Since NAB2003, some of the post systems and software manufacturers have been enjoying boom times. And they hope to only build on that momentum at this year’s show.

‘2003 was the best year in [our] history, both for overall sales and margins,’ says Tim Wilson, senior product marketing manager for Tewksbury, MA-based Avid Technology.

‘What we’ve seen is a rebound after a slight recession in the film and TV production industry,’ says Maurice Patel, product marketing manager for Montreal’s Discreet. ‘Some of the rebound has been fueled by high-definition production, and some has been driven by ad agencies whose budgets have recovered since 9/11.’

Central to the companies’ enthusiasm is the expectation that good times will continue in Vegas. ‘We’re seeing sales interest across the board,’ explains Patel, ‘from small, low-end users to Hollywood production houses.’

Market intelligence is also a key reason to attend the show, says Bob Bennett, Toronto-based Alias’ GM of product management.

‘There are a number of things I’m looking forward to at NAB, [including] watching trends such as the adoption of Macs for 3D and the continued impact of the Web on production. The integration of 2D and 3D workflows will [also] be huge,’ he says.

While the digital aspect of the filmmaking process has, in the past, been relegated primarily to the post area, manufacturers report that film and TV producers want to know more about digitizing the production process from start to finish.

‘The Lord of the Rings [movies] showed the value of the full digital pipeline,’ Patel says. ‘No longer is digital production confined to special effects. We’re now seeing fully integrated digital production of entire movies, with film only being used for the original shooting and the final finished copy. In fact, in the case of Star Wars: Episode II, George Lucas only used film at the end.’

Another priority for customers is compatibility.

‘This is why we ship Avid Media Composer Adrenaline and Avid Xpress Pro with both Mac and Windows software in the same box,’ Wilson says.

‘Editors just want their tools to work and play together well,’ adds Alan Hoff, Avid’s director of editors product management. ‘We want our clients to have the flexibility to switch platforms as they see fit, and to be able to move our software from one operating system to another at their convenience.’

Also on these companies’ radar is value for money. Studios want their software to do more than ever before, while costing the same or less.

‘As well, they want to be able to do more compelling effects on their systems each succeeding week,’ says Patel. ‘An effect that was revolutionary last week is this week’s industry standard, and next week’s old hat.’

Manufacturers understand that their customers won’t buy empty hype at NAB. This is why the Avid/Softimage and Discreet booths will feature hands-on areas where delegates can test-drive new programs for themselves.

So, what systems and solution goodies can you expect at NAB2004?

Alias remains tight-lipped, although spokesperson Heather Kernahan reports that ‘attendees will be able to see the latest that Maya has to offer in the Alias suite and at partner booths around the show floor.’ Alias has licensed animation technologies from House of Moves’ Diva software, the motion-capture feature of which has been used in Spider-Man and in many games, commercials and videos.

‘The technologies… are intended for development and integration as a standard feature in future versions of Maya software,’ Kernahan says.

At Avid’s booth, you can count on seeing the promised HD option for Media Composer Adrenaline, which allows editors to share HD video across that system, Avid DS Nitris and Avid Unity MediaNetwork. Subsidiary Softimage will be displaying advances to XSI’s 3D animation platform, as well as v1.5 of Behavior crowd-simulation software. Audio division Digidesign will showcase its recent Scientific and Technical Awards Oscar and its Pro Tools|HD audio workstation with HD Accel cards that increase the system’s power and functionality.

Discreet will feature its digital intermediate production process, showing how DI can be used to manipulate color correction and FX with its inferno, fire and lustre systems. The firm will also display HD solutions aimed at speeding up production, plus provide a chance for NAB delegates to try its new smoke 6 editing and finishing system on IBM Linux workstations.

-www.avid.com

-www.discreet.com

-www.alias.com