Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/312687
Bits & Pieces 6 Post • May 2014 www.postmagazine.com Bits & Pieces global shutter and 12 stops of dynamic range. The Black- magic URSA EF model will be available in June/July and will retail for $5,995. THE FOUNDRY'S NUKE STUDIO UK-based The Foundry (www.thefoundry.co.uk) pre- viewed Nuke Studio at NAB, a flexible and simple-to-use application that spans VFX, editorial and finishing. Nuke Studio draws on the company's existing compositing, conforming and shot management technology, while also adding a host of new features and functionality. The com- pany says it has taken the best of its Nuke X compositing application and merged it with its Hiero timeline, shot management and review capabilities. The result is a com- bination of node-based VFX, editorial and finishing tools that can be used by individuals or in a collaborative team environment. Nuke Studio sits at the top of The Foundry's Nuke range, and the company will continue to offer both Nuke and Nuke X. Numerous pros commented on Nuke Stu- dio's ability to work with high fidelity imagery, as well as its ability to quickly select different versions of material and quickly add it to the timeline. The Foundry hopes to deliver Nuke Studio later this year. HONORABLE MENTIONS Sonnet Technologies (www.sonnettech.com) unveiled the xMac Pro Server Thunderbolt 2-to-PCI Express expansion system and 4U rackmount enclosure for new Mac Pro computers. Rohde & Schwarz DVS (www.dvs.de) introduced SpycerBox Cell, its new, scalable storage solution that measures 1U high and features 30 SSD, SAS or SATA hard drives mounted on a tray-based carrier system, which can be hot-swapped during opera- tion. Blackmagic Design (www.blackmagicdesign.com) made several key announcements at this year's NAB, which included its DaVinci Resolve 11 upgrade with more than 100 new editing and color grading features, as well as a new model of its Cintel Film Scanner that's thin enough to be wall mounted. It will scan negative and posi- tive 35mm film into Ultra HD so customers can unlock the extra resolution from 35mm film (natively 4K). Finally, marking a 100 million EF lenses milestone, Canon USA (www.usa.canon.com) introduced its new Cine-Servo 17-120mm T2.95 zoom lens to address shallow, creative depth of field, high-resolution and optimal low-light shooting capabilities for ENG, documentary, narrative production and special event coverage applications. Big Block takes on drones for Subaru S ANTA MONICA — Digital production and design studio Big Block (www.bigblockla.com) pro- duced the live action shoot, virtual obstacle course and animated drone fleet for the television, cinema and online commercial Subaru WRX STI vs. the Drones. DDB Canada's Toronto office developed the concept of a futuristic autocross course featuring CG drone quadcopters that challenge the WRX STI. Big Block was asked to create a virtual course it felt would adequately demonstrate the strengths and features of the WRX STI. The commercial was shot on a closed circuit in the historic Hughes Aircraft "Spruce Goose" hangar in LA. There, they captured live action footage, including a driver, and an array of reference material using Nikon D4 and Nikon D800 cinema cameras. Big Block's animators and VFX artists would later use the elements for simulations, lighting, reflections and the environment. They also used Atomos' Ninja 2 recorder and monitor to capture footage. To create the virtual course, the Big Block team, supervised by Randall Smith, captured high-resolution photos and LIDAR scans of the space from key locations using Leica airborne laser scanners. All photos were shot using Nikon D800s with a Zeiss 50mm lens as HDRIs with seven exposure stops of lighting data. Each station created a 32-bit 32K HDRI and all eight stations ultimately produced 15GBs of raw HDRI data, which was projected onto the hanger model and painted to correct any overlapping projections. The WRX STI's stunt driving was created within Big Block's proprietary Drive-A-Tron driving simula- tor, a physics-based driving technology using manufacturer's CAD data. The software allows physically- accurate animations to be configured into the studio's 3DS Max lighting and rendering pipeline. Once the Subaru simulations were loaded into Max, the scenes were lit and rendered using V-Ray, and environ- ments were projected and painted using The Foundry's Mari. CG and rendered layers were composited in Nuke. The final conform was done in Flame and the grade was done in Blackmagic's Da Vinci suite. This Subaru spot combines live action with extensive VFX. 2G Digital & DuArt form strategic partnership B URBANK— 2G Digital (www.2gdigital.com), which specializes in digital supply chain services, has entered into a strategic partnership with DuArt (www.duart.com), a New York facility that offers comprehensive post services for video, digital media and film. The partnership will allow both companies to expand their geographic reach and add new services. Under the agreement, 2G Digital and DuArt will work cooperatively to service each other's clients. 2G Digital clients on the East Coast will now be able to deliver media to DuArt for encoding and distribution to VOD/EST portals such as iTunes, Amazon and Netflix. DuArt, meanwhile, will now be able to provide file-based delivery services to its clients with 2G Digital acting as its fulfillment arm. Additionally, 2G Digital clients will gain access to a variety of other post services offered by DuArt, including editorial, color correction and audio. The companies have established a direct, dedicated, high-speed data link that will facilitate the transfer of media between their two facilities. "It's a logical fit," says DuArt VP of operations, Joe Monge. "Both companies gain a national presence and both can now provide services that they did not previously offer."