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GENARTS RELEASES SAPPHIRE PLUG-INS VERSION 4 FOR AUTODESK SYSTEMS
-- Available immediately, new version features over 45 new effects and many enhancements --
Cambridge, MA. June 19, 2007 - GenArts, Inc., a leading provider of visual effects plug-ins for the film, broadcast and video industries, today announced the immediate availability of Sapphire Plug-ins version 4 for Autodesk compositing and editing systems. The new version features over 45 new effects, plus many enhancements and new parameters to existing effects in the package.Version 4 contains all of the visual effects and features that have established Sapphire Plug-ins as an indispensable part of the digital artist's toolkit - and introduces over 45 innovative new effects including: FilmDamage, FilmEffect, DeinterlaceAuto, ZDefocus, Cartoon, Light3D and TextureFlux. Many of the new plug-ins were designed to enhance the user's workflow. "GenArts continues to set the high bar on clever, useful tools for our Autodesk systems. They've got some fun new sparks in v4 that make for interesting visual trickery, but my personal favorites are the utilities that make my compositing jobs easier and put order back in my life," says Dave Waller of Brickyard VFX, a long-standing Sapphire user.
Sapphire Plug-ins 4 also features stunning new LensFlares and Glares, totally revamped RackDefocus, and enhanced performance. The user interface has been improved across the board including a new automatic down-sampling option for real-time interactivity. "GenArts has once again proven that Sapphire is the most versatile and robust set of plug-ins available for the Autodesk platform today," says Jeroen Schulte of Condor Post Production in Amsterdam. "Unparalleled options and speed optimization - with a healthy mix of new plug-ins and updated favourites - will continue to keep Sapphire ahead of the pack. For us, it's the only plug-in suite we use when we're faced with the toughest creative challenges."
Anish Dhanda, Managing Director of GenArts adds, "Because our Autodesk customers continue to define the cutting edge in visual effects creation, we listened carefully to their feedback in the design and development stages of this new release. The input we received contributed greatly to version 4."
Key new effects and features of Sapphire Plug-ins v4 for Autodesk Systems:
- FilmDamage simulates aged film by adding scratches, dust, stains, grain, shake, flicker, etc.
- FilmEffect models film exposure and processing to make your video footage look like it was shot on film.
- DeinterlaceAuto detects the pulldown pattern in a clip and automatically deinterlaces or reinterlaces it.
- ZDefocus defocuses areas of the source clip by different amounts using depth values from a z-buffer input.
- Cartoon gives cartoon-like looks with exaggerated edges and flat areas of color.
- Light3D performs 3D relighting of a clip using an input clip describing the surface normals.
- Other new effects include: Rays, BlurDirectional, CartoonPaint, Posterize, Deband, BleachBypass, DogVision, Vignette, HalfToneRings, WarpMagnify, WarpCornerPin, WarpsComp, GradientRadial, GradientMulti, Shape, TextureMoire, TextureTiles, TextureNeurons, TextureLoops, TextureFlux, TileScramble, WipeRings, WipeTiles, SwishPan, DissolveLuma, DissolveGlow, DissolveFilm, TimeDisplace, FeedbackBubble, FeedbackDistort, Convolve, ConvolveComp, ZConvolve, ZGlow, TriTone, and QuadTone.
- LensFlare has 14 new flare types and new parameters.
- RackDefocus has new shape options and improved performance.
- New redraw option auto-adjusts resolution for real time interactivity.
- All effects have Add Noise, Use Gamma and lookup table options.
- Glare includes 4 new glare types and improved performance.
Availability and Pricing
Sapphire Plug-ins version 4 for Autodesk compositing and editing systems can be purchased directly from GenArts or through their worldwide channel of Autodesk authorized resellers. Pricing for Sapphire 4 is: $6000 for Autodesk Flint SD and Smoke SD; $10,000 for Flame, Flint HD and Smoke HD; $14,000 for Inferno; and $900 for Burn. Existing version 3 customers qualify for special upgrade pricing of $1800, $2800, $3800 and $250, respectively. For IRIX users, there is no additional charge to transfer version 4 to Linux. A free trial of the software is available online at www.genarts.com.
About GenArts, Inc.
Founded in 1996 in Cambridge, Mass., GenArts, Inc. is the premier provider of digital visual effects plug-ins for the film, broadcast and video industries. Their product, Sapphire Plug-ins, equips digital artists with a collection of over 190 state-of-the-art image processing and synthesis effects such as: Glows, EdgeRays, LensFlare, Lightning, FilmEffect, Warps and Textures. The effects seamlessly integrate into a number of editing and compositing systems including: Adobe® After Effects® and Premiere® Pro; Apple® Final Cut Pro® and Shake®; Avid® AVX Products; Autodesk® Compositing & Editing Systems, and Combustion®; Eyeon® Fusion®; Sony® XPRI®; and Quantel® generationQ products.Sapphire Plug-ins have become the industry standard for high-end visual effects creation by providing unrivaled image quality, a unique organic look, and ease of use. They have been used extensively in an array of television programs, music videos and feature films, including: Pirates of the Caribbean 1, 2, and 3, Superman Returns, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Star Wars - Episode I, II and III, Spider-Man 1, 2 and 3, Sin City, The Matrix trilogy, X-Men 1, 2 and 3, Titanic, Lost and CSI. Additional GenArts product information can be found at www.genarts.com.
Contact:
Nicole Panas GenArts, Inc. 1-617-492-2888 nicole@
©2007 GenArts, Inc. All rights reserved. GenArts and Sapphire Plug-ins are registered trademarks of GenArts, Inc. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.