September 20, 2013
Flame artists honored at IBCAMSTERDAM–At IBC this year, Autodesk held the first Flame Award event in Amsterdam to celebrate Flame artists who have been pushing the limits of visual effects for over 20 years. Vico Sharabani, Flame artist & right-brain of The Artery VFX, was honored as the recipient of the Flame Award. Voted on by the Flame community and selected by the Flame Award Advisory board, Sharabani’s artistry and deep technical knowledge of the Flame toolset is renowned, as is his ability to make Flame work in new and inventive ways. He has many high-profile visual effects projects under his belt and his work has been honored at AICP, Cannes Lions, and Mobius Awards shows. His development of a sophisticated 3D rig within Action was seen as a breakthrough in computer graphics and was presented on the main stage at Siggraph 2003.
Jon Hollis, Flame artist and director from Raised by Wolves and Nice Shirt Films in the UK was honored with a Special Recognition for Pioneering Work in Flame. Through his artistry and Flame skills, and his contribution to the community as co-founder of Smoke & Mirrors, Hollis has played a pivotal role in bringing Flame to the forefront of the creative community.
Sean Broughton, Flame artist, creative director, and VFX supervisor, was also honored with a Special Recognition for pioneering work in Flame. One of the first developers of Flame, Broughton is also a co-founder of the game changing Smoke & Mirrors post facility in London, and along the way he has inspired, influenced and coached many aspiring Flame artists.
Nathan Robinson, creative director, VFX supervisor, director and founder of Ntropic in NYC, received a Special Recognition for artistic and technical achievement.
Mike Seymour of fxguide received Special Recognition for community development. A Flame artist from the start, Mike, along with John Montgomery and Jeff Heuser, founded fxguide to support the Flame community worldwide.
Sam Edwards, Flame artist, VFX supervisor, and Flame owner/operator at Popular Optical Effects, was honored with Special Recognition for versatility using Flame.
Richard Lyons, VFX supervisor at the Mill, received Special Recognition – Autodesk Technical Specialists Selection. His VFX work on the highly acclaimed ‘Phillip’s Carousel’ commercial won numerous awards including the Grand Prix at Cannes Lions.
Peter Webb, VFX supervisor at Iloura in Australia, received Special Recognition – Flame Advisory Board Selection.
Andy Nelson to be honored with CAS Career Achievement Award
LOS ANGELES–Cinema Audio Society president, David E. Fluhr, CAS, announced that the organization will honor re-recording mixer, Andy Nelson with the Cinema Audio Society’s highest accolade, the CAS Career Achievement Award, to be presented at the 50th CAS Awards on February 22nd, 2014 in the Crystal Ballroom of the historic Millennium-Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles.
“I am thrilled to announce Andy Nelson as this year’s Cinema Audio Society Career Achievement honoree. Andy is a long time colleague, and I have had the pleasure of watching Andy skyrocket to the top of our craft over these last few years,” said Fluhr. “Andy’s easy going demeanor, natural mixing and storytelling talents, along with his ability to guide large productions with ease and confidence, have led the CAS Board of Directors to bestow this honor. We are looking forward to an exciting evening on February 22, 2014, as the CAS celebrates our 50th year.”
Growing up in London and pursuing his love of film, Nelson started work as a projectionist at the local cinema at the age of 16. He was already putting music to his 8mm films at home, a sure sign of things to come. Starting his apprenticeship in a local documentary film company, he was eventually accepted into the BBC Film Department and by the late ’70s was in the mixing seat.
The next stop was an independent studio in Soho, London, where Nelson handled many music projects, his other great passion, and was introduced to the world of features when working with the late Ken Russell. In 1983 he moved to Shepperton Studios working again with Ken, Nic Roeg and Stanley Kubrick to name a few.
In 1987 Nelson was offered the position of director of sound at Film House in Toronto and that year won a Genie Award and garnered his first Oscar nomination for Gorillas in the Mist. It wasn’t long before he was lucky enough to be offered a position with Todd A-O Studios. Working in Stage A, the legendary sound room in Hollywood, allowed him the opportunity to mix for Steven Spielberg, Brian de Palma, Adrian Lyne, Warren Beatty, Alan Parker and many, many more.
