Nuke Stage workflows for PIXERA users

Launching Nuke Stage

To launch Nuke Stage, open the NukeStage Launcher GUI. The Launcher is where you define which processes run and where they run from.

• Nuke Stage Editor: this is the equivalent to PIXERA, where you can create and edit your scenes. You also set up your hardware configurations from here, and connect to the network processes from within the Editor.

• Relay: The relay handles the networking process. This is similar to Presence in PIXERA.

• RenderNodes: The Nuke Stage equivalent to PIXERA’s Client Render nodes in a Director / Client setup.

You will need to put the IP addresses of any RenderNodes if they are on different machines than your control machine.

Click Launch All to launch the render processes on each of the RenderNodes, the Relay, and to open up the Nuke Stage Editor.

Setting up a new project in Nuke Stage

In Nuke Stage, all project configuration is done within Nuke Stage Editor.

Below is an image of the setup workflow in Nuke Stage:

If creating a new project, you can begin working on Nuke Stage Editor when it opens as it will automatically create a new project for you to work in. You can open any existing projects from within Nuke Stage Editor from the File tab or from Project Graph > Open a Project.

Network Setup

The first thing to set up in Nuke Stage is the Networking. The network set up of Nuke Stage is similar in concept to connecting machines in PIXERA Hub, although the steps are different.

In the Properties panel you connect to Relay. Once you have done this, you can add your RenderNodes to the Editor (in the Setup workspace). Information on this can be found at Network Setup. You can check the performance of your RenderNodes in the Network tab, which is similar to the Cluster Workload window of the RenderStream Layer.

Because in Nuke Stage you launch the RenderNode and Relay processes in the Launcher alongside the Nuke Stage Editor, you don’t need to set them up or define their host addresses from within the Editor.

The rest of the project configuration in Nuke Stage can be completed by following the tabs of the Project Graph.

Hardware Setup

In Project Graph > Hardware, you can define your Outputs and Displays.

Outputs

First you define your Outputs. This is the equivalent to Outputs in PIXERA. It’s at this stage you define the size of your output display for each RenderNode using the Viewport properties. For reasons around sync, this output size should be the complete size of your display, even if you’re only using a subsection of that display on the wall. If you are using a subsection this can be defined in the output mapping in a later step.

More information at Creating Outputs.

Displays

The next set up step in Nuke Stage is to define your displays. Displays in Nuke Stage are the equivalent to Screens in Pixera. Displays represent the physical LED walls in your setup. In Nuke Stage Editor you can create flat displays (Planar), or Cylindrical displays if you have a curved LED stage.

The dimensions and physical location of these displays can be edited (full controls at Displays Controls). If you have a custom stage set up, you can import a custom mesh by selecting the Type options Custom and inputting the file path.

Output Mapping

In the properties of each Display, go to Output mapping and define the Output and RenderNode that is connected to the Display. You also define the resolution of the RenderNode output.

If you have multiple RenderNodes, you can define their specific output region in the Output mapping Parameters found in Displays properties.

Camera Setup

To set up your camera in Nuke Stage, go to Project Graph > Cameras and add a new camera. Define whether it will be an inner (modelled on a real world camera) or outer (360 render for usage in the absence of any real world camera) camera. You can also use this tab to set up camera tracking for your project.

Loading a scene

Nuke Stage utilizes B44 encoded EXRs and NotchLCs for playback, and USD as its 3D format. You don’t need to use a 3D plugin to load and edit 3D scenes in Nuke Stage.

Distributing content

Unlike PIXERA, Nuke Stage cannot distribute content over the network through the control machine. Ensure that your content has been uploaded onto each machine at the same location and letter drive.

Editing a scene in Nuke Stage for PIXERA users

Whilst PIXERA uses timelines and layers to edit and animate scenes, Nuke Stage uses node graphs and sequencer panels.

In the Comp workspace, you can add effects such as color grading, and more, using the node graph.

In the Sequence workspace, you can animate specific properties of your scene.

Adding effects to your scene

Nuke Stage uses nodes to build and add effects onto scenes.

Nodes can be built up in a node graph, using a connector to add two effects together. It is typical to create and read Node graphs top-down, as it is easy to view the hierarchy of the nodes and which effect is being added in which order onto content.

Most Node Graphs will start with a Read node. This is where the content path will go - this can be an .exr path or a texture override for a specific object in your Scene graph.

You then use the Tab hotkey to add another node underneath the read node and add an effect underneath it. For example, you can add a grade node underneath your Read node if you want to alter the color grading of your content. You use the node's Properties to make the specific grading changes you want.

Then you add an override node at the end of your node tree. Override nodes help you control which effects are visible in your scene.

Animating your scene

Nuke Stage has a Sequencer workspace that has a Sequencer panel. Here you can drag any animatable property into the sequencer to begin animating your scene. This is the equivalent to PIXERA's clips and keyframing workflows

Nuke Stage Sequencer features:

• Key frames

• Cues

• Clips

• Curve editor

• Interpolation

To see all controls of Nuke Stage’s sequencer, go to Sequencer Panel.

Creating a Track

To create a track in Nuke Stage, you can drag a property from an object within Nuke Stage Editor (for this example, a Node) directly into the Sequencer panel. Alternatively you can press the keyframe icon () on any property in the properties panel.

You can easily view your tracks from the Tree View of the Sequencer panel, which displays all the tracks you have created - similar to the Track manager. Note that you can have multiple sequences and the tree view only displays the tracks for that particular sequencer.

This comparison document is provided by Foundry for information purposes only. Pixera is a trademark of AV Stumpfl GmbH.