Latest Visual Effects Systems Help Boost Efficiency and Promote Creative Freedom on Film and TV Projects

LAS VEGAS, April 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NAB Show -- Autodesk, Inc. (Nasdaq: ADSK) has announced the 2010 releases of Autodesk Smoke and Autodesk Flint software for editorial finishing and visual effects. The company also unveiled the 2009 Extension 1 releases of Autodesk Lustre and Autodesk Incinerator color grading software. In addition, the company launched Autodesk Flare software, a creative companion to the 2010 releases of Autodesk Flame and Autodesk Inferno visual effects systems (announced separately). The new releases are being showcased in the Autodesk booth SL2120 at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show in Las Vegas which runs from April 20-23, 2009.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090420/SF00936)

"Autodesk strives to provide integrated solutions that help our customers meet today's artistic and business challenges," said Stig Gruman, Digital Entertainment Group vice president, Autodesk Media & Entertainment. "We are focused on promoting creative freedom for projects large and small and our new systems releases feature creative 3D tools, improved interoperability, and expanded format support, including RED, across multiple platforms."

Autodesk tools have been used on some of this year's highest profile entertainment projects, including the TV shows "NCIS," "Bones," "Prison Break," "Smallville" and "Dexter"; as well as blockbuster movies such as "Milk," "Frost/Nixon," "Changeling," "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa" and "The Day the Earth Stood Still". The software was also used to help shape the Super Bowl commercials Pepsi "Pass" and "Refresh," General Electric "Scarecrow" and Pedigree "Crazy Pets."

    New Feature Highlights in Smoke 2010 and Flint 2010
    Quotes from beta testers:

    --  "Smoke continues to make my jobs easier with each release." - Mark
        Sullivan, VFX Artist, 3008

    --  "The increased integration between Flame and Smoke is huge." - Jake
        Parker, Visual FX Supervisor, Fischer Edit

Autodesk Smoke is a nonlinear, timeline-based system for editorial finishing and visual effects in short- and long-form post-production and broadcast design. With an extensive set of editorial and finishing features, Smoke provides intuitive, powerful and high-speed tools to editors as well as finishing and effects artists.

Autodesk Flint is a cost-effective system for designing complex visual effects and motion graphics in a real-time environment for post-production and broadcast design. It is used primarily for promotions, stations ID packages, commercials and brand graphics. Smoke and Flint 2010 feature highlights are:

    --  New 3D creative tools: 3D displacement, UV Mapping and enhanced 3D
        Text
    --  Modular Keyer with easier-to-use presets
    --  Extended support for professional digital-media formats: REDCODE RAW,
        multichannel OpenEXR and Avid DNxHD with Apple QuickTime for expanded
        media conform capabilities
    --  Faster and more flexible file-based conform capabilities with a
        powerful new search engine with definable search criteria;
        configurable import settings to control metadata mapping; and relink
        rules to more easily match media to the original source
    --  Support for Advanced Pulldown removal from clips with Advanced,
        Standard and PAL Pulldown with automatic pulldown detection

    --  Extended floating point processing support in Batch


    New Feature Highlights in Lustre/Incinerator 2009 Extension 1
    Quote from beta tester:

    --  "I love the Diamond Keyer in Lustre. It opens up a new way of working
        for me. Nothing is impossible." - Ivar Beer, Head of Digital Post
        Production, CinePostproduction GmbH

Autodesk Lustre is a high-performance graphical processing unit (GPU)-accelerated digital intermediate color grading solution for film and television projects. Autodesk Incinerator is the real-time accelerator within Lustre that enables interactive grading sessions, ultra high-speed clustering and intelligent system management. Top benefits are:

    --  New color isolation capabilities based on the Autodesk Diamond Keyer,
        featuring pre-filtering options, enhanced post-Key filters, quick
        color presets and control panel implementation
    --  3D lookup table (LUT) support on input and color matte view to make it
        easier to perform complex color transformations
    --  Expanded format support for REDCODE RAW and Avid DNxHD with Apple
        QuickTime
    --  16 audio tracks I/O via embedded SDI signal as well as project-based
        audio file format setting for capture

    --  Improved interoperability between Lustre and Flame, Inferno and Smoke

Online Resources

For a complete list of new features and enhancements in Autodesk's latest visual effects, editorial finishing and digital color grading products, visit the Media & Entertainment website. For additional press information, including imagery, visit the Autodesk Virtual NAB Press Room.

    Product Availability
    --  The 2010 releases of Flame, Flare, Flint, Inferno and Smoke will be
        available later this month.

    --  Autodesk Lustre 2009 Extension 1 and Autodesk Incinerator 2009
        Extension 1 are anticipated to be available to Autodesk Subscription
        customers on April 22, 2009.

About Autodesk

Autodesk, Inc., is a world leader in 2D and 3D design software for the manufacturing, building and construction, and media and entertainment markets. Since its introduction of AutoCAD software in 1982, Autodesk has developed the broadest portfolio of state-of-the-art Digital Prototyping solutions to help customers experience their ideas before they are real. Fortune 1000 companies rely on Autodesk for the tools to visualize, simulate and analyze real-world performance early in the design process to save time and money, enhance quality and foster innovation. For additional information about Autodesk, visit www.autodesk.com.

Autodesk, AutoCAD, Flame, Flare, Flint, Incinerator, Inferno, Lustre, and Smoke are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product offerings and specifications at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document.

(C) 2009 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.

Contacts: Rama Dunayevich, 415.547.2472 / Roohi Saeed, 514.961.7296
Email: rama.dunayevich@autodesk.com / roohi.saeed@autodesk.com

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