ACE Ups The Ante With Quantel

ACE, a specialist Belgian film-effects facility, has upgraded its Quantel iQ to full Pablo 2K specification with the Neo panel. It has also purchased Pablo PA, Quantel's conform, preparation and workflow software.
"We were so impressed with the performance of V5 software that we decided to take our system one step further and go for the full Pablo suite," said Stefan Rycken, ACE Managing Director. "There were several reasons for our choice First, the speed and accuracy of today's Quantel systems are unequalled for colour grading and conforming in different formats. Second, our iQ was working overtime and so, what tipped the scales for us was being able to add Pablo PA into our workflow. This great software enables us to do basic technical work 'off-line', such as preparing titles or conforming, freeing up the Pablo to do what it does best: color grading. It's like having two integrated post systems. Third, the Pablo PA's soft-mount feature allows us to pre-grade content on a laptop during the shooting stage since the Pablo PA can read RAW formats such as Alexa, Red or Phantom files directly from the recording disk, without even downloading into the PC. The workflow advantages and the comfort for the director are incredible."
ACE staff, including its in-house colour grader Tom Mulder, have just completed training with Quantel support and are now working on a short film to get accustomed to the Pablo and prepare for a full-length feature in November. "We'll be doing all the FX, colour grading and conforming for The Loft, an American remake of a Belgian film directed by Erik van Looy. He did the original movie with us and is now doing the US version It's a fantastic first job for us on the Pablo, proving we can work to Hollywood standards," Rycken concluded.
(CD)