Colorfront unveils cutting-edge innovations for remote, color-accurate 4K HDR postproduction at HPA 2022

olorfront (www.colorfront.com), the Academy, Emmy and HPA Award-winning developer of high-performance dailies/transcoding systems for motion pictures, broadcast, OTT and commercials – is showing breakthrough features on Streaming Server and Streaming Player, its popular, cost-effective, live-streaming systems that deliver secure, sub-second latency and reference-quality pictures and audio for remote synchronous review, during the 2022 HPA Tech Retreat, taking place from February 21–24, in Rancho Mirage, CA.

These advances include: the trailblazing capability of Streaming Server/Player to enable the end-to-end review of reference-quality, frame/color-accurate, HDR Dolby Vision material via public internet; plus a special preview of Streaming Server Mini, a brand new, software-only product that allows creatives to live-stream material directly from popular NLE, compositing and color grading systems, without the need for additional hardware.

Launched and honored at HPA in 2021, Streaming Server is packaged in a 1RU form factor and can simultaneously stream up to four channels of 4K 4:4:4, 256-bit, AES-encrypted, reference-quality video, plus up to 16-channels of 24-bit AAC or PCM audio, to remote clients anywhere in the world over readily-available public internet. On the remote client/review side, Streaming Player enables color-accurate viewing and QC of HDR materials emanating from Streaming Server on a range of professional 4K reference displays, prosumer screens, and HDR capable notebooks, tablets, and smart phones.

Using footage shot by DP Claudio Miranda ASC at 8.6K on the brand-new Sony Venice 2, Colorfront will demonstrate the ease with which 4K Dolby Vision HDR material can now be streamed and reviewed with color-accuracy at various target luminance levels on different professional and consumer displays, including a Sony BVM-HX310 professional reference monitor, Apple Pro XDR display, the latest M1 iPad Pro and MacBook Pro M1Max notebooks with Liquid Retina XDR screens, as well as iPhone 12/13 Pro with Super Retina XDR screens.

The company will also preview its forthcoming Streaming Server Mini software-only solution, which can be easily installed and run on the same workstations that creative artists use to perform editorial, compositing and color-grading tasks. Using Streaming Server Mini, work-in-progress content can be easily streamed to stakeholders, wherever they are around the world.

Since launching in 2021, Colorfront’s Streaming Server and Streaming Player have taken Hollywood by storm. Major studios, OTTs and post-production facilities – including Warner Bros, Disney, Fox, HBO, Netflix, Light Iron and Streamland Media – have already adopted the solution for their high-end streaming needs across different locations, countries and time zones.

“Until now, remote collaboration on HDR projects has been a real, global, industry challenge,” said Aron Jaszberenyi, Managing Director at Colorfront. “However, as our HDR / Dolby Vision remote streaming demonstrations at HPA 2022 will show, Colorfront’s latest innovations remove the roadblock to high-end collaboration completely, by delivering spectacular end-to-end picture quality, and all-important color-fidelity, on a convenient display device-of-choice – LED wall, cinema projector, broadcast monitor, notebook, tablet or smart phone. Our exciting initiative with Streaming Server Mini software will further open-up new and more efficient ways for creative artists to engage with their clients.”

Quanta, a leading post-production house with facilities in Brazil, Argentina and the US, has adopted Colorfront Streaming Server to support remote collaboration between its color-grading teams and clients working across its São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires and Miami sites, on UHD projects for Netflix, Paramount and HBO.

“We have retired our previous, outdated and significantly more expensive, single-channel streaming systems in favor of Colorfront technology,” said Hugo Gurgel, Managing Director at Quanta. “The pristine picture quality, low latency and ease-of-use over broadband internet delivered by Colorfront, mean that we no longer have to spend time transferring footage between offices, and our creative artists and clients have a new level of ability and agility to work together on projects.”

In further news, Bruno Munger, Colorfront Director of Business Development, will take part in a special Light Iron stage presentation and panel discussion during HPA 2022, focusing on Biosphere, a feature that was shot and post-produced using a complete cloud-based workflow, where dailies deliveries were enabled by instances of Colorfront Express Dailies processing footage on Amazon AWS.

“Two years after Colorfront participated in HPA’s ground-breaking “The Lost Lederhosen” concept for cloud-based workflow,” said Munger, “Biosphere is a prefect example of how cost-effective and viable end-to-end cloud-based production and post really is today.” BCS Bureau