Cinedigm Signs VPF Deal with Pacific Theatres

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Thu, 09/29/2011 - 20:00 -- Nick Dager

Cinedigm Digital Cinema has signed a long-term virtual print fee deployment agreement with Pacific Theatres. Pacific will be providing its own financing. The rollout comprises up to 160 screens; the majority of installations should be completed by early 2012. Founded more than 60 years ago Pacific Theatres has developed and operated drive-in theaters walk-in theaters and state-of-the-art multi- and megaplex theaters in the Los Angeles area.  Known for their iconic Cinerama Dome theatre as well as ArcLight Cinemas and other quality theatres Pacific has long been a leader in the motion picture exhibition industry. “We are confident that we have made the best choice for Pacific Theatres to move forward with Cinedigm for our digital cinema deployment program ” says Gretchen McCourt executive vice president Pacific Theatres.  “We are looking forward to taking full advantage of Cinedigm’s cutting edge software and technology to help us deliver a great sight and sound experience to our guests.” “It has been a pleasure working with the Pacific team throughout the deal process says Gary Loffredo Cinedigm's general counsel and corporate senior vice president business affairs.  Cinedigm takes great pride in working with our exhibitor partners to develop a digital cinema deal program that meets their requirements.  We look forward to working with Pacific to utilize the full menu of Cinedigm digital applications including our software.” Pacific Theatres is one of the most respected companies in the exhibition industry ” says Chuck Goldwater president media services group.  “Their reputation for outstanding performance both technically and operationally as well as their decades of commitment to the communities in which they operate exemplifies the best the exhibition industry has to offer.  We are exceedingly proud now to be able to call them our newest exhibitor partner and we look forward to supporting their digital cinema program with all the quality and care that is the hallmark of their business for many years to come.” Cinedigm www.cinedigm.com ,2757
Deluxe Consolidates Post Operation,2011-09-30,Deluxe Entertainment Services Group has integrated its Deluxe 142 digital intermediate facility into Company 3’s feature film post house. The addition extends Company 3's reach into Europe complementing its existing New York  Atlanta and Santa Monica locations. Company 3 in London will be overseen by Stefan Sonnenfeld Company 3 president co-founder and president of Deluxe Creative Services with day-to-day operations led by Patrick Malone director of Digital Film Services. The DI service remains an integral part of the suite of services offered by Deluxe 142 who will continue to offer a complete end to end post production solution to their client base spanning the broadcast and feature film market. The facility has two theatre's featuring Da Vinci Resolve R350 digital grading systems and 2K Barco projectors which mirror those installed at Company 3's US locations. This enables the global team to work together to offer a true end-to-end solution from dailies through to deliverables. The London facility is also equipped to work in partnership with Company 3's sister facility EFILM. This is a natural progression for our London team after years of collaboration with CO3 says Patrick Malone. Company 3 is a trusted name among Hollywood studios synonymous with creative excellence technical expertise and efficient workflows. Our senior colorists Adam Glasman and Rob Pizzey are world class and this change increases our opportunity to work on more of the large international projects finishing in the UK. The London team led by Malone has already worked on several high-profile blockbusters including One Day The Inbetweeners The Movie  Scott Pilgrim vs. The World and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Having a new location based out of London is especially exciting for CO3. The addition of these DI suites opens the door for UK-based feature clients who want to finish at Company 3 says Sonnenfeld. It also further expands opportunities for the growing number of features that need to spread post production services across both US and UK locations. I enjoy working with the UK team and this is a positive move for us all. The collaboration of talent knowledge and seamless workflows across Deluxe's Creative Services group is key to providing the best experience for our clients where ever they are located. Deluxe Entertainment Services Group http://www.bydeluxe.com ,2760
Doremi Passes 30 000 Mark in Servers Shipped,2011-09-30,Doremi Cinema has announced the shipment of more than 10 000 servers and Integrated Media Blocks worldwide in just the first eight months of 2011. The August surge in global shipments catapulted total shipments to more than 30 000 servers to date.   The exponential growth in Doremi server installations confirms Doremi’s standing as the market leader in the Digital Cinema arena. “Having passed the CTP Doremi is the only DCI compliant server and IMB in the market for use with DLP based projectors ” says Michael Archer vice president digital cinema. “This coupled with no required hardware changes to play high frame rates on our IMB are two major determinates that lead exhibitors to Doremi.” As a visionary entity Doremi has been a leading contributor of advanced technology since its establishment in 1985. A diverse product line encompassing all aspects of Digital Cinema has been introduced over the past several years. With increased requests for accessibility options in theatres Doremi Cinema has developed several products. The CaptiView a personal in-theatre closed captioning system operating on a wireless band frequency has gained much recognition due to its simplistic operative nature. CaptiView has already been installed in more than 3 000 screens to date.  The Fidelio a wireless audio system for the visually impaired and hard-of-hearing was also recently introduced.   The Theater Management System was launched in early 2008 dedicated to the monitoring scheduling and construction of show playlists. The StreamIt was commercialized as a server companion enabling live streaming of 2D and 3D alternative programming via satellite to multiple screens. ,2762
