American Cinematographer - July 2008 - 69

While synchronizing QuickTime-file playback for all users logged into a session, regardless of their location in the world, CineSync allows users to draw and write on their screens, with the results appearing simultaneously in front of everyone else in the session. Joyce’s recommendation and the recommendation of others on [The Dark Knight] who had used it, CineSync seemed to be the perfect tool. I’m actually not sure we could have done the post without it.” Visual-effects work on The Dark Knight began in January 2007. As Davis circumnavigated the world with the production, he used CineSync to stay in touch with his collaborators. “I used [CineSync] from Hong Kong, Chicago, L.A., London and Paris,” he says. “Wherever we were, I was able to stay in contact with the director and the vendors. It was my main communication with Buf. It really makes the world a much smaller place.” Each of the facilities involved acquired its own CineSync license. Davis and his crew orchestrated when sessions would happen, making sure everyone would have access to the sequences requiring review by posting them to a secure FTP site. McGregor notes this is crucial to both CineSync’s efficiency and the studio’s peace of mind: “During a CineSync session, the only information passing through the CineSync servers are the synchronization commands. The CineSync server sees someone drawing an arrow or writing a note or hitting the play button, and it then instantaneously instructs all the other clients to do the same. It doesn’t require much bandwidth because it’s not trying to stream the media or push huge amounts of data around. It has been embraced by the studios because it means they retain control over the distribution of their clips.” Working at QuickTime resolutions suited The Dark Knight ’s review sessions, according to Davis. “Our focus was really on content — do you like the layout of this shot? Do you like the animation? Do you like where we’re taking it? When it came to analyzing anything on another level” — such as color and contrast — “we did that on film.” In addition to eliminating the need for collaborators to gather in front of one monitor, CineSync’s QuickTime support and smaller file sizes speeds the dialogue between facilities by creating a faster option than uploading and downloading higher-resolution footage to and from an FTP. “It saves time, and at the end of the day, that’s one thing you can never buy back,” Davis concludes. McGregor notes that the new CineSync Pro expands the program’s functionality by “allowing users to review stereoscopic material, both projected and also on the desktop, and to output mono and stereo HD images to a projector or monitor. It also has synchronized color, aspect-ratio and masking controls; 3-D LUT [look-up table] support; a standalone offlineannotation mode for marking up 69 Screen grabs courtesy of RSR and Warner Bros.

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American Cinematographer - July 2008

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - July 2008