News Stories

ETC Releases Three of Four Sections of “Fathead” Virtual Production White Paper

The Entertainment Technology Center@USC has released its case study entitled “Fathead: Virtual Production & Beyond.” Section 1 of the four-part white paper is “Cloud Computing: Growth Without Bounds” highlighting innovative work on the production done entirely in the cloud minus the shoot on set.  Section 2 of the white paper is “Sound Mitigation: Performance Matters,” which features compelling interviews with “Fathead” co-producer Brandyn Johnson and former Sony Pictures executive Eric Rigney. The section also addresses “the challenges of recording clean dialogue on LED volumetric stages and in-camera visual effects (ICVFX) during production.” Section 3 of the four-part white paper is “State of the Industry: Beyond Trends,” which discusses “where we’re at, and where we’re going” and features compelling interviews with thought leaders from companies including The Third Floor, Stargate Studios, Orbital Virtual Studios, Vū Technologies, Lux Machina, nDisplay, Epic Games and Unity Technologies.

Click here to access Section 1, “Cloud Computing: Growth Without Bounds,” here to access Section 2, “Sound Mitigation: Performance Matters,” and here to access Section 3, “State of the Industry: Beyond Trends”.  We’ll post an announcement when the remaining section becomes available.

Synthetic Media Summit June 8 at USC

 

The Entertainment Technology Center at the University of Southern California held its inaugural Synthetic Media Summit on June 8 on the USC campus to chart the course of AI-driven future.  As artificial intelligence promises to change the way media content is produced, distributed and consumed, even altering the nature of media itself, are we fully ready?  This high-level event included top AI experts and media executives who discussed the state, media use cases, and ethics of synthetic media for the news and entertainment industries.

The Speakers:

  • Dr Morten Bay, Lecturer / Research Fellow, Center for Digital Future (USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism)
  • Yves Bergquist, AI Researcher / Director, AI & Blockchain project (ETC@USC)
  • Stella Biderman, AI Ethics Researcher (Eleuther.ai)
  • Elizabeth Daley, Dean, USC School of Cinematic Arts
  • Laura Davis, Associate Professor, Professional Practice (USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism)
  • Angela Dunning, Partner (Cooley LLC)
  • Laura Ellis, Head of Technology Forecasting (BBC R&D)
  • Emilio Ferrara, Associate Professor, Communication, Computer Science and Preventive Medicine (USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism)
  • Anthony Guarino, EVP, Global Production & Studio Technology (Paramount)
  • Evo Heyning, Executive producer/ CEO (Realitycraft)
  • Melody Hildebrant, CISO (Fox Corp )/ President (Blockchain Creative Labs)
  • Renard Jenkins, SVP, Production Integration & Creative Technology Services (Warner Bros. Discovery)
  • Julianna Kirschner, Lecturer, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
  • Dr Mark Lemley, Professor, Director of the Program in Law, Science & Technology  (Stanford University)
  • Ryan Luu, Director of Product, CoreUX & Personalization (The Washington Post)
  • Dr Gary Marcus, Author, Entrepreneur, and Professor of Psychology (NYU)
  • Margaret Mitchell, Chief Ethicist (Hugging Face)
  • Sanjay Pandit, CTO (Creative Artists Agency)
  • Jennifer Peterson, Associate Professor of Communication / Director, Graduate Certificate in Science and Technology Studies (USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism)
  • Nikki Pope, Head of AI Legal (NVIDIA)
  • Nikola Todorovic, Founder & CEO (Wonder Dynamics)
  • Ken Williams, Executive Director, Entertainment Technology Center at USC
  • Simon Yuen, Sr Director (NVIDIA Omiverse)
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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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