People v. The State of Illusion Number One at Harkins,2011-09-30,Harkins announced that last month’s premiere of the film People v. The State of Illusion was number one at the Harkins Camelview Theatres in Scottsdale one of the top independent theaters in the country. The film significantly outperformed Higher Ground Senna and The Guard also playing at the theater. I think People v. The State of Illusion really resonates with people because it addresses issues like stress perception and how we look at life but does so in the context of a story that is emotionally compelling says filmmaker Austin Vickers.  If you have ever thought about who you really are or wonder whether or not as an individual family community or country we can overcome the issues we face then this movie will really speak to you.   Although receiving mixed reviews from movie critics the film seemed to really appeal to audiences according to director Scott Cervine. I have been making movies and attending premieres for more than 18 years and I have never seen audience reactions like we had.  It was amazing. The movie which addresses the viewer directly and makes the viewer a part of the film's conclusion as both judge and jury is set in the notorious Old Main Prison of the New Mexico State Penitentiary. It tells the story of Aaron Roberts a single father who is arrested and tried on manslaughter and assault charges following an incident that claims the life of a woman. Included in the film's trial as expert witnesses are eight of the nation's leading thinkers in the fields of neuroscience biochemistry psychology quantum physics and consciousness theory including Dr. Candace Pert Dr. Peter Senge Dr. Thomas Moore Dr. Joe Dispenza Debbie Ford Dr. Robert Jahn Brenda Dunne and Dr. Michael Vandermark. ,2763
2011 HPA Awards Nominees Named,2011-09-30,The nominees for the 2011 HPA Awards have been announced by the Hollywood Post Alliance. The Awards recognize the achievements of those individuals who work behind the scenes with ingenuity and creativity to create motion pictures commercials and television programming.  The nominees in the 12 craft categories were chosen from a field of talented and innovative entries in color grading editing sound and compositing.   This year’s winners will be announced during a gala evening on November 10 at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles California. HPA president Leon Silverman says “We are proud to be able to honor the incredibly creative work and the artistic achievement of our HPA Awards Nominees. With more submissions than ever before this year’s nominations represent the best of the best.  These awards shine light on the amazing work that post-production contributes that is too often overshadowed by the focus on other deserving aspects of the filmmaking process. With the HPA awards we are able to focus on the deep contributions that post-production makes to help tell the stories that move audiences.  We congratulate our nominees and celebrate the work of the entire post-production industry.” For complete information including a list of the nominees go to www.hpaawards.net. ,2764
ICG Names Award Winners,2011-09-30,The International Cinematographers Guild presented its three major awards at the American Society of Cinematographers offices in Hollywood last month in connection with the Guild’s Emerging Cinematographer Awards. The Kodak Award for Mentorship went to cinematographer John Bailey who has worked as director of photography on more than 70 motion pictures television shows and series in the last 40 years. In 2001 he received the Society of Camera Operators’ Presidents Award and shared the award for Best Artistic Contribution at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival for his work on Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters. Among the films he has shot are Groundhog Day As Good As It Gets He’s Just Not Into You and In the Line of Fire. His latest film set for release in 2012 is Everybody Loves Whales. Robert Primes received the Deluxe Bud Stone Award for Cinematography Educator. Primes is also a long-time cinematographer having started in 1973. The bulk of his work has been on television with such programs as Ca$h Las Vegas and Night Stalker. Freelance journalist Carolyn Giardina was awarded the Technicolor Billy Fraker Award for Cinematography Journalism. Giardina has been covering entertainment technology for 15 years. Her credits as an editor and reporter include The Hollywood Reporter Variety British Cinematographer Shoot and Film and Video. She serves on the Hollywood Post Alliance Board of Directors and chairs its annual HPA Awards. ICG president Steven Poster said that Bailey and Grimes had “helped generations of young camera people reach their goals in the industry with their generosity in passing on their knowledge.” He added that Giardina had consistently been a great supporter of cinematographers for whatever outlet she was writing. ,2765
Hertzberg Elected President of the IFTA,2011-09-30, The Independent Film & Television Alliance has announced election results for its executive committee as well as ten members and two alternates for its board of directors. The elections were held as part of IFTA’s Annual Members Meeting at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles and concurrently at the British Screen Advisory Council in London.
 
