Blender

Blender#

This plugin integrates Prism into Blender.

Supported versions: 2.8+ (Python 3.7+)

Setup#

The plugin can be installed from the Prism Hub. After the plugin is installed, the Prism integration needs to be added to the Blender preferences folder. This can be done in the Prism User Settings -> "DCCs apps".

The Blender preferences folder should be selected for the integration path (with different version numbers possible): C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\5.2

The plugin is available on Windows, Linux and MacOS.

Accessing Prism in Blender#

Prism is available inside Blender from the "Prism" menu in the main menu bar.

The menu contains options to:

save and version up your scene
save, version up your scene and add a description/thumbnail
open the Project Browser
open the State Manager to import/export files
open the Prism Settings

Saving Scenefiles#

You can save new scenefile versions using the options in the Prism menu or by opening the Project Browser and selecting "Create new version from current" in the context menu in the "Scenefiles" tab.

Blender also includes an empty-scene preset for creating a new scenefile from the Project Browser. See Creating Scenefile Presets for custom presets and how to use them.

Importing Objects#

To import objects from your Prism project into Blender you can open the State Manager from the Prism menu, expand the "Import" section and click the "Import" button.
The Product Browser will open where you can select and import a product version by double clicking it.
Alternatively you can also rightclick a product version in the Project Browser and select "Import".

The Blender Import state supports .blend, Alembic (.abc), FBX (.fbx), OBJ (.obj), and glTF binary (.glb) products. Enable Keep track of connected objects to keep the imported objects associated with the state for later updates. For an existing Alembic import, Alembic - Update path only (if exists) changes the path of an attached cache instead of importing replacement objects.

Importing from a .blend file#

When you import a .blend product, Prism opens a dialog listing its Collections and Objects. Select the items you need, choose an import mode, and click "Accept":

Append (the default) copies the selected data into the current scene. The copies are independent of the source file.
Link references the selected data from the source .blend file. Keep that file available when reopening the scene. Enable Create Library Override (checked by default for Link) if you need editable overrides or another instance of linked data.

An Import state can track the imported objects for later updates. When updating a linked .blend product, Prism can repoint and reload its library reference. Linking the same collection or object again without an override may be rejected if it is already linked into the scene.

Exporting Objects#

To export objects from Blender into your Prism project you can open the State Manager from the Prism menu and click the "Export" button in the "Export" section.
This will create an export state where you can set your export settings and define which objects to export.
You can then use the "Publish" button at the bottom of the State Manager to execute the state and export your objects.

The exported product version can be found in the "Products" tab in the Prism Project Browser.

Blender's Export state supports Alembic (.abc), OBJ (.obj), FBX (.fbx), glTF binary (.glb), and Blender files (.blend), as well as ShotCam exports. Add objects or collections to the export state to publish only those items. For a .blend export, Whole Scene copies the current scene file instead of exporting only the selected items. ShotCam exports the selected camera as both Alembic and FBX.

Sending objects to other applications#

With a Prism Plus license or higher and the PrismInternals plugin installed, you can send selected Blender objects directly to Houdini, Maya, or ZBrush. Open Prism User Settings > DCCs apps > Blender and enable the corresponding Send To options. After restarting Blender, the enabled destinations appear in the Send To menu in Blender's main menu bar. Select the objects in Blender and choose a destination from that menu; Prism exports a temporary FBX for Houdini or OBJ for Maya and ZBrush and sends it to the target application. The destination application must be running with its Prism integration available.

OpenTimelineIO#

Blender 5.3 or later can import and export OpenTimelineIO (.otio) files through Prism's State Manager. These files describe the Video Sequencer edit, not the 3D scene or its objects.

Exporting a timeline#

Create an Export state, choose a product name and the .otio output type, then click Publish. No objects or collection need to be added. Prism exports the workspace's sequencer scene, falling back to the active scene if no sequencer scene is assigned.
OTIO exports the entire sequencer timeline. The Export state's frame range and object selection do not trim or filter the edit. The result is saved as a versioned product in the Products tab.
In Additional Settings..., enable Resolve Metadata when exporting for DaVinci Resolve. This adds Resolve-specific metadata and is off by default. Blender round-trip metadata is included independently of this setting.

Importing a timeline#

Import an .otio product from the Project Browser or create an Import state and select an OTIO product version. Blender uses an empty sequencer scene or creates a new scene if the target already contains strips. Prism activates the destination scene and sets it as the workspace's sequencer scene.
The imported timeline sets the destination scene's frame rate and frame range. Existing objects and edits are not deleted, and the Import state does not track the timeline as imported objects.
Importing again, including updating an Import state, performs another non-destructive import. It does not replace the previous timeline and may create another scene.

Creating Playblasts#

To create and save a playblast you can open the State Manager from the Prism menu.

In the "Export" section click the "Playblast" button to create a "Playblast" state.

When the state is selected you can set the playblast settings on the right side in the State Manager.

