Unreal VFX - Experience + Flame

Digistor Delivers Ultimate Autodesk SOHO Experience

Enabling technology is a term that has a special meaning for Flame artist and VFX supervisor, Doron Man.

After more than 15 years working for post-production companies in Israel, Canada and the US he has taken advantage of the power of desktop computing to start his own company Unreal VFX, and work from home in Sydney.

Having started out in the late 90s with million dollar SGI-based Flame equipment he is now able to use a 12 core Mac Pro platform with a 20TB RAID to power Flame, Autodesk's advanced 3D visual effects software.

"It's been a dream of mine to work from home and with the rapid advances in desktop computing it has become possible so I've taken the opportunity to invest in my own Flame system," explained Man.

Setting Up a Solution

"I met my Australian wife and came to work in Queensland where I began thinking about the possibilities of working from home. I got to know the Digistor team when they were supporting the Post Lounge in Brisbane and they helped to design and build a Flame system for me that was an affordable proposition. Digistor put it together and then bench tested it so all I had to do was take it home and fire it up. It's amazing how much computing has changed - it's a different world today and my logic is to use this to my advantage by being able to offer directors and clients my creative abilities without the overheads of a large post house.

"I also want to branch out to provide a wider range of services and I felt that Flame has a complete tool set that enables me to take on all kind of projects from commercials and long-forms to wedding videos and private footage fix-ups and retouches."

Autodesk Flame software offers tools for fast, interactive 3D visual effects, finishing, compositing, advanced graphics, colour grading, conform, editorial and look development. By subscribing to Autodesk products, customers such as Unreal VFX receive the most flexible, cost-effective way to access and manage 3D design and entertainment software tools to use anytime, anywhere. This includes access to the latest updates and preceding versions.

"I got to know the Digistor team when they were supporting the Post Lounge in Brisbane and they helped to design and build a Flame system for me that was an affordable proposition."
Doron Man, Unreal VFX

Creative and Affordable Opportunity

"I've talked to a lot of directors and producers and everyone is trying to save money while wanting the best look they can get," said Man. "Flame is the entertainment industry's default visual effects tool and every director knows that when they are sitting with a Flame operator they can be as creative as possible so now I can offer them real bang for their buck.

"Autodesk Flame is by far the best compositing box I have worked on. The biggest advantage is that Flame enables you to be intuitive in the creative process and it lets you create complex shots relatively fast. The fact that it is so fast changes the creative process in the sense that you can experiment a lot more in a given time and decide what path to take. I think that sets it apart from the rest of the products that are out there."

By thinking out of the box Man has already completed projects for broadcasters and companies that can see the value in Unreal VFX.

"Sure it's a risk, setting up any business is a risk but it's a calculated risk. For many years I've been nurturing projects, engaging with directors and agency creatives from initial concept right through to final delivery and I believe my experience and Flame system is an attractive proposition."

Digistor Service

"Doron looked at other visual effects software but concluded Flame was the fastest toolset to creatively bring projects to life," said Digistor sales consultant Olivier Jean. "The beauty of Autodesk subscription systems is that they also offer clients the flexibility to quickly update and expand by easily integrating other tools such as 3D Animation packages. So Unreal VFX is ready for any future developments.

"And naturally it includes support options so Doron is covered 24/7 for any technical hiccups whenever he needs it."

Digistor is an Autodesk Gold Partner specialising in Media & Entertainment and Creative Finishing and has received numerous Autodesk sales and service awards.

Check out more of Doron's work at unrealvfx.com.