Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/110591
vfx Plug-Ins Pros use these cost-effective tools to save time & add style. By Marc Loftus Editors and artists looking to save time often turn to plug-ins to automate tedious tasks, or to add a stylized look to their project. There is no shortage of plug-ins on the market, so whether you are looking to add a color treatment, a split-screen effect or even make your carefully-shot images look worse because the job calls for it, there are lots of individual plug-ins and themed collections to choose from. While it was impossible to cover all the offerings, we did speak with a handful of key players in the VFX plug-in business. Many acknowledged the increased use of DSLR cameras during production and are offering products geared toward that user base. Pricing is also very competitive, and manufacturers such as Red Giant and Boris FX, for example, are allowing customers to purchase plug-ins individually and apply those purchases to larger suites of tools down the road. GenArts Sapphire: a suite of 250 effects and transitions. 26 Post • February 2013 Post0213_026-28,30-VFXrav3finalread.indd 26 GENARTS Cambridge, MA's GenArts (www.genarts.com) specializes in developing plug-ins that work on a variety of host platforms. Users, says sales manager Mike Budreau, primarily fall in the broadcast space, including promos, :30 commercials, visual effects and scripted TV. They also have users in the film market, including VFX studio ILM. Sapphire is a suite of 250 effects and transitions that are designed for users who have a broad range of needs. The package is available for After Effects, Premiere, Nuke, Final Cut Pro, Autodesk, Avid and Baselight. Pricing varies depending on the host platform, with the After Effects suite costing $1,699 and the Autodesk package costing $8,499. "We're used quite extensively for our lighting effects," www.postmagazine.com 1/24/13 4:55 PM