Introduced at NAB 2007, the new BDI-TxP, BrightDrive Transportable. More		Bright Launches BrightDrive PRO16 at NAB 2007. More

Bright News

da Vinci and Bright Systems Join Forces to Improve Workflow

Bright Systems and da Vinci have announced a formal marketing agreement to offer new pre-packaged systems combining the companies' image enhancing and data-centric storage products. The first collaborative effort couples da Vinci's Resolve™ digital mastering suite with Bright's BrightDrive™ shareable media store solution as a complete turnkey offering for post-production facilities.

By joining the two best-of-breed systems, post facilities of any size can achieve more efficient workflows with the confidence and reliability afforded by a complete digital intermediate (DI) package — one built specifically for film and television post-production.

"In combining our two highly desirable and complementary products, we are making our customers' lives easier and our solutions even more powerful," said Bill Robertson, general manager of da Vinci Systems. "Instead of having to source components on their own, customers can now opt for this unified, business-level solution with the confidence that the two systems operating together have a proven track record of delivering top-quality results with greater efficiency."

"We are very pleased to be entering this collaboration with da Vinci Systems, the recognized industry leader in image and content enhancement products," said Antony Harris, CEO of Bright Systems. "Our complete DI package increases value for customers and ensures that the advanced technology needed for both color grading and storage will remain compatible."

Renowned post facilities worldwide — including Modern VideoFilm, Shemaroo, Oriental Post, ABC Sydney, and Technicolor Creative Services — currently rely on the harmonious cooperation of Bright Systems and da Vinci technologies for the wide-ranging demands of DI work. The da Vinci – Bright Systems package can also be integrated with existing systems, such as visual effects or editing suites.

As part of the new collaboration, Bright Systems and da Vinci anticipate integrating various software elements to further facilitate a host of data management functions, offering facilities extended flexibility and workflow efficiency. With the new packages, BrightDrive will provide a fast, even stream of digital content to the Resolve suite.

The da Vinci Resolve digital mastering suite expands on the Emmy® Award-winning 2K Plus color enhancement system with program-conforming tools specifically designed for DI environments. From disk housings to ballistics to software, the BrightDrive shareable media store solution guarantees smooth ingest and playback of images, having been crafted and engineered specifically for the voluminous demands of the film and video industry.

Bright at NAB 2007

Bright Unveils BrightDrive Transportable at NAB 2007

New Portable Drives for High-Speed Ingest/Offload and Secure Movement of Full-Length Motion Pictures

Bright is unveiling a major new technology for the motion film and digital post industry at NAB 2007 with the introduction of BrightDrive Transportable (BDI-TxP), a new high speed, high capacity server and portable drive system. With the ability to hold and offload full-length motion pictures at speeds up to 20 times greater than standard Firewire, the new BDI-TxP system promises to bring major cost savings to digital workflows by dramatically cutting media transfer times.

BDI-TxP uses Bright Systems' BrightDrive advanced disk recording technology to provide significant advantages over film, tape, and Firewire drives, including the ability to transfer media at real-time 2k, or 300 MB per second. This means, for example, that a 2-hour motion picture can be backed off or uploaded in approximately 2 hours instead of the long times required by Firewire-based devices.

In addition to offering fast download speeds, BDI-TxP uses Bright's Data Integrity technology to perform automatic checking and verification of the data set at the final destination to ensure end-to-end integrity. The system also offers technology to minimize time spent 'transporting' data between disparate systems when ingesting and offloading.

Each BDI-TxP chassis can hold 4 Transportable drive capsules each with a 1.5 terabyte capacity, enabling users to ingest or offload up to 2 full-length motion pictures at a time. The system has a compact, high-tech construction with the drives specifically designed to ensure media can be shipped in a safe and secure environment between remote locations.

BDI-TxP will be available during Q2 2007 from Bright Systems and from the Company's worldwide network of business partners.

Bright Systems Launches BrightDrive PRO16 for Large-Scale Digital Post Facilities at NAB 2007

Bright is launching BrightDrive PRO16 at NAB 2007. With the ability to deliver up to 48 streams of 2K real-time video to any post-production application attached to the network, the BrightDrive PRO16 is particularly suitable for very large-scale data-centric post projects and facilities.

