Since its inception in 2017, Pixar’s RenderMan® Art Challenge has offered an exciting opportunity for creatives to showcase their talents and win prizes. This year, Foundry is proud to continue its support of the challenge by offering free 90-day trial licenses of Katana look development and lighting software for participating artists, as well as contributions to the prize packages.
Foundry will be with you each step of the way with video tutorials covering everything from getting started with Katana and RenderMan, setting up lights, and exporting renders. RenderMan offers a variety of additional support throughout the challenge, from mentorship feedback sessions, to engagement on its dedicated Discord server.
Learn more and get started with Katana here.
The RenderMan Art Challenge invites students, professionals, and hobbyists to create engaging narratives on a specific theme. The theme of the current challenge, dubbed “First Contact,” is Aliens, in celebration of the interstellar magic of Pixar’s Elio and honoring the 30th anniversary of Toy Story.
Submissions are now open, until midnight PST on November 10, 2025. Full details and official rules and terms can be found here.
“Community shapes how we develop tools at Foundry, and Pixar’s RenderMan Art Challenge serves as a fun way to bring together creatives across the industry. We can’t wait to see what artists come up with and how Katana helps them achieve their visions,” said Arielle Martin, Product Manager, Foundry.
Learn the best practices of look dev and lighting in Katana and RenderMan.
In partnership with these companies, Foundry solves complex visualization challenges to turn incredible ideas into reality. Its products are used to create breathtaking visual effects and animation on a wide range of feature films, episodic content, and commercials.
Foundry software was integral in the making of every VFX Academy Award-winning film for the past decade. The company has been recognized and honored at the highest level in the industry, including four Academy Sci-Tech Awards for Mari, Katana, Nuke and Furnace, two HPA Engineering Excellence awards for Flix and Nuke respectively, and an Engineering Emmy for Nuke.
Founded in 1996, Foundry is headquartered in London, with over 275 people worldwide and a presence in the US, Canada, China, Japan, Australia, and Ireland.