FotoKem, the Burbank-based post-production company, has opened a new office in New Orleans to support local productions and provide quick deployment of its award-winning nextLAB services and expertise. The new downtown location near the French Quarter provides a range of industry post production services and support with an infrastructure for file-based dailies, file delivery services and offline editorial systems. FotoKem is currently working with multiple television productions and feature films in the region.
The expansion into New Orleans is being overseen by industry veteran Peter Santoro, FotoKem’s VP of Feature and Commercial Services.
“FotoKem customers shooting in the region have prompted this expansion,” says FotoKem VP Mike Brodersen. “The need for local, file-based post production and location mobile services is growing as the state enjoys record-breaking production stimulated by tax incentive programs. We are looking forward to helping filmmakers streamline post in the southeast region with nextLAB and experienced on-ground staff.”
According to the state’s film office, Louisiana offers a 30 percent transferable incentive for total n-state expenditures related to the production of a motion picture. An additional 5 percent labor incentive can be earned on the payroll of Louisiana residents that are employed by a state certified motion picture production. The incentives are fully transferable and Louisiana has no limit to the amount of incentives that can be earned by a single production.
FotoKem offers a broad spectrum of services, including file-based workflows, 3D digital intermediates, digital cinema packages, mobile dailies, global data delivery, film and video finishing, audio mixing and mastering, visual effects, full service film lab, restoration, and production rentals.
Tom Vice, VP and GM of nextLAB, a division of FotoKem, says, “Over the past two years nextLAB has been deployed on a wide range of productions around the world, from Burbank to Beijing and back. The file-based workflow is increasingly entrenched in the filmmaking process, and the need for powerful and reliable tools grows exponentially. Last year over a 100 projects were shot in Louisiana, and predictions for this year are on pace to surpass that. We are excited to bring our decades of post production experience to the region, and provide local support for one of the most advanced tools the industry has to offer.”
The nextLAB division of FotoKem focuses on developing new and efficient workflows of the highest quality while addressing the unique challenges of the various digital camera technologies on the market. The industry experts in this group are dedicated to helping filmmakers understand the intricacies of RAW and data-centric post production, and guide their projects through the most effective path possible. They have developed proprietary file-based workflow software that securely stores media, archives to LTO, and provides quality control tools, offering access to metadata, audio syncing, color management, and transcoding.
FotoKem’s nextLAB Mobile systems are built on nextLAB software, and consist of integrated, portable units that bring powerful post production capabilities on set or near location. An extension of the company’s in-house technological advancements and professional services, nextLAB Mobile units can be deployed to assist with streamlining workflow and the dailies process and providing fast delivery to editorial and finishing. Launched in 2009, nextLAB Mobile won the 2010 HPA Post Alliance Award for Creativity and Innovation.
FotoKem has provided customized nextLAB solutions for the feature, television and commercial industry, including the upcoming films Rampart, Jeff Who Lives at Home, Haywire, and Man With the Iron Fists, as well as the TV shows Californication, Homeland, New Girl, the Law & Order family of programs, and dozens of commercials, among many other examples.
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