Blackmagic Design has announced that Nu Boyana Film Studios has added two DaVinci Resolve Studio color correction suites at a new London facility.
Owned by one of the longest running independent studios in Hollywood, Nu Image, Nu Boyana has serviced hundreds of big budget blockbusters from its headquarters in Sofia, Bulgaria. They include “Hellboy,” “The Hitman’s Bodyguard,” “300: The Rise of an Empire” and “The Black Dahlia.”
The first feature to be realized through the new space is an upcoming action comedy, “The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard,” starring Salma Hayek, Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson. The film was lensed by Terry Stacey and graded by colorist Vanessa Taylor.
Paula Crickard, head of postproduction at Nu Boyana UK, said, “Alongside CEO Yariv Lerner, we made the decision to expand into London as many of our projects are filmed here in the UK, and we wanted to be able to service films in a big physical space that allows directors freedom to choose their post production talent.”
She continued: “In building this new facility, we chose to reflect the workflows that have afforded solid and consistent results time and time again at our HQ in Sofia, led by head of post Jivko Chakarov. Running the same system also allows the opportunity to collaborate remotely across the two locations.”
The main grading theater features a DaVinci Resolve Advanced Panel, Eizo monitor and 4K Christie projector, and is powered by the latest generation Mac Pro hardware. A secondary online grading suite is built to the same specification but features a DaVinci Resolve Mini Panel.
Crickard added, “Our theatre is quite unique, featuring a 24ft cinema screen, 7.1 and 5.1 surround sound, with room for 16 socially distant attendees. It’s a big space with a big screen, and we find it helps when working with blockbuster action sequences.”
All grading work feeds into two super fast G-Technology G-SPEED Shuttle SSD devices. “This keeps the suites airlocked and provides us with the highest security for our clients’ IP,” explained Crickard. “The drives each hold split reels which can only be updated by one machine at a time, meaning the team never has any conflicting project files.
“Investing in DaVinci Resolve was a no brainer,” she concluded. “Great people and great technology are what matters to us as a facility, and we feel that Blackmagic Design has truly been leading the way in the DI space for many years.”
“Heretic” and “Maria” Set As Red Carpet Premieres At AFI Fest
The American Film Institute (AFI) has announced that Heretic, the psychological thriller starring Hugh Grant, and Maria, based on the life of opera singer Maria Callas starring Angelina Jolie, will round out the Red Carpet Premieres section at this year’s AFI Fest. The Heretic Gala Screening will take place on Thursday, October 24, and the Maria Gala Screening will be held on Saturday, October 26. The complete Red Carpet Premieres section includes the world premieres of Music By John Williams, Robert Zemeckis’ Here, Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl and Clint Eastwood’s Juror #2. All Red Carpet Premieres will take place at the historic TCL Chinese Theatre. The full lineup for AFI Fest 2024 will be unveiled on October 1.
“At the heart of AFI Fest is an unwavering dedication to celebrating the best in global cinema--together,” said Bob Gazzale, AFI president and CEO. “We look forward to uniting artists and audiences once again to be inspired by the art form in a powerful sense of community.”
Heretic follows two young missionaries (Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East) who are forced to prove their faith when they knock on the wrong door and are greeted by a diabolical Mr. Reed (portrayed by Grant), becoming ensnared in his deadly game of cat-and-mouse. The film is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods and produced by Stacey Sher, Beck, Woods, Julia Glausi and Jeanette Volturno. The film will be released nationwide by A24 on November 8.
Directed by Pablo Larraín, Maria presents a tumultuous and beautiful depiction of one of the world’s most renowned artists and reimagines the legendary soprano in her final days in Paris, as Callas (Jolie)... Read More