Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Mesh

Yes

Triangles

Yes

Polygons

Yes

Nulls

Yes

Converted to locators.

UVs

Yes

Vertex Color

Yes

Normals

Yes

Splines

No

NURBS

No

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Omni

Yes

Directional

Yes

Spot

Yes

Light Common Shading

Yes

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Perspective Lookat

Yes

Perspective Rotation

Yes

Orthogonal

Yes

Extra Camera Data

Yes

Lens data, aspect ration, etc.

For a complete description of Maya and Softimage camera interoperability, see Maya to Softimage: Camera Interoperability (this includes the export of camera data from Softimage into Maya).

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

SRT Node Transforms

Yes

Advanced SRT Node Transforms

Yes

Support for pivot, neutral pose, etc.

Instances (model)

No

Instances (primitive)

No

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Skinning (Envelopes)

Yes

Shapes

Yes

Support for blend shapes only, including weight animation.

Note that the Maya import implementation only supports shape manager style weight animations. In other words, when importing into Maya, Crosswalk looks in the corresponding Mixer for the first instantiated animation clip using the shape key X and applies the weight curve of that clip to the blend shape X in Maya. If you create shape animation in Softimage with a complex Mixer setup where more them one clip with the same shape key as its source are sequenced, mixed, or blended, regardless of this, only the first animation clip’s weight curve will be imported on the blend shape weight parameter in Maya.

Bones

Yes

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Fcurves (constant)

Yes

Fcurves (linear)

Yes

Fcurves (spline)

Yes

Fcurves (hermite)

Yes

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Constraints

No

Plotted on export using the Animation Resampling options.

IK

No

On export to Maya, the Preserve IK Chains option must be turned off. When this option is off, IK animation is plotted to FK.

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Rigid Body Dynamics

No

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Common Shading

Yes

DirectX

No

Cg Profile Effects

No

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Custom Psets

Yes

Imported as Maya extra attributes.

User Data Blob

No

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Model Files

No

All references are imported directly into the scene. That is, they are no longer references, but are now objects in the scene.

Images

Yes

Shaders

No

Element

Softimage Export vs. Maya Import

Comments

Update

Yes

Match and update scene elements in current scene on import into 3ds Max. See Updating Scene Elements.