Using BrightDrive PRO16, up to 48 operators can access, share and work on the same media files concurrently, thereby bringing higher levels of efficiency and collaboration to the post-production workflow. This means that even with the most complex projects, facility managers no longer need to spend time copying files between applications or waiting for individual processes to be finished before media can proceed through the workflow.

"The BrightDrive PRO16 is designed for very large, cross platform media sharing applications where it will provide the foundation for incredibly productive digital pipelines," said Antony Harris, CEO, Bright Systems, Inc. "Whole teams of VFX, DI, dailies, and editorial operators will all be able to work in, and deliver any mix of resolutions. We believe the BrightDrive PRO16 is the largest capacity and most powerful media sharing solution on the market today."

Development for BrightDrive PRO16 was instigated by a request from long-time Bright Systems' customer, Modern VideoFilm in Los Angeles. With eight workspaces running, Modern's previous infrastructure was continually bottlenecked. They turned to Bright Systems to discuss the possibility of handling transactions in a new way. They installed a beta version of BrightDrive PRO16 in late 2006.

"The PRO16 has been performing reliably since it was installed and we no longer have any bottlenecks in our workflow," said Marvin Hall, Vice President, Engineering, Modern VideoFilm. "It's a powerful, intelligent solution designed specifically for demanding post-production environments where efficiency and reliability are of paramount importance. We now have twelve workspaces running, and 18 clients attached - all moving 2K files around in real-time or faster."

BrightDrive PRO16 comprises all the normal features of BrightDrive media sharing, including the new Data Management Suite for optimized performance, and secure, remote distributed system diagnostics to ensure reliable, consistent and uninterrupted system performance. All BrightDrive products are fully scalable to meet the demands of today's challenging DI and post environments, and can be integrated easily with existing infrastructures. Bright Systems offers a simple migration path from video-centric workflow requiring minimum or no operator retraining.

BrightDrive PRO16 begins shipping April 16, 2007 and is available direct from Bright Systems and from Bright's international network of resellers and business partners.

Bright Demonstrates Major New Usability Features and Enhancements for BrightDrive at NAB 2007

Bright is demonstrating major new usability features and enhancements to the BrightDrive media sharing system at NAB 2007, including new Data Wrangler, Data Optimizer and Data Mover software modules - each designed to facilitate the management and improve the performance of BrightDrive's media sharing capabilities by maintaining efficient use of workspaces.

"The global postproduction industry now recognizes the benefits of BrightDrive's advanced media sharing capabilities for DI and post applications," said Antony Harris, CEO, Bright Systems, Inc. "At NAB 2007, we will be showing new highly refined software options that bring an increased level of usability to our products and further highlight BrightDrive as a mature, feature-rich technology."

Data Wrangler, Bright's data management software, will be demonstrated with a new set of graphical tools available to operators from within a single, simple to use interface for browsing, searching and previewing media. The new graphical tools will also facilitate the management of folders and sequences on the BrightDrive infrastructure. Data Wrangler has been extended to include the Data Mover and Data Optimizer modules, making it a more powerful and easier to use facility for all staff, including non-technical operators.

For the first time at NAB, Bright Systems will be demonstrating its Data Optimizer and Data Mover modules with a new universal algorithm developed to improved workspace management through advancements in optimization intelligence. Data Optimizer identifies media within any data set, including single clips, and analyzes its physical characteristics. Images are re-laid out, if necessary, in the most logical and intelligent order for optimal playback. Data Mover simplifies the movement of image files between BrightDrive's shareable workspaces, and between BrightDrive and remote workstations with direct attached storage (DAS). By using of Bright's enhanced image-aware technology, Data Mover is able to recognize the characteristics of image files, and manage them intelligently to provide optimal system performance. Enhanced bandwidth management technology is included, and a folder-watch function that automatically 'watches' for new files rather than having to be initiated manually.

