Right click to plane, select properties, uncheck renderable and cast shadow boxes. Assign Matte/Shadow material to the plane.

I assumed it would be a simple little box I hadn't clicked on, that's the reason I both love and hate 3ds max.

Two more questions:  The shadow Im casting doesn't have any falloff, it's just a constant thick line of shadow.  If there a way To blur the shadow as it gets further away from, the object?  I notice the real objects in my video plate do this.

And lastly, is there any way to add a bump modifier to the plane once I've told it to be a matte/shadow?  The shadow is supposed to be casting on asphalt and I'd like a bit of roughness to the shadow.


Thanks a ton guys, I'll post a picture of my results.  So far the help has been fantastic

for professional purpose , render the shadow to element and recompose the scene without the diffuse of the plane .