*Northwest crystallizes transfer initiative

In the increasingly heated courtship of a blossoming Vancouver film market, the latest suitor to announce its intentions is Northwest Imaging & Effects, which says it will undertake a long-term film transfer initiative with the addition of a Cintel Ursa Diamond system.

The $2-million undertaking represents a commitment to an entirely new area of work for the company, says Northwest vp, gm Alex Tkach, and a necessary addition to the post infrastructure in the city, one which will grow with the demands of the market.

‘We’re not looking at this as an add-on,’ says Tkach. ‘We’re looking at it as a new film division. Our intention is not just to have one box, but to ultimately have two or three systems and a variety of color-correction options.’

The Ursa Diamond represents the current top end of the Cintel line of telecine products and the only one of its kind in the city. The system is equipped with da Vinci color correction and is designed for an easy transition – potentially as an upgrade or as a replacement – into C Reality, the next generation resolution-independent Cintel system, which provides a pathway for high-definition and capability for 2K resolution scanning.

The transfer division will serve the commercial and long-form segments of the Vancouver market, the growth of which has spurred recent expansion efforts among post-production types.

In mid-May, Toronto’s Command Post & Transfer closed its $10-million deal for the purchase of Vancouver’s Pacific Video and its two divisions, Alpha Cine Service and Post Haste Video. Other Vancouver facilities also have expansion plans in the works.

‘All our clients have been asking for another option in this area,’ says Tkach, citing a lack of day-shift availability for commercial work and industry figures which indicate the Vancouver market will generate $1.5 billion in production by 2000. ‘More flexibility and capability were necessary here,’ he adds.

The suite will be geared toward the special effects business, says Tkach, offering maximum flexibility for directors and dops and facilitating the effects process and the incorporation of things like different matting effects and numerous color-correction techniques.

The company estimates doing about $1.5 million in business in year one based on one machine.

While no staffing announcements have been made to date, Tkach says the expansion will entail the addition of at least six, and up to 10, new staff and the shop is looking toward attracting senior Canadian colorist talent.

In other news from the West Coast, Vancouver’s Finale Editworks is gearing up for the demand for film services with the addition of a number of new suites, including a new telecine room to house an as-yet-unnamed piece of film equipment. The shop expects to have its first telecine setup in place in the next month.

As part of the 6,000-square-foot expansion, Finale is also building additional post rooms, including more Avid offline space.

*Medallion gets new gigs, gear

Medallion-PFA, a division of Toronto-based Command Post and Transfer, has announced major expansion plans for its audio facilities.

The expansion initiative grew out of a renewed commitment from Toronto’s Nelvana, a new audio contract from Sullivan Entertainment of Toronto and a stronger push by Medallion to service feature-film business.

The new Sullivan deal entails work on mows Ambrose and Happy Christmas Miss King, miniseries Anne of Green Gables and series Wind at My Back.

The Nelvana slate includes Bob and Margaret, Sam and Max, Stickin’ Around, Rolie Polie Olie, Mythic Warriors and Flying Rhinos.

Expansion plans include the addition of two more sound-editing rooms and a third mixing theater this fall. The new mixing theater will be a match of existing Mix 7, featuring a custom 80/68 channel LaFont Panoramix 5.1 console for Surround and digital sound mixing, with capabilities for theatrical and current tv formats as well as future 16:9 broadcast requirements.

Medallion-pfa has also expanded its release print capabilities to include Dolby SRD Digital and is upgrading its screening theater with Dolby Digital and Surround Sound.

*New team at Spin

Toronto’s Spin Productions has added a new, design-focused level of creative firepower to its arsenal with the addition of a cg animation director, a senior Henry artist and a design-based creative director.

David Geldart, founder of computer animation facility Waveform, recently joined Spin after folding Waveform. Geldart has an extensive background in long-form and commercial cg work.

New creative director Dale Smith had been a senior designer/manager at CHUM Television, responsible for much of the on-air design and identities for the properties of Citytv, MuchMusic, Bravo! and other chum stations, and earlier worked at Toronto’s Reactor Art & Design.

A graduate of Sheridan College’s classical and computer animation programs, senior Henry artist Gary Thomas was head of graphics at Hong Kong giant Centro Digital Pictures and worked most recently on Henry at Command Post/Toy Box.

Spin president Norm Stangl says the new team will provide fortification for the pursuit of u.s. business and for an initiative toward other areas of the design market, particularly the feature film title design market.