You don’t always have to use the default project set-up that ships with Maya!

If you have ever found yourself consistently deleting folders or adding in new folders when starting new projects with Maya, there is actually a lot easier and quicker way to set this up.

Using a text editor (something like Notepad ++ with MEL syntax highlight),  you can edit scripts in Maya to make your project work-flow faster.

One of these scripts is projectSetup.mel (Maya 2010 and older) or np_getFileRuleWidgets.mel (Maya 2011 and newer).

Notepad++ with MEL syntax highlighting

Good organisation is key and I believe that keeping unnecessary and empty folders can make it harder to archive projects down the line, so I find it best to trim Maya’s Project hierarchy to make it easier to work with.

Default Project Set-up vs Custom Project Set-up

Too many empty, garbage folders

The default projectSetup.mel or np_getFileRuleWidgets.mel can often create too many empty, useless folders which you will probably never end up using like the screenshot above.

After editing, you can make nice, clean, trimmed project folders

After editing the script you can make nice, clean project folders. The process of making your own Maya Project hierarchy is quite simple and should save you a lot of time in the long run.

Before You Edit Scripts

First of all find the projectSetup.mel file (Maya 2010 and older) or the np_getFileRuleWidgets.mel file (Maya 2011 and newer) in your Maya install directory – you can do a search for it or simply find it under “Autodesk\Mayaversion\scripts\others”.

Copy this file from your Maya install directory (usually C:Program Files on Windows)

Paste it into your Maya Prefs folder (usually in My Documents or Documents on Windows)

Basically you never want to edit the original scripts that are in your Maya install directory!

Maya will always look for the script in your prefs folder first before it uses the default ones that ship with Maya.

The last thing you want is a borked script which will force you to reinstall Maya because you edited the original!

Editing the Script

Now using your text editor, you can open up this MEL script and add in your own lines to start editing the way Maya structures it’s project folders.

For instance, I have added a PSD Files folder so whenever I set-up a new project, Maya will create a folder called “psd” in my project directory.

Edit the file and find the lines similar to the screenshot below, there you can add in your own folders providing you follow the existing formatting:

Adding in this highlighted line will let Maya know to create a folder called "psd" the next time I create a new project

You can also see that I’ve added in other useful folders to my work-flow like a V-Ray renderData folder, new import and export folders…basically anything that will organise your projects a lot more efficiently.

If you do not want a folder created at all, you can merge it with another generic folder like “data” or “renderData” or just leave it blank so Maya will not create a folder at all.

Maya’s New Customised Project Dialogue Box

After adding in the line, Maya will create a new folder called "psd"

Hopefully this little tip can help you out somehow and helps to make a more efficient work-flow. Happy editing!