An extensive array of new skinning tools and workflows help you rig characters more easily and apply deformations that behave more naturally when animating joints.

New retargeting tools make repurposing existing animation data easier and more practical.

Enhancements to the Graph Editor helps make it easier to view, select, and edit animation curves and keyframes, accelerating everyday animation tasks.

New support for timeline scrubbing with simultaneous playback of multiple audio tracks helps make it easier to synchronize your animation against a soundtrack.

Other production efficiencies in Maya 2011 include scene segmentation for faster, parallel workflows; improved file referencing and asset management; integrated color management for more accurate viewing and greater color fidelity; enhanced compositing with new rotoscoping capabilities; and 3D model and animation export to popular game engines (Epic Unreal Engine, Unity and Microsoft XNA tools) with Autodesk FBX 2011 data exchange technology.

Access considerably more memory to handle larger and more complex scenes with the new 64-bit executable on Mac OS X

Achieve significantly faster frame rates with a new interactive viewport display option—especially useful for level editors and others working with large scenes and many textures. Texture loading for interactive display is also significantly faster for BMP, JPEG, PNG, and Targa formats.

Accelerate pre-visualisation and virtual moviemaking production with new 3D editorial capabilities in Maya. Lay out multiple camera shots directly in Maya, or import an edit decision list in Apple Final Cut Pro XML or AAF formats. Then change the timings of shots, create alternate versions, and use Playblast to playback and review.