You can then use the "Publish" button at the bottom of the State Manager to execute the state and create a playblast of your scene.

The playblast can be found in the "Media" tab in the Prism Project Browser.

Blender creates playblasts from the viewport. You can choose a camera and override the resolution in the Playblast state. The format list also includes .mp4 (with audio) for animated playblasts.

Rendering#

To render your scene and save it to disk you can open the State Manager from the Prism menu.

In the "Export" section click the "Render" button to create a "Render" state.

When the state is selected you can set the render settings on the right side in the State Manager.

You can then use the "Publish" button at the bottom of the State Manager to execute the state and create a render of your scene.

The render can be found in the "Media" tab in the Prism Project Browser.

If you have the Deadline plugin installed you will see an option to submit the render as a job to the Deadline render farm.

Automatically saving Blender renders#

To save copies of renders made directly in Blender, open Prism User Settings > DCCs apps > Blender and enable Auto save renderings. Choose an output folder; enable use path only for current project to store a different folder for the active Prism project instead of using one folder for all projects. This option is off by default.

After each rendered frame in an interactive Blender session, Prism saves the Render Result as a numbered PNG in that folder, using the current scene filename as the prefix. It does not run in background Blender sessions and skips renders started by a Prism Render state, which already writes to its own versioned output path.

Render layers#

Use Render Layer in the Render state to choose which Blender view layer to render:

A named view layer renders that layer only.
All Renderable Renderlayers renders each view layer enabled for rendering in Blender (the view layer's Use setting).
All Renderlayers includes disabled view layers too.
Either (separate identifiers) option renders the corresponding set of layers, but publishes each layer under its own render identifier instead of grouping them under the Render state's identifier.

For local renders, Prism renders the selected layers one at a time. For the non-separate all-layer options, the layer name is part of the render context; choose a separate-identifiers option when each layer should appear as its own render in the Media Browser.

Render passes and AOVs#

Configure passes in Blender's View Layer > Passes settings, or connect passes to File Output nodes in the compositor. Refresh the Render state to see the current setup in its Passes list.

If the compositor has File Output nodes with output slots, Prism lists those nodes and their passes. Use the nodes' labels to distinguish outputs; right-click a listed node in the Render state to enable or disable it. Prism directs the active nodes' outputs into the render version, including multilayer EXR outputs when configured on the node.
Without File Output nodes, the list shows the passes enabled on Blender's current view layer. You can add or remove these passes from the Render state; this changes Blender's view-layer pass settings. For .exr renders, Prism uses multilayer EXR for these passes in Blender versions before 5.0. In Blender 5.0 and newer, select multilayer EXR in Blender's render settings when needed.

File Output nodes take precedence in the Passes list: the Render state's add-pass button is hidden while node outputs are present. To change those outputs, edit their slots and connections in Blender's compositor.

Scene Building#

Access

In Blender the Scene Building tool can be launched via the Project Browser:

Project Browser > Scenefiles tab > Files > Context menu > Build new Scene

Result

An initial scenefile "v0001" with the comment "Scene Building" has been created. During the building process, all configured steps - such as "Set Framerange", "Set FPS", and "Import Products" - will be applied.

Scene Building Settings

Available steps can be configured in the Project Settings:

Prism Settings > Project > Scene Building > Blender

Blender Steps

The following Scene Building steps and their respective settings are available in Blender:

Set Shot Framerange:
Description:	In cases where the defined shot framerange does not align with that of the scene, the scene framerange will be updated.
Apply to task:	Specifies the Entity, Department, or Task for which the step should be executed. The default selection is `--*`, meaning the step applies to all.
Framerange to apply:	The framerange can be set based on the `Shotrange` or on the `Shotrange + Handles`. The default selection is `Shotrange`.

Set FPS:
Description:	If the defined shot FPS differs from FPS of the scene, the scene FPS will be updated.
Apply to task:	Specifies the Entity, Department, or Task for which the step should be executed. The default selection is `--*`, meaning the step applies to all.

Set Resolution:
Description:	In case the defined shot resolution does not align with the resolution of the scene, the scene resolution will be synced.
Apply to task:	Specifies the Entity, Department, or Task for which the step should be executed. The default selection is `--*`, meaning the step applies to all.

Import Products:
Description:	If products with tags are available, they will be imported automatically.
Apply to task:	Specifies the Entity, Department, or Task for which the step should be executed. The default selection is `--*`, meaning the step applies to all.
Ignore Master Versions:	This can be enabled to import the latest product version instead of the master version. It is disabled by default.

Import Shot Cameras:
Description:	If a shot camera product exists, it will be imported automatically.
Apply to task:	Specifies the Entity, Department, or Task for which the step should be executed. The default selection is `--*`, meaning the step applies to all.

Run Code:
Description:	This step allows to run custom Python code.
Apply to task:	Specifies the Entity, Department, or Task for which the step should be executed. The default selection is `--*`, meaning the step applies to all.
Code:	The code field accepts custom Python code for execution.