Pixar RenderMan

Lore & Background

The name RenderMan originated from a nickname given by engineer Jeff Mock to a small circuit board (2.5 × 5 inches) containing a Transputer chip, which he could put in his pocket. Inspired by the popularity of the Sony Walkman, he called his portable board 'Renderman,' leading to the software's name. Pixar engineers performed experiments with parallel rendering computers using Transputer chips inside a Pixar Image Computer to speed up rendering.

RenderMan used the RenderMan Interface Specification (RISpec) to define cameras, geometry, materials, and lights, facilitating communication between modeling applications and the render engine. The specification was first presented at SIGGRAPH in 1988, developed by Pixar with about 19 companies, with Pat Hanrahan as architect. Pixar's commercial implementation, PhotoRealistic RenderMan (PRMan), was released in 1989. Historically, RenderMan used the Reyes Rendering Architecture, with later versions adding ray tracing, global illumination, and Monte Carlo path tracing. Support for Reyes rendering and the RenderMan Shading Language was removed in 2016.

Reader's Guide

Pixar RenderMan has been instrumental in creating digital visual effects for Hollywood blockbusters such as Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story, Jurassic Park, Avatar, Titanic, and The Lord of the Rings. It received four Academy Scientific and Technical Awards, including an Academy Award of Merit in 2001 for significant advancements to motion picture rendering. It was the first software product awarded an Academy Award. RenderMan also won the Gordon E. Sawyer Award in 2009 and the Coons Award. Steve Jobs in 1991 described the original goal for RenderMan as making it 'the system software of the 90s,' likening it to PostScript. The software has been used by major studios including Industrial Light & Magic, Walt Disney Animation Studios, and many others worldwide. Its development in the C language allowed portability across platforms.

Did You Know?

• The name 'RenderMan' came from engineer Jeff Mock's nickname for a portable circuit board containing a Transputer chip, inspired by the Sony Walkman.
• RenderMan was the first software product to receive an Academy Award.
• A free non-commercial version of RenderMan became available in 2015.