The big stories at this year’s International Broadcasting Convention (IBC)–held Sept. 8-13 in Amsterdam and drawing nearly 43,000 attendees–included the proliferation of HD around the world, digital cinema development, the burgeoning opportunities of content delivery to mobile devices such as cell phones and PDAs–and if you are a cricket fan, England’s Ashes victory over Australia.
But for post industry executives planning their immediate next steps, IBC was about a focused search for Digital Intermediate (DI) capabilities that would offer expanded flexibility and creativity with random access, nonlinear color correction and data-based post workflows. The DI process has already taken hold of the feature world. This year, an increasing number of potential purchases are being planned around commercial work.
Despite tremendous interest and a confidence that this is the way of the future, many decision makers still show restraint when it comes to the multitude of new software-based color grading and DI boxes. A number of post execs suggested that while the technologies are evolving, many workflows are not yet complete and the color correction space is dangerously overcrowded.
Reflecting this theme and after careful evaluation of all options, Santa Monica-headquartered Ascent Media Group–the parent of post entities including Company 3, R!OT and Encore Hollywood–went with technology already proven at Company 3: A da Vinci 2K Plus with a DVS Clipster, for its new DI suite at Encore, which is scheduled to open at the end of this month.
“Here at IBC, everything is improving but we feel the Clipster and da Vinci 2k combo is right now still the best choice,” explained Rainer Knebel, VP of DI services for Ascent Media Creative Services. “For us, DI is a real business and we want to give clients a real-time working environment — on mature, proven technology.”
The Encore workflow will include a newly purchased Grass Valley Spirit 2K (the next iteration of the Spirit Datacine), which will record directly to Encore’s Discreet SAN with SGI’s CXFS, with editing and conforming achieved using Encore’s Discreet Fire and Smoke systems.
The new suite at Encore brings Ascent’s total DI theaters to four–with two at Santa Monica-based Company 3 and one in Ascent’s London-based One Post. These are primarily used for features, although commercials for theatrical distribution have also gone through the pipeline. Knebel told SHOOT that Ascent next aims to focus its DI attention on its commercial advertising business. This means transitioning more of its agency clients to working in a nonlinear, disc-based and random access environment, which Knebel added “might not necessarily have to happen in the theater environment,” as Ascent’s current DI suites are designed.
Meanwhile, bicoastal Post Logic took a multimillion-dollar plunge into DI during IBC, reflecting the company’s belief in DI as a growing business opportunity, as well as a maturation of the DI technology.
Post Logic president/CEO Steve Hendricks admitted that he wasn’t completely sold on making the investment prior to his IBC visit, but he was pleased with what he found. “This is the most advanced the DI off-the-shelf offering has been to date,” he said.
Hendricks reported that during the exhibition, Post Logic purchased a Grass Valley Spirit 4K, five DVS Clipsters, a Bright Systems SAN and a Barco 2k digital projector. These technologies will be added to the company’s existing installed base to expand its offering to include a DI theater and three DI color grading suites. Hendricks explained that the different configurations are planned in order to accommodate DI work from 4k features to 2k, HD and more modest budget-conscious projects.
It’s not just the large postproduction houses looking into DI-style capabilities; visual effects companies are also looking to this space–and commercial work is high on the list.
For instance, SHOOT caught up with London-based commercial visual effects boutique Glassworks, which at IBC just purchased a Spirit 4K and a DVS Clipster to accommodate its plan to expand into DI-style color grading and finishing of its visual effects-heavy spot work. Managing director Hector MacLeod told SHOOT that Glassworks has hired veteran commercial colorist Tareq Kubaisi, who arrives at Glassworks after an estimated 12 years at London post house VTR.
London and New York-based The Mill is also planning to build a new U.K.-based DI suite dedicated to commercial projects, according to veteran colorist Mick Vincent, who has joined The Mill and will begin evaluating technology for the new room (see related story on Vincent and The Mill).
U.S. commercial post houses such as New York-based Nice Shoes and Oak Park, Mich.-based GTN also had representatives on hand evaluating technologies to extend their color grading and data based workflows. The caution in their decision making was noted by Nice Shoes colorist Chris Ryan, who pointed out that when you are selecting a new system, not only do you have to be confident it its capabilities, but you also have to know that the manufacturer will be around in a year’s time.
Indeed, pundits are in agreement that there are too many color grading/DI system manufacturers to support what is still a relatively small market–and consolidation seems certain. While no consolidation plans were announced at IBC, rumors of pending acquisitions were rampant.
