BLU-RAY: MORE THAN A SHINY NEW DISC
How to Leverage the Latest High-Definition Video Platform

The Blu-ray Disc (BD) format achieved the status of next-generation DVD platform in early 2008, besting the Toshiba-led HD-DVD format.  In addition to offering a high-definition video experience, the BD format includes online extensions, through its BD Live, that create a new interactive environment for producers and consumers alike.  The benefits of Blu-ray, which is resident in the Sony PlayStation 3 game system, are inherently multi-platform: this is more than another optical disc format, it is an experience that brings us closer to truly immersive home entertainment.

This panel will demonstrate the unique features of the format, and detailing the techniques that producers need to know in working with this emerging format.

Panelists:
Brian Mackewich, VP/Audio & Video Post Supervisor, Gizmo Enterprises
Brian has been involved in the television, film and professional audio industries for more than twenty years as post-production mixer, film sound designer and post-supervisor. TNT, Miramax, Panasonic, U2 (complete Super Bowl package), IFC, New Wave Entertainment, The Weinstein Company, The Sigma Group, Food Network, Comedy Central, BBC, and Loki Films are all recent clients of Gizmo.

Christopher Ticknor, Manager, Business Development, Sony DADC
Christopher works with a wide variety of clients on behalf of Sony DADC, including Criterion Collection, Paramount, Warner Brothers, Sony, MGM, HBO, CBS, MTV, A&E, PBS, and Universal Studios.  He was a producer at Giant Interactive, and a freelance digital media producer after having served as production manager at Zoetrope Aubry Productions.

Brian V. Murphy, Regional Manager North America, Professional Products Group, Sonic Solutions
Sonic’s products range from the advanced authoring systems used to produce Hollywood DVD and Blu-ray Disc titles to the award-winning Roxio-branded photo, video, music, and digital-media management applications. Sonic’s patented technologies and AuthorScript® media engine are relied upon by leading technology firms to define rich media experiences on a wide array of consumer electronics, mobile devices, set-top players, retail kiosks, and PCs.

Moderator: Brian Brodeur, PGA NMC Board of Delegates; Founder of NewYorkDVD
Brian has been working in the DVD authoring industry since the format’s inception in 1997.  While at DigiRom, he worked with early DVD technology and established one of New York City’s first DVD authoring suites, working closely with major record labels.  In 2001, Brodeur established NewYorkDVD, focusing on music DVD productions, including titles with leading music educational publishers. In 2006, NewYorkDVD was awarded the DVD Association’s Excellence Award for Music DVD development of Neil Peart’s “Anatomy of a Drum Solo” educational title. The double-disc set featured over 6 hours of widescreen footage, animated menus, and multi-angle video.

Thursday, January 29 at 7pm
Media Distributors
645 West 27th Street
www.mediadistributors.com
Wine networking mixer prior to panel