Amazon Web Services (AWS) recently announced that the Krakatoa and XMesh tools for Autodesk Maya have been officially open sourced and are now available under the Apache 2.0 open source license. The source code for both Krakatoa and XMesh is currently hosted on GitHub. Krakatoa, a particle rendering tool, and XMesh, a geometry caching system, are both part of the AWS Thinkbox Toolkit.

▲ Warner’s DC movie “Aquaman” scene

AWS Thinkbox tools originated from Thinkbox Software, which used to be a software developer focused on developing various visual effects and rendering tools. AWS acquired Thinkbox Software in 2017. At the time of the acquisition, since the businesses of AWS and Thinkbox Software had no similarities, many companies that relied on his development tools expressed concern about the acquisition (as can be seen from these screenshots, using AWS Thinkbox has no shortage of top studios).

▲ A scene from the Netflix TV series “Stranger Things”

Fortunately, AWS has given great support to Thinkbox’s continued development. With Krakatoa and XMesh open-sourced, businesses that depend on them can use them without restriction and are better able to contribute to the project, planning its future and direction.

▲ HBO TV series “Game of Thrones” scene

AWS Thinkbox includes many products, including Deadline, Draft, Frost, Sequoia, and Stoke in addition to Krakatoa and XMesh, which are already open source. In August of this year, AWS has changed the product from paid to free, and AWS is now working hard to open source all AWS Thinkbox tools.