WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - Wētā FX (www.wetafx.co.nz) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with AMD to explore development of next-generation rendering and AI tools to optimize visual effects workflows. The MOU sets the framework for both companies to engage in a number of aspects of visual effects, with the intent to improve the process of creating the highly detailed worlds that make for great cinematic stories.
Weta is based in Wellington, with creative hubs in Vancouver and Melbourne. The studio has earned seven visual effects Academy Awards, 16 Academy Sci-Tech Awards and seven visual effects BAFTA Awards, in addition to 58 Visual Effects Society Awards. Some of its credits include performance-driven animated creatures and characters such as Gollum, Kong, Neytiri, Caesar and Pogo, as well as for the universes they inhabit.
AMD has a history of driving innovation via its high-performance computing, graphics and visualization technologies. The partnership will include using new, power efficient, software leveraging modern compute architectures to power the next generation of technology used to capture and transfer actor performances to fantastical creatures in an on-set environment. It will also build on the history of deep image processing at Wētā FX to create an extended array of tools that can be used to unlock and accelerate the emerging field of volumetric workflows.
"As the demands for creating cutting-edge visuals continue to grow in today’s biggest stories, we are proud to work alongside Weta FX — a studio renowned for its extraordinary talent and relentless drive to define the frontier of next-generation tools and technology," shares John Canning, director of strategic partnerships, M&E, at AMD. "Together, we are helping shape the future of cinematic storytelling through breakthrough innovation and artistry."
“Wētā FX has always been at the forefront of technology innovations that serve our storyteller clients best, bringing their visions to life for audiences around the world to enjoy,” notes Daniel Seah, Wētā FX CEO. “By partnering with AMD, we look forward to leveraging the potential that AI brings to artists in the movie-making process.”
Kimball Thurston, CTO at Wētā FX, adds “AMD has powered our CGI rendering for years. With this MOU, we are looking to create tools for the next generation of storytelling as we integrate AI into an artist-centric creative experience.”