Paul Hertzberg president and CEO CineTel Films was elected chairman of the Alliance and will serve a two-year term.   IFTA membership also re-elected executive committee members to two-year terms: Pierre David (chairman and CEO Imagination Worldwide) to vice chairperson and Brad Kembel (executive vice president international distribution Summit Entertainment) to vice chairperson/secretary. All three ran unopposed.  
 
 Jean Prewitt IFTA president and CEO says “Paul’s wide range of experience and enthusiasm will be extremely helpful as we continue to develop initiatives around issues confronting the Independents. We look forward to working with this talented Board on programs that are vital to our membership and the Independent sector at large.”  “I must also thank Lloyd Kaufman who has been a tremendous advocate for the Independents and IFTA these last four years ” she says. “Under his leadership IFTA has had a measurable impact on our industry and public policy.” 
 
Regarding the announcement Hertzberg says “I look forward to enhancing IFTA’s voice and influence around the world while working with the executive team and Board to expand benefits for our global membership.”

 The Independent Film & Television Alliance www.ifta-online.org ,2766
Framestore adds Ikinema Technology to Motion Capture Pipeline,2011-09-30, London VFX house Framestore has incorporated Ikinema technology into its motion capture production pipeline. The company says Ikinema’s inverse kinematics system is now the key motion capture solving and retargeting tool that Framestore uses to create special effects and animation for both its broadcast and VFX projects.
 “The Ikinema solver is a fantastic solution for a wide range of skeleton control issues ” says Nicolas Scapel head of rigging at Framestore. “By using Ikinema’s advanced solver settings and its extremely flexible constraint system we have been able to iteratively improve our solving solution and accuracy. With the ability to easily reproduce this same setup script on many shots we will be shaving days and weeks off our production time.” 
 Once Framestore integrated Ikinema into its core motion capture pipeline the results they had been hoping for began to appear. It is now possible to take tracked and filtered point cloud data from motion capture software and easily animate a high-resolution skeleton by assigning their data to a linked set of joints. This process can be scripted via Ikinema SDK and reused on every future take which saves time by producing high-quality results.
 For a recent VFX project it was extremely important for Framestore to obtain the most accurate and truthful reproduction of a particular actor’s motion. By overlaying Ikinema’s solver with calibrated witness camera footage Framestore was able to determine how well the solver matched the actor’s movement. Not only did the solver prove incredibly accurate but it also gave the studio a newfound flexibility that streamlined the entire motion capture solving and retargeting pipeline.
 “Ikinema’s strength lies in that it is very generic not hardcoded for a simple biped or quadruped ” says Scapel. “On top of supporting any skeleton topology the solver speed is really amazing. The advanced skeleton controls such as joint limits and the flexible constraint system make it very easy to adapt to a wide range of IK production circumstances. Ikinema is really unique in what it does and how it does it – it’s like something we have always been missing without knowing it.”
 Ikinema http://www.ikinema.com/Maya.html ,2767
More2Screen to Distribute Rolling Stones Concert Movie,2011-09-30, More2Screen was appointed by Eagle Rock Entertainment to distribute a previously unseen Rolling Stones concert movie The Rolling Stones: Some Girls Live in Texas to digital cinemas worldwide on October 4th. 

