Robert Sharp of Digieffects sent me this article, Editing on Big Films Is Now Being Done On Small Computers by Lee Gomes, published today in the Wall Street Journal. Note, the article is posted to a forum because you need a subscription to the WSJ to read the article.

For most of us, this is a Ric Romero sort of headline. I thought it was worth mentioning though because Phillip Hodgetts and Red Giant's "plug-ins" are mentioned in the article.

Avid software does just about anything you could ask -- for a price. The company's flagship Media Creator package runs $5,000. Philip Hodgetts, who follows the industry for Creative Planet, says Avid has an epic fight on its hands from newer, lower-cost alternatives. Apple sells Final Cut Studio for $1,300, while Adobe's Premiere Pro is just $800.

Thanks to cheap computers, a similar sort of creative destruction is happening everywhere in the industry. Color adjustment used to require expensive oscilloscope-like monitors. It first moved to specialized -- and expensive -- software, but lately it's done with relatively low-cost (say, $200) "plug-ins" by companies like Red Giant Software.

Plus, hell, it's the Wall Street Journal! Doesn't that make you feel warm and fuzzy all over.

Labels: internet