Following VRFocus’ report on the reveal of Film Engine earlier this month, Cevat Yerli, President and CEO of Crytek, has today announced a new independent company and a new technology designed exclusively for film. Film Engine will provide filmmakers and virtual reality (VR) storytellers with real-time cinematic production software, aiming to reduce the time and resources necessary to create top-quality visual effects and CG animation films.
Film Engine can be used for everything from pre-vis, post-vis, and pitch-vis to final production for film, television, commercials, animation and visual effects. It also incorporates the motion capture, camera tracking, digital camera and lighting technologies into an end-to-end filmmaking software suite.
Jean-Colas Prunier, Film Engine’s Creative Director and visual effects veteran of films such as Avatar, The Lord of the Rings, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Life of Pi, first met Cevat Yerli in 2014. The two have since worked together to develop a solution to many of the problems faced by filmmakers.
“We realized that by combining our visions, we could create something that was greater than the sum of its parts. By addressing the needs of filmmakers with the technology of the games industry, we were able to create an entirely new cinematic production tool that will completely change the way the industry works, [sic]” Prunier said of their work together.
Development of the first Film Engine prototype began in 2008 at Crytek. While videogame engines can be powerful tools for cinematic work they lack some of the features necessary for traditional film industry workflows. Work started on a prototype called Cinebox, which was evaluated by more than 300 production companies and used on feature films such as Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and The Maze Runner. Feedback from first-hand industry experience powered continuing development and inspired the team to re-write the Cinebox software from the ground up and create a new company.
Film Engine is currently undergoing a closed beta testing phase, aiming to have the launch version, 1.0, ready ‘in the next few months’. Parties interested in evaluating or using the technology can contact Film Engine at info@filmengine.com. VRFocus will keep you updated with all the latest details on Film Engine, as well as Crytek’s CryEngine V.