Finally, Bright Systems will be demonstrating BDI-SDI, a new interface for ingesting and laying off data in multiple video formats including HSDL, HD444/422 and SD. This new features bridges the gap between data centric workflows and previously existing legacy workflows, thereby providing facilities with increased flexibility and choice in their post-production processes. BDI-SDI works in master or slave mode allowing operators to use images as if they were interior files in a DDR.

From May 2007, all BrightDrive systems will include the new Data Wrangler, Data Optimizer and Data Mover modules, and secure, remote distributed system diagnostics to ensure reliable, consistent and uninterrupted system performance. BrightDrive products are fully scalable to meet all DI and post applications, and can be integrated easily with existing infrastructures. Bright Systems offers a simple migration path from video-centric workflow requiring minimum or no operator retraining.

BrightDrive BDI-SDI will begin shipping at NAB 2007. The new Data Wrangler, Data Optimizer and Data Mover modules will begin shipping in May 2007. All products will be available direct from Bright Systems, Inc. and from Bright's international network of resellers and business partners.

Customer News

Oriental Post, Thailand, Purchases BrightDrive Media Sharing System for Data infrastructure

Thailand's influential post production facility, Oriental Post Co Ltd, has purchased a BrightDrive media sharing system to provide the backbone of its IT infrastructure.

"BrightDrive will form a crucial role in our DI workflow, enabling us to achieve higher media delivery speeds and greater flexibility within our processes," said John Galvin, Director or Post Production, Oriental Post. "BrightDrive integrates well with our existing storage network and provides easy expansion options so that we can grow our infrastructure to suit our requirements without major interruptions to our operations."

BrightDrive will support Oriental Post's extensive range of Digital Intermediate applications, providing 3 streams of 2K real-time video for high performance workflow management and media sharing. It will also serve 30 TBs of nearline storage for connecting online and offline post production systems.

Oriental Post will attach various post production applications to BrightDrive, including da Vinci Resolve, Autodesk Flame 2007 and Smoke 2007, Assimilate Scratch, Imager XE Advanced Plus Film Scanner, and Arri Laser Film Recorder. All operators will have the ability to share and work on the same media files simultaneously without having to copy files between applications.

Oriental Post's BrightDrive was supplied by The Media Village, Singapore.

Korean Film Council Improves Efficiency in Digital Film Lab with 4K Playback BrightDrive Media Sharing System

The Korean Film Council, KOFIC, has purchased a BrightDrive media sharing system with 4K media playback for its facility in Seoul.

BrightDrive is installed in KOFIC's digital film lab. As with all facilities, they have a range of software and hardware equipment with a variety of different operating systems. As well as providing media sharing with 4K playback, BrightDrive is used as a storage area network (SAN) connected to a Digital Vision Film Master, a Clipster, Discreet Fire and Inferno and an Apple Final Cut Pro, and configured as nearline storage system connected to an ARRI film scanner. Advanced media sharing intelligence enables operators using each system to share and work on the same media files concurrently.

KOFIC is government supported organization for the promotion of the Korean film industry. They decided to investigate media sharing technology to see if improvements could be made in workflow efficiency. With data centric workflows becoming popular throughout the post production industry, KOFIC began carrying out a number of tests on shared volume storage systems. The offering from Bright Systems was of particular interest because it was well established and had proven stability and performance.

"We wanted to implement a media sharing system for our DI workflow for a D-Cinema test bed and liked the look of the BrightDrive solutions," said B G Oh, technical supervisor, KOFIC. "Choosing the correct system was of utmost importance for the success of our facility. BrightDrive media sharing lets us decrease data transfer times and increase output which means we achieve greater efficiencies throughout the digital processes."

KOFIC's BrightDrive was supplied through BESCO, Bright Systems' business partner in Korea. BESCO will also provide first line support, installation and after sales services.

Shemaroo, India's Leading Entertainment Company, Installs BrightDrive for New Film Restoration and DVD Mastering Workflows

Shemaroo Entertainment Pvt. Ltd, India, has purchased a high capacity BrightDrive for its Studio Services Division where it will provide a complete media sharing infrastructure tailored specifically for its new film restoration and DVD authoring / mastering facilities for theatrical releases located in its Mumbai offices.

