Microsoft’s Genuine Fact Files, a worldwide campaign to combat software counterfeiting and increase awareness of software licensing issues, has been bolstered by a series of four-and-a-half-minute animated videos that illuminate the issues in an appealing way.
“Suspicious Cargo,” the seventh video in the series, incorporates Maya, After Effects and Flame to add visual effects to the animation that make it look almost like an in-cinema piece, especially during the first scene when the rippling water establishes the tone. “We wanted to get away from the comic book feel and be a little more movie style,” said Greg Shultz, designer/VFX director at Gasket Studios Limited/Minneapolis. “We used Maya and 3D elements to accentuate the illustrator’s art. Using his look, we projected the style of rippling water and dimensions that brought the ship to life. In Flame, we added lighting treatment, fog and cloud wisps. We wanted to stay in comic style, with a touch of real effects.”
Charlie Griak, who owns a design firm and production company under his name in Minneapolis, was the illustrator and director of the video. “They wanted it to feel like a graphic novel and a black and white comic book,” he said. “A combination of short film style and standard black and white comic book.”
The video does look like a black and white comic book, as the story of how a company deals with pirated software unfolds, with the characters shown in black and white illustrations with their dialogue in traditional cartoon bubbles. But Griak worked with Gasket to take the video beyond the basic comic book. “The illustrations were built in layers and they manipulated the layers individually to give them depth and movement,” Griak said. “They brought in the CGI water with a flat illustration and made it feel dimensional. It was the way to take a still image and make it engaging so you want to watch it.”
Keith Anderson, copywriter at DDB Seattle, said the video is the best in the series because of the Gasket effects and Griak’s direction. “They brought a lot to the table we weren’t expecting, the 3D modeling and lighting and camera techniques.”
The Business Software Alliance has reported that 35 percent of the world’s software is pirated and the Yankee Group noted that 55 percent of organizations report instances of counterfeit or pirated software.
As Microsoft prepared to launch Windows Vista and Office 2007, it launched the Genuine Facts Files campaign that educates businesses and consumers on the risks associated with non-genuine software. “Suspicious Cargo,” the latest Genuine Fact Files video, tells the story of how one business plagued by counterfeit software overcomes the problem with the help of Microsoft software applications.
Supreme Court Allows Multibillion-Dollar Class Action Lawsuit To Proceed Against Meta
The Supreme Court is allowing a multibillion-dollar class action investors' lawsuit to proceed against Facebook parent Meta, stemming from the privacy scandal involving the Cambridge Analytica political consulting firm.
The justices heard arguments in November in Meta's bid to shut down the lawsuit. On Friday, they decided that they were wrong to take up the case in the first place.
The high court dismissed the company's appeal, leaving in place an appellate ruling allowing the case to go forward.
Investors allege that Meta did not fully disclose the risks that Facebook users' personal information would be misused by Cambridge Analytica, a firm that supported Donald Trump 's first successful Republican presidential campaign in 2016.
Inadequacy of the disclosures led to two significant price drops in the price of the company's shares in 2018, after the public learned about the extent of the privacy scandal, the investors say.
Meta spokesman Andy Stone said the company was disappointed by the court's action. "The plaintiff's claims are baseless and we will continue to defend ourselves as this case is considered by the District Court," Stone said in an emailed statement.
Meta already has paid a $5.1 billion fine and reached a $725 million privacy settlement with users.
Cambridge Analytica had ties to Trump political strategist Steve Bannon. It had paid a Facebook app developer for access to the personal information of about 87 million Facebook users. That data was then used to target U.S. voters during the 2016 campaign.
The lawsuit is one of two high court cases involving class-action lawsuits against tech companies. The justices also are wrestling with whether to shut down a class action against Nvidia.... Read More