Rumors of Big Waves at AlphaDogs Post Production

Burbank, CA—Burbank based AlphaDogs Post Production is pleased to announce completion of work on the movie Rumors that will be premiering November 18 at 8:00 p.m. at the Lido Theater in Newport Beach. Rumors is a cinematic journey into Mexico’s deepest surf scene that follows 5 world-renowned individuals on a surfing adventure into some of Mexico’s most remote beaches.

Producer Mark Kronemeyer chose AlphaDogs as their post facility based on their reputation for providing quality work with personalized service. Kronemeyer comments; “The main thing we liked about AlphaDogs was that despite not really knowing anyone there we immediately felt comfortable working with everyone. There are many factors when working on a film such as budgets, deadlines, opinions, etc, but it seemed that the crews' main objective was not just to do business but also help to get the best possible result. We felt like part of a team, instead of just customers, which is really hard to find these days, in any industry.” Kronemeyer continues, “The final delivery was excellent, everything came out how we had visualized it, if not better. We would use AlphaDogs again, it's not often you find a good working environment and achieve excellent results at the same time.”

One of the challenges faced during post was matching footage of roughly 800 shots of assorted waves from around the world. The majority of the massive swells were shot during inclement weather creating a hazy environment. Veteran colorist Brian Hutchings was not only able to match the shots for continuity purposes, but also create a rich color palette conducive to the tropic feel of Mexico. Hutchings comments; “Our goal at AlphaDogs is to save the client money without sacrificing quality. Everyone here enjoys the satisfaction of creating a quality product.”

Finishing Editor Sean Stack provided tech support for the project while also isolating problematic footage and fixing it using a variety of tools. An example Stack gives involved some footage that was recorded incorrectly due to camera issues in production. This resulted in offset fields that gave a jagged edge appearance to the footage. He decided to use de-interlacing filters to successfully repair the shots.

AlphaDogs also provided DVD encoding and authoring services. VP of Design Sean Williams was faced with an extremely tight deadline for delivery to the DVD replication facility, and turned around a completed project in one day. Special emphasis was placed upon getting the best quality standard-definition encoding possible out of the client's HD source material.

The audio mix required that ambiance be created during segments that were only cut to music in offline. Due to a limited budget, this required a lot of creativity from Audio Mixer, Isai Espinoza. Since the filmmakers wanted a surround mix, Espinoza used the Waves 360 plugins to create a 5.1 surround environment and successfully sent the music to the rear channels without creating phase issues from stereo only music tracks. Pro Tools HD/2 and AlphaDogs extensive sound library was used to recreate ocean and beach atmosphere during the breaks between surf footage.

Rumors takes you deep inside Mexico into the world of surfing. Visits to secret spots such as the recently discovered “Lost Point” and many other secret hideaways of surf in the country are explored. For future premiere dates and to check out the trailer, go to www.RumorsTheMovie.com. Copies will also be available for purchase at www.GreenRoomSurf.com. Rumors is Directed by Mark Kronemeyer and Produced by Alistair Calderon & Mark Kronemeyer

For additional information please contact
Julie Leibovitz
(818) 456-4149
Julie(at)alphadogs.tv
www.alphadogs.tv

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About AlphaDogs—Founded in 2002, Burbank-based AlphaDogs, Inc. quickly established themselves as leaders and innovators in the rapidly changing digital post arena. The company maintains an early adopter's edge; testing and assimilating leading technologies to keep ahead of the pack with solutions such as the RED camera and were the first post house in Los Angeles to take delivery of the Avid Symphony HD editing system. Personal attention from a seasoned award-winning team assures client satisfaction accompanies each cost-effective delivery of superior post production services—including editing, color correction, 5.1 audio, motion graphics, visual effects, DVDs, media transfers, duplication, production offices, and system rentals with 24/7 tech support.

AlphaDogs is home to the popular Editors' Lounge and headquarters of the growing media transfer specialty service Digital Service Station; now serving California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois and Ohio. AlphaDogs is located at 1612 West Olive, Suite 200, Burbank, CA 91506.

