Encouraged by colleagues, Arias quickly immersed himself in the Mental Ray rendering API and thereafter began experimenting with techniques for simulating traditional animation imagery using computer graphics tools. This research led to Arias' developing and eventually patenting Softimage's Toon Shaders, rendering software for facilitating integration of computer graphics imagery with cel animation. Newly minted Toon Shaders in hand, Arias worked closely with the staff of DreamWorks Animation and Studio Ghibli to add a distinct visual flavor to the traditional/digital hybrid animation of films "Prince Of Egypt", "The Road to El Dorado", and Hayao Miyazaki’s and .