Flame Family 2021.1.1 Release Notes

Welcome to the 2021.1.1 release of the following Flame Family products (November 17, 2020):

Flame Family 2021.1.1 Update includes bug fixes and support for the new macOS 11 (Big Sur) on Intel-based hardware. Also note Flame Family products do not support M1-based Apple hardware at this time.

Contents:

Essential Links

Flame Central Flame Central
Flame Learning Channel Videos The Flame Learning Channel
What's New in Flame Family 2021.1 What's New in 2021.1
System Requirements for Flame Family (includes DKU download link) System requirements
Licenses and Release Download links Autodesk Account
Note: Open the Updates and Add-ons tab for Update release versions.

Account Management: Managing Users & Permissions

Download Backburner & Open Clip Creator Utility Autodesk App Store

(Search for Backburner or Open Clip Creator)

Contact Flame Family Support Contacting customer support for Flame

Support for macOS

As stated on the System Requirements page, Flame Family 2021.1.1 Update products are certified for the following macOS:

Support for macOS 10.15.1+ (Catalina) and macOS 11.x (Big Sur) comes with the following limitations:

Important: macOS 10.15.0 (the initial macOS release from October 2019) does not work with Flame Family products.

Support for CentOS 7.6

The Flame Family 2021.1 products support CentOS 7.6 (in addition to CentOS 7.4) on all certified platforms listed on the system requirements page.

Note the following:

New DKU (CentOS Only)

Download the Linux CentOS DKU v15.1.0 from the System Requirements page.

Flame Family 2021.1 version requires the installation of DKU version 15.1.0 on all CentOS workstations.

DKU 15.1.0 contains the following:

DKU 15.0 (included in 15.1..0)

The DKU installs in /opt/Autodesk/DKU.

For more details regarding installation of the DKU, see Install the DKU.

If you need access to the Backburner Manager web monitor, install Adobe Flash Player. Follow these instructions.

AVIO Configuration Support

AJA and Blackmagic Design hardware are available on macOS and CentOS.

AJA Support

Flame Family 2021.1 supports version 15.5 of the AJA drivers.

  • CentOS: Installing the DKU 15 automatically installs the AJA 15.5 drivers.
  • macOS: Download the AJA Software Installer v15.5 - Mac from the AJA website.
    Note: This version installs new firmware on IO 4K and IO 4K Plus cards. This firmware is not compatible with previous version of the AJA Software Installer.

Blackmagic Design Support

Flame Family 2021.1 supports version 11.5 of the Blackmagic Design Desktop Video application.

The following cards are certified:

  • UltraStudio 4K Extreme (using PCI Express Cable Kit)
  • DeckLink 4K Extreme
Note: Other UltraStudio and DeckLink cards should work but are not certified. Thunderbolt cards are not supported.

For installation instructions, see the Configuration guide.

For supported timings, see Broadcast Monitor Supported Timings.

Remote Audio Monitoring

On CentOS, you can now use PulseAudio when using Flame, Flare, and Flame Assist in a remote configuration. Using PulseAudio allows you to get audio playback over your remote session.

For more details, see Remote Audio Monitoring.

Backburner

Backburner 2021 is automatically installed when you install any Flame Family product. If you're in an environment running Backburner Manager on a dedicated workstation, install Backburner 2021 on that workstation to benefit from the latest fixes.

You can download the Backburner 2021 standalone installer from Autodesk online store. Search for Backburner.

Autodesk Network License Manager

Flame Family 2021.1 requires the Autodesk Network License Manager to be updated to the latest version. This Network License Manager version is fully compatible with the Flame Family softwares version 2018 and up.

See the following links for more information:

For details about the license model in Flame Family products, see Products and licenses.

Deprecated Hardware and Software

The following is a list of software and hardware no longer supported by the 2021 and 2021.1 releases of Flame Family products.

It is no longer possible to install the application on workstations equipped with older graphics card, including the previously supported Nvidia cards from the Q family.

Flame Family 2021.1.1 Fixed Bugs List

Components Issue Key Summary
Action Lighting FLME-53499 Lens Flare and Substance elements appear as green squares on the latest MacBook Pro 16-inch.
Media Import FLME-54892 Jpeg files from DJI Mavic Pro with EXIF metadata cannot be read in MediaHub.
Player FLME-55659 The wrong image is shown in the broadcast monitor and Desktop Reels if you change the Primary track after a Timeline track/version was deleted.
Tangent Panels FLME-55048 It is not possible to see the Tangent panels mapping with Tangent Mapper on macOS.
Timeline FLME-55220 The application crashes when you create a Timeline FX after a drag of a Gap Timeline FX to the Explorer was undo.

