Autodesk Inc. subsidiary Discreet on Monday introduced combustion 3 to Mac users, a major new release of the company’s visual effects and 3D compositing desktop software.
Combustion 3 is aimed at users who produce Web content and pro video motion graphics, or those who repurpose video content for the Web, as well as those who produce effects for independent films and HDTV content. Combustion comprises paint, animation, editing and 3D compositing tools in a single integrated environment.
New features of combustion 3, which is already available for Windows, include the new Editing Operator, which removes the need for users to rely on external video editing software for simple editing tasks. JavaScript-based Expressions have also been added; these enable users to create complex animations while eliminating repetition. Also new to combustion 3 is the ability to create and output animations using Macromedia Flash format. There’s more, too — details are available online.
Discreet plans to release combustion 3 in early 2004; the suggested retail price is US$995. Upgrades from previous versions are $199. Attendees of Macworld Conference & Expo can see Discreet at booth #2123.