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Discreet to Demo inferno 6, flame 9 and flint 9 at SIGGRAPH 2004

Discreet will unveil new versions of its realtime compositing and visual effects systems, inferno 6, flame 9 and flint 9, at SIGGRAPH 2004, Aug. 10-12, at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The new versions offer more creative freedom and tools to simplify tasks. Discreet plans to release inferno 6, flame 9 and flint 9 in fall 2004.

Discreets inferno 6, flame 9 and flint 9 systems offer a range of new creative features, including a spline-based warping and morphing tool that gives users unprecedented control using animated splines with support for tracking data.

The new releases also feature 3D look-up-table (LUT) capabilities a breakthrough visualization tool for accurate color display. Used to show how a digital image will look when it is printed to film and projected in a cinema, the 3D LUT capability allows filmmakers to perform color correction with greater confidence and precision than was previously possible.

Also new is an improved automated 3D Tracker that analyses a clip, selects the tracking points and processes the results in the background, freeing-up artists to focus on more creative tasks.

Numerous other enhancements have been added, including clip history that allows artists to see how clips have been constructed and quickly modify previous settings. Many new collaborative workflow features are also present, including open file access, the ability to add schematic notes and support for the Adobe PSD layered file format.

Jake Parker, senior inferno, flame, flint artist with Crash & Sues (Minneapolis, MN), said, The Clip History feature is incredible. It lets you double-click on a clip to bring up the module and setup that created the clip something users have been dreaming of for years. This feature can change the way we all work for the better!

Segment Effects have been added to the Batch Editing timeline for tighter integration between the schematic tree workflow and timeline editor. This allows users to apply effects directly to segments in a timeline and see the results in context. This additionally enhances the creative workflow and it allows users to create multiple independent processing trees that can be applied to different clips in the timeline.

Discreets inferno 6 system is available on the SGI Onyx 350 visualization system, and the flame 9 system is available on the Silicon Graphics Tezro visual workstation. The Onyx 350 is unsurpassed for multi-layered compositing. The rise in digital cinema mastering and the new enhancements in inferno 6 on the Silicon Graphics Onyx 350 make it an amazing platform for resolution-independent visual effects, said Paul McNamara, svp and gm, Visual Systems Group, SGI. The continued success of Discreets flame system on the Silicon Graphics Tezro speaks to the capabilities, performance and power that both companies have worked hard to bring to the desktop.

The flint 9 system features all of the above enhancements with the exception of the LUT and the 3D auto-tracker features, and is available on the Intel-based IBM IntelliStation Z Pro workstation running Linux.

Discreet collaborated with industry leading partner NVIDIA to build world class, high-performance Linux drivers for the flint 9 system. Discreet selected the advanced NVIDIA Quadro FX 3000G graphics hardware for its genlocking feature, powerful high-end graphics and video capabilities.

Jeff Brown, NVIDIAs general manager of workstation product management, said, Together, Discreet and NVIDIA are delivering advanced functionality on standard computing platforms so that digital artists have a powerful and cost-effective visual effects system at their disposal on a Linux-based platform.

Discreets award-winning solutions are designed for digital media creation, management and delivery-across all disciplines from film and television visual effects, color grading and editing to animation, game development, Web/interactive and design visualization. Discreet (www.discreet.com) is based in Montreal, Quebec, and is a division of Autodesk Inc, the leading design and digital media creation, management and distribution company.

Bill Desowitz's picture

Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.