Sketchup to Cinema

[jrizzo]

Hello all,

 

Our team at the office is working on finally setting up some standards, and I'm trying to conquer our standards for SketchUp -> Cinema files. We have a few employees who use SketchUp and then send the models to us, but when we get the files, everything is separated and difficult to navigate, so we end up spending hours just making the file usable.

 

I'm not a SketchUp user myself, though I know how to do the basics, and the SketchUp users here don't know the first thing about Cinema. Any advice on bridging the gap between the two?

[STRAT]

do you have autocad? if so, explode the entire model first, then import into autocad, then 3ds it to cinema from autocad. (or another cad package) SU to cinema isn't the best solution.

[jrizzo]

Interesting! I don't have AutoCAD (on a Mac here), but everyone in the company does, including the SketchUp users.

 

What are the benefits of doing it that way? Would that solve some of the multiple object issues? I know the .3ds won't have instances or anything like that, but we're definitely running into problems with how many little objects there are in every file we get.

[AJLynn]

I do Sketchup > 3DS > Cinema and untriangulate and optimize in Cinema, but I'm lazy so don't go by what I do.

[STRAT]

going through cad allows you to export a 'cleaner' more organised model for cinema.

 

make sure you explode everything in your sketchup model first. most essential. there's a plugin freely available for SU called BOMB which allows you do explode in one swift operation. Exploding all and going to cad first also groups mesh elements into layers instead of individual objects.

 

then import into cad (autocad or formZ for example). in cad you can easily erase the unwanted messy bits that SU usually creates, purge the drawing, and generally get a cad happy mesh.

 

then export from cad as a .3ds file and it'll go nicely into cinema.

[jrizzo]

Very nice. Thanks for the help!

[Ernest Burden III]

This is something I was struggling through just a few days ago. I have a model from a client in SU and wanted to render it in C4D.

 

SketchUp works in triangles internally. You see n-gons in the program, but if you export to DXF or DWG you get triangles, not quads. Architectural models are usually best in quads for further editing in C4D. My CAD program, DataCad can directly import a SU6 model. But it comes in triangulated. That's the first issue.

 

The second issue is symbols/blocks/components (all the same, just different name depending on the 3D program). SU uses them, and doing a transfer with the Autocad DXF/DWG preserves the block structure, including nesting. That can be important for further work with the model, and in being able to send the model back to SU if someone needs that. But you lose the n-gons. Trying to import a DXF file with blocks in it will produce a problem in C4D. The blocks will be lost, except for a single copy placed at 0,0,0 3DS format will the block structure but preserve the placements, just in triangles.

 

I found that exporting a SU file to the good old .obj format will preserve quads and even some of the n-gons from your SU model. It will explode the blocks unfortunately. Your model will be complete, but split up into many, many objects. The positions and scale and all will be correct for the items that were components in SU.

 

So pick your poison.

[BrianKitts]

do you have autocad? if so, explode the entire model first, then import into autocad, then 3ds it to cinema from autocad. (or another cad package) SU to cinema isn't the best solution.

 

this may be the dumbest question I have ever posted..... but how do you export a .3ds from autocad? I've never attempted it before, and the the usual suspects of doing a "save as" or "export" under the file menu for autocad2008 don't show .3ds as an option.

 

and I'm not seeing anything about in the help files..... it tells you about import, but no export...

 

am i nuts?

[AJLynn]

The command is 3dsout, but IIRC they removed that as of 2008?...

[BrianKitts]

No luck, but you did lead me to the answer I needed. Under the autocad help menu for 3DSOUT.... it says the command is now OBSOLETE (in 2008) and that it recommends exporting a DWG for taking models into MAX.

 

I was trying to run strat's route from sketchup into max (i know this is a cinema thread).... but the same concept applies.

 

In the end i found that exporting a FBX out of sketchup brought the complex model into max (and hopefully it can for cinema?) flawlessly. The model is one object, but it has one organized sub-object material and the whole model is properly organized by material ID.

 

I think AUTODESK is really trying to phase out 3DS.... speacially if you read about their creation of the FBX file type. Maxon is listed as supporting this FBX as well so I'm assuming it can work for C4D.

 

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?id=6837478&siteID=123112

[AJLynn]

"Their creation." Ha. It's the Kaydara file type. Alias bought Kaydara, and decided to promote FBX as a portable file type, then Autodesk bought Alias. Anyway, why not just have Sketchup export a 3DS file?

[BrianKitts]

Anyway, why not just have Sketchup export a 3DS file?

 

crashes sketchup everytime I try..... its a huge model and it I don't think it's constructed very well. I'm not a sketchup user I only export models out of it to render in other software. So that left me looking for other avenues for export.

 

originally when I exported just a section of the model it created a seperate material for every group and component which caused a headache on the other end of things. Thats when I began exploding the model as suggested in this thread. But then after waiting 5 mins everytime I hit explode and doing it 6 or so times I still had nested groups and too many objects in the scene such that when I exported sketchup would crash. Like I said messy model, but we are always expected to make miracles happen with other peoples crap so workarounds had to be found.

