FuseFX, an award-winning visual effects studio specializing in providing visual effects services for television, film, commercials, VP and VR productions, has named Michael Romey as its new director of pipeline and software development.
Romey is a senior technologist with more than 20 years of experience. He has delivered innovative solutions for theme parks, broadcasting, production, gaming, mobile, and big data analytics in mission-critical environments.
Romey joins FuseFX after spending the last year as the sr. director of creative media pipeline at Madison Square Garden. There, Romey worked with production, show, immersive, and facility project teams to build a unified production tracking platform to solve challenging business intelligence needs.
Previously, Romey worked for Walt Disney Imagineering where he built a production pipeline to deliver rides and attractions, including the latest Star Wars ride at Disneyland’s Galaxy’s Edge, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. Other experience includes nine years at Zoic Studios in roles, including head of pipeline and software engineering and chief technology officer. At Zoic, Romey created a virtual production tool and oversaw all aspects of its pipeline and software development. He has also worked on the Natural History Museum Planetarium Space Show, and built and maintained graphics packages for the NFL, PGA, ESPN SportsCenter, and NCAA March Madness while working at Reality Check Studios.
“As the FuseFX brand continues to expand globally, we are eager to take our Nucleus Platform–our next-generation pipeline and production management system–to the next level, making it easy to stay connected as a company, and grow our global strategy. Mike’s depth of experience both in software development, and as an artist, makes him uniquely qualified to expand on the foundation of what we have built to date, and help us continue to develop software that makes an impact for our users and increases their efficiency,” said FuseFX co-founder and CTO Jason Fotter.
“FuseFX has a strong history and focus on efficient pipeline and workflow with its Nucleus Platform, and I’m excited to bring my experience to help improve it even further. My goal is to service everyone in the studio, enhancing a unified production management system. With FuseFX’s expanding global footprint, I look forward to taking the best ideas from every location and translating it into the most cohesive pipeline for the entire company. I’m eager to make improvements to strengthen the long-term performance of Nucleus and integrate other third-party tools like Shotgun while measuring, learning, and iterating for maximum impact,” said Romey, a longtime member of the Visual Effects Society who served as an awards committee co-chair for many years.
First-Time Feature Directors Make Major Splash At AFI Fest, Generate Oscar Buzz
Two first-time feature directors who are generating Oscar buzz this awards season were front and center this past weekend at AFI Fest in Hollywood. Rachel Morrison, who made history as the first woman nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar---on the strength of Mudbound in 2018--brought her feature directorial debut, The Fire Inside (Amazon MGM Studios), to the festival on Sunday (10/27), and shared insights into the film during a conversation session immediately following the screening. This came a day after William Goldenberg, an Oscar-winning editor for Argo in 2013, had his initial foray into feature directing, Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios), showcased at the AFI proceedings. He too spoke after the screening during a panel discussion. The Fire Inside--which made its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival--tells the story of Claressa “T-Rex” Shields (portrayed by Ryan Destiny), a Black boxer from Flint, Mich., who trained to become the first woman in U.S. history to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the sport. She achieved this feat--with the help of coach Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry)--only to find that her victory at the Summer Games came with relatively little fanfare and no endorsement deals. So much for the hope that the historic accomplishment would be a ticket out of socioeconomic purgatory for Shields and her family. It seemed like yet another setback in a cycle of adversity throughout Shields’ life but she persevered, going on to win her second Gold Medal at the next Olympics and becoming a champion for gender equality and equitable pay for women in sports. Shields has served as a source of inspiration for woman athletes worldwide--as well as to the community of... Read More