# Open Shading Language > shading language developed by Sony Pictures Imageworks **Wikidata**: [Q18357621](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q18357621) **Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Shading_Language) **Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/open-shading-language ## Summary Open Shading Language (OSL) is a shading language developed by Sony Pictures Imageworks for programmable shading in advanced rendering applications. It provides a high-level programming interface for creating custom material and lighting effects in 3D rendering pipelines. ## Key Facts - Developed by Sony Pictures Imageworks as a proprietary shading language for advanced rendering - Licensed under the 3-clause BSD License, making it open source and freely available - Used by Arnold renderer for creating custom shading effects - Latest stable version is 1.10.10, released May 9, 2020 - Source code is hosted on GitHub under the AcademySoftwareFoundation organization - Different from OpenGL Shading Language (GLSL), which is used for real-time graphics - Available in multiple languages including English, Japanese, Chinese, Catalan, and Finnish ## FAQs ### Q: What is Open Shading Language used for? A: Open Shading Language is used for creating custom shaders and material effects in 3D rendering applications, particularly in film and visual effects production where advanced, physically-based shading is required. ### Q: Who created Open Shading Language? A: Open Shading Language was created by Sony Pictures Imageworks, with Larry Gritz serving as the lead developer of the project. ### Q: Is Open Shading Language free to use? A: Yes, Open Shading Language is free to use under the 3-clause BSD License, which allows for both commercial and non-commercial use with minimal restrictions. ## Why It Matters Open Shading Language represents a significant advancement in the field of computer graphics rendering by providing artists and technical directors with unprecedented control over material and lighting effects. Before OSL, shader development was often limited to proprietary, closed systems that varied between different rendering engines. OSL standardized the approach to programmable shading, allowing for more complex, physically accurate materials and lighting interactions that are essential for modern photorealistic rendering. Its adoption by major rendering systems like Arnold has made it an industry standard in visual effects and animation production, enabling the creation of increasingly sophisticated visual content seen in today's films and television shows. ## Notable For - Industry-standard shading language used in major film and visual effects productions - Open source implementation under the AcademySoftwareFoundation, ensuring continued development and support - Integration with Arnold renderer, one of the most widely used production rendering systems - Support for physically-based rendering workflows with advanced material definitions - Cross-platform compatibility and language bindings for multiple programming environments ## Body ### Development and History Open Shading Language was developed by Sony Pictures Imageworks to address the need for a more flexible and powerful shading system in their production rendering pipeline. The language was designed to provide artists with the ability to create complex, physically-based materials and lighting effects that were difficult or impossible to achieve with traditional fixed-function shading models. ### Technical Architecture OSL is implemented as a C++ library that can be integrated into various rendering systems. It provides a high-level shading language that compiles to optimized shader code, supporting features like closures for physically-based rendering, pattern generation, and displacement mapping. The language includes built-in support for common shading operations while allowing for custom implementations. ### Integration and Ecosystem The language has been integrated into several major rendering systems beyond Arnold, including RenderMan and various open-source renderers. Its open source nature under the AcademySoftwareFoundation has encouraged community contributions and extensions, making it a robust and evolving technology. ### Licensing and Availability Under the 3-clause BSD License, OSL can be freely used in both commercial and non-commercial projects without licensing fees. The source code is available on GitHub, allowing developers to modify and extend the language as needed for their specific requirements. ### Current Status OSL continues to be actively developed with regular releases adding new features and improvements. The language maintains compatibility with existing shaders while evolving to support new rendering techniques and hardware capabilities. Its adoption in the visual effects industry has made it a critical tool for modern film production. ## References 1. [Source](https://www.blenderdiplom.com/en/interviews/531-interview-larry-gritz-lead-developer-of-osl.html) 2. [Release 1.9.13. 2018](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.9.13) 3. [Release 1.10.2. 2018](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.2) 4. [Release 1.10.3. 2019](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.3) 5. [Release 1.10.4. 2019](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.4) 6. [Release 1.10.5. 2019](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.5) 7. [Release 1.10.6. 2019](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.6) 8. [Release 1.10.7. 2019](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.7) 9. [Release 1.10.8. 2019](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.8) 10. [Release 1.10.9. 2020](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.9) 11. [Release 1.10.10. 2020](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.10) 12. [Release 1.10.11. 2020](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.11) 13. [Release 1.10.12. 2020](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.12) 14. [Release 1.10.13. 2020](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.10.13) 15. [Release 1.11.7.3. 2020](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.11.7.3) 16. [Release 1.11.8.0. 2020](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.11.8.0) 17. [Release 1.11.9.0. 2020](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.11.9.0) 18. [Release 1.11.10.0. 2020](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/Release-1.11.10.0) 19. [Release 1.11.11.0. 2021](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.11.11.0) 20. [Release 1.11.12.0. 2021](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.11.12.0) 21. [Release 1.11.13.0. 2021](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.11.13.0) 22. [Release 1.11.14.0. 2021](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.11.14.0) 23. [Release 1.11.14.1. 2021](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.11.14.1) 24. [Release 1.11.14.2. 2021](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.11.14.2) 25. [Release 1.11.15.0. 2021](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.11.15.0) 26. [Release 1.11.16.0. 2021](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.11.16.0) 27. [Release 1.11.17.0. 2022](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.11.17.0) 28. [Release 1.12.6.2. 2022](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.12.6.2) 29. [Release 1.12.7.0. 2022](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.12.7.0) 30. [Release 1.12.7.1. 2022](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.12.7.1) 31. [Release 1.12.8.0. 2023](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.12.8.0) 32. [Release 1.12.9.0. 2023](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.12.9.0) 33. [Release 1.12.10.0. 2023](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.12.10.0) 34. [Release 1.12.11.0. 2023](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.12.11.0) 35. [Release 1.12.12.0. 2023](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.12.12.0) 36. [Source](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases) 37. [Release 1.12.14.0. 2023](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.12.14.0) 38. [Release 1.13.6.1. 2024](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.13.6.1) 39. [Release 1.13.7.0. 2024](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.13.7.0) 40. [Release 1.13.8.0. 2024](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.13.8.0) 41. [Release 1.13.9.0. 2024](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.13.9.0) 42. [Release 1.13.10.0. 2024](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.13.10.0) 43. [Release 1.13.11.0. 2024](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.13.11.0) 44. [Release 1.13.12.0. 2024](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.13.12.0) 45. [Release 1.14.5.0. 2025](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.14.5.0) 46. [Release 1.14.5.1. 2025](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.14.5.1) 47. [Release 1.14.6.0. 2025](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.14.6.0) 48. [Release 1.14.7.0. 2025](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.14.7.0) 49. [Release 1.14.8.0. 2025](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.14.8.0) 50. [Release 1.14.9.0. 2026](https://github.com/AcademySoftwareFoundation/OpenShadingLanguage/releases/tag/v1.14.9.0)