Market Consolidation vs. Innovation

In a recent article by Studio Daily, it was rumored that Adobe could make a competitive bid for The Foundry and its line of production products (Frazer, 2015).   The company’s owner, The Carlyle Group, is expected to set the price for any potential sale of the company at an estimated $304 million, which would represent a significant investment for Adobe.  The silver lining in this acquisition is that it would represent an emerging trend within the entertainment industry regarding mergers and acquisitions and how they affect innovation regarding content creators.  As seen in recent work such as Gone Girl and films produced by David Fincher & the Coen Brothers, Adobe’s Premiere Pro software and other brand products have made significant inroads within Hollywood and major feature film productions (Frazer, 2015). 

The brands of The Foundry could significantly impact the world of entertainment for budding artists if Adobe is able to leverage such products as Modo, Katana, Mari, and Nuke.  From a 3D animation standpoint, the integration of Modo within the Adobe Creative Cloud suite could prove problematic, unless the company can integrate its use with other products such as Photoshop, Illustrator, and After Effects (Bennett, 2015).  This would allow Adobe to compete in a market that is currently dominated primarily by Autodesk.  Additionally the acquisition of the Nuke brand would allow the Adobe brand to be gain a level of notoriety that it currently does not receive by owning the product used for create Oscar-winning visual effects on Gravity, which is simpler for both businesses and consumers to understand as suggested by (Bennett, 2015).

             

The most significant impact this acquisition would have on the entertainment in general relates to innovation.  By purchasing The Foundry, Adobe could increase its current pricing model for the Creative Cloud services.  How this would affect sales is unknown at the moment; however the leap in the technology that the company could offer would seriously enhance the quality of content produced by its users.  For the first time beginner level, novice, and intermediate level artists, animators, and producers would have access to industry level tools at an affordable cost.  This would allow content production to expand exponentially and remove the barriers of entry to one of the most profitable economic sectors in the global economy.

References
Bennett, N. (2015). Will Adobe buy The Foundry? Why it could be great for After Effects users but terrible for Nuke. Digital Arts. Retrieved from http://www.digitalartsonline.co.uk/news/motion-graphics/will-adobe-buy-foundry-why-it-could-be-great-for-after-effects-users-but-terrible-for-nuke/

Frazer, B. (2015). Report: Adobe May Buy The Foundry. Studio Daily. Retrieved from http://www.studiodaily.com/2015/04/report-adobe-looking-buy-foundry/

Immortality vs. Reproduction

In the film Lucy by Luc Besson and Virginie Silla, the audience is presented with a scientific theory regarding life.  This theory states that a cell will chose immortality over reproduction depending on whether the environment is considered favorable or unfavorable, with regard to supporting life  (Silla & Besson, 2014).  As I pondered this question I tried to draw a correlation to the worlds of art and technology.  In his Ted Talk, Chris Anderson refers to a trend he calls crowd accelerated innovation (Anderson, 2010).  This theory states that innovation has become driven by mass consumption due to the ease of sharing data, art, technology, design, etc. over the Internet.  Anderson states that the three components needed to create this spark of ingenuity are 1) the crowd or audience, 2) light or the recognition of the skill sets contained within the crowd, and 3) desire, defined as the passion to create (Anderson, 2010). 

In his Ted Talk from 2012, John Maeda suggests that art, technology, and design are supposed to be enigmatic and not easily understood (Maeda, 2012).  In essence each innovative creation should tell the story of the final product or service.  As we have seen innovation is solely based on expanding upon a former creation in order to improve upon the original creation or to alter its use and function for a completely different purpose.  Maeda summarizes this trend as living between the “dirt” and the “cloud” (Maeda, 2012).  These traits also point to an interesting concept as it relates to leadership.  In the modern world leaders will be required to become interactive with not only their workforce, but also with their consumer base.  Additionally factors such as the validity a company’s products and services, risk taking, openness to unlimited feedback, and the need to be viewed as “real” will drive the consumer market moving forward (Maeda, 2012). 

As it pertains to my personal journey, these lessons will dictate the behavior of my company within the entertainment industry.  It is not enough to simply create stunning visuals, animations or short films, each creation must tell a compelling story that resonates with the intended audience on an emotional level.  These stories must serve to exemplify the company brand identity and strengthen it by allowing the audience to become part of the open system on which the organization is built.  In this manner, the company can achieve sustained relevance and longevity within the entertainment industry.

References

Chris Anderson (Producer). (2010, July): How web video powers global innovation. Ted Talk. Retrieved April 24, 2015 from

http://www.ted.com/talks/chris_anderson_how_web_video_powers_global_innovation?language=en#t-185901

John Maeda (Producer). (2012, June): How art, technology and design inform creative leaders. Ted Talk. Retrieved April 24, 2015 from

http://www.ted.com/talks/john_maeda_how_art_technology_and_design_inform_creative_leaders

Silla, V. (Producer), & Besson, L. (Director). (2014). Lucy [Motion picture]. United States: Universal Pictures

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2872732/

Development - Tell Me A Story And Make It A Good One

Brian Kindregan - Lead Writer Blizzard Entertainment

 The topic of this week’s post will focus on the development phase of a production project.  In general, the development phase of any film, motion picture, broadcast episode, or short begins with the creation of an initial concept and script for the project.  After this phase the project generally moves towards the development of the characters to be portrayed within the work.  Within the entertainment industry, many professionals have agreed that this phase of production is the most critical and important part of creating a successful project.  During this phase, opportunities to examine plot holes and inconsistencies in the story are viewed with minimal scrutiny.  As the project progresses and even after distribution, ignoring these issues can provide ammunition for critics as so called “gotcha” moments, in which the logical progression of the work is torn apart to reveal inconsistencies within the plot, characters, or production of the work as suggested by Brian Kindregan, Lead Writer for Blizzard Entertainment.  

Cris De Lara - Illustrator, Pinup Artist, & Owner Cris De Lara Studios

Regarding character development, the key trait for any character in a story is to portray a portion of the overall message that the creator is attempting to convey to his or her audience.  For dramatic storytelling characters will often be portrayed as brooding, manipulative, or cunning.  In comedies characters are depicted often times as witty, clueless, or sarcastic.  Action adventure characters are portrayed as tough, roguish, or calculating, and so on.  In written storytelling, each character archetype is dependent on the underlying theme or message for the project they are featured in and it is therefore important that when developing these personalities that each segment of the message that they represent be fully articulated in their personalities, mannerisms, actions, and dialogue.  This principle also applies to the film, television, and motion picture industry as well as the message or theme of the production is the key factor that generates the underlying entertainment value of the project.  Several examples can be given of projects that contained spectacular visuals and appealing characters, but that were ultimately unsuccessful due to a flat storyline or message.  In order to create a successful project, a creator must capture his or her audience with a spectacle so compelling that it would ultimately be a “sin” not to view the project for the sake of sheer entertainment.