News Stories

ETC@USC moves offices into The Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts

The Entertainment Technology Center@USC is now located at Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts, 3131 S. Figueroa Street.  The move, completed on July 1, 2013, embeds the ETC offices, meeting and lab space inside the School of Cinematic Arts’ recently renovated state-of-the-art digital media production center located one block from the main campus and a short walk to the School of Cinematic Arts complex.  In addition to ETC, the new location also houses an extensive virtual production lab, green screen and production stage space, screening rooms, and an IMAX large format lab, scheduled to open later this year.

“Physical proximity of ETC to both the resources of the main campus and closer integration with students, faculty and research in the School of Cinematic Arts advances the original vision of the ETC articulated by George Lucas to bring technology and entertainment visionaries together to collaborate on the future of entertainment technology,” said Kenneth Williams, Executive Director and CEO of ETC. “One of the great benefits of the ETC to our members and sponsors is the access we have to the institution of USC.”

These resources combined with a modern, flexible physical layout provide an ideal facility in service to ETC’s sponsors, members and its role as a neutral convener and accelerator for entertainment technology and commerce through research, publications, events, collaborative projects and shared exploratory labs and demonstrations.

The move comes as the ETC embarks on several high profile projects, most notably Content in the Cloud, to develop guidelines and accelerate innovation and adoption of next-gen cloud-based content creation, production, and distribution tools and processes, and Ultra High Definition, to explore future high resolution technology and impact on acquisition, production, distribution and consumption.

The new address and phone numbers are:

Entertainment Technology Center@USC

3131 S. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 90089-7756

Main: 213.821.6166

Fax:   213.821.6165

Specification for Naming VFX Image Sequences Released

ETC’s VFX Working Group has published a specification for best practices naming image sequences such as plates and comps. File naming is an essential tool for organizing the multitude of frames that are inputs and outputs from the VFX process. Prior to the publication of this specification, each organization had its own naming scheme, requiring custom processes for each partner, which often resulted in confusion and miscommunication.

The new ETC@USC specification focuses primarily on sequences of individual images. The initial use case was VFX plates, typically delivered as OpenEXR or DPX files. However, the team soon realized that the same naming conventions can apply to virtually any image sequence. Consequently, the specification was written to handle a wide array of assets and use cases.

To ensure all requirements are represented, the working group included over 2 dozen participants representing studios, VFX houses, tool creators, creatives and others.  The ETC@USC also worked closely with MovieLabs to ensure that the specification could be integrated as part of their 2030 Vision.

A key design criteria for this specification is compatibility with existing practices.  Chair of the VFX working group, Horst Sarubin of Universal Pictures, said: “Our studio is committed to being at the forefront of designing best industry practices to modernize and simplify workflows, and we believe this white paper succeeded in building a new foundation for tools to transfer files in the most efficient manner.”

This specification is compatible with other initiatives such as the Visual Effects Society (VES) Transfer Specifications. “We wanted to make it as seamless as possible for everyone to adopt this specification,” said working group co-chair and ETC@USC’s Erik Weaver. “To ensure all perspectives were represented we created a team of industry experts familiar with the handling of these materials and collaborated with a number of industry groups.”

“Collaboration between MovieLabs and important industry groups like the ETC is critical to implementing the 2030 Vision,” said Craig Seidel, SVP of MovieLabs. “This specification is a key step in defining the foundations for better software-defined workflows. We look forward to continued partnership with the ETC on implementing other critical elements of the 2030 Vision.”

The specification is available online for anyone to use.

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