Work with prims as display layers
You can use the Channel Box/ Layer Editor to toggle layer visibilty/animation preferences with Display Layers and Animation Layers for your prims.
- Windows > General Editors > Channel Box/ Layer Editor
Assign prims as Display Layers
Note: Display layers will be saved with your Maya scene file.
With the layer editor, you can add/remove prims from display layers, toggle the visibility of display layers and hide layers on playback, enhancing your shot-based animation workflow. Display Layers can be used as templates for your prims and you can also reference prims on Display Layers so they are undetectable in the viewport.
USD prim Display Layer assignments
Important:
Multiple prims from various stages can be assigned to a layer. However, prims can only be added to one layer at a time. This is currently the behavior with Maya objects and Display Layers. If a prim is added to a Display Layer but already belongs to another Display Layer, then the prim is removed from the previous Display Layer and added to the new one.
Note: Your USD prims will remain on a display layer regardless of if you duplicate, rename/reparent or activate/deactivate your prims in the Outliner. Membership of display layers for USD prims is robust, similar to Maya to Maya data. You can even save your Maya scene file and reopen it and your display layers will persist in your scene file. The same applies for if you select Edit as Maya on a prim, your edited prim will remain on any assigned Display Layer.
Display Layer Editing
| Task | Click | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Create a new display layer |  |
Click the add new layer icon OR select Layers > Create Empty Layer. A new layer will appear in your stack as layer1. |
| Create a new display layer and assign all selected objects or prims |  |
With prims highlighted in the Outliner, select the add button to create a new display layer with the selected objects assigned OR With prims highlighted in the Outliner, select Layers > Create Layer from Selected. A new layer will appear in your stack as layer1. |
| Add prims to a display layer | Layer > Add Selected Objects | Right-click a layer and select Add Selected Objects. Note: This action leaves no edits on your USD prim layer stack in the USD Layer Editor. |
| Remove prims from a display layer | Layer > Remove Selected Objects | With prims you want removed highlighted in the Outliner, right-click your display layer and select Remove Selected Objects. Your selected prims will no longer belong to the display layer you had assigned. To check, you can select the layer, right-click and choose Select Objects and your prims should not be selected in the Outliner. |
| Select all objects/prims on a display layer | Layer > Select Objects | If applicable, right-click a layer and select Select Objects. The Outliner will now have all prims assigned to that display layer highlighted. Note: Descendants of assigned prims will also be selected. |
| Empty a display layer | Layer > Empty the Layer | Removes all prims and assignments from the selected display layer. |
| Delete a display layer | Layer > Delete Layer | Deletes the display layer and removes all assignments. |
| View the membership on a display layer | Layer > Membership | Right-click a layer and select Membership. This will open the Membership dialog, allowing you to view prims assigned to the selected display layer. In this dialog, use the + or - to add or remove assignments. |
| Open the Attribute Editor | Layer > Attributes | Toggles your view to the Attribute Editor for the selected display layer. |
| Move layers up or down in order |  /  |
Select a layer and click the icon to move the selected layer up or down in the stack. |
| Edit Layer | Double Click | Double-click a selected display layer and the Edit Layer dialog will appear. In this dialog, you can set your layer name, display type, visibility toggle (see below), playback toggle (see below) and choose a layer display color. |
Display Layer toggle buttons
| Toggle | On | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility (button 1) | V | With this button you can hide prims from the viewport as necessary. When the V button is on, prims on the display layer and all descendants will appear/ be visible in the Viewport. Note: This button is connected to visibility of the display layer in the Attribute Editor. If you select the display layer > Attributes and toggle the checkbox for Visible, it will be connected to this button. |
| Playback (button 2) | P | With this button you can add animated prims to a Display Layer and hide them during playback. When the P button is on, prims on the display layer and all descendants will appear during playback (ie. right-click on the play button and selecting Playblast..) or scrubbing the timeline. Note: This button is connected to playback of the display layer in the Attribute Editor. If you select the display layer > Attributes and toggle the checkbox for Playback, it will be connected to this button. |
| Template (button 3) | T | With this button, you can turn prims in the Viewport into wireframe mode. When the T button is on, templated display layer prims are no longer selectable in the viewport but remain selectable in the Outliner. |
| Reference (button 3) | R | With this button, you can turn prims in the Viewport into reference prims so that they are not selectable. When the R button is on, reference display layer prims are no longer selectable in the viewport but remain selectable in the Outliner. |
| Set a prim wireframe color and opacity | Double Click Color Chip | Double-click the color chip to bring up the Edit Layer dialog. In this dialog, you can set your layer name, display type, visibility toggle (see below), playback toggle (see below) and choose a layer display color. Choose from Index or RGB from the dropdown to choose a color. If you choose RGB you can use the opacity slider that appears. You can also use the Attribute Editor to change the color and opacity of a display layer if you right-click a display layer > Select Attributes > Edit Color and Opacity under the Drawing Override Options. |
Display Layer limitations
- Display Layer visibility, color overrides, textured/untextured mode, template/reference/wireframe modes all work with instanced geometry (although there are certain exceptions for point instancers). Currently prototypes of point instancers can be added to display layers and visibility can be toggled. Instances of point instancers are unsupported.
- Referenced display layers are unsupported.
- Importing Maya files containing stages and display layers into Maya is not supported. Display Layer assignments will break during the import process.