Autodesk and Google have partnered to offer Maya compute services on the Google Cloud Platform, which developed Google Cloud Platform ZYNC Render, an integrated cloud-based storage and rendering solution for the VFX industry. “We’ve been in discussions with Autodesk for quite some time,” said Google product manager Todd Prives. “It’s been a collaborative effort to bring Maya to Google.” With the ZYNC service for Autodesk Maya 2016 software, users will be able to render 3D scenes on the Google Cloud Platform. Continue reading Autodesk and Google Cloud Platform Bring Maya to the Cloud

Filmmaker Ang Lee gave a keynote talk at NAB 2016 with editor Tim Squyres and production system supervisor Ben Gervais about the path to creating his upcoming feature “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk,” which was shot in 3D, 4K, at 120 frames per second. An 11-minute clip from the film ran all afternoon, drawing long lines and buzz. No theater can currently show the movie the way it was shot, but Lee says his curiosity and passion for storytelling led him to explore these formats, which create a compelling immersive experience. Continue reading Ang Lee’s ‘Long Halftime Walk’ to 4K, 3D, 120 fps Filmmaking

The Entertainment Technology Center@USC hosted a discussion on next-generation cloud workflows, featuring toolsets and specific technologies. Led by ETC’s cloud project lead Erik Weaver, the conversation began with the real-world case study for post production in the cloud implemented by Los Angeles post facility DigitalFilm Tree. That company’s CTO/managing partner Guillaume Aubuchon led the audience through the workflows put in place to handle productions taking place in “remote parts of Asia and Africa.” Continue reading HPA Tech Retreat: Next-Gen Cloud Workflows Hosted by ETC

In a panel organized by Colorfront’s Bruno Munger and moderated by British Cinematographer magazine editor Ron Prince, a group of executives and engineers tackled the topic of HDR workflow in post production. Netflix production engineer for original content Chris Clark pointing to shows like “Marco Polo,” noting that, “Netflix is obviously really excited about HDR.” The company now sets up a pipeline that enables any production to “flip to HDR” if they want to. “We are all about future-proofing,” he said. Continue reading HPA Tech Retreat: How the Pros Handle HDR in Post Production

A panel of cinematographers, a digital imaging technician and a camera manufacturer talked about HDR production workflow issues that begin in pre-production discussions. The panel’s moderator, VFX cinematographer Mark Weingartner, asked the panelists if there were “fundamental differences between the ways we have been shooting and the way we need to shoot” for HDR. Cinematographer Bill Bennett, ASC noted that “since the inception of cinematography, we’ve been recording HDR images with film.” Continue reading HPA Tech Retreat: The Production Workflow Incorporating HDR

A conversation during CES about the future of 4K UHD TV quickly settled on a single point: 4K without HDR is not a winning proposition. “4K married with HDR will be adopted a lot faster than just plain 4K,” said Technicolor executive Mark Turner. “4K is a binary function: you either have 4K or you’re at 1080p. 4K hasn’t really fired passions in the creative community. HDR does, because then you have a wider color palette and have more detail in the shadows and more highlights.” But both 4K and HDR present challenges. Continue reading 4K UHD with High Dynamic Range Most Likely to Be Adopted

In the world of UHD/4K, movies and TV programs can require massive amounts of compute power. Take a recent 50-minute UHD natural history documentary that Sundog Media Toolkit worked on. Chief executive Richard Welsh reports it ran for four hours on over 5,000 processors. The necessity for finding huge amounts of compute power is becoming a challenge for productions, he notes. “We could have run that job in real time if we had split it up more, and that would have taken us up to more than 20,000 processors for one hour.” Continue reading SMPTE 2015: Post Production Is Moving to the Cloud, Slowly

