American Cinematographer - September 2014 - 112

contracts for such companies as Sony,
Leica, Leader, Movcam, 16x9, Swit, Orca
Bags, IB/E Optics, Astro and DSC Labs -
will also be available through the Berlin
office.
"Adding the Berlin office is an
important step forward for Band Pro," says
Pokorny. "Berlin produces over 300 films
per year, and it's one of Europe's most
popular locations. In addition to providing
the best new production technology, the
focus of our consultancy lies in the definition and elaboration of individual workflows. We just have to be where the most
exciting projects are being realized."
Christopher Hantel, Band Pro
Munich's managing director, adds, "For us,
this is just more proof that Berlin and
Munich are the most exciting places for
media production. ... [Pokorny's] deep
technical knowledge, hands-on experience
and creative ideas will be a huge asset, and
we look forward to great synergies
between the two offices."
For additional information, visit
www.bandpro.com.
Arri CSC Expands to Atlanta
Full-service equipment-rental group
Arri CSC has announced the strategic
expansion of its network with the opening
of a camera-rental facility in Atlanta, Ga.
The new operation is conveniently located
for both studio and location productions.
"Arri CSC is very well positioned to
make a significant contribution to the
Atlanta market," says ASC associate Simon
Broad, president of Arri CSC. "We will
ensure that the company's extensive inventory of digital, film, anamorphic and spherical camera equipment is available to one of
the country's most vibrant production
communities along with the level of facility
and service that Arri CSC is known for."
For additional information, visit
www.arricsc.com.
SGO Updates Mamba FX
SGO has introduced Mamba FX
version 2.0, which marks a significant
upgrade to the company's visual-effects
compositing software.
A key feature of Mamba FX 2.0 is
the Layer Route Effect, which provides
support and associated functions for work112

ing with multi-layer EXR files; a single multilayer EXR file is capable of carrying multiple
streams of images as well as metadata.
These files are commonly used to hold
multiple render passes from CGI software,
or to carry multiple matte or alpha channels.
Mamba FX 2.0 includes features to split and
route the multiple layers, allowing Mamba
FX's other compositing tools to act on individual elements during the compositing
phase. Mamba FX 2.0's Spatial Isolation
Keyer interfaces with metadata that can be
passed from CGI software via the EXR files,
enabling advanced compositing techniques
such as isolating elements in a scene by
their 3-D (XYZ) location, their surface direction (normals), their object ID or their material ID.
Also new for Mamba FX 2.0 is a
high-speed "point cloud" shape tracker,
which enables compositors to track 2-D
roto shapes to shots very quickly. Multiple
shapes can be tracked and combined using
Boolean operations to rapidly create moving
matte shapes. Mamba FX 2.0 also includes
new color-space conversion tools, including
ACES workflows, to aid project color
management. Additional features include
an adaptive interface for monitor configuration as well as Dolby EDR support.
Mamba FX 2.0 is available for
Windows, Linux and Mac (Mountain Lion
10.8.5) and is fully compatible with SGO's
Mistika. Mamba FX 1.0 customers will
receive a free Mamba FX 2.0 update.
For additional information, visit
www.sgo.es.
Autodesk Acquires Shotgun
Autodesk Inc. has signed a definitive
agreement to acquire Shotgun Software, a
developer of scalable, cloud-based production tracking, review and asset-management software for the film, television and

http://www.maccam.tv http://www.bandpro.com http://www.arricsc.com http://www.sgo.es http://www.maccam.tv

American Cinematographer - September 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - September 2014