IBC did showcase the results of one consolidation that occurred earlier this year when Stockholm-headquartered Digital Vision acquired Nucoda. Execs from Nice Shoes and other post houses gave the company kudos for its new version 3.0 software for Nucoda Film Master and Film Cutter, which now incorporates key aspects of Digital Vision technology–including support for DVO, the new software-based algorithms for grain and noise reducing; Valhall, the control surface designed specifically for colorists; and video I/O tools for video ingest and playback. (Commercial post industry vet Pat Howley has joined Digital Vision in a sales capacity; he previously served in the same role at Mathematical Technologies.)
Digital Vision also demonstrated an aim to increase system speed to support client-attended sessions by showing an 8-core platform with four processors, developed by BOXX Technologies, that is compatible with all Nucoda software including Film Master. With this announcement, Digital Vision claims 10–fold speed improvements over its currently available configurations. Beta is scheduled to begin shortly after IBC, with availability expected during Q4.
Speed, resolution, and versatility were key considerations in color grading, all needed to ensure that clients make money with the technology. But where was the buzz? Digital Vision was generating conversation, and certainly DVS–with the aforementioned sales of its Clipster as evidence of its strong position–was one of the most discussed companies in the space on the IBC floor.
DVS showed version 2 of its Clipster conforming, editing and finishing system, along with support for uncompressed formats up to 4k in real time.
Version 2 is designed to conform native 4k material in RGB 12-bit up to 4096 x 3112. New features include secondary color correction, real-time color management and content browsing. Visual effects possibilities are enhanced by the Open FX interface, which runs plug-ins from other manufacturers. Real-time 3-D Look up tables (LUTs) help to establish looks.
DVS is developing a full DI workflow, by combining Clipster with its DVS SAN and Pronto line of DDRs.
Another attention-grabbing company was London-based FilmLight, which generated interest with its next version 3 of the Baselight color grading system, which is scheduled to ship by year’s end. Improvements will be emphasized in three areas: Performance, software versatility and interface.
Key to the new version is a speed increase driven by the dual-core AMD Opteron processor, which the company said doubles system performance by enabling two real-time streams of uncompressed 4k. With V3, FilmLight’s top tier Baselight Eight supports up to 48TB of disc space, the company said.
The new version also includes a 3D additive and subtractive keyer, audio support and field rendering, scene detector, grain reduction and support for the Open FX architecture. As well, the Blackboard hardware control surface is now shipping, offering colorists a traditional and familiar way to work.
Another popular stop with many post visitors was Newbury, U.K.-headquartered Quantel, which came to IBC to set itself apart in the crowded color grading space with its new Pablo Suite–a hardware-enhanced real-time color grading system that combines the software previously previewed under the name Qcolor XL, Eiger hardware and software, and additional hardware.
Marketing manager Mark Horton asserted that this system configuration, in conjunction with Quantel eQ or iQ, could be used in postproduction as a complete DI workflow system.
Quantel reported that the new Eiger technology–bringing added speed to support client-attended sessions–includes the Eiger Media Engine image processing hardware; the Integrated Concurrent Processing (ICP) option, translating to a second Eiger Media Engine; as well as new workspace technology that brings real time 2k 16-bit and real time 4k support.
Meanwhile, Autodesk Media and Entertainment (formerly Discreet) stayed its course, promoting its line of products including the latest versions of Discreet Lustre color grading software, Inferno and Smoke. New York-based Stitch creative director/Inferno artist Fred Ruckel was among the guest demonstrators.
Assimilate, the company that launched at IBC a year ago, demonstrated its Scratch data workflow product line with new features and capabilities designed to improve the DI production pipeline. While relatively young technology, Scratch is proving that it has legs, having already been installed at companies including Cinesite, London; Acht!, Frankfurt; Digital Domain, Venice, Calif.; and Postworks, New York.
Assimilate also emphasized third-party support for Scratch from companies in color management (i.e. Imagica, Kodak), colorist panels (i.e. JLCooper Electronics; Tangent Devices), graphics cards (i.e. Nvidia), storage (i.e. BOXX Technologies; DataDirect Networks; Enhance Technology; Exavio; Globlstor Data Corp.; Huge Systems, a Ciprico Company; Sanbolic), platforms (i.e. BOXX Technologies; Globalstor; HP; IBM), effects (i.e. The Foundry, Photron; SpeedSix) and restoration (i.e. The Foundry; Imagica).