At SIGGRAPH 2015, Autodesk executives David Morin and Ben Guthrie described virtual production, its relationship with virtual reality and some newly released tools from their company to aid in the process. Virtual production began with Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings,” got a bump of recognition with “Avatar,” and has been used on many films since. According to Morin and Guthrie, the process, which lets filmmakers create virtual worlds in-camera and composite CG and live action on set, is achieving momentum. Continue reading SIGGRAPH 2015: Virtual Production, Cousin of Virtual Reality

DesignWorks, Nvidia’s newly announced suite of software tools, technologies, and libraries for designers enables “photoreal rendering for unparalleled accuracy, easy transfer of materials and digital models between applications, and the ability to incorporate virtual reality into design software,” the company said in a press announcement. Alongside the launch of DesignWorks, Nvidia also announced two new professional GPUs: the Quadro M5000 and Quadro M4000, based on Nvidia’s Maxwell GPU architecture. Continue reading Nvidia Launches DesignWorks Software Suite for Designers

SIGGRAPH 2015, the interdisciplinary conference on the latest computer graphics and interactive techniques, is underway at the LA Convention Center and runs through August 13. SIGGRAPHis unique as a trade event because it showcases both the state of the art in professional production as well as being one of the best places in the world to see and experience emerging technologies, talent and academic research. The conference theme, “XRoads of Discovery,” and the selection of Joichi Ito, director of the MIT Media Lab as the conference keynote speaker, underscore the future look. Continue reading SIGGRAPH 2015: XRoad of Discovery; Emerging Tech Conference Opens in LA

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences used the NAB Show as the launch for the Academy Color Encoding System (ACES) — a free, open, device-independent global standard for color management and image interchange that targets digital production, mastering and long-term archiving of motion pictures. The Academy also announced the support of 22 leading companies that will participate in the ACES Logo Program, which was developed to “encourage consistent, high-quality implementations of ACES concepts and technical specifications throughout the industry.” Continue reading NAB 2015: AMPAS Launches Global Standard for Color Encoding

Anyone who has worked in the visual effects industry is familiar with the enormous volume of data involved in every production and the process of bringing shots on and offline to balance workloads. Jeff Kember, a cloud solutions architect at Google and a former computer graphics supervisor, introduced a new solution, Google’s Cloud Storage Nearline — a low-cost, fast-response storage service that enables quick data backup, retrieval and access — in his vNAB Cloud Conference presentation on Visual Effects Workflows in the Cloud. Continue reading Google Cloud Storage Nearline Presented at vNAB Conference

Videos from the third session of The Entertainment Technology Center @ USC “Virtual NAB Cloud Conference” are now live for viewing on the ETCenterVideo YouTube channel. The videos include a presentation on visual effects workflows in the cloud by Jeff Kember of Google and a description of a popup render farm for VFX by Thinkbox Software’s Chris Bond. Martin Wahl of Microsoft Azure Media Services presented a scalable workflow for live sports and Michelle Munson of IBM/Aspera showcased streaming sports to second screens through the cloud. Usman Shakeel of Amazon Web Services discussed the demands of and solutions for 4K workflows. Continue reading vNab: Workflow in the Cloud for Visual Effects, Sports and 4K

During last week’s HPA Tech Retreat, the Hollywood Post Alliance announced that the organization has become The Hollywood Professional Alliance. The new name reflects the organization’s continuing role in helping to “lead the conversation on the impact of the changing face of content creation and media.” According to HPA President Leon Silverman, the mission “will remain the same: to serve as a hub, thought leadership center and communications engine for our industry as changes in the creative process continue to motivate new ways of working.” Continue reading HPA Name Change to Reflect the Dynamic Evolution of Post

Visual effects studios are increasingly using cloud computing technology to crank out film sequences faster and more efficiently. Rendering, the process of finalizing each frame, is an intensive processing process, and the cloud allows studios to use as much processing power as needed to finish the job. When the studio is in between film projects, it can save money because the studio can scale back on its computing power demand, which helps keep VFX costs low for filmmakers. Continue reading VFX Studios Leverage the Power of the Cloud for Film Projects