Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/613047
www.postmagazine.com 44 POST DECEMBER 2015 OUTLOOK COLOR/ FINISHING O aving worked at a number of post companies, and as a relative new- comer to the Nice Shoes family, I have a unique vantage point on both the com- pany and the post production industry. I am excited for the continued growth of this company. I am also over the moon to be a part of Nice Shoes' reach via Re- mote Partners. "Satellite" color sessions have been around since I started in the industry; but recent advances in tech- nology have really enabled the clients to embrace it without compromise. When businesses expand, no matter what industry, it can involve extensive investment and construction, or the acquisition of a smaller company. We've seen the latter quite often in post. What Nice Shoes has done, and what I believe we'll see more of industry-wide, is strate- gic partnerships between companies to reach new markets. There's value, wheth- er a big business or small, in identifying gaps in creative offerings and finding the right partner rather than attempting to do it all yourself. There's a reduced cost of overhead and an opportunity to share more than clients — companies can grow in their understanding of developing culture and community. Nice Shoes has worked hard to find independent studios — in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis and Toron- to — that would complement us both in service offerings, and in our cultures. Perhaps we've turned a tide to a great- er emphasis on work/home balance, as we've also recognized an increase in clients valuing a local connection. Now, more than ever, people can enjoy the creative process without having addition- al time away. Not just because we can deliver large files digitally, but because companies are focused on providing a sense of connectedness through tactile experiences. Nice Shoes has taken this further, with talent share in a few loca- tions, including Minneapolis and Chicago. As an industry, we need to remain focused on being open to opportunities, rather than defending market share or being fearful of change. We are in the business of creativity, one reliant on collaboration. Where the work comes from, and how those teams are aligned, invariably shifts. How we stay connected, in the same room or by thousands of miles, and retain quality, is essential to a long future. BY TARA HOLMES EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF COLOR & FINISHING NICE SHOES NEW YORK CITY WWW.NICESHOES.COM 'REMOTE PARTNERSHIPS' — ESSENTIAL TO A LONG FUTURE H hen thinking about what the world of storage will look like in 2016 — in the Media and Entertainment industry — it depends on where your interests are: sales volume, new markets and/or technology changes. Let's consider technology changes. First, there's the continuing explosion of very high format cameras at more affordable prices. Second, there's the emerging flash drive options as alterna- tives to traditional rotational disk drives. Then there's the very rapid acceptance of the 4K video format and the nev- er-ending quest for greater networking performance to enable putting more power directly into the editor's hands. All of these technology forces are put- ting pressure on vendors to refresh their products to better support post. The move from HD to 4K (or greater) video formats is requiring a lot more storage to support workflows. This is leading to huge demand of what many are calling near-line storage, a cost-effective way to store projects on the same network using less expensive (non-editing) storage with the convenience of being able to move the project back to the editing storage pool quickly when needed. The new 4K format is also requiring greater networking performance to support multiple editors. This is going to push the wide spread adoption of 40 Gigabit Ethernet, as 10 Gigabit isn't fast enough to do the job properly. But there isn't any reason to improve the network if the storage itself isn't getting faster. That is where flash [or SSD] drives will make a big push in 2016. While still not cost-competitive with rotational drives, the gap is narrowing and they will be increasingly used as a cache to allow top-end performance to improve in a cost-effective manner. Some SSD man- ufacturers have announced significant capacity breakthroughs, (the other big barrier to adoption within the post indus- try), which should gain traction during the next year as well. So, will all of this technology churn lead to confusion and trepidation in the near term? The short answer is "no," because the 4K format is here to stay, and you simply will need more storage to support projects going forward. Storage sales should rebound over the next 12 months (assuming no outside overriding events occur), as technology shifts slow down and catch their breath. When new and more powerful technology is applied to a problem, new markets often open. With pressure to develop faster, denser storage solutions, markets where the benefits outweigh the costs increase. The desire to capture and store audio and video clips is growing daily, which will lead to more storage opportunities. BY CORKY SEEBER PRESIDENT/CEO SMALL TREE OAKDALE, MN WWW.SMALL-TREE.COM 2016 STORAGE FORECAST W OUTLOOK STORAGE O