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Step Configuration

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tobi edited this page Jul 13, 2026 · 8 revisions

Step Configuration

Ramses-Fusion allows for deep automation through YAML-based configurations stored at the Pipeline Step level.

The Config Wizard

Instead of writing YAML by hand, you can use the Fusion Render Wizard:

  1. Open Step Configuration from the main panel.
  2. Click Fusion Render Wizard....
  3. In Fusion, configure a Saver node exactly how you want it (Format, Compression, etc.).
  4. Select the Saver node and press Ctrl+C.
  5. Paste the text into the wizard. The parser specifically looks for the Inputs = { ... } block in the clipboard data.
  6. Click Generate Config.
Fusion Render Wizard

Internal Parser Logic

The wizard uses a specialized, stack-based Lua parser designed specifically for Fusion's data structures:

  • Unwrapping: It automatically unwraps FuID { ... } and Number { Value = ... } structures into native YAML values.
  • Flattening: It strips nested table structures to create clean key-value pairs that the plugin can directly apply back to Fusion nodes.
  • Comment Stripping: It ignores Lua comments (--) within the pasted data.

Supported Formats

The plugin includes a built-in EXTENSION_MAP that handles the most common VFX formats, automatically determining if they should be treated as Image Sequences or Movie Files:

Format ID Extension Type
OpenEXRFormat .exr Sequence
QuickTimeMovies .mov Movie
DPXFormat .dpx Sequence
TiffFormat .tif Sequence
PngFormat .png Sequence
JpegFormat .jpg Sequence
MXFFormat .mxf Movie
TargaFormat .tga Sequence
CineonFormat .cin Sequence
SGIFormat .sgi Sequence
AVIFormat .avi Movie
BMPFormat .bmp Sequence
PhotoshopFormat .psd Sequence
SoftimageFormat .pic Sequence
MayaFormat .iff Sequence
Jpeg2000Format .jp2 Sequence

YAML Key Features

Export Destination Support

The plugin supports two destinations for Final Renders, configurable via the Wizard or YAML:

  1. Project Export (Default):

    • Renders to the project's global 06-EXPORT/ folder.
    • Filename: Unversioned master (e.g., PROJ_S_Shot01_COMP.mov).
    • Best for final client outputs or editorial delivery.

  2. Step Export (_published):

    • Renders to the Step's _published/ folder alongside the script backup.
    • Filename: Versioned (e.g., PROJ_S_Shot01_COMP_v003.mov).
    • Best for intermediate steps (e.g., Layout, Anim) that need to be imported by downstream departments.

Configuration:

fusion:
  final:
    format: "QuickTimeMovies"
    export_dest: "step"   # Options: "project" (default), "step"

Image Sequences vs. Movies

If image_sequence is set to true:

  • The plugin automatically creates a subfolder named after the file (e.g., Shot_v001/).
  • The render is saved inside this folder to keep the root directory clean.
  • Frame Padding: Filenames are automatically padded with zeroes (e.g., Shot_v001.0001.exr). The padding length is calculated based on the total frame range (minimum 4 digits).
  • This is automatically suggested by the Wizard for formats like EXR, DPX, or PNG.

Source-Plate Frame Numbering

By default, rendered image sequences are numbered by comp time (the studio start-frame convention, e.g. 1001). For deliveries that must carry the plate's original frame numbers (client numbering), enable source_numbering:

fusion:
  final:
    format: "OpenEXRFormat"
    image_sequence: true
    source_numbering: true   # rendered files numbered like the source plate

No hand-written YAML needed: simply tick Set Sequence Start on the Saver before copying it into the Render Wizard — the wizard turns it into source_numbering: true. Whatever number is in the Sequence Start Frame field is ignored on purpose: the plugin resolves each shot's plate start dynamically at render-setup time, so one shot's frame number is never baked into the step config.

  • The comp timeline is untouched — artists keep working at 1001. Only the output filenames change, via the Saver's native Set Sequence Start controls (file number = plate start + frame − comp global start), so partial re-renders stay consistent.
  • The plate's first frame is detected from the plate Loader in the comp (a Loader whose clip lives in a plate step's _published folder), falling back to the latest published plate version on disk. Plate steps are the ones named in the plateStepNames user setting (default: Plate, Ingest, Footage — shared with Ramses-Syntheyes).
  • If no plate numbering can be found, the render falls back to comp-time numbering and a warning is logged.
  • source_numbering: false enforces comp-time numbering; omitting the key leaves the Saver's sequence-start settings entirely under manual control.
  • Only applies to image sequences — movie masters (.mov, .mxf) have no frame numbering.
  • Render-farm note: frame-completion checkers (e.g. Deadline) that assume output numbers equal comp frames will report false missing frames when an offset is active.

Automated Property Flattening

The wizard flattens complex Fusion input IDs into simple keys. For example, if you paste a QuickTime saver, it extracts: QuickTimeMovies.Compression: Apple ProRes 422_apcn instead of requiring the user to know the internal attribute string.

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