NetApp Boosts Image Engine

SUNNYVALE, Calif. -- NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP - News) today announced that Image Engine, an Emmy awardwinning visual effects producer, has turned to NetApp to set new standards for high-definition digital media workflow based on NetApp Data ONTAP GX. Data ONTAP GX systems are fully integrated, multinode solutions designed to meet the needs of the most demanding applications in high-performance computing and digital media workflows, providing customers with significant network performance improvement and cost savings.

Image Engine, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, has more than 13 years of experience providing digital visual effects for television programs such as Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis. With a history of television effects accomplishments, Image Engine established a film division and has found continued success providing effects for Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Slither, Blades of Glory, and Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium. However, this move to film, as well as continued work in high-definition television, led to new challenges in data rendering and storage management. Technological limitations in the company’s production pipeline also bred artistic challenges.

“We really noticed that the technology that had been adequate for standard definition TV was no longer adequate for film,” said Peter Muyzers, chief operating officer at Image Engine. “With film, HD resolution, and the increased storage requirements involved, you have to measure how fast you want to pull a frame off a central server and present it to an artist’s desktop. Speed is usually tied to an increased cost, but Data ONTAP GX successfully satisfied our needs for both performance and cost-effectiveness.”

Network Appliance Inc.