Truly a feast for both the tekkie nerdalicious types and video/animation professional. I always leave shows like SIGGRAPH with my imagination invigorated and with a wish list that my bank account will never be able to fulfill. There was wonderful enhancements to many of the favorite tools we’ve come to rely on but there was one astonishing new addition that might be just what you’re looking for in your film production - more on that later.
SIGGRAPH also seemed to take on a different tone this year and it wasn’t just me feeling strange after too many Red Bulls either. When speaking to demonstrators and exhibitors, the general consensus was that this year was the first year there were more pro pedigree experienced attendees than newbies. While there were plenty of students sampling the show and taking part in the job faire, the professional base has apparently become reasonably fluent enough in digital technology that they didn’t require too much hand-holding while describing exhibitor products. While no one specifically said it, a kind of critical mass seems to have finally been achieved in the broader pro user base.
Short cuts and Poisons
At this show, it now seems that its not a question of whether you will be using additional digital technology short cuts in your pipeline (besides editing software) but rather, what technologies you will be working with. This is really a fundamental shift in tool set and production thinking. Yes, story is still king as it should be, but the methods to reveal the story are becoming more varied and surprisingly affordable. There are simply new ways to take short cuts in the production cycle now that weren’t there even 5 years ago.
Of course that means new stuff. Learning new stuff; buying new stuff; staying fluent in new stuff. And that’s where you get to pick your poison. Like the Siren’s song of Greek lore, drawing ships into the rocks by beguiling their crews with melody and beauty, the temptation to grab some of these technology solutions is huge. And personally being of a weak constitution in this arena, I can easily talk myself into alignment with virtually any sales pitch at the show. I even purchased some unnecessary software at the show; tie me to the mast, pleeeeaaase.
