Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/711111
58 CINEMONTAGE / Q3 2016 an exception, however, known for shooting so that his films could be edited in one way: his. Virtually every other major Hollywood director of the studio era retained involvement in post-production. They might be prepping or shooting their next picture, but most often directors were working on the same lot at which their previous movie was made. Then, as now, producers and directors sat in small screening rooms and gave editorial notes based on various cuts. At the very least, a lunchtime visit to the editing room would be normal. It is difficult to imagine anyone preventing Frank Capra, Raoul Walsh, Fritz Lang, Howard Hawks, George Cukor, Rouben Mamoulian, William Wellman, Josef von Sternberg, Henry King, William Wyler or King Vidor from looking into a Moviola monitor. As the DGA website states, "At the end of 1935, on the heels of a Paramount edict that its contract directors would be fired if they didn't accept the pictures that were assigned to them, 13 directors met at Vidor's house." What they had been fighting for individually now became a common cause, including "…freedom from interference from micro-managing producers and studio executives; the right to be in the editing room and deliver their own cut of the film that would bear their name." Editing and Special Visual Effects is an important step in rightfully positioning the art of editing within the academic canon. While it suffers a bit from being written by observers from the Ivory Tower, it also benefits by offering the outsiders' view. There are many important facts, useful examples, good ideas and provocative questions to ponder. f CONTINUED FROM PAGE 49 CUT/PRINT is particularly enthusiastic. Inspired by the concept of the "holodeck" from Star Trek: The Next Generation, Urbach explained that holographic light field capture and rendering is capable of producing stunningly realistic images that can be viewed from any vantage point. The application of light field technology is significant to virtual and augmented reality, as well as visual effects, and its development is proceeding rapidly. Expect to see light fields integrated into Octane Render in the near future (and start saving up for the inevitable holodeck while you're at it!). In addition to light fields, OTOY is also working on a real-time rendering engine called Brigade that uses path tracing — a sophisticated rendering technique that is capable of producing color bleeding, blurry reflections, soft shadows, area lights, depth of field and many more realistic effects. Expect to see Brigade integrated into Octane soon. Another interesting thing I learned while speaking with Urbach is that OTOY has announced a subscription model for Octane (similar to how Adobe's Creative Cloud works), which it is planning to roll about by September or so. For a reasonable fee — around $10 for two GPUs and $20 for eight GPUs — you'll be able to start using Octane Render and pay as you go. Urbach also informed me that After Effects and NUKE plug- ins for Octane are in the works so that users of those programs will soon also be able to harness its power. CONCLUSION GPU rendering is exciting and OTOY is leading the way. Based on my tests of Octane, I'm impressed with how fast it is, how well it works and how easy it is to use. I am looking forward to seeing how it develops. Whatever 3D software you use, I highly recommend you download the demo version and start rendering. Just fasten your seat belt first. For OTOY's complete story, visit the company's website at www.otoy.com. f TECH TIPS Jules Urbach, CEO of OTOY, is the chief architect of the company's technology roadmap and someone with an eye on emerging developments in GPU rendering and virtual reality. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 52 in the arena of unscripted television — it's ultimately members' (and aspiring members') volunteerism that makes such voluntary recognition possible. If you believe that more of the folks working in post-production deserve to have a voice on the job and the benefits of a union contract, you can volunteer to help get more employers to enter into negotiations voluntarily. When you're working a non-union job, call an organizer to volunteer information about your employment. Volunteer to talk to your co-workers in non-union workplaces about the advantages of having representation. Volunteer to support colleagues organizing at other workplaces. All the skills and efforts of our staff notwithstanding, it is the demonstrated willingness of our members to work together in enlightened self-interest — their commitment to volunteering for the common good — which persuades employers that it is better to make deals voluntarily than to attempt to undermine our shared responsibility to uphold standards of employment in our industry. f CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14 GET TING ORGANIZED