SMPTE® has set the full event lineup for its annual technical conference and exhibition, a forum for the exploration of media and entertainment technology. SMPTE 2019 will be held Oct. 21-24 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites in downtown Los Angeles.
SMPTE VP of education Sara J. Kudrle will co-chair the SMPTE 2019 technical program committee along with Thomas Edwards, VP of engineering and development at Fox.
A redesigned conference schedule this year features concurrent sessions on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Over those three days, 40 papers will address topics including machine learning and artificial intelligence technology in professional content creation; new compression techniques and implementations; putting SMPTE ST 2110 into practice; leveraging SMPTE ST 2110 for live production; cinema processing and projection technology; the cloud; advances in audio; standards-based security in collaborative media spaces; 8K, 4K, UHD, HDR, and high frame rates; perceptual color quality metrics; new production workflows; and access and the global community of technology. Thursday, the final day of the conference, will be “Space Day.”
In addition to a wealth of technical sessions and exhibitions of advanced technologies, SMPTE 2019 will include special events, including sponsored “pop-up” happy hours that offer numerous opportunities for face-to-face interaction among attendees, exhibitors, and speakers.
The SMPTE 2019 All-Access Pass includes all conference sessions, as well as admission to the exhibition, the daily rooftop buffet lunch, and the Opening Night BBQ. Attendees with this registration package will also receive access to download available papers and presentations from the conference sessions. Tickets for other special events may be added during registration at an additional cost.
The SMPTE 2019 Daily Pass includes admission to the conference sessions, exhibition, and buffet lunch for the day(s) selected. Tickets for special events may be added during registration at an additional cost.
The SMPTE 2019 Exhibits-Only Pass is free for students and SMPTE Members this year. It includes admission only to the exhibition. Tickets for special events may be added during registration.
Complete information about SMPTE 2019, including a detailed schedule and registration, is available here.
Music Biopics Get Creative At Toronto Film Festival
Many of the expected conventions of music biopics are present in "Piece by Piece," about the producer-turned-pop star Pharrell Williams, and "Better Man," about the British singer Robbie Williams. There's the young artist's urge to break through, fallow creative periods and regrettable chapters of fame-addled excess. But there are a few, little differences. In "Piece by Piece," Pharrell is a Lego. And in "Better Man," Williams is played by a CGI monkey. If the music biopic can sometimes feel a little stale in format, these two movies, both premiering this week at the Toronto International Film Festival, attempt novel remixes. In each film, each Williams recounts his life story as a narrator. But their on-screen selves aren't movie stars who studied to get a part just right, but computer-generated animations living out real superstar fantasies. While neither Williams has much in common as a musician, neither has had a very traditional career. Their films became reflections of their individuality, and, maybe, a way to distinguish themselves in the crowded field of music biopics like "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "Rocketman." "This is about being who you are, even if it's not something that can be put in a box," Pharrell said in an interview Tuesday alongside director Morgan Neville. Also next to Pharrell: A two-foot-tall Lego sculpture of himself, which was later in the day brought to the film's premiere and given its own seat in the crowd. The experience watching the crowd-pleasing "Piece by Piece," which Focus Features will release Oct. 11, can be pleasantly discombobulating. A wide spectrum of things you never expected to see in Lego form are animated. Virginia Beach (where Pharrell grew up). An album of Stevie Wonder's "Songs in the Key of Life."... Read More