By MILLIE TAKAKI
Colorist Jais Lamaire has joined 525 Studios, the Hollywood-headquartered post/effects house that is in the process of extending its reach to the Westside with the planned formal opening of a Santa Monica facility. Lamaire, formerly of Encore Santa Monica, has actually begun working out of 525s Santa Monica site that at press time was nearing completion.
Lamaire is already at the reins of a C-Reality, Cintels HDTV telecine, which is just now up and running at 525 Studios, Santa Monica. Lamaire is no stranger to the C-Reality, having spent many hours on the high-end system during its development. Hes credited with being the first artist in the U.S. to transfer an effects-heavy project on the C-Reality, after testing early versions of the system during sessions in London and at IBC, Amsterdam. David Hurst, Western Regional sales manager at Cintel Inc., said of Lamaire, We are delighted to have one of the top colorists on the Westside driving the C-Reality at 525 Studios. The system was designed for use in high-end commercial environments like 525.
Lamaire has developed working relationships with some of the spot industrys top directors. His latest commercial credits include: Nikes Snowdome, Blader and Johnny helmed by Michael Bay of bicoastal/international Propaganda Films for Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco; Nissan Trucks Fishing directed by Zack Snyder of bicoastal HSI Productions via TBWA/Chiat/Day, Los Angeles; Coca-Colas Night Train directed by Gordon Clark of Tate & Partners, Santa Monica; and Dodge Neons Amore, Heaven and Stars helmed by Randy Roberts of Rhythm & Hues Studios, Los Angeles.
On the music video front, Lamaires recent endeavors include Whitney Houstons Heartbreak Hotel directed by Kevin Bray of bicoastal/international Satellite; Faith Evans All Night Long directed by Paul Hunter of HSI; and Will Smiths Miami helmed by Wayne Isham of bicoastal A Band Apart Music Videos.
Lamaires move to 525 represents a homecoming. Earlier in his career, from 87 to 90, he was at 525 Post Production, Hollywood (now 525 Studios). Since then, he has worked at such notable Hollywood shops as The Post Group and Post Logic before moving on to POP, Santa Monica, and then the aforementioned Encore where he spent the past two years. Born in France, Lamaire began his career in Paris as a dub operator, editor, cameraman, technical director and later worked as a colorist for seven years before coming to the U.S.
I am thrilled to be back at 525 with a great team and technical support staff, related Lamaire. Working with the C-Reality is the perfect marriage of art and technology. Joining him at 525 Studios is Julie Airale, his scheduler/producer. Airale has worked with Lamaire since 96, at both POP and Encore.
Jais will be a great complement to our existing telecine team of colorists: Paul Bronkar, Brian Linse, Clark Muller, Corey Olson and Arnold Ramm. His expertise on Cintels C-Reality will be a welcome attraction to our Santa Monica studio, assessed Eric Bonniot, president, 525 Studios.
525 Studios specializes in visual effects, computer graphics, telecine and editing for the commercial, feature film and music video industries. 525 Studios is wholly owned by Virgin Digital Studios (VDS) which is part of the U.K.-based Virgin Group.
Vatican, Microsoft Create AI-Generated St. Peter’s Basilica–For In-Person and Virtual Visitors
The Vatican and Microsoft on Monday unveiled a digital twin of St. Peter's Basilica that uses artificial intelligence to explore one of the world's most important monument's while helping the Holy See manage visitor flows and identify conservation problems. Using 400,000 high-resolution digital photographs, taken with drones, cameras and lasers over four weeks when no one was in the basilica, the digital replica is going online alongside two new on-site exhibits to provide visitors -- real and virtual -- with an interactive experience. "It is literally one of the most technologically advanced and sophisticated projects of its kind that has ever been pursued," Microsoft's president Brad Smith told a Vatican press conference. The project has been launched ahead of the Vatican's 2025 Jubilee, a holy year in which more than 30 million pilgrims are expected to pass through the basilica's Holy Door, on top of the 50,000 who visit on a normal day. "Everyone, really everyone should feel welcome in this great house," Pope Francis told Smith and members of the project's development teams at an audience Monday. The digital platform allows visitors to reserve entry times to the basilica, a novelty for one of the world's most visited monuments that regularly has an hours-long line of tourists waiting to get in. But the heart of the project is the creation of a digital twin of St. Peter's Basilica through advanced photogrammetry and artificial intelligence that allows anyone to "visit" the church and learn about its history. The ultra-precise 3D replica, developed in collaboration with digital preservation company Iconem, incorporates 22 petabytes of data — enough to fill five million DVDs — Smith said. The images have already identified structural... Read More