What spec machines are you using LightWave on at the moment?

At the moment our 3D animators are running LightWave on Intel Pentium 4 1.8 Ghz based workstations, with 2GB of RAM and a Radeon 9700 graphics accelerator. These specifications are mirrored by each of the nodes on our 50 processor strong render farm.

When did you see LightWave for the first time, and when did you start using it?

We put your questions to some of our animators:

Jay - August 2003, started using it the same month.
Marc - Two years ago, when I started at Atomic.
Matt - When I started working at Atomic two and a half years ago. I started using it then.
Brice - I first saw it in April 2001, and started using it in September.
Glen - 1998.
Ali - 1999.
Garth - 2000.

What do you like about the package?

Jay - Very easy to model with and an excellent renderer.
Marc - Its price and modelling in it.
Matt - It has a fast modeller and I also like how simple the texturing and lighting tools are.
Brice - It's intuitive to use.
Glen - Its renderer and modelling speed.
Ali - It was my first!
Garth - The sync between Modeler and Layout.

What could be improved for you?

Jay - Bones, Bones, Bones!!!
Marc - Hypervoxels, Dynamics — Smoke, Fire, Liquid.
Matt - The dynamics, character animation tools and particle effects.
Brice - Animation/IK.
Glen - Rendering speed, character animation, dynamics.
Ali - Dynamics, instances, scripting, user-friendliness in general.
Garth - Can't think of anything I need...

Are there any plug-ins you wouldn't be without?

We have recently discovered FPrime and it has certainly caused a bit of a flutter on the animation floor — it is number one on our wish list. Actually, we have no choice but to get it... the animators won't stop nagging! These are their other choices:

Jay - Bandsaw PRO
Marc - Bandsaw PRO
Matt - FPrime
Brice - FPrime
Glen - FPrime
Ali - doing pretty well without them actually
Garth - FPrime

In your opinion: Integrated or Separated?

Jay - Integrated
Marc - Integrated
Matt - Integrated
Brice - Separated
Glen - Integrated
Ali - Separated — but with animatable modelling tools
Garth - Integrated

Is that the Tetra Vaal robot I see in your reels? I know that the real footage was shot in SA - did you guys help with the animation?

The version of the "Tetra Vaal robot" on the Atomic reel is the first version of the robot, before it was further developed for the Tetra Vaal which made it famous. Neill Blomkamp created and animated both versions of the robot. Neill was a creative director of Atomic, hence the first version appearing on the Atomic reel. Atomic did not work on Tetra Vaal but is presently working on a project for Neill and The Embassy.