Pixcom International Enhances Post-Production Workflow
Montreal-based post facility Pixcom International has upgraded its media workflow with a new EditShare XStream EFS 450 scale-out shared storage cluster, EFS 40NL near-line storage nodes, and Flow media asset management. The company, which provides technical services to Pixcom Productions, aims to streamline collaboration across its 22 Avid edit suites, 10 story edit stations, two DaVinci Resolve color grading rooms, and two compositing/graphics stations.
The team at Pixcom International has been using earlier generation EditShare storage solutions and was confident in their choice to re-invest in the company's technology. The new EFS 450 and 40NL nodes enable the team to leverage multiple people on a project without compromising system performance, according to Charles Laflamme, technical director at Pixcom International.
Efficient Media Management
The post facility uses the EFS 40NL nodes for ingesting incoming footage from various shoots and backing up files to EditShare's Ark Tape archiving solution. The team then down-converts files to a lower resolution and hosts them in the EFS 450 for screening in story edit rooms and offline editing. For easy access, the original footage is kept in the 40NL until the show is approved, at which point the final show is archived to LTO 7 along with the original content.
Laflamme notes that the EditShare EFS 40NL greatly simplifies the workflow by keeping all media in the EditShare ecosystem from start to finish. The team also makes extensive use of Flow media asset management, which enables them to log metadata and find files easily when needed again.
Collaborative Workflow
The post facility uses Flow Browse to screen proxies of files that are not on the EFS 40NL anymore without having to restore everything. This allows editors to choose exactly which files they want to work with and restore them right to their media space for integration into new projects. The team can also use those proxies for offline work, making it easier to collaborate with clients off-premises.
Laflamme concludes that the EditShare XStream EFS 450, EFS 40NL, and Flow have expanded and simplified the workflow, enabling Pixcom International to handle complex media-intensive projects more efficiently. The company's partnership with EditShare has also proven valuable in determining the best solutions for an uncompromising collaborative workflow.