 Originally shot on 16mm film at Fort Worth Texas in 1978 the footage has been restored in high definition with the sound remixed and re-mastered by Bob Clearmountain from the original multi-track tapes. The movie includes an interview with Sir Mick Jagger shot in August 2011 where he introduces the concert and offers an insight into its significance in the band’s history.

 Christine Costello managing director More2Screen says “We are delighted to be working with Eagle Rock Entertainment to bring this momentous and previously unseen Rolling Stones concert to fans worldwide. The movie features many Stones classics including Honky Tonk Woman Tumbling Dice Brown Sugar Jumpin Jack Flash and Miss You and with the addition of the Mick Jagger interview it makes the perfect digital cinema event.” Andrew Winter of Eagle Rock Entertainment says of the collaboration with More2Screen “With their global network of digital cinema partners More2Screen will give Rolling Stones fans worldwide the chance to see a movie which truly captures the band at their peak. This is the first time the concert has been released on any platform and audiences will love the raw energetic performance from The Rolling Stones in front of a crowd who are clearly loving the show.” ,2769
NEC’s NC3240S Projectors Get DCI Compliance,2011-09-30,NEC Display Solutions of America has announced that its NC3240S digital cinema projector has reached full Digital Cinema Initiatives compliance for usage with 2K legacy third party servers. The new projector offers 31 000 lumens of brightness with 4K resolution and 3D capabilities for the largest cinema screen sizes of up to 105-feet wide. The test was completed by the Research Institute for Digital Media and Content at Keio University in Japan which is one of two entities licensed by DCI to perform the compliance test plan tests. Introducing DCI compliance to this 4K model is a significant achievement says Pierre Richer president and COO of NEC Display Solutions. The full line of NEC digital cinema projectors including the NC1200C NC2000C and NC3200S models offers this certification which is mandatory for exhibitors utilizing digital technology. Compatibility with the demanding industry requirements is something on which NEC prides itself. Our ability to provide customers with exactly what is needed for current installations is crucial to our success. NEC Display Solutions of America www.necdisplay.com ,2770
NWF Warners Alcon Team Up on Dolphin Tale Release,2011-09-30, The National Wildlife Federation has teamed with the Warner Bros. Pictures and Alcon Entertainment to inspire kids and families to learn about dolphins and protect ocean habitat with the release of Dolphin Tale which opened nationwide last month. The film is inspired by the amazing true story of a brave dolphin and the people who worked together to save her life. After being caught in a crab trap the bottlenose dolphin later named Winter is rescued but looses her tail. A dedicated marine biologist a brilliant doctor and a devoted young boy bring about a miracle: a prosthetic tail to help Winter swim again.

 Charles Martin Smith directed the film which was shot on location at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium where the real Winter—who plays herself in the movie—makes her home. “Dolphin Tale beautifully portrays the value of wildlife in a modern world. We hope the film and the true story of Winter will inspire people of all ages to learn more about these amazing marine mammals and use the online resources we’ve created to realize how they can help dolphins and our oceans ” says Carey Stanton National Wildlife Federation senior director for education.

 Warner Bros. is pleased to partner with the National Wildlife Federation and admires its efforts to inspire families to protect wildlife. Dolphin Tale is a film that showcases the bonds between people and wildlife.  We believe it will inspire kids to think about how they can help dolphins and ocean habitats ” says Nicole Sedita Warner Bros. vice president for national promotions. National Wildlife Federation www.nwf.org