Shemaroo Studio Services has recently completed a redesign of its digital post facility with the objective of creating new high level working standards for DVD authoring, mastering and picture and audio restoration services. By using the BrightDrive infrastructure, all operators share media simultaneously between a range of DI and digital post applications including a Thomson Shadow Telecine and Spirit 4K, a Thomson Bones Transfer Engine, a daVinci 2K color corrector, 3 daVinci Revival restoration systems, a Discreet Smoke, 2 Digital Vision Film Masters, a DVFS 1000 HD-DVNR, DVD/VCD encoding and authoring rooms, linear and Final Cut Pro Nonlinear editing, and a range of graphics systems.

"By housing all post-production services in a single multi-user, multi-functional environment, we can offer clients a more streamlined experience with enhanced opportunity for creativity and accelerated time to completion," said Hemant Karani, Vice-President-Studio, Shemaroo. "BrightDrive's powerful media sharing capabilities are a fundamental part of our new facility and bring a higher level of flexibility and performance to the way we work. By sharing media concurrently, operators can work on the same files at the same time. While one team works on film restoration, another can be using the same files for color grading or any other DI service."

The BrightDrive media sharing system enables Shemaroo to scan images in any resolution and make them immediately available for processing. The high level of flexibility provided by the BrightDrive infrastructure allows operators to perform DI and postproduction tasks simultaneously or in any order to achieve maximum productivity. BrightDrive also streamlines Shemaroo's HD 4:2:2 and 4:4:4 remastering, archiving and video to film transfer workflows.

Shemaroo chose BrightDrive after consulting with leading digital post companies from other countries and taking their experiences with SAN (shared area network) technology into consideration. "We have designed our workflow using best of breed systems and advice from other facilities, without discarding or compromising the demanding requirements of our Indian environment," concluded Hemant Karani.

Cineom was responsible for overseeing Shemaroo's BrightDrive purchase and installation and will also provide technical support and post-sales services.

CinePostproduction, Germany

CinePostproduction GmbH & Co. KG, in Berlin, one of Europe's longest established film specialists, has purchased a high capacity BrightDrive. The system has been installed in one of the company's subsidiaries, Geyer Berlin, where it forms the primary infrastructure for creative content management and media sharing across the Company's extensive SD and HD digital intermediate (DI) workflows.

Using BrightDrive, operators at CinePostproduction Geyer Berlin are able to work on the same media simultaneously in real-time, sharing files between a Clipster, Smoke, Flame, Lustre and a Specter. All projects requiring DI, including motion picture films, television productions and advertising, will benefit from the new system.

With its roots extending back to 1911 when Karl Geyer managed the famous Geyer-Werke film house, Geyer Berlin has been setting standards in film processing for many decades and continues to invest in its reputation.

"BrightDrive is a high-performance media sharing system that uses advanced, proven technology," said Stefan Mueller, Branch Manager, Geyer Berlin. "We are impressed with BrightDrive's sophisticated toolsets which are capable of complex DDR-grade data management procedures – in particular, its ability to automatically optimize the layout of data on disks to avoid problems associated with out of sequence frames.

"With BrightDrive, we have been able to significantly speed up the flow of work between the various postproduction stages by enabling DI operators to share media concurrently," continued Mueller. "This means we have a more collaborative and thus more creative environment where operators can see each other's work as changes are made in real-time. BrightDrive has reduced our average 'time to completion' and enabled us to greatly improve data handling."

CinePostproduction's BrightDrive was purchased through Storaxx, Germany.

BrightDrive in The Netherlands

Valkieser Capital Images, one of Amsterdam's leading visual effects companies, has installed a BrightDrive media sharing system for its state-of-the-art post-production facilities. The new system allows Valkieser to streamline the efficiency of its effects and finishing workflows, maximizing throughout for commercials, episodics and feature films.

"BrightDrive allows us to significantly speed up the flow of work between the various post-production processes," said Antonie Colbers, head of engineering, Valkieser Capital Images. "It is a proven system and provides excellent reliability."

