UK software developer The Foundry will showcase Furnace, a toolset it has developed for Apple's Shake compositing and visual effects system, at IBC in September, writes Barbara Marshall
Furnace helps film compositors correct common problems when working on film effects shots. It is currently in the alpha phase of testing and is the result of two years spent working closely with film effects houses in London such as the Moving Picture Company (MPC) doing research and development.MPC senior compositor Angela Barson described the results as 'amazing' when Furnace was used on some of the most difficult wire removal shots in the Jackie Chan movie Highbinders. 'It is excellent at dealing with fast action shots which would normally require a lot of painstaking paintwork. Our wire removal team now regularly uses Furnace and it is saving us weeks of time.'The Foundry partner Simon Robinson said: 'We have taken a common class of problems and gone a long way towards solving them.'Furnace for Shake is due to be released later this year and is likely to be ported for use on other compositing platforms in the future.

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