[bjornkn]

I don'tuse Cinema any longer, but I use SketchUp all the time with LightWave. What I've found works best is to export as 3ds, selection as Single object with textures and meters. Then I load them into LW/Modeler, where I turn off the default 10x scale. Then I add more objects into layers in the same lwo file, or save as separate objects. They all pop right into place, but to get smoothing I need to merge points. Sometimes I de-triangulate too.

When I load a new version into a new layer in the same lwo file it inherits all the surface settings, so there's no need to rebuild them.

Works very well here, but it may be different in Cinema?

You could try to post the skp file and then I could eventually try to make a lwo file for you?

[gdrakakis]

No luck, but you did lead me to the answer I needed. Under the autocad help menu for 3DSOUT.... it says the command is now OBSOLETE (in 2008) and that it recommends exporting a DWG for taking models into MAX.

 

I think AUTODESK is really trying to phase out 3DS.... speacially if you read about their creation of the FBX file type. Maxon is listed as supporting this FBX as well so I'm assuming it can work for C4D.

 

hi,

many users asked for 3dsout

and here is the link:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=9481286&linkID=9240618

[AVAra]

I have a different problem. I can import it in Cinema 4D but some textures don't appear. I can't add them in C4D because when i try it fills everything else, not only the part i want to. I tried to export it through AutoCAD but then i see only colors without the textures. The same is with 3D Studio MAX, some textures do not appear. (I know almost nothing about 3DS MAX and AutoCAD so i may be mistaking somewhere) I Am told the same thing happens with Maya. I tried different formats as well.

 

I am new in the 3D modeling and animation. I work best with SketchUp, that's why i did the model in it and I want to render a video/animation in Cinema 4D with it (add lights, sky, background, edit materials and move the camera around.)

 

Here are screen shots:

SketchUP:

Export options:

Cinema 4D:

 

The model will become much bigger than this, if it makes some differences.

 

Sorry for the bad English and the screen shots, i wanned to post links to them but i am not allowed(this is my first post).

 

This project is very important for me, any help will be appreciated!

[AJLynn]

Do you have reversed faces?

[AVAra]

I don't know. I am not sure what exactly reversed faces are. How can i check this?

 

Edit:

I just found out that there is an option in SkechUp "reverse faces".

No i haven't used it.

Edited January 31, 2009 by AVAra

[AJLynn]

What you need to do is look at the model in Monochrome mode and reverse any face that are purple. Even then, you can get errors and have faces reversed in the Cinema model, which I don't have a quick way to deal with (unless somebody else has one?...)

[AVAra]

10x for the info!

The reversed faces match the ones without textures in C4D.

I'll reverse them, put the textures again and I'll post what happened tomorrow (It's 3 AM here).

[AJLynn]

It helps if you use the keyboard preferences to define a quick key for reversing faces - then you can speed through it.

[AVAra]

10x for the tip.

I just marked the reversed faces and reversed them back at once. The problem was that i had to put most of the textures again but it was worth it. Everything is fine in C4D now. I exported the model with the same settings.

 

Again, 10x a lot for the help!

 

Anyone know how I can avoid this in the feature?

[BillyElNino]

Anyone know how I can avoid this in the feature?

 

Have you considered texturing in Cinema 4D? We work the following way:

 

1. Base model in SketchUp (excluding any complex modelling that is quicker in Cinema 4D)

 

2. Use layers to give all polygons with the same material a colour (colour irrelevant as long as they are all different)

 

3. Export a .3DS out of SketchUp using export by layer and colour by layer box checked.

 

4. Import into Cinema 4D, connect and optimise all geometry.

 

5. Add complex models in Cinema as well as props, entourage people furniture etc

 

6. Texture and render. (we use Vray for C4D but you can use the Advanced Render module).

 

7. Repeat (!)

 

Handing over your texturing to Cinema 4D rather than SketchUp I think will be imperative if you are to get out good quality renders. You need the added control over them and, if you're going to render in Cinema 4D anyway, it makes sense as you can only really texture something with the lighting plan atleast thought out.

Edited February 2, 2009 by BillyElNino

[j_forrester]

I would really like to and push for a Sketchup importer for C4D. It seems 3D Max has an integrated .skp importer as well as modo. Maxon needs to take note and follow suit. I have personally e-mail them myself in there suggestions section and see the only it's going to happen is if people also fill out the suggestion form (takes less than 2 mins if that) and let them know that there consumers want this Sketchup Importer for C4D.

 

Cant upload link due to needing to have posted 10+ posts but go to maxon.net/support/suggestions.

 

 

 

Tried Collada which half works but you lose all the dynamic material names in translation to C4D which is extremely annoying having to go through and rename 30+ textures everytime.

[peigenmann]

I use the Collada file format to export models and them import them into C4D. Works quite well for me as usually don't need to fiddle with the geometry...

 

P