In 1999, Andy moved across town to Fox Studios where he has worked for 14 years and also serves as Senior Vice President Sound Operations.
Nelson has previously received 18 nominations for the CAS Award for Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Feature Film and won the award in 2013 for Les Mis�rables and in 1999 for Saving Private Ryan.
In addition to his CAS wins, Nelson has been nominated 18 times for the Oscar with wins for Les Mis�rables and Saving Private Ryan and has been recognized by BAFTA with 14 nominations with wins for Les Mis�rables, Moulin Rouge!, Saving Private Ryan, L.A. Confidential and Braveheart.
In a career that spans 35 years, Nelson has been the Re-recording Mixer on more than 140 feature films, including Lincoln, Rise of the Guardians, War Horse, Super 8, Avatar, Star Trek, Blood Diamond, War of the Worlds, The Las Samurai, Seabiscuit, Catch Me If You Can, Shrek, The Insider, The Thin Red Line, The X-Files, Evita, Schlinder’s List and Gorillas in the Mist.
As the 32nd recipient of the Cinema Audio Society’s highest honor, Mr. Nelson joins an illustrious group of past honorees that includes: Ray Dolby, CAS; Robert Altman, Jack Solomon, CAS; John Bonner, CAS; Bill Varney, CAS; Don Rogers, CAS; Walter Murch, CAS; Jim Webb, CAS; Richard Portman, CAS; Tomlinson Holman, CAS; Mike Minkler, CAS; Ed Greene, CAS; Dennis Sands, CAS; Dennis L. Maitland, Sr., CAS; Randy Thom, CAS; Jeffrey S. Wexler, CAS; Scott Millan, CAS and Chris Newman, CAS.
The Cinema Audio Society, a philanthropic, non-profit organization, was formed in 1964 for the purpose of sharing information with Sound Professionals in the Motion Picture and Television Industry.
Bethesda Game Studios choose Vicon for motion capture stageOXFORD, UK–Vicon, developer of motion capture products for the entertainment, life science and engineering markets, today announced that it has installed a new motion capture system equipped with its industry-leading T-Series cameras at US-based developer, Bethesda Game Studios.
As creators of the 2011 Game of the Year, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, the 2008 Game of the Year, Fallout 3, and the 2006 Game of the Year, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Bethesda Game Studios is one of the most accomplished game development studios in the industry.
“I’ve used just about every commercially available motion capture system out there, but I always find myself coming back to Vicon,” said Jeremy Bryant, senior animator at Bethesda. “Their accuracy, flexibility, and ease of use are hard to beat.”
Vicon’s entertainment software Blade 2 faithfully reproduces a live stage-captured performance with an accurate, fast and clean real-time digital visualization with the all-new Axiom real-time engine. Bryant added: “With the new version of Blade 2, Vicon has really upped its game on the real-time solver. Now I get accurate real-time solving, as well as the rock-solid offline processing that Vicon is so well known for.”
Jeffrey Ovadya, US sales director at Vicon, said: “Having played numerous Bethesda Game Studios titles over the years, I am personally overjoyed that they have chosen to work with the Vicon T-Series system. With Blade 2 running the new Axiom engine, Bethesda Game Studios will vastly reduce their post-processing time, enabling them to focus on what they do best: creating beautiful, engrossing, and cutting-edge games.”
Camera Corps Q-Ball Wows Lennon Bus Visitors at IBC2013
LONDON–Q-Ball remotely controlled pan/tilt/zoom equipment from Camera Corps, a Vitec Group company with long experience in designing speciality camera systems, greeted visitors to the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus throughout IBC2013, Amsterdam, September 13-17. In continuous demonstration adjacent to the entrance, the Q-Ball gave visitors immediate experience of the high-efficiency ultra-modern systems deployed throughout the truck.
