Today's rundown for animation, game design, motion graphics, VFX, and virtual production. ## Updates **Unreal Engine 5.9 preview lands next week — with AI that edits 3D scenes directly.** Epic confirmed on November 3 that the UE 5.9 preview arrives next week as the last major UE5 release before UE6. The headline features are expanded AI integration through the Model Context Protocol — letting AI agents interact with the editor and directly make changes to 3D scenes and environments — plus official support for deploying projects via web browser ([RuntimeWire](https://runtimewire.com/article/epic-unreal-engine-5-9-preview-web-target), [ixbt.games](https://ixbt.games/en/news/2026/11/04/unreal-engine-59-vyidet-na-sleduiushhei-nedele-epic-gotovit-spornoe-novovvedenie-s-ii.html)). Epic is also updating the Unreal EULA to let developers train AI models on their own UE and MetaHuman projects ([NewsNow](https://www.newsnow.com/us/Tech/Gaming/Unreal+Engine)). Why it matters: MCP-driven scene editing is the practical arrival of agentic AI in the DCC pipeline — worth tracking for anyone teaching or building in Unreal. **Unity partners with Google on Spark, a web-based AI game creation platform.** The partnership pairs Google's AI technology with Unity's engine and runtime: Google's experimental Playground is live now, with the Unity Spark browser-based creation experience "coming soon" ([Mobile Marketing Reads](https://www.mobilemarketingreads.com/unity-spark/)). It's a different proposition from Unity's existing in-editor AI tools (assistant, AI Gateway, MCP server) — aimed at generating playable games from natural language. **Autodesk is ending Mudbox sales, and showed new AI motion tools at AU.** Autodesk ends annual and monthly Mudbox sales on November 7, with the Media & Entertainment Collection 2027 the last to include it — anyone with Mudbox-dependent sculpting workflows should plan a migration ([Digital Production](https://digitalproduction.com/category/allgemein/top/)). At AU 2026, Autodesk also demonstrated MotionMaker in Maya automating locomotion animation (including a horse archetype) and generative 3D from Wonder 3D in Flow Studio ([ADSK News](https://adsknews.autodesk.com/en/news/autodesk-flow-production-workflow-acceleration-2026/)). **Remedy's fortunes swing upward.** Remedy's Q3 revenue tripled to €39.6 million (up 226%) following the September launch of Control Resonant, which has now sold over a million units — the studio's fastest-selling title, and a return to operating profit ([GamesIndustry.biz](https://www.gamesindustry.biz/remedy-q3-revenue-triples-to-396m-following-launch-of-control-resonant)). **Arkane union accuses Microsoft of "sabotaging" Marvel's Blade.** The union blames a 19-month hiring freeze for the game's struggles, while Ubisoft is reportedly one of three companies seeking to buy Arkane Lyon from Xbox following an extension of its consultation period ([GamesIndustry.biz](https://www.gamesindustry.biz/topics/development), [GamesIndustry.biz](https://www.gamesindustry.biz/)). **Spielberg's latest turns to LED virtual production.** Steven Spielberg's Disclosure Day used a stack of 4Wall, Absen, Brompton Technology, and Disguise LED displays, media servers, and processing for its virtual production, while Digital Domain was the primary VFX vendor, delivering 418 final shots with nearly 400 artists across North America and Hyderabad ([Ground News](https://ground.news/article/4wall-deploys-absen-brompton-and-disguise-for-spielbergs-disclosure-day)). A useful high-profile reference case for VP coursework. **Harbor opens a New York flagship.** The studio's new Hudson Square facility brings color, sound, VFX, and finishing together in one connected, "artist-first" environment — a sign of continued facility investment despite the layoffs climate ([VFXwire](https://vfxwire.com/news)). **Dior recruits Sylvain Chomet for a hand-drawn holiday short** — the Triplets of Belleville director bringing classic 2D craft to a luxury brand campaign, continuing the trend of high-end advertising funding traditional animation ([Cartoon Brew](https://www.cartoonbrew.com/)). ## Wider context **Anime is now a $28.2 billion market.** Preliminary figures presented at TIFFCOM (Tokyo) put the broader anime market at $28.2 billion, with overseas spending accounting for more than half — and Nippon Animation and Production I.G discussed how international partnerships are driving the growth ([Cartoon Brew](https://www.cartoonbrew.com/newsletter/tiff-daily-newsletter-3-268908.html)). The Tokyo International Film Festival also selected its first-ever animated feature for competition, Magic Atlas. **Virtual production is expanding beyond the major hubs.** A new Albuquerque film campus is betting on Sony-partnered LED stages — two 12,000-square-foot soundstages with wraparound LED panels, a first at this scale in New Mexico — to draw productions to the state ([Albuquerque Journal](https://www.abqjournal.com/business/albuquerque-film-campus-bets-on-virtual-production-to-draw-projects-to-state/3151689)). In the Nordics, the Institute of Immersive Media and Netflix ran a Women's Virtual Production Training workshop for 15 experienced film professionals new to VP, addressing both skills gaps and diversity on the volume ([Nordisk Film & TV Fund](https://nordiskfilmogtvfond.com/news/stories/how-to-get-more-women-working-with-virtual-production-in-the-nordics)). Both point the same direction: VP skills demand keeps growing regionally, not just in LA/London. **Wētā FX released a Moana breakdown** covering the opening prologue, storm, and third-act Te Kā and Te Fiti work — good teaching material ([VFXwire](https://vfxwire.com/films)). The theme today is tools: UE 5.9's AI scene editing, Unity's Google partnership, and Autodesk's AI motion features all landed within days of each other — the agentic-AI-in-the-editor race is now the main front in engine development. Next rundown arrives tomorrow at 8:00 AM.