Mathematical Technologies–again with board member Larry Chernoff as its star demonstrator (Chernoff is also founder of Beverly Hills consulting firm Chernoff Touber Assoc. and is chairman of Ascent Media Creative Services)–presented new features for Control Dailies (see SHOOT‘s IBC preview, 8/19-8/31, p.1), its software-based system created for postproduction houses that serves as the backbone of the dailies process, and facilitates tasks such as collecting metadata as well as organizing material, archiving and outputting tape.
Meanwhile, traditional hardware-based color correction technology manufacturers da Vinci and Pandora demonstrated their offerings in both hardware and software.
Coral Springs, Fla.-based da Vinci’s stand included Resolve–its first software-based digital color grading and mastering application. The company reported that acceleration with the da Vinci PowerPlant bit-processing programmable hardware allows real-time, multi-layered color correction on full-film-resolution images, not just proxies.
As well, da Vinci introduced version 3.9 of its popular da Vinci 2K Plus, which includes a redesigned Toolbox2 interface created to make it easier for colorists to use a library of real-time preset effects. Additional enhancements in the v3.9 release include fingertip access to features including enhanced PowerVectors; improved defocus features allowing separate image defocus for in window and out of window corrections, as well as variable matte defocus adjustments and key out; and real-time special effects.
Da Vinci’s new 2K Elite series, first introduced at NAB 2005, was promoted with packaged upgrades, including the 2K Ruby with two PowerTiers, each of which adds two independent image-processing channels for color processing; 2K Sapphire with three PowerTiers; and the 2K Emerald with four, resulting in a total of 10 independent image-processing channels.
Kent, U.K.-based Pandora International–maker of telecine controllers and color processors including the Pogle controller and MegDef image processing system–showcased its new PiXi Revolution color grading and digital intermediate system.
Essentially the PiXi color correction tools combine with the Revolution platform for real-time processing. The system is modular and three different configurations–all capable of SD, HD and 2K HSDL–were shown during IBC.
Pandora also previewed its PCI Express interface, a multi-channel optical transceiver card designed to help position the PiXi Revolution in the DI workflow by enabling a company to access source material from a server, where previously it would have to come from a telecine or select editing system such as a Quantel iQ.
Pandora also demonstrated a resize engine designed to support full resolution 2k or 4k images that could be processed and viewed in real time on an HDTV monitor. Lastly, Pandora has developed a dual channel DVI-D interface designed to directly drive a 2k projector.
FILM SCANNING/TELECINE
Also required for DI workflows and therefore another important topic for post execs were the telecine/film scanning technologies.
Paris-headquartered Thomson’s Grass Valley Spirit 2K and 4K continue to go strong in this space, as evidenced by the aforementioned sales. At IBC, the Spirit 2K was demoed with the company’s Bones postproduction workflow and LUTher color tools. Aforementioned colorist Vincent was on hand providing demonstrations.
“Colorists can look are pictures in 2k and it’s a real eye opener,” said Grass Valley’s postproduction marketing manager Joachin Zell. “They can get more detail and better color representation.
“It seems that the commercial market is focusing on the Spirit 2K, and we’re helping them make that decision [to purchase a 2K] by offering an upgrade to a 4K, which can be done in half a day, on site,” he added.
Grass Valley also continues to look at expanding options in Bones. (At IBC, it was rumored that it was discussing collaboration with companies such as da Vinci and Pandora.)
Meanwhile, Irvine, Calif.-based Lasergraphics previewed a prototype of a new film scanner–tentatively scheduled for a release in March ’06. Planned features for the not-yet-named technology include a scan rate of roughly 10 fps, 35mm and 16 mm support, and HD or 2k output. A 4k option is in the development plans. Pricing is expected at under $200,000
As well, Corvina, Calif.-based Film + Data Technologies–founded in ’04–showed its new Nova SD/HD/2K telecine scanner with optional 4k support.
In related news, Rochester, N.Y.-based Eastman Kodak previewed its new 5201(35mm) and 7201 (Super 16mm) 50 speed daylight film stocks in its stand by showing clips lensed with the new film. A formal launch is set for late fall. Lastly, L.A.’s eCinemaSystems generated a buzz with the launch of the DCM23 monitor, an HD reference-grade LCD monitor; Martin Euredjian, founder of eCinema Systems and designer of the monitor, is an alum of such post houses as POP (which was sold in the late ’90s to what is today Ascent Media).