Visit the AlphaDogs team at www.alphadogs.tv.

AlphaDogs Post Production Battles It Out In New Series For ESPNU

Burbank, CA- Burbank based AlphaDogs Post Production is pleased to announce it has completed work on the new ESPNU series The Battle. Presented by AT&T, the series will air five 30-minute shows during four straight weeks, every Thursday from November 4 to November 25, on ESPNU at 6:30pm EST.

Producer Eric Page faced extreme challenges to meet the deadlines for the show. AlphaDogs was chosen as the post facility based on their experience in providing creative and technical solutions in the fast paced world of television. Page comments; “The team at AlphaDogs is an affable bunch with top rate talent. General Manager, Paul De Cham runs a tight ship while creating an environment that makes you feel confident your production is being handled with care”. Page continues; “We are extremely pleased with the final product and would certainly be up for a second season under their roof. I would definitely take future projects to AlphaDogs. Terence Curren has a talented group and it was a great comfort to know this project was under their care”.

The tight turnaround of less than two weeks per one half hour episode necessitated a streamlined workflow. Since the client had already started editing in Final Cut Pro, the team at Alpha Dogs created a workflow with four Final Cut Pro systems on shared storage working at ProRes HQ so the locked episodes would be ready to send to Color. One of the challenges the post team faced was the wide array of mixed formats and frame rates. The majority of the footage was shot on the RED camera at 23.98-frame rate. In addition, a 7D and 5D were used at varying frame rates including 30P. The final master had to be delivered in 720P 60.

Projects can become corrupt quickly and cause delays if these types of situations are not handled efficiently. Finishing Editor Sean Stack used various proprietary techniques to convert the various footage to a common frame rate. High quality motion compensated techniques were also applied to remove the jitteriness and stuttering that can be caused with such conversions and in turn rejected by the network. Final color correction was achieved in Apple’s Color with veteran colorist Brian Hutchings at the helm. “The great thing about RED footage is the latitude available in post to pull out stunning images,” notes Hutchings.

Re-recording mixer Marcus Pardo utilized a Pro Tools HD2 system, with a plethora of plug-ins. In particular, the Waves Renaissance EQ’s and L2 limiters were used to deliver crisp dialog and a thumping soundtrack that was very important to the subject matter. Also, the Cedar DNS One is a crucial tool in his audio arsenal. With the DNS One, he was able to minimize background noise in real-time, without introducing digital artifacts. “With Pro Tools, Waves and the Cedar DNS One on my side, I can deliver exactly what clients envisioned, sonically”

The Battle is an inside look at the HBCU (Historically Black College and University) marching band world. Created by Music producer, fashion designer and filmmaker Dallas Austin who was also the executive producer and music director of the movie Drumline, the series picks up where the film left off. Band Director Donovan Wells conducts no holds barred military style methods in preparing the bands’ for competition. Bands of over 300 plus are required to learn over twenty songs with dance routines, military style formations and chants in between. The bands’ hard work will culminate at the 31st annual Florida Classic that pits the two Sunshine State rivals in an end-of-the-year showdown at the Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium in Orlando Saturday, Nov. 20, at 2:30 p.m. on ESPN Classic.

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About AlphaDogs Founded in 2002, Burbank-based AlphaDogs, Inc. quickly established themselves as leaders and innovators in the rapidly changing digital post arena. The company maintains an early adopters edge; testing and assimilating leading technologies to keep ahead of the pack with solutions such as the RED camera and were the first post house in Los Angeles to take delivery of the Avid Symphony HD editing system. Personal attention from a seasoned award-winning team assures client satisfaction accompanies each cost-effective delivery of superior post production services—including editing, color correction, 5.1 audio, motion graphics, visual effects, DVDs, media transfers, duplication, production offices, and system rentals with 24/7 tech support.

AlphaDogs is home to the popular Editors' Lounge and headquarters of the growing media transfer specialty service Digital Service Station; now serving California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois and Ohio. AlphaDogs is located at 1612 West Olive, Suite 200, Burbank, CA 91506.

Visit the AlphaDogs team on the web: www.alphadogs.tv.