Flame Family 2021.1 Fixed Bugs List

Components Issue Key Summary
Action Geometries FLME-50274 Artifacts can appear when transforming geometries on AJA KONA enabled machines, especially when Refraction and/or Light Wrap effects are used.
Action Media FX FLME-54414 A crash occurs when accessing the Action Media List FX from a Viewport.
Action Objects FLME-54228 There are no visual feedback on the parametric bevelling curves of the 3D Shape object.
Action Rendering FLME-54344 The image result is rescaled when connecting a matte output to the back input if Over Scan is used.
Action Surface FLME-54383 The Action FX / Transition resets the assigned Background layer during a render, copy or load.
Animation Editor FLME-50526 Keyframes' tangents are not always copied properly between channels.
Batch FLME-54009 The application crashes when you access a Batch Group while a Motion Blur node is selected in your current Batch Group.
Batch FLME-54440 The application crashes when you replace a Batch Iteration that has a Render node using a Schematic Reel as its destination.
Batch Group FLME-54821 The Schematic view of the previously selected Batch Group is shown after you created a new Batch Group using the Create Batch Group function.
Colour Management FLME-54534 The view transform is not properly applied in the broadcast monitor when a compare mode is active in a viewport (Effects or Batch).
Data Management FLME-53833 Interactivity issues might be seen when displaying the alpha channel of OpenEXR media files in Batch and MediaHub.
Compare Tool FLME-53842 The image is doubled when you select a clip that has no Secondary track right after a clip that had the Side by Side compare mode enabled.
Compare Tool FLME-54641 Dragging a reference to a viewport doesn't always enable the Compare function.
Explorer FLME-54308 A Selective setup saved to the Explorer do not carry the resolution information of the Action / Image scene it is originating from.
Lustre: Processing Tools FLME-54600 Viewer might show corruption when switching between A/B playheads with shots of different resolutions using external mattes.
Lustre: Stereo FLME-50448 Applying Stereo 3D Floating Windows on Resize content might not produce the expected result.
Lustre: Stereo FLME-53981 When working in Stereo 3D anamorphic project, floating windows might be offset.
MasterGrade FLME-54717 "The Primary menu is automatically selected after you have made modifications in another submenu if: * The Favour Prim / Tone option is enabled in the Preferences. * You are modifying the MasterGrade connected to the Primary surface in Image."
Media Export FLME-51787 The bit depth of the current custom export preset is incorrectly set when you start the application.
Media Export FLME-52653 Changing the media format for a Movie Export / Sequence Publish from Avid DNxHD to Apple ProRes shows an error message when exporting.
Media Export FLME-54823 When exporting content as XDCAM HD 1080 59.94i, the GOP structure is wrong.
Media Import FLME-54842 Wrong bit depth is shown on imported clips when importing OpenEXR and Photoshop (PSD) RGBA or Multi-Channel media files with MediaHub (Include Alpha option).
Media Publish FLME-46697 Rendering occurs when exporting a sequence with un-rendered Timeline FX located on hidden video track or version. Same issue applies for hidden segment.
Player FLME-52606 In the Player's Source-Sequence view, the Source Player cannot be selected after you stopped a playback by clicking on the Sequence Player.
Player FLME-54042 Clips cannot be playback in the Player under the following conditions: the broadcast monitoring mode is set to Screen Grab or Viewing Area, Filtering is disabled, the zoom factor is set to 100%, and there are no Timeline FX on the clip.
Player FLME-54124 The application might crash when restoring an archive made with 12-bit packed media.
Plugins FLME-51608 The application crashes on exit if a Neat Video OpenFX plugin was used during the session. (Fixed in Neat Video version 5.2.6)
Python API FLME-54067 The application crashes when you try to load a Timeline FX setup using the Python API while you are in Batch.
Python API FLME-54129 Setting a value for a Write File field that can receive tokens do not always work.
Python API FLME-54283 The timeline positioner focus is not moved when the Primary track is set using the Python API.
Rendering FLME-53394 The image is no longer displayed in the correct place when you render a Text Roll on a workstation equipped with a HiDPI / Retina monitor.
Tangent Panels FLME-54260 The Diamond Keyer Tolerance and Softness controls used from a Tangent panel do not update the image.
Timeline FLME-54076 The application crashes when an empty clip is selected as the Front input in the Create Matte Container tool.
Timeline FLME-54407 The application crashes when you select the "Token" entry inside a Marker's Tokens drop down menu in the Timeline ribbon.
Timeline FLME-54577 A clip cannot be pasted in the Timeline when a transition is selected.
Timeline FX FLME-54400 The application crashes when you drop a Batch FX setup onto a sequence of a different resolution than the setup.
Timeline FX FLME-55001 The application may crash after you undo the copy of a Timeline FX onto a partially selected timeline segment.
UI FLME-54479 The Conform tab controls disappear when you set the Media Panel to Full Width in the secondary monitor.
UI FLME-54527 Contextual menus may not be displayed properly when they are opened a second time.
UI FLME-54601 Numerical values in some table list cannot be edited by scrolling.
UI FLME-54739 .modularKeyer is appended to the name of the Modular Keyer starting modes.