Valkieser's BrightDrive provides two streams of real-time 2k video, enabling operators to share media between two Digital Vision Film Masters, a Film Cutter and a Quantel iQ. BrightDrive also provides Valkieser with near-line storage for commercials.

Praise for BrightDrive in LA

BrightDrive is Perfect Fit at Dolby

Dolby Laboratories in Burbank, LA, a company that needs no introduction, became a BrightDrive user in October last year, having installed a system with 18TB of storage and a BrightDrive GigE Expander. Dolby uses BrightDrive to improve workflow in its digital cinema solutions research department and also in its production services department. They have it connected to a JPEG encoding and mastering systems for D-Cinema, a Cray computer, 2 Clipsters and 12 multi-processor servers.

"We chose BrightDrive over the others because it offered the best fit with our existing equipment," said Eric Gsell, Application Engineer, Dolby Laboratories. "Whereas other manufacturers wanted us to start over by installing large amounts of new equipment, Bright Systems was able to fit in with the equipment and environment that we had already.

"One of the best things about BrightDrive is that it has been designed on an architecture that enables us to expand our use of media sharing by increasing storage, bandwidth and workspaces over a long period of time as we wish, without impacting on our processes. I would say it's a very adaptive system."

BrightDrive Continues to Serve at IVC Film Center

IVC Digital Film Center in Burbank, Los Angeles, enjoys a 20-year reputation for technical excellence having carried out work for every major Hollywood studio. They have one of the world's largest Digital Intermediate, Digital Cinema, and HD Mastering facilities and offer a range of services including 4K & 2K film scanning, film-to-HD, data-to-HD, 35mm film recording, advanced digital restoration, HD editing and sound services, quality assurance, and conversion for worldwide technical deliveries.

IVC installed a BrightDrive system in their data department in 2004, making them one of Bright Systems' first BrightDrive customers. They use the system for media sharing between 12 different workstations, including 2 Clipsters, Film Master, Final Cut Pro and several other administration applications. Media is delivered to each operator on the system via Fibrechannel.

"We originally chose Bright Systems' solution after evaluating all the other options on the market," said Jim James, Chief Engineer, IVC Digital Film Center. "Bright had a good understanding of our needs and the BrightDrive system proved to give the best performance."

In December 2006, IVC upgraded their BrightDrive. Bright offers an easy, step by step upgrade path for customers. IVC's experience was typical of many companies - as their business grew and evolved, so did their requirement to expand their media sharing capacity.

"Upgrading BrightDrive was easy," continued Jim. "It was simply a question of attaching more components. We added an extra workspace, more capacity and an extra client. The guys at Bright really know their business and had us sorted out immediately. We were already familiar with the technology and its implementation so we didn't need any additional training.

"The benefits we achieve from BrightDrive save us time and bring a higher level of flexibility to our workflow. Having all the material available to all operators connected to the network means that no time is wasted waiting for files to become available before they are passed to the next operator as would be the case in a linear workflow. No one is sitting around waiting and there's also the benefit of not having to make multiple copies of all the files for each operator."

New Business Partners

Two New US Business Partners for Bright

Bright has added two new US companies to its worldwide network of business partners. Cinesys, Inc. and Aarmadillo, Inc., both long established and experienced suppliers to the digital post market, will develop sales opportunities for Bright's BrightDrive range of media sharing systems in their respective areas.

Cinesys is an independent reseller of advanced digital solutions for broadcast and post with expert knowledge of editing, compositing, effects and SAN infrastructure systems. With offices in Miami, Houston, Dallas and Atlanta, the Company has developed its business with heavy emphasis on recruiting highly skilled professionals, and can boast a large team of industry specialists with a combined experience of over 30 years providing solutions for the challenges of modern digital workflows. As a Bright Systems' reseller, Cinesys will promote BrightDrive to facilities in the south-east territories of the United States and provide a full range of after-sales services, including installation, training and 24-hour technical support.

