Oscar Winner for Best Visual Effects 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' Shaped with Autodesk Technology

Oscar Winner for Best Visual Effects 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' Shaped with Autodesk Technology

Autodesk Applauds 81st Annual Academy Award Winners and Nominees

SAN RAFAEL, Calif., Feb. 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- For the 14th consecutive year, every film nominated for the Best Visual Effects Academy Award was shaped with Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADSK) digital filmmaking tools. Autodesk congratulates Matte World Digital for its Oscar-winning visual effects work on "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button".

"This year's Academy Award nominees continued to push digital imagery to new heights -- from intricate and complex computer-generated characters to pyrotechnical marvels to invisible effects so realistic they deceive the eye," said Marc Petit, senior vice president, Autodesk Media & Entertainment. "We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the artists and technologists who enthrall audiences with spectacular visuals. We are honored that these filmmakers utilize Autodesk digital technology from planning and previsualization right down to final grade."

Autodesk technology was used to shape Oscar-winning and Academy Awardnominated films in the following categories:

ACHIEVEMENT IN VISUAL EFFECTS
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
-- Oscar Winner--Matte World Digital, tasked with re-creating the early
20th century through Hurricane Katrina, created 3D environments, crowd
simulations and matte paintings using Autodesk 3ds Max as its main
tool with Autodesk Maya 3D modeling, animation and rendering software
complementing the work of some shots.
-- Asylum VFX used Maya, Autodesk Smoke finishing effects software,
Autodesk Inferno visual effects software and Autodesk Lustre digital
color grading system for 189 shots for the photoreal tugboat adventure
that included extensive water simulation, digital environments and a
computer-generated (CG) submarine.
-- Lola VFX created 100 age reduction and 200 make-up enhancement shots
using a combination of tools, including Inferno and the Autodesk Flame
system.
-- Evil Eye Pictures used Maya and Autodesk Combustion desktop
compositing software to integrate matte paintings and environmental
effects set in and around New Orleans.

"Iron Man"
-- Academy Award Nominee--Industrial Light & Magic brought the superhero
character and his nemesis to life using Maya for animating and
modeling the CG suits, as well as Inferno visual effects software as
part of its SABRE system for compositing over 400 shots.
-- Pixel Liberation Front worked on the film for 19 months, relying on
Maya to create reference models for extensive previsualization.
-- The Orphanage developed the thruster look and an exploding
mountainside using 3ds Max and used Maya for the Gulmira, Missile Test
and Stark Jet sequences.

"The Dark Knight"
-- Academy Award Nominee--Double Negative created the majority of visual
effects in this film, using a combination of proprietary tools and
Maya for most of the 2D and 3D work. Maya fluid dynamics helped shape
a helicopter crash sequence. Maya nCloth and Syflex Maya plug-ins were
used for cloth simulation of the Batsuit.
-- Academy Award Nominee--Framestore produced CG environments, CG doubles
and digital prosthetic makeup using in-house proprietary tools and
numerous Autodesk software applications, including Maya, Autodesk
Mudbox software, Autodesk Matchmover, Autodesk Movimento and Autodesk
Softimage 3D modeling, animation and rendering software.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
"Kung Fu Panda"
-- Academy Award Nominee--DreamWorks Animation SKG developed new tools
and workflows for this stereoscopic 3D film, using Maya for setting
and rigging stereoscopic cameras, building virtual sets and rendering.

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
"This Way Up"
-- Academy Award Nominee--Nexus used a combination of 3ds Max for
modeling and animation and Combustion for compositing, among other
tools, for this high-definition digital animated short.

"Oktapodi"
-- Academy Award Nominee--Gobelins, l'ecole de l'image, a team of six
students from the Paris-based school, created this short using Maya
for animation.

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
"Waltz With Bashir"
-- CinePostProduction, one of Europe's largest film labs, relied on Smoke
for the conform and online, Flame for visual effects, and Lustre for
digital color grading.

About Autodesk

Autodesk, Inc., is a world leader in 2D and 3D design software for the manufacturing, building and construction, and media and entertainment markets. Since its introduction of AutoCAD software in 1982, Autodesk has developed the broadest portfolio of state-of-the-art Digital Prototyping solutions to help customers experience their ideas before they are real. Fortune 1000 companies rely on Autodesk for the tools to visualize, simulate and analyze real-world performance early in the design process to save time and money, enhance quality and foster innovation. For additional information about Autodesk, visit www.autodesk.com.

Autodesk, AutoCAD, Combustion, Flame, Inferno, Lustre, Matchmover, Maya, Movimento, