IN MOTION (backup) V.3 - USC School of Cinematic Arts - University ...

Bumstead Honored
Henry Bumstead’s sketch of Gondorff’s room in The Sting.
L egendary
Hitchock Remembered
Patricia Hitchcock O’Connell
University of Southern California
School of Cinema-Television
George Lucas Building, Room 209
Los Angeles, California 90089-2211
www.usc.edu/schools/cntv
art and production director Henry
Bumstead, a 1937 graduate of the USC School of
Architecture, received the 2004 distinguished Alumnus
Award, presented by the Architectural Guild.
Patricia Hitchcock O’Connell discussed
her memoir, Alma
Hitchcock: The Woman Behind the Man, at
a recent Friends of the USC Libraries
Literary Event. The book traces the fascinating
life and career of O’Connell’s
mother, the wife of the renowned filmmaker.
O’Connell and her family are
longtime friends and supporters of the
USC School of Cinema-Television.
Soaring with High-Def
New Equipment Elevates Educational Experiences
Digital motion picture technology continues to advance by leaps and bounds at USC,
propelled in recent months by donations of two Sony 24P high-definition (HD)
cameras, three Sony HDCAM decks, several Canon HD zoom lenses, and an HD
Ultimatte, which allows real-time compositing of digital images from the green-screen on the
Kurosawa Stage in the Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts.
Although digital technology has been improving steadily for years, the state-of-the-art Sony
camera — improved and refined at the urging of alumnus George Lucas — is the first to
make significant inroads against film, replacing traditional 35-mm film cameras in highbudget
feature productions and episodic television series. Indeed, the equipment enabled
Lucas to deliver the dazzling imagery showcased in Star Wars: Episode I. Likewise, the next
generation of high-caliber digital imaging technology will once again help Lucasfilm set new
industry benchmarks when it is unveiled in the next installment of the Star Wars saga.
Taken together with other cutting-edge tools, such as the state-of-the-art HD projectors
available at the Ron Howard Screening Room and Frank Sinatra Hall, an HD digital compositing
system provided by Ultimatte Corporation, along with Sony’s generous donation of
HD cameras, HD lenses, and HD videotape decks, is enabling the Zemeckis Center to
secure its position as the world’s leading university-based HD production center.
“
This new state-of-the-art equipment is an important addition to the School’s vibrant palette
of digital tools, which is helping to unleash the imaginations of tomorrow’s storytellers,” said
Robert Zemeckis.
Already, the center has become a favorite destination for organizers of the Santa Fe High-
Definition Workshop, an enterprise that brings together educators with working cinematographers
and directors of photography to learn about new technology. It is anticipated that, as
familiarity with the resources available at USC rises among leaders in the field, the School’s
ability to support and expand HD production will increase as well.
“ The use of this level of HD equipment distinguishes the School as a leader in production
capabilities,” said Richard Weinberg Ph.D., director of USC’s Computer Animation
Laboratory. “Students are already integrating live action HD with computer-generated environments
and digital characters, enabling a new generation of stories to be told. Imagine a
building where you can shoot HD on a giant two-wall green screen, digitally composite
computer animation, visual effects, and motion-capture into the images, and screen the project
down the hall on the HD projector. That’s the Zemeckis Center.”
Dean Elizabeth M. Daley
Associate Dean,
External Relations Marlene Loadvine
Editor/Writer Jacqueline Angiuli
FALL 2004
Contributors Jill Aske, Margaret Dunlap,
Norman Hollyn, Cindy Iwanaga,
Ann Spurgeon, Justin Wilson, John Zollinger
Researchers Jiby-John Kattakayam
Michelle Kramer
Design Leslie Baker Graphic Design
Copy Editor Lisa Killen
Contributing Photographers Margaret Dunlap
Jonathon Craig Holland
Michelle Kramer
Alberto Rodriguez/Alan Berliner Studios
Michele A.H. Smith
Laurie Wierzbicki/Alan Berliner Studios
Justin Wilson
John Zollinger
Address service requested
NONPROFIT ORG
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
GLENDALE, CA
PERMIT NO.1233