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Apple Computer wants to target its snazzy technology at Hindi cinema's growing market for special effects. By Sudarshana Banerjee
Apple and special effects (SFX)? Talking about one without the other is like talking about knowledge without knowing. At least in L.A. and other nice parts of the world where zeroes and ones are put to far more stimulating uses than number-crunching. Anyhow, Apple's execs have been prowling about Mumbai lately, not just for Apple brand receptivity but also for any exciting new ways pixels and audiobytes are coming together to make new sights and sounds. And they are. Hindi cinema, content for ages to rely on human drama to engage viewership, is getting itself SFXed up for a change. Apple, needless to say, wants the business----all of it. Almost everybody in Bollywood (okay, okay---for lack of a better word) who doesn't think marriage on hearing 'Rings' and math class on hearing 'Matrix' knows the wonders Apple hotware can work. Almost everybody who's thinking about the future of Hindi cinema in a globalizing world also knows technology is for adoption. Several Bollywood productions have already used Apple--- Paise Vasool, Socha Naa Tha and Main Hoon Naa, to name just three. So what does computerdom's most famous creative brand have to offer? Begin with Apple's digital media solutions. Quite a wide bracket that, ranging from software like ProDigital production or Shake3, to server-side and enterprise storage solutions like the newly launched Xserve G5 and Xserve RAID server and storage packages. But there's more actually, and much of it priced well within reach even of a desktop filmmaker. Correction : But there's more actually, and some of it well within reach even of a desktop filmmaker. First of all, you'll need a PowerMac G5 on your desk, with a flat panel TFT active matrix digital colour display. This would cost you about Rs 4.5 lakh. Try the Xserve G5 (about Rs 2.5 lakh onwards) and Xserve RAID (Rs 4.7 lakh onwards) Server and Storage Solutions. By most accounts, they are terrific, designed as they are for heavy apps such as high-resolution digital imagery, digital video, and large databases. The RAID Storage is a rack storage system with 3.5 terabytes of data capacity. The set up's good for high-definition (HD) video or supporting multiple streams of uncompressed standard-definition (SD) video with real-time effects. All in all, it can hold nearly 16 hours of footage. Amongst editing software packages, there's Final Cut Pro 4 (about Rs 52,000), sold as a 'video authoring application' that combines video editing and composing, real-time effects and professional colour correction tools. The user-interface has neat tools for editing, compositing and special effects. For higher-order compositing and visual effects, there's Shake 3 (Rs 3,45,000). This includes Mac OS X-only features such as the Shake Qmaster network render management software. Then there's DVD Studio Pro 2 (Rs 24,800), a DVD-authoring product, rebuilt from the ground up with a user interface, fully customizable templates, menu editor, timeline-based track editing and a software-based MPEG-2 encoder. If all that's a little too heavy, and edit a film on your desktop you must, go for Final Cut Express, a version for regular folk who just like dreaming up re-contextualized music videos for their favourite music.
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