Aarmadillo specializes in supplying production, postproduction, film and TV companies in California with state of the art systems and engineering services. They have extensive knowledge in DI, color correction, compositing, graphics tools, render applications, networking technology and digital workflows and have earned a reputation for implementing robust and innovative products and services. Aarmadillo will continue to develop Bright's existing BrightDrive customer base in California.

"As we continue to expand our sales channels, it is important that all our partners have the resources and advanced skills required to enable us to best serve our customers and maintain our success in building BrightDrive as a market leader," said Peter Lambert, VP Worldwide Sales, Bright Systems, Inc. "Cinesys and Aarmadillo both have unrivalled knowledge and experience of digital technology and a thorough understanding of the changing needs of the digital post communities."

Bright Partners ERA Following Increased Demand for BrightDrive Media Sharing Across Northern Europe

London-based specialist IT provider, ERA, has become Bright's latest business partner in Europe. ERA will supply and support Bright Systems' BrightDrive range of media sharing systems to customers across Northern Europe. By partnering ERA, Bright further enhances its position in Europe -strengthening resources to respond to increased interest in its products.

"With post production companies continuing to realize the benefits of data-centric workflows, we are making significant achievements with BrightDrive media sharing systems on a global scale," said Peter Lambert, VP Worldwide Sales, Bright Systems. "With our new partnership in place, we will increase our sales and marketing activities in Northern Europe, and reinforce local support services to benefit our expanding customer base in this area."

"This is an exciting partnership for ERA as it will enable us to offer our customers all the powerful functionality that BrightDrive brings to the table, combined with our proven record in delivering and supporting complex disk storage installations. With Bright, all the options are covered," said Richard Hayter-Gare, Bright Systems Sales Co-coordinator for ERA.

Established in 1998, ERA has become an authority on infrastructure systems for DI and digital film companies. By working closely with leading manufacturers and post production companies, they have gained an in depth understanding of how infrastructure technologies can be applied to digital workflows to achieve maximum efficiencies. In addition to developing sales and marketing activities for BrightDrive, ERA will also provide a full range of after-sales services, including installation, training and 24-hour technical support.

Bright People

Bright Gets New European Sales Manager

Oliver Au has joined Bright as European Sales Manager. Oliver is responsible for developing the sales channel for Bright Systems' BrightDrive range of media sharing systems across the DI and digital post markets in Europe.

Oliver joins Bright from Storaxx, a leading supplier of digital solutions to the European postproduction industry, where he held the position of sales manager.

"Oliver's knowledge of the European digital post market processes will enable him to make important contributions to our business," said Peter Lambert, VP Worldwide Sales and Marketing, Bright Systems. "We very pleased to welcome him to Bright Systems."

Bright has experienced new growth in demand from facilities worldwide for systems based on data-centric infrastructure technology that bring the benefits and efficiencies of media sharing to their digital postproduction workflows. In Europe, interest in BrightDrive, particularly from facilities in the north, is high, with recent installations completed at The Chimney Pot in Norway, Sweden and Russia, Digital Film in Finland, CinePostproduction at Geyer Berlin, and Swiss International in Sweden.

More New Faces at Bright

Clint Welden has joined Bright Systems as Director of Sales, Americas. Clint has an excellent reputation in the industry and an inexhaustible number of associates and connections. In 1999 he joined BOXX Technologies as the company's first sales person. He went on to become responsible for BOXX's international sales channel – developing OEM partnerships and heading up strategic accounts. Previous to this he held positions with various hardware and software companies. Clint takes up his new role in charge of US sales immediately, reporting direct to Peter Lambert, VP Worldwide Sales.

"Clint will play a major role in taking Bright Systems' BrightDrive media sharing systems to companies across the US and South America," said Peter Lambert, VP Worldwide Sales. "We are delighted that he has joined Bright and look forward to introducing him at NAB as the latest member of expanding sales team."

Ryan Marsh has joined Bright Systems as Marketing Coordinator. Ryan held several marketing roles before joining Bright, including positions in advertising and print. At Bright he will be responsible for trade show management, developing marketing communications and corporate branding.

