democracy”.

Although dismissed by one rival as “3-Desperation,” the idea has been echoed by many at the event, all keen to position 3D modeling and animation for a wider audience and expecting the use of the technology to explode over the next twelve months.

The likes of Luxology’s modo, Kelseus’ Antics Pre-Viz and eyeon’s Fusion 5 – all of which have been launched at Siggraph –aim to offer unique takes on 3D and open the market up.

Alongside the animation, special effects and film related companies, the likes of Adobe, NVIDIA, ATI, HP and Boxx also vied for attention, with production houses including Pixar, Disney and Industrial Light and Magic using the event as a recruitment exercise.

Making a return to the show after a long break and booking the largest space on the exhibition floor, Apple took the opportunity to push the already announced real-time motion graphics design package - Motion – and re-enforce its position in the creative space.

“We’ve got all our cards together now so we’re using Siggraph to let everyone know what we are about,” an Apple spokesman said.