Flame Family 2021.1 Known Bugs List

Components Issue key Summary Workaround
Action Geometries FLME-53990 FBX Import on macOS 10.13.x could experience intermittent problem loading .jpg texture files.
Action GMask Tracer FLME-54765 Action GMask splines are not drawn for media with a height greater than 7279.
Action Rendering FLME-54886 Crash rendering very long Semantic Keyer Human extraction clips on MacOS Catalina.
Action Rendering, Action Viewing FLME-50416 Geometry sorting issue appears when the Transparency setting is used on macOS platforms.
Animation Editor FLME-51245 An Animation Expression referencing another node stops working when a setup or shader is loaded. In 2020, after reloading the shader, select the channel with the expression in the animation editor, press Expression to open and then hit enter in order to relink the expression.

In 2020.1 Update and 2021, this workaround does not work.

Conform Interoperability FLME-50504 The File Name match criteria does not work when importing an AAF or XML file that contains file names with non English characters.
Conform Interoperability FLME-51171 Media cannot be linked when a Timeline segment has infinite handles due to a Timewarp Timeline FX. Consolidate handles on the unlinkable segments with a value of 0:

Select the segments in the timeline and from the contextual menu, Commit > Consolidate Handles.

Conform Interoperability FLME-51721 An error message is displayed when importing an EDL with illegal characters in the reel name field. Remove the illegal characters from the EDL before importing it in a Flame Family application.
Data Management FLME-53366 Path Translation does not work for clips using a Pattern Browsing pattern other than the default one.
Desktop Views FLME-54880 The application crashes when the "Swap Segments" keyboard shortcut is used while a Player view is up.
Effects FLME-52543 Using tools like Selective's Sky Extraction on high resolution media can result in a freeze on workstations equipped with a Nvidia Quadro graphic card.
Effects FLME-53303 If you are in the Slicing menu when using the small side menu for Physical Defocus, selecting the Position widget will keep switching back to the Focus menu.
Hardware FLME-54767 Running the easyupgrade.py script on a workstation with a Mellanox card shows an error message.
  1. easyupgrade.py --checkonly /tmp/CentOS-7-x86_64-DVD-1810-ADSK_Rev001.iso
  2. easyupgrade.py --checkonly -x infiniband-diags /tmp/CentOS-7-x86_64-DVD-1810-ADSK_Rev001.iso
  3. /usr/sbin/ofed_uninstall.sh --force
  4. ./easyupgrade.py --checkonly /tmp/CentOS-7-x86_64-DVD-1810-ADSK_Rev001.iso
  5. ./easyupgrade.py/tmp/CentOS-7-x86_64-DVD-1810-ADSK_Rev001.iso
  6. reboot
  7. <path where the DKU 15 has been untared>/INSTALL_DKU
  8. reboot
Lustre Color Tools FLME-53631 Applying a CDL on content with InputLUT might show unexpected results if the Saturation value is not 1.0 To correctly apply a CDL after an input LUT, apply the LUT via Image/Transcode/LUT Options rather than in the legacy Image/Input LUT.
Lustre HDR FLME-51085 Reloading a Dolby Vision HDR grade does not enable the External Content Mapping Unit (eCMU). Enable the eCMU manually.
Media Export FLME-51172 The wrong alpha channel is generated when exporting a pre-rendered BFXa clip in the RGBA format. Flush the render for the BFXa segment prior to exporting.
Media Export FLME-51528 A Distribution Package export job may hang after the export is completed. Cancel the export. The export should be complete.
MediaHub FLME-53313 In MediaHub/Archive on macOS, typing a path to a location which contains spaces shows an error message.
Plugins FLME-51703 The data returned from the Mocha OpenFX plugin always start at 0 instead of the Start Frame set in Batch / Batch FX.
Stone & Wire FLME-53915 It is not possible to cache media located on network mounts or user home folders on macOS 10.15 with SIP enabled. If you get the caching errors, go to the macOS Settings > Security & Privacy > Privacy tab. Select Full Disk Access.

sw_serverd should already be in the list if an attempt to cache media was already done. Unlock the lock, and select the checkbox next to sw_serverd. Restart the failed cache job.

The workaround only needs to be applied once per OS install.

Pre-2021 Note: In previous versions, we start sw_serverd using nice. This means nice appears in the Full Disk Access instead of sw_serverd. However giving nice Full Disk Access is not recommended, since nice can be used to launch anything. Modify instead the sw_server service plist to be able to use the above workaround:

  1. Stop stone&wire using the ServiceMonitor app.
  2. Open the sw_server plist in a editor (requires sudo privileges): sudo nano /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.autodesk.sw_server.plist
  3. Add the following 2 lines under <dict>:
    <key>Nice</key>
    <integer>10</integer>
  4. Remove the following line (near the bottom of the file): <string>nice</string>
  5. Start stone&wire using the ServiceMonitor application.
  6. Try again to cache media. sw_serverd now appears in the Full Disk Access tool. You can now apply the workaround described earlier.
UI FLME-54365 Starting Flame from the macOS Finder or Dock will keep the Dock active, over the Flame user interface. Cycle the application using Command-Tab and go back to Flame.

The problem can also be avoided by starting Flame from a Terminal.