Update: Blackmagic Design Fusion v18.5 – Universal Scene Descriptor Support

Blackmagic Design Fusion v18.5 now offers support for USD (Universal Scene Descriptor), a new multi-merge tool, GPU acceleration, and more.

What’s new in Fusion v18.5

• Support for importing Universal Scene Descriptor (USD) files
• Introduction of the USD toolset for managing USD assets.
• Support for USD Hydra based renderers including Storm.
• New multi-merge tool for compositing multiple layers.
• Support for a native AI-based depth map tool.
• GPU accelerated Clean Plate.
• GPU accelerated Anaglyph.
• Up to 3x faster renders when using splitter tool.
• Support for OpenEXR DWA compression in saver nodes.
• Support for BMD Film Gen 5 in CineonLog tool.
• Support for previewing individual shape tools.
• General performance and stability improvements.

Support for USD-based workflows in Fusion.

The Universal Scene Descriptor USD framework is a set of open standards for interacting, describing, saving and interpreting 3D scene information in a common collaboration format. It also defines standard plugin, renderer (including its own in-the-box Storm GPU renderer) and other framework host/client interfaces.

DaVinci Resolve and Fusion can import USD (.usdc, .usdz, .usda) 3D information including geometry, lighting, cameras, materials and animation. A new collection of USD tools has been added to Fusion allowing users to manipulate, re-light and render these USD files.

\The New USD toolset in Fusion includes:

• uLoader
• uMerge
• uTransform
• uCylinder Light
• uDisk Light
• uDistant Light
• uDome Light
• uRectangle Light
• uSphere Light
• uImage Plane
• uShape
• uCamera
• uRenderer

New multi-merge tool to composite and manage multiple layers.

Multi-merge allows you to connect and manage multiple foreground sources as a composited layer stack. From the Inspector, you can customize the layering, toggle layer visibility and rename layers. Each foreground layer has its own controls, so you can change individual properties like position, size and apply modes. Users can also right click a layer to split a multi-merge (creating a new multi-merge with the layers above the selection), and there’s also an option to navigate to the connected tools.