“The Lennon Bus is a great ambassador for the best in broadcast television and audio,” comments Shaun Glanville, business development director at Camera Corps. “The truck was the acknowledged gem of the entire IBC show, both as an example of a fully-equipped ultra-modern production studio and as a tool for educational outreach. Visitors were able to experience, discuss and operate the central elements of a very high-profile broadcast facility without the distraction and fatigue of trekking round a 14-hall trade exhibition.
“Robotic cameras have become an integral part of studio and on-location production, allowing images to be captured from a large number of viewpoints, including close-ups of remote events as well as very high angles. Q-Ball is very much plug-and-play. It is easy to mount, easy to conceal, easy to link and easy to operate. The best way to discover that is quite simply to use it or talk to the many television producers who now find it as essential as we do in our own work for broadcast-industry clients.”
As well as being one of Europe’s highest-profile outreach projects, the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus is a unique vehicle designed and built by the Ketterer Truck Company, with studio integration provided by Sony Professional Solutions Europe. It incorporates two studio environments, robotic video cameras, switchable glass doors that change from clear to opaque for privacy, green-screen production capabilities, and an upper level deck for interviews, live and recorded music.
Formally dedicated by Yoko Ono on May 8 at the Museum of Liverpool, the Lennon Bus includes a Q-Ball system with a white pan/tilt/zoom camera head, a Camera Corps triple-axis Mini Joystick Remote Control Panel, interface and connecting cable. The head itself is etched with the John Lennon logo.
Like its sister vehicle in the US, the Lennon Bus is staffed by a crew of three producer/engineers. Its schedule encompasses stops at local schools, colleges and festivals, providing free tours and workshops in which young people produce original songs, audio recordings, broadcast quality music videos and live streamed events.
Developed and produced by Camera Corps both for rental and for sale, the Q-Ball has delivered close-up video from many very high-profile broadcast events in recent years, including the BBC Proms, Summer and Winter Olympics, international football, motor racing, water sports, tennis, football and rugby. Housed in a robust and weatherproof cast-aluminum sphere of similar diameter to a standard Compact Disc or DVD, the Q-Ball head comprises a 1080i camera with 10:1 zoom optics plus a fully rotatable pan and tilt head. High-precision motors enable the operator to adjust the camera angle from practically any location, including smooth adjustment of vertical and lateral tracking speeds.
PipelineFX Draws Up New Plan for Pratt’s Render Farm
LOS ANGELES–Try, try, try again only works when each attempt yields a little more. In Pratt Institute’s case, productivity was paramount; but their render farm manager didn’t seem to agree. It couldn’t even support multiple content creation apps at once, causing a vicious cycle of inefficiency that robbed students of the speed they needed. Pratt’s trust was restored when they found PipelineFX’s Qube!
As one of the nation’s top art schools, Pratt has to maintain high technology standards for their CG, architecture, and animation students. But after years spent fighting this suspect render farm management system, the school decided to just give up…for three semesters. When drive overcame fatigue, they made a list of needs. And these needs were non-negotiable.
“Our solution had to solve our app compatibility issue, desire for customization and lack of timely support. Anything else and our farm would fall flat,” said Ossama Elroos, associate director of computer facilities at Pratt Institute. “With Qube!, we were hooked from the start. It had an answer for every dealbreaker.”
PipelineFX’s support team worked through the Pratt checklist onsite, customizing the product to their unique specifications. This level of involvement was a welcome change for Pratt. With their last render manager, the “support” team lived across the sea, which led to frequent service delays. Now, Pratt only needs help for predictable occurrences like reconfiguring Qube! when apps release new updates. Everything else can be managed by the school’s staff and students.
To maximize resources, the main student lab is set up to cater to both the user and the farm. Using Qube!, administrators programmed a function that reaches out to other computer labs for extra rendering power when machines are idle. If someone logs into any computer in the network, Qube! then kills the frame and distributes the job to another worker. This means that students can work without constraint, and the farm can process without interruption.
Custom configuration files keep track of application licensing during this process so there is never an issue of use compliance as students render their assignments. And now with PipelineFX’s burst license policy, Pratt can double their render capacity free of charge. Perfect for peak periods like finals.
