Outlook: New data center supports remote editorial
Larry Chernoff
Issue: November/December 2020

Outlook: New data center supports remote editorial

Since the pandemic appeared, many people in post production have been working remotely. It’s now become obvious that remote workflows will continue, even after COVID-19 wanes. MTI believes that a hybrid between remote and on-premises work will be the new norm in post production. 

In addition to the measures we’ve taken to facilitate our online and color correction sessions, we’ve responded by building a remote data center to support offline editors and assistant editors working from remote locations. The center now has 65 editors and assistants working from home since early September. A planned expansion in 2021 to over 150 Avids will begin in January. 

Beyond its function as a health and safety measure, remote work has many advantages. It’s convenient, allowing editors to work when and where they want. Producers can review the work from any location of their choosing, so long as they have a modest internet connection. Remote work also adds significant quality of life benefits. You don’t need to commute to work in the morning and, when you finish working, you don’t have to drive home. You’re already home.

In building our remote center, we’ve applied technologies to make the process more efficient. Assistant editors connected to our remote center have access to MTI’s transcoding software Cortex. It allows them to render media in multiple formats simultaneously, saving hours of redundant work. Acting on user input, we have also adapted Cortex to facilitate “single-step” VFX pulls that merge Avid EDLs containing VFX markers into Cortex timelines — another significant timesaver. 

I believe we will see many more such innovations in the year ahead that further optimize remote workflows and improve collaboration across all facets of post production. 

Larry Chernoff is CEO at MTI Film (www.mtifilm.com) in Hollywood.