Scene Builder - Maya Python Tool

Hello Maya users!

You open Maya and always presented with the new blank scene. It's repetitive, you see it a lot.

Next... You’re working on a new scene or shot, and all you want is a simple background, maybe a couple of lights and definitely a camera. But you have to create and set them up from scratch every time, again and again and again!

That’s how I felt… So I created a new tool to make things quicker: 

Scene Builder

A go-to tool for fast scene and shot setup. Choose from six customisable backdrops or use an image plane. Drop in a three-point lighting rig or a flexible camera rig—everything you need to get started, fast.

I made Scene Builder to remove my frustrations, speed up scene/shot creation and get to work quicker.

Scene Builder comes in two variations:

Plus - all features

• 6 backdrops, Image plane, 4 Materials, Material settings, Faded edges, 3 Point light rig, Light rig presets, Light rig settings, Camera rig, Camera settings, DOF control, Render presets, Render Settings, Global Scale/Rotate.

Lite - a simpler free version (because not everyone has the same opportunities right now)

• 1 backdrop, Image plane, 1 Material, 3 Point light rig, Camera rig, Global Scale/Rotate

I hope you find it as useful as I do.

Cheers
James

Compatibility:

Python 2 and 3
MEL
Maya 2018 - 2026

Revisions:

Revision 0: 29/05/25 - First release (v1.0.0)

Revision 1: 08/08/25 - Second release (v1.1.1)
Fix - Rewrote codebase to support Python 2 (Maya 2018 to 2020).
Fix - Code clean up, removed redundant code.
Fix - Tweaked and cleaned up UI.
Fix - Reset Grid and New Gradient material functionality.
Fix - Consistant annotation wording.
Fix - Attribute editor staying open after launching Scene Builder.
Fix - Reworked dramatic light rig preset.

Contents

Inside the ZIP folder are five files:

1. Description (Text)
2. How to install (Text)
3. Links (Text)
4. scene_builder_plus_icon (Jpg) OR scene_builder_lite_icon (Jpg)
5. scene_builder_plus (Python file) OR scene_builder_lite (Python file)

Watch the full demo here:

https://vimeo.com/1085938992/5e66e9c2e5

Read the documentation:

https://www.jamesboyle.studio/scene-builder-documentation