"Ryan has impressive skills as a marketing person and the ability to inject high levels of energy and originality into his work," said Peter Lambert. "With our activities reach further afield outside the US, his talents will be put to effective use. We welcome him to Bright Systems."

Bright Spotlight

In this section, we tackle some of the big issues facing digital film and postproduction and the affect they have on workflow. This first Bright Spotlight covers some of the basic questions about media sharing and the benefits it brings to the end user.

Should Your Facility be Considering Media Sharing?

What impact would there be on your postproduction workflow if you implemented a digital media sharing infrastructure that allows large numbers of artists and administrators to work simultaneously on the same media at full bandwidth? In the past twelve months, we've spoken to postproduction facilities from around the world that have been considering this question and, as a result, have either installed a media sharing system, or are in the process of finding out more about the benefits on offer.

Of course, digital technology has already had a huge impact on the way facilities operate. With it comes increased flexibility – the key to any workflow. However, the degree of flexibility achievable largely depends on the fundamental underlying infrastructure in place. Many facilities are now looking at digital media sharing technology to provide the infrastructure for their workflows because of its ability to increase flexibility by allowing multiple operators to work on the same files simultaneously. Benefits include: more time for creativity; more opportunity for client input; less time spent on administrative tasks such as media duplication; reduced or eliminated need for local media storage; and a faster turn-around of projects.
Click for full list of benefits

Paresh Sorathia, Director at Cineom Broadcast, Bright's reseller in Mumbai, had this to say about media sharing for India's influential film production market: "The time is now right for facilities in India to consider upgrading to a media sharing system in order to improve workflow efficiency. When the market for DI took off two years ago there was a lot of uncertainty about its growth prospects and product/price issues. Investment in shared storage was considered an additional burden. Now, looking at the increasing market potential and demand for speedy turnaround of projects, post houses need to adopt an organised and effective media sharing infrastructure to eliminate bottlenecks from the workflow. Bright Systems' BrightDrive offers the right solution for the right price and comes with advanced, proven media sharing technology that can be expanded as businesses grow."

At Future Reality, Bright's reseller in Australia, Dave Edgar, managing director, has already seen an increase in the number of media sharing systems being installed: "In Australia, we are seeing a definite rise in the adoption of data-centric workflows. We envisage this trend becoming the norm for the future direction of post production. Bright Systems has been developing high performance systems for data-centric workflows for several years and are seen here as the proven leaders in centralised media storage and media sharing solutions for use in film and television."

What to Look for When Evaluating a Media Sharing System

The requirements of a media sharing system depend on many different factors. However, in order to achieve some basics, such as maximum flexibility, easy of use, reliability and performance – not forgetting value for money, system longevity and an excellent return on investment, here are a few pointers on what to look for and some questions to bear in mind when investigating the market:

• Does the system work in and deliver any mix of resolutions without reformatting on the same hardware infrastructure?
• Can it record, store and play in all formats to 4k and beyond?
• Does the system master in 4:4:4 for maximum SD/HD deliverable quality?
• Is media shareable across LAN and SAN?
• What is the user interface like? Does it have powerful graphical tools for browse, search, preview and folder and sequence management?
• What data transfer speeds can be expected?
• Is the physical data layout optimized for best possible performance?
• How much operator training is required?
• Does the manufacturer offer an easy migration path from video centric and other existing workflows?
• Can the manufacturer prove the collaborative nature of the system by demonstrating media sharing between best of breed industry software and hardware platforms?
• Is the system image-aware to ensure correct automated handling of data?
• Does it include data management applications?
• Is the system proven in a variety of different types of workflows with different capacities?
• Is the system dynamically expandable?
• Does the manufacturer have strong engineering support for system development?
• Is 24 hour technical support provided? Is 24-hour remote diagnostics available?
• Is the cost of the system realistic and affordable?

Bright's new BrightDrive shared media systems are designed for facilities that need consistently high levels of performance, flexibility, reliability and utility from their workflow infrastructures. BrightDrive is directly connectable and interoperable with leading post application platforms and is a foundation for the construction of powerful and incredibly productive digital pipelines for all postproduction processes.

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