Sapphire Plug-ins 2.07 includes support for the new Avid 3.0 versions and Windows Vista. GenArts has recently added support for Mac OSX Leopard and automatic conforming of sequences that used Sapphire v1 to Sapphire v2/AVX2 with recent Avid versions.

This is a free maintenance release for existing v2 customers and your current serial number should just continue to work.

The new version can be downloaded and installed from here:

Windows | Mac

If you need to upgrade to 2.0, click here.

Labels: Avid, GenArts, Sapphire

Dennis Radeke is organizer of the Adobe event later this month on May 29 near B&H at the New Yorker Hotel's Crystal Ballroom on the 2nd floor. There will be two sessions, 11am-3:30pm and 3:30pm-8pm.

From Dennis' Blog, The Genesis Project:

Additionally, rather than have the event be static where you sit and we talk, it is a twofold event. In one area, you'll have a large room where many of the vendors will present their products and workflows throughout the day in rapid fire 20 minute presentations. I hope that one of the highlights to these 20 minute demos will be a 20 minute technology preview demo of some stuff we're working on that I think you will find VERY helpful.

The event will have onsite representation from Adobe, AJA, Blackmagic Design, B&H, CalDigit, DigiEffects, GenArts, GridIron, Matrox, Maxon, MOTU, Wacom and Zoomin Online (aka Magnet Media).

They're giving away LOADS of prizes from these sponsors too. If you're in NYC at the end of May, this is a free event. Don't miss it. Register now!

Labels: Adobe, DigiEffects, Event, GenArts, GridIron, Wacom Tablets, Zoom in Online

Adobe is having a Digital Video Tools Showcase on Thursday, May 29 in New York City.

From planning to playback, Adobe Creative Suite 3 Production Premium drives video content creation. Combined with a diverse group of Adobe's partners, including AJA, Blackmagic Design, CalDigit, Creative COW, Digieffects, GenArts, GridIron Flow, Matrox, Maxon, MOTU, Panasonic, and Wacom, Adobe offers solutions and workflows for getting today's content out to air, tape, disc, or online faster than ever before.

First Session: 11:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Second Session: 3:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

New Yorker Hotel
Crystal Ballroom, 2nd Floor
481 8th Avenue at 34th Street
New York, NY 10001

Register now!

Labels: Adobe, DigiEffects, GenArts, GridIron Flow, Maxon Cinema 4D, Wacom Tablets

Todd Prives of GenArts demo of the new FxPlug version of Sapphire plug-ins for FCP and Motion. They're also giving away a package of GenArts Sapphire.

Claudia from SF Cutters says: "Todd's demos are famous for their understandability, clarity, and visual pleasure. Todd has been with GenArts for a long time and demos this product with the integrity it deserves. This is something you do
not want to miss."


Buy Tickets Online Now $10

601 Townsend at 7th St. in San Francisco, at the Adobe Building.

Labels: Final Cut Pro, FxPlug, GenArts, Motion, Sapphire, SF Cutters

New version features over 200 effects with native support for Final Cut Pro and Motion

Cambridge, MA. March 18, 2008 - 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 for Apple FxPlug products, including Final Cut Pro, Final Cut Express and Motion. Sapphire Plug-ins for FxPlug products contains over 200 image processing and synthesis effects, including the latest effects in the Sapphire suite such as FilmDamage, ZDefocus, Cartoon, BleachBypass, GradientMulti, SwishPan, Deband and Vignette. GenArts is offering the new FxPlug version at no additional charge to customers with Sapphire v2 for After Effects and compatible products.

The new version for FxPlug products features drag-on Transition effects for FCP, effects categorized by Generators, Filters and Transitions, and parameters arranged in groups for improved interface layout. "It's fantastic to have these effects as real transitions in FCP! Once again a great job by the GenArts Sapphire team," says Andy Tolbert from Wide Eyed Productions.

Usability enhancements in the FxPlug version also include the ability to open and close parameter groups in the UI and dial controls for angle parameters. Additionally, projects created in Motion using Sapphire effects can be easily imported into FCP. The FxPlug and After Effects versions of Sapphire can be used concurrently in FCP for compatibility with existing projects.

"GenArts has a long history of supporting Apple products, and this release further demonstrates our commitment to our mutual customers. We are proud to provide native support for all of the Apple FxPlug products with this new version of Sapphire, which dramatically enhances the full range of effects and functionality for FCP and Motion artists," comments Anish Dhanda, Managing Director of GenArts.
Key features of Sapphire Plug-ins for Apple FxPlug Products:

• Over 200 effects
  
• Native support for Final Cut Pro, Final Cut Express and Motion
  
• Convenient drag-on Transition effects for Final Cut Pro and Final Cut Express
  
• Effects categorized by Generators, Filters and Transitions
  
• Parameter groups can be opened and closed in the UI
  
• FlickerRemove and FlickerMatch have Set Hold Level and Set Match Level buttons
  
• Angle parameters use dial controls
  
• Motion projects with Sapphire effects can be imported and embedded in Final Cut Pro
  
• FxPlug and After Effects versions of Sapphire can be used together in Final Cut Pro
  
• Support for Mac OS 10.5 Leopard and Mac Intel hardware
  
• Many options and parameters which can be adjusted and animated for an unlimited range of results
  
• Resolution independent, fully anti-aliased, high quality images
  
• Easy to use and fully integrated within the native user interface
  
• Multi-processor support for faster rendering
  
• Online hyper-linked documentation

Availability and Pricing

Sapphire Plug-ins for Apple FxPlug Products can be purchased directly from GenArts or through their worldwide channel of authorized resellers. Pricing is $1699 for the entire package or $599 for one of four individual box sets. Special upgrade pricing for existing customers with Sapphire v1 for After Effects is offered for $599 and $199, respectively. Customers with Sapphire v2 for After Effects can use the FxPlug version at no charge on the same workstation. A new license purchased for FxPlug also allows use of the AE version. 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 200 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®, Premiere® Pro and Premiere® Elements; Apple® Final Cut Pro®, Final Cut Express®, Motion® and Shake®; Avid® AVX Products; Autodesk® Compositing & Editing Systems, and Combustion®; Eyeon® Fusion®; 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, Spider-Man 1, 2 and 3, Superman Returns, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Star Wars - Episode I, II and III, 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.

Labels: Final Cut Pro, FxPlug, GenArts, Motion, Sapphire

The GridIron team will be showing off their just announced software, GridIron Flow, and Todd Prives from GenArts will be showing off Sapphire. Door prizes include stuff from Toolfarm (yeah, that's us!) GenArts, Video Copilot, Zaxwerks and more.

It's Thursday, January 24, 2008, 6:30 PM - 9:00 PM at the Pratt Manhattan 144 West 14th Street (b/w 6th and 7th Ave), Room 213. It's free to attend thanks to Adobe and Pratt.

Labels: After Effects, GenArts, GridIron, GridIron Flow

Customers purchasing Sapphire v2 for FCP now will also receive the FxPlug version when released

Cambridge, MA. January 8, 2008 -- GenArts, Inc., a leading provider of visual effects plug-ins for the film, broadcast and video industries, today announced an upcoming version of Sapphire Plug-ins for Apple FxPlug products including Final Cut Pro and Motion.

GenArts is offering the new FxPlug version at no additional charge to customers who purchase or upgrade to Sapphire v2 for After Effects and compatible products. Currently Sapphire Plug-ins supports Final Cut Pro through the After Effects API, but the FxPlug version will provide additional features such as drag-on Transition effects for FCP, support for Motion, and effects categorized as Generators, Filters and Transitions. The forthcoming version for FxPlug products will contain over 200 image processing and synthesis effects, including the latest effects in the Sapphire Plug-ins suite such as FilmDamage, ZDefocus, Cartoon, BleachBypass, GradientMulti, SwishPan, Light3D, Deband and Vignette.

A preview of the new version can be seen at the Macworld FCPUG SuperMeet on January 16th at the Mission Bay Conference Center in San Francisco. The FxPlug version of Sapphire Plug-ins is planned for release in the first half of 2008.

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 200 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, Premiere Pro and Premiere Elements; Apple Final Cut Pro and Shake; Avid AVX Products; Autodesk Compositing & Editing Systems and Combustion; Eyeon Fusion; 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, Spider-Man 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, 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.

Labels: Apple, Final Cut Studio, FxPlug, GenArts, Motion

Sapphire Plug-ins version 2.01 for After Effects and compatible products is now available from GenArts.com.

This is a free maintenance release for workstations with a version 2 license. If you have not yet tried Sapphire 2, you can install 2.01 now to start your 3-week free trial.

For a summary of the 30+ new effects and many new features in 2.0, please visit Toolfarm's Plug-in Finder. Also, Sapphire 2.01 is available for purchase today!

Here is a summary of what's new in Sapphire 2.01:

• Performance and memory efficiency is improved for AE 7 and CS3 SmartFX.
• A problem with Premiere Pro on quad-core Macs is fixed.
• Messages saying "Can't checkout input" are avoided, which could occur in large projects with AE 7 and CS3.
• Various issues are fixed with Vignette, Distort, Glow, DropShadow, Convolve, Cartoon and Posterize.
• The Windows installer offers to install the plug-ins for Fusion 5.2.

Labels: After Effects, Demo, GenArts, Sapphire

From Chris Meyer:

Just a reminder that the next MGLA meeting is tonight. We'll be selling & signing copies of Creating Motion Graphics 4th edition for charity before the meeting; the meeting itself will contain presentations by GenArts, Antics, and wondertouch, plus guest artist Chris Do of Blind showing how they use the GenArts Sapphire plug-ins in production work. Oh - and we'll be giving away $5500 in prizes at the end. More details at http://www.mgla.org/nextmeeting; a thumbnail of the presentations is copied below.

Very special thanks to GenArts http://www.genarts.com, who is sponsoring this month's meeting. We're not doing a meeting at DV Expo this year; thankfully, GenArts stepping up gave us the funds we needed to have a December meeting at our normal location (Barnsdall Gallery Theatre). Special thanks also to Adobe who has been sponsoring meetings throughout the year.

That December 18 event will be the last MGLA meeting that Trish and I host (after 10+ years and 125 or so events!), and is scheduled to include some "classic" MGLA presenters such as Mike Goedecke of Belief, Andrew Heimbold of Reality Check, and Alex Lindsay of Pixel Corps. Don't worry - there will still be an active motion graphics user group in Los Angeles, run by the current hosts Ko Maruyama, Warren Heaton, and Tony Romain, and most likely under the umbrella of the Pixel Corps - but it's time for Trish and me to move on to other ventures.

Labels: GenArts, MGLA

Need upgrades for GenArts Sapphire v2? Get the upgrades for $199 each or for $599 for the bundle of all 4 GenArts Sapphire packages.

Labels: GenArts, Sapphire

New version features over 30 new effects and many enhancements

Available immediately for After Effects, Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro, Combustion and Fusion.

Cambridge, MA. October 30, 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 2 for After Effects and compatible products including Adobe Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro, Autodesk Combustion, and Eyeon Fusion. The new release features over 30 new effects, plus many new parameters and improvements to existing effects in the package.

For over a decade, GenArts Sapphire Plug-ins have set the standard for sophisticated, organic visual effects which natively integrate with leading editing and compositing systems. Version 2 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 more than 30 new and innovative effects. FilmDamage, ZDefocus, Cartoon, BleachBypass, GradientMulti, SwishPan, Light3D, Deband, and TextureNeurons are a few of the new plug-ins in the collection of over 200 image processing and synthesis effects. Many new effects were designed to improve users' workflow while others offer easy ways to create eye-catching visuals, such as FilmDamage - which simulates aged film by adding scratches, dust, stains, grain, shake and flicker. Enhancements to existing effects in the package include a revamped RackDefocus, 4 new Glares and 14 new LensFlares.

"GenArts has the highest quality plug-ins you can find. I love the new effects in Sapphire 2 such as WarpMagnify, SwishPan and DissolveGlow, and I expect to use Vignette every day," comments Jack Tunnicliffe, Senior Effects Artist at Java Post Production. "The LensFlare additions are also fabulous."

Sapphire 2 includes support for the latest versions of all After Effects and compatible host applications including Adobe CS3 and the "Smart FX" API which provides more efficient processing and support for 32bit image formats. All platforms running v2 will have improved rendering speed.

"We are thrilled with this new release. After Effects, Final Cut Pro and the other compatible products have become integral parts of our high-end users' workflow as we see more and more clients working on multiple host platforms. Version 2 further extends their creative capabilities with many innovative effects and additional functionality," says Anish Dhanda, Managing Director of GenArts.

Key New Features of Sapphire Plug-ins 2 for After Effects and Compatible Products:

• FilmDamage simulates aged film by adding scratches, dust, stains, grain, shake, flicker, etc.
• 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.
• Vignette darkens the outer edges of a clip with various shape options.
• BleachBypass generates a stylized version of the source clip by simulating a bleach bypass process.
• Other new effects include: BlurDirectional, CartoonPaint, Posterize, Deband, DogVision, TileScramble, WarpMagnify, WarpCornerPin, GradientMulti, Shape, TextureTiles, TextureNeurons, TextureLoops, TextureFlux, SwishPan, DissolveGlow, DissolveFilm, FeedbackDistort, Convolve, ConvolveComp, ZConvolve, ZGlow, TriTone, QuadTone, Invert, ShowBadColors and ChannelSwitcher.
• LensFlare has 14 new flare types, new parameters to adjust the look of the flares and an optional Matte input which allows selective blocking or colorizing of flares.
• LensFlareAutoTrack can track and render flares at multiple hotspots.
• RackDefocus has new shape options and improved performance.
• Glare includes 4 new glare types and improved performance.
• Adobe's "Smart FX" API is supported for AE7 and CS3 with more efficient processing and reading of 32bit image formats.
• Windows Vista and Mac OS X Leopard are supported.

Availability and Pricing

Sapphire Plug-ins version 2 for After Effects and compatible products can be purchased directly from GenArts or through their worldwide channel of authorized resellers. Pricing for Sapphire 2 is $1699 for the entire package or $599 for one of four individual box sets. Special upgrade pricing for existing v1 customers is offered for $599 and $199, respectively. A free trial of the software is available online at www.genarts.com. Sapphire Plug-ins version 2 will also be available on Quantel generationQ products with VDS Synapse. For more information about Sapphire on Quantel please contact VDS.

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 200 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®, Premiere® Pro and Premiere® Elements; Apple® Final Cut Pro® and Shake®; Avid® AVX Products; Autodesk® Compositing & Editing Systems, and Combustion®; Eyeon® Fusion®; 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, Spider-Man 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, 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.

Labels: After Effects, Combustion, Eyeon Fusion, Final Cut Pro, GenArts, Sapphire

GenArts has told us that Sapphire 2 for After Effects and compatible products will be released by the end of this year and will include many new effects, plus enhancements to existing effects in the package.

In anticipation of the upcoming release, we'd like to extend a special upgrade offer to Sapphire customers who purchase Sapphire v1 now. Beginning October 1, 2007 customers who buy version 1 will be eligible for a free upgrade to version 2 when it becomes available.

Labels: After Effects, GenArts, Sapphire

Company to demonstrate their VFX plug-ins on a wide range of products on stand 7.921

Cambridge, MA. August 21, 2007 -- GenArts, Inc., a leading provider of visual effects plug-ins for the film, broadcast and video industries, will be showcasing Sapphire Plug-ins at IBC 2007, being held September 7-11 at the Amsterdam RAI. Visitors to GenArts stand 7.921 will be given demonstrations of the latest releases of Sapphire Plug-ins, including the much anticipated new version for Autodesk systems which features over 45 new effects, as well as many enhancements to existing effects in the package. Sapphire Plug-ins will also be shown on a number of other host platforms including: Adobe After Effects & Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro & Shake, Avid AVX Products, and Autodesk Combustion. For over a decade, GenArts Sapphire Plug-ins have set the standard for sophisticated, organic visual effects which natively integrate with the industry's leading editing and compositing systems.

For more GenArts news, visit us online at the IBC Virtual Press Office

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 200 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, Spider-Man 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, Sin City, The Matrix trilogy, X-Men 1, 2 and 3, Titanic, Lost and CSI.

Labels: Event, GenArts, IBC

While it's true that SIGGRAPH didn't officially see an Adobe booth this year - After Effects isn't the only host application for the software of the PLUGIN PAVILION. Autodesk was (and always is) a big draw for SIGGRAPH (now with mudbox too).

Todd kept busy showing off everything GenArts

Pierre kept people entertained with strange hand puppet shows and comedic songs.

Others strolled over specifically to say hello to Debbie

And even people without product to show found a comfortable place to sit.

Labels: Digital Anarchy, GenArts, Re:Vision Effects, Trapcode

Company to demonstrate their VFX plug-ins on a wide range of products in booth 321

Cambridge, MA. July 17, 2007 - GenArts, Inc., a leading provider of visual effects plug-ins for the film, broadcast and video industries, will be exhibiting at SIGGRAPH 2007, being held August 7-9 at the San Diego Convention Center. GenArts will feature Sapphire Plug-ins, a collection of over 200 image processing and synthesis effects, on a wide range of host platforms in the Plug-in Pavilion, booth 321. For over a decade, GenArts Sapphire Plug-ins have set the standard for sophisticated, organic visual effects which natively integrate with the industry's leading editing and compositing systems. Visitors to the booth will be given demonstrations of the latest Sapphire Plug-ins releases for: Adobe After Effects & Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro & Shake, Avid AVX Products, and Autodesk Combustion.

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 200 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, Spider-Man 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, Sin City, The Matrix trilogy, X-Men 1, 2 and 3, Titanic, Lost and CSI.

Labels: Adobe, After Effects, Apple, Avid, Combustion, Event, Final Cut Pro, GenArts, Premiere Pro, Sapphire, Shake

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 from Toolfarm. 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.

Labels: Autodesk, GenArts

Company to demonstrate new effects for Autodesk Systems and other host platforms in booth SL2829

Cambridge, MA. April 3, 2007 - GenArts, Inc., a leading provider of digital visual effects plug-ins for the film, broadcast and video industries, will be featuring its expanded range of plug-ins at NAB 2007 in booth SL2829, a larger redesigned exhibit space.

Visitors to the GenArts booth will get a first glimpse of Sapphire Plug-ins 4 for Autodesk Compositing & Editing Systems, slated to be released later in Q2. The new version 4 features over 40 new effects, as well as many enhancements and new parameters for existing effects in the package.

GenArts will also be giving hands-on demonstrations of the latest Sapphire Plug-ins releases on a number of host platforms including: Avid AVX Products, Apple Final Cut Pro and Shake, Autodesk Combustion, and Eyeon Fusion. The latest version for Adobe After Effects and Premiere Pro, with support for Intel Macs, will be shown on Adobe's new Creative Suite 3.

Labels: GenArts, NAB

Available immediately with Universal support for Mac Intel

Cambridge, MA. March 30, 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 2.05 for Avid® AVX^TM products. The new version is compatible with Avid systems running on the Intel-based Mac platform and includes various improvements for both Mac and Windows platforms.

The initial release of Sapphire 2 contained 46 new effects including FilmDamage, Cartoon and many unique temporal effects, as well as a number of improvements for users, such as single click application of effects to a title or key, background and mask inputs, and 2D moves built into the plug-ins. "We are pleased to offer our continued support for Avid’s most recent improvements and make our latest plug-in package for their products available on Mac Intel," said Anish Dhanda, managing director of GenArts, Inc.

Labels: Avid, GenArts, Universal

Company to showcase their latest VFX plug-ins and demo reel in newly designed booth SL2829

Cambridge, MA. February 13, 2007 -- GenArts, Inc., a leading provider of digital visual effects plug-ins for the film, broadcast and video industries, will be featuring its entire range of plug-ins at NAB 2007, being held April 16-19 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Exhibiting in a newly designed booth, GenArts will have an expanded presence at this year’s NAB. Visitors to booth SL2829 will be given demonstrations of the latest versions of Sapphire Plug-ins on a number of host platforms including: Autodesk Compositing & Editing Systems and Combustion, Avid AVX Products, Adobe After Effects and Premiere Pro, and Apple Final Cut Pro and Shake. The expanded booth will also include a theater where GenArts will debut a new demo reel featuring Sapphire Plug-ins and representing the most recent work from premier post production houses worldwide.

Labels: After Effects, Avid, Combustion, Final Cut Pro, GenArts, plug-ins, Premiere Pro, Shake