To paraphrase a famous author, "I have seen the future of shared storage and his name is Ethernet."
Last month we invested in the new Final Share system from MaxxDigital and after some tweaking, we now have 16TB of shared storage supported a high definition workflow with 6 workstations all running Apple's ProRes HQ in high definition, both 720p and 1080i. And actually it's not "workstations" in the traditional sense of the word, since we're running ethernet, we can connect any Mac computer to the array.
So in our case, we have three Final Cut Pro desktop workstations and three iMac's all connected. In our testing today we configured the three FCP workstations to capture approx. 3 hours of 720 and 1080i ProRes HQ material each. As that was happening, all three iMacs were playing back 20+ minute clips in Quicktime Player in a loop. After all the capturing, we had all three FCP workstations set up with 90 minute timeline playing in a loop while the iMacs kept playing their clips. We left it all alone for several hours and all way still playing. 6 streams of high definition from one storage array and all via simple ethernet cable!
We plan to use the iMacs both to allow Producers to review footage immediately upon capture and also for Assistant Editors working on upcoming series. Once the footage is in the system, anybody can access it at any time and since it's not Fibre Channel, I don't have to invest in top of the line desktop editing systems for the assists.
Watch for a full article on this system coming up shortly, but wow, this thing really works and it's really affordable!
Saw this interesting blip about Glenn Beck's new show starting today on Fox.
Glenn Beck will debut his show on Fox News Channel Monday and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will be first guest, the New York Daily News reports. Beck said at CNN, where he previously worked until leaving in October, he had to be certain that "every fact that was going on the air was absolutely right," while at Fox, he feels "I'm not entering the room that sees me as the enemy."
The part that caught my eye was the bit about CNN verifying every single fact before it hit air, while at Fox, it's inferred that facts can slide a bit. Just validates why we have always called the channel Fox Noise in the news industry. CNN doesn't always get it right, but I have found that both CNN and MSNBC are much better with their fact checking, especially when it comes to opinion shows, than Fox.
Really, Fox News should be right along the lines of the E! channel where rumor and gossip are more important than actual facts. Maybe that's why their ratings are so high. People just want the rumors, not the facts.
Actual listing for a hotel room I was looking at in the $400 / night range....
This stylish room, located on our terrace level, has hardwood floors, a king 4-poster bed, large wetbar and refrigerator, writing desk, full sized sofa, gracious bath with whirlpool tub, marble standing shower, and terra cotta tile floor. The room is decorated with colorful grass cloth wallpaper and has a distinctly elegant feel. Ceilings are standard. Guests have an exterior entrance and outdoor sitting area.
Whew! I remember how embarrassing it was for Rebecca and I the last time we went to a place with no ceilings!
Well I finally gave up on Apple's Compressor as it has just gotten flakier and flakier as time goes on. Not sure what Apple did to the software but even after a clean install, the thing went south in two weeks on a brand new, fully updated Octo Core.
I've been looking at Telestream's Episode for a while as some other shops I work with use it and love it. Well after one more aggravating failure from Compressor, I pulled the trigger today and added Episode Pro. Geez, what in the heck was I waiting for?! This thing is simple and has more options than Compressor ever did. AND I don't have to set up that stupid "Q Master" virtual cluster deal that never seems to work correctly. Episode just automatically works off all cores on the Mac Pros.
The biggest thing I now have is Flash encoding right in the same application so I don't necessarily have to use Adobe's Media Encoder (and it's flaky behavior). So now in one batch I can pretty much compress my original Quicktimes to whatever the heck the client wants.
The big difference between Episode and Episode Pro are the ability to batch more than 25 items at a time (Pro) and some additional higher end codecs (Pro). If you don't need those extra features, just go with Episode. I gotta say, I'm done with Compressor after just one day using Episode.
Run, don't walk, to Telestream's site and download the trial version now to see for yourself.
Just want to wish everyone here a very Merry Christmas and prosperous New Year. We'll be celebrating with an Italian traditional Feast of the Seven Fishes. I grew up on this tradition at home and about 5 or 6 years ago, we decided to carry it on down here in Georgia. We're expecting 21 folks on the 24th this year and every year we have old friends, family and new folks joining us for the first time. It's a wonderful evening of food and good cheer. Here's the menu for this year, and yes I pretty much make everything from scratch.
1 Shrimp Cocktail. Served at the table
2 Baked Clams on the Half Shell. Served at the table
3 Bruschetta. Served at the table.
4 Pasta with Fish Sauce
5 Clams
6 Mussels
7 Fish (Flounder / Sole / Catfish / Perch)
8 Shrimp
9 Calamari tentacles
10 Wally's Steamed Lobster Tails
11 Randall's Ordinary Scallops
12 Fried Calamari
13 Fried Flounder
14 Grilled Tuna with Pesto Sauce
15 Pasta with Marinara Sauce
16 Escarole with Pine Nuts
17 Breaded Cauliflower
18 Spicy Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms
19 Cippolinis & Potatoes
20 Italian Meat and Cheese platters. Mix of Italian meats, hard Italian cheese and Prosciutto & Mozzarella slices. Served at the table.
21 Roasted Red Peppers with Fresh Mozzarella & Basil Served at the table
22 Stuffed Hot Cherry Peppers Served at the table
23 Olive Salad Served at the table
24 Coffee
26 Almond Biscotti brushed with Chocolate
27 Struffoli
28 Tortoni
29 Frittelle Ricotta, Uvetta E Cioccolato
30 Assorted traditional Biscardi family cookies.
Now my family did not make quite so many things, but then we didn't have any vegetarians to cook for! My wife is a vegetarian so I added more vegetable and non-fish items to the menu and it just keeps growing.
Each year we change out a few things, like the Grilled Tuna with Pesto and the Escarole with Pine nuts are new this year. The ricotta fritters are also something new and I'll be frying those up at the last minute right before we serve dessert. That will be something new!
My dad got me a set of Shun knives for Christmas and they are making my life so much easier in the kitchen! If you've never had a good, and I mean GOOD, set of knives you have no idea what you're missing. These are the same knives Alton Brown uses on Good Eats and they are the sharpest, and have the best fitting handles of any knife I've ever held.
This year I'm also handing out a recipe book to everyone who attends along with some history of the meal. Someone suggested this a while back and I finally remembered to do it this year. If any of you would like any or all of the recipes we use for the meal, just let me know, I love sharing our family traditions.
From our family to your family, Happy Happy Holidays!!! And if you're interested, here's some history on the Feast of the Seven Fishes
Southern Italians around the world celebrate Christmas Eve with a Feast of the Seven Fishes, also known as La Vigilia (Italian: "the vigil"). It is a meal that typically consists of seven different seafood dishes. Some Italian families have been known to celebrate with 9, 11 or 13 different seafood dishes. This celebration is a commemoration of the wait, Vigilia di Natale, for the midnight birth of the baby Jesus.
The tradition of eating seafood on Christmas Eve dates from the medieval Catholic tradition of abstinence--in this case, refraining from the consumption of meat or milk products--on Fridays and specific holy days. As no meat or butter could be used, observant Catholics would instead eat fish, typically fried in oil.
There are many hypotheses for what the number "7" relates to, one being the number of Sacraments in the Roman Catholic Church. Another theory is that seven is a number representing perfection: the traditional Biblical number for divinity is three, and for Earth is four, and the combination of these numbers, seven, represents God on Earth, or Jesus Christ.
Editorial has been completed on the new business television pilot developed by Biscardi Creative Media, ideaWercs and Arriving with BB Webb. BCM Principal Walter Biscardi, Jr. served as Director, Editor and Post Production Supervisor on this project.
Additional credits include Brian Mead for logo design, Aaron R. Stewart for graphics design and Brian Little for opening title design. The episode was produced in 720p HD. More details will be provided as the series moves towards full production of Season One.
Biscardi Creative Media recently delivered an introductory project for an upcoming feature-length documentary about River Blindness disease. Produced by Gary Strieker and Cielo Productions, the project was a 10 minute overview of what the disease is and a brief look into some of the preventative measures being implemented by The Carter Center.
The presentation, "The Crab and the Fly" was shot in 720p HD in multiple locations in Africa and Latin America over a two year period. Editorial was performed by Aaron R. Stewart and the final presentation was delivered on 1080i BluRay disc using BCM in-house BluRay authoring & publishing tools.
The feature length documentary is scheduled for completion by mid to late 2009.
Saw my first sub-$200 BluRay player yesterday, a $179 Sylvania model at Costco. I'm still partial to the Samsung 1500 unit for about $270, but what a cool evolution from $1,000 just last year to only $179 for a BluRay player.
Now you have no excuse not to get one!! I honestly have a hard time watching DVD's now since we got the BluRay player last year. Especially when it comes to the Pixar films which are just ridiculous on BluRay.
For the first time... in my entire life really... I can hear like most normal folks.
All through life I've had a pretty significant hearing loss due to essentially dying when I was born. The cord wrapped around my neck as I was being delivered, thus I was a blue baby when I came out. My ears turned out fine, but the nerves that carry the sound to the brain were damaged. I essentially have a 40% hearing loss, especially on the low end of sound range.
Well, thanks to the constant persistence of my lovely wife, yesterday I became the proud owner of two brand new digital hearing aids. I feel like i'm starting my life all over again! I cannot believe not only how much I was missing, but just how amazing digital hearing aid technology is today.
What's incredible about these things is they no longer have a volume control. They auto compress loud sounds and turn up in quiet settings. So instead of just everything around me getting 50% louder, only the immediate area around me is raised up while everything else is normal. And anything that's loud is just reduced to normal level. They're just like some of those really expensive microphones we all see in the magazines.
So if any of you have a hearing loss, or know someone who has one and they're resisting hearing aids, encourage them to get a test. These things are just awesome and very comfortable.
Oh and if you want to save some money, I got mine at Costco believe it or not!
Professional Video Editor, Producer, Director since 1990.
Credits include multiple Emmys, Tellys, Aurora and CableAce Awards.
Owner / Operator of Biscardi Creative Media, a full service video and film production company with about 65% of our work in HDTV. The show you know us best for is "Good Eats" on the Food Network. I developed the HD Post workflow and we also create all the animations for the series.
Favorite pastime is cooking with pizza on the grill one of my specialties. Each Christmas Eve we serve the Feast of the Seven Fishes, a traditional Italian seafood meal with approx. 30 items on the menu.
If I wasn't in video production I would either own a restaurant or a movie theater.
