LAS VEGAS, NV -- 04/14/08 --
Imagineer Systems (
www.imagineersystems.com),
creators of next-generation VFX tools, today announced the arrival of
mogul. Conceived through customer dialogue and designed and developed by
Imagineer Systems, mogul is an entirely new open, collaborative VFX
architecture supporting a suite of tightly integrated, modular VFX systems
and applications.
mogul is the industry's first collaborative VFX architecture to provide an
open platform that unites common design facility talents, such as editing,
compositing, 3D design and modelling, and empowers designers in a new VFX
workflow that more closely fits the way artists work. Additionally, mogul
enables powerful new collaboration capabilities critical in today's
deadline-intensive, and fiscally demanding business climate and offers an
innovative new subscription-based pricing model, ensuring mogul is
accessible, viable and affordable for facilities of any size or budget.
mogul is comprised of a powerful combination of system-level and desktop
application-level components, tightly integrated to optimize the creative
collaborative workflow experience. Key systems components will include: a
collaborative shared storage management system; a powerful file browser
application designed for working with media and metadata; a disk-based
playback and review system that includes tools for quality control and
annotation; a highly interactive finishing system with I/O, 3D compositing,
editing, and grading tools; and a dedicated I/O system, with capture,
layback, encoding and job duplication, all on a dedicated workstation.
Modular, integrated cross-platform VFX desktop applications that seamlessly
plug into the mogul architecture will include rotoscoping, 2D and 3D
tracking, paint, and node-based compositing -- all built on mogul's
powerful new 3D engine.
mogul is an open architecture, and provides a path for all users -- of
Imagineer Systems current products, as well as those from discreet, Avid,
Quantel, and many others -- to embrace a tightly integrated, collaborative,
inclusive and highly effective visual effects workflow.
"The arrival of mogul is a watershed moment for the visual effects industry
and we are extremely proud of what we have created," said Allan Jaenicke,
chief executive officer of Imagineer Systems. "But mogul isn't just about
what we have done at Imagineer. In fact, mogul would not have been possible
were it not for the deep, step-by-step involvement from a number of key
partners -- our customers. mogul was born the day our customers asked us
to build it, and they have been with us from the beginning, helping us
understand the true challenges that needed to be addressed. The answer to
all of their requirements, challenges, frustrations and aspirations, is
mogul."
Welcome to mogul, Welcome to the New World
mogul is a modular architecture based on typical roles within a facility,
allowing customers to intuitively configure an installation to suit their
unique requirements. From a workflow perspective, decisions are made
simpler by flexibility: the ability to integrate mogul tools into a current
workflow, or integrate current tools into a mogul workflow. Flexible open
architectures simplify the migration and protect current equipment and
software investments.
Key systems-level components of mogul will include:
-- mogul/serve: mogul/serve is designed to address the key collaboration
challenges facing facilities when moving to a shared storage
infrastructure. mogul/serve helps facilities organize and distribute all
digital assets, whether image sequences, audio file, project files or
spreadsheet. Assets are organized per project, and using metadata tags and
searches make it possible to further manage and locate assets.
-- mogul/browse: While mogul/serve is the hub for visual effects work in
a facility, mogul/browse is a portal to this hub -- it is a supercharged
file browser designed for working with media and metadata. mogul/browse is
an open, cross-platform application that gives access to all projects,
media and metadata stored on mogul/serve, while maintaining benefits such
as revision control, central archiving and avoiding data duplication.
-- mogul/review: mogul/review is a disk-based playback and review system
that includes tools for quality control and annotation. The player itself
is resolution independent, allowing users to scale the attached storage to
handle the frame resolution required. mogul/review is a cost-effective
solution to playback and quality control needs, whether used standalone or
in conjunction with mogul/serve.
-- mogul/master: mogul/master is a fully integrated finishing system,
with I/O, 3D compositing, editing and grading tools that work together
seamlessly. mogul/master enables users to ingest, edit, composite, grade
and deliver a project from start to finish in less time. Key to
mogul/master is the seamless integration between the editing, compositing,
desktop and grading tools. mogul/master enables users to move quickly
between different tools and use the most appropriate toolsets at different
stages, significantly boosting collaboration between artists -- editors and
compositors -- with different preferences. mogul/master works on
uncompressed full-resolution images, only falling back to proxies at user
request or when the number of effects exceeds the hardware capabilities.
-- mogul/traffic: mogul/traffic is a dedicated I/O system, with capture,
layback, encoding and job duplication all on a dedicated workstation.
mogul/traffic is fully integrated, sits in a facility's traffic department,
and allows colleagues to perform standard trafficking tasks, such as
duplication, encoding, slate editing, and tape quality control.
mogul Desktop Apps are 100% compatible with mogul/master, enabling work to
be seamlessly shared between the desktop and system tools. mogul Desktop
Apps also enable facilities to scale capacity as required on a
project-by-project basis without large capital investments. Key
application-level components of mogul will include:
-- mogul/roto: A cross-platform desktop application for rotoscoping, it
includes Imagineer's planar tracking technology, helping to perform tedious
rotoscoping tasks with ease.
-- mogul/track: A cross-platform desktop application for 2D and 3D
tracking. Tracking data can be exported to a multitude of 3rd party
software.
-- mogul/paint: A cross-platform desktop application for painting, and
built on mogul's 3D engine. mogul/paint is a unique 3D vector based paint
system that utilizes the power of the system graphics card to open up new
creative possibilities.
-- mogul/comp: A cross-platform desktop application for node-based
compositing and built on mogul's 3D engine. mogul/comp offers a true 3D
compositing environment, support of OpenFX plug-ins, and Python scripting.
Innovative Pricing
mogul requires no large up-front capital expense. Instead, mogul is
available on an all-inclusive subscription basis. A typical monthly
subscription covers:
-- Hardware and hardware maintenance
-- Software and software maintenance
mogul pricing is designed differently, with facilities' challenges in mind
and is designed to reduce financial strains so facilities can focus what
they do best. Pricing offers:
-- Low upfront and predictable costs
-- Less commitment than traditional multi-year leases
-- No costly, unexpected software or hardware upgrades
mogul Availability
The mogul architecture is complete and is making its industry debut at NAB
2008. mogul systems and applications modules will become available through
a phased roll-out, with quarterly developments and subsequent announcements
planned throughout 2008.
mogul/review, the disk-based playback and review system, is available
immediately. mogul/serve and mogul/browse will be available for shipment
in the third quarter 2008.
About Imagineer Systems
Imagineer Systems Ltd innovates and markets next-generation visual effects
solutions for film, video and broadcast post production markets. In
response to a groundswell desire for a more innovative approach to VFX,
Imagineer Systems has developed an entirely new VFX architecture, one that
embraces better integration, collaboration, performance and feels like an
extension of the creative thought process - mogul. Imagineer Systems has
made its mark on such marquis Hollywood blockbuster productions as "Casino
Royale," "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Harry Potter." Imagineer's
product line consists of monet(TM) - placement station, mokey(TM) - removal
station, motor(TM) - roto station, mocha(TM) - tracking station and
mofex(TM) -
plug-in for Shake. Imagineer Systems was founded in 2000 and its
headquarters is located in Guildford, United Kingdom. For more information
visit www.imagineersystems.com. For more information on mogul, please
visit www.mogulvfx.com.
Media Contact:
Kevin M. Bourke
BourkePR
+1.781.545.7449
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