USD in Maya

In order to use the Prism USD plugin in Maya you need to have either the Autodesk USD plugin or the Multiverse plugin installed and loaded in Maya.

Autodesk USD plugin

From Maya 2022 onward the Autodesk USD plugin is getting installed automatically with Maya and don’t need to be installed manually.

In case you want to update the Maya USD plugin before the next Maya version gets released, you can find the Maya USD plugin installer here:

Autodesk Maya USD plugin

Guides

USD

The following guide section covers the Maya-USD workflow in Prism. This includes modeling, surfacing, rigging, layout, animation and lighting. All guides are using the “Sunrise” exsample project, which can be downloaded below, to demonstrate the workflow.

Introduction

Modeling

Surfacing

Rigging

Layout

Animation

Lighting

Download the "Sunrise" Example Project

Note

After the download has been completed, follow the instructions in the “README_Sunrise” text file inside “Prism-Pipeline_Sunrise_ProjectFiles.zip” for proper use of the project (to preserve relative paths).

Import USD files

USD files can be imported the same way as other products using the State Manager.

When importing USD files, a window with USD specific import options will open.

Maya Objects

Import the USD file and convert the imported objects to Maya data.

Similar to File -> Import… in Maya.

Reference

Instead of importing the USD file as Maya data, the USD objects will be referenced using the Maya Reference Editor.

USD Objects

Load the USD file in a USD stage object in the Maya scene.

Loading a USD file this way will load the objects as USD data instead of Maya data.

See here for more details.

Stage

The USD file be loaded into an existing stage object or a new stage object can be created in the Maya scene.

Layer

Load the USD file as a layer in the selected stage object.

Reference (Payload)

Load the USD file as a Payload in the selected stage object.

This is recommended when loading USD assets into shot USD stages.

Set Source Prim

When adding a USD file as a payload, only a single USD Prim (including it’s children) in the USD file can be added.

This setting defines the USD prim path of the USD prim to be added as a payload.

If unchecked, Prism will choose a prim automatically (the first root prim).

Note

It’s recommended that the hierarchy of all USD assets are structured in a way, that they have only a single root prim.

This makes it clear which prim is supposed to be added as a payload and it will avoid mistakes and confusion later on.

Set Target Prim

When adding a Payload to a USD stage you can define the USD prim path at which the payload should be added.

Note

When adding a payload with a USD asset to a shot USD stage, the recommended Target Prim is /assets/<assetname>.

If multiple instances of an asset will be added to the shot USD stage, a number can be added as a suffix.

Export USD files

USD files can be exported using the USD Export state in the State Manager.

You can export Maya objects from the Outliner or export USD layers from the Maya USD Layer Manager.

Shelf Tools

The USD plugin adds two more shelftools to the Prism shelf.

One for importing and one for exporting USD files.

Note

Both shelftools have additional options in the context menu.

Doubleclicking the shelftools will trigger the first action in the context menu.

Miscellaneous

Prism will automatically create an anonymous layer named work under the session layer if a USD stage is found in the Maya scenefile.

The Edit Target will be set to this layer, which can be checked in the Maya USD Layer Editor window.

It’s recommended to make changes to USD data on this work layer and then export this work layer as a department layer or sublayer using the State Manager.

These changes can be merged with existing versions of the departmentlayer/sublayer.

Multiverse USD plugin

As an alternative to the Autodesk USD plugin for Maya you can also use Prism with J-Cube Multiverse.

Prism will use the Multiverse plugin automatically for importing and exporting USD files when the Autodesk USD plugin is not loaded.

When both USD plugins are loaded you can choose which plugin will be used by Prism using the “Preferred USD plugin” setting.

This setting can be found in the Prism User Settings window under “DCC apps” - “Maya”.

This setting is only visible when opening the User Settings inside Maya and when both USD plugins are loaded.

Note

The Multiverse USD plugin support in Prism has been tested and used less than the Autodesk USD plugin.

Therefore the support for the Multiverse USD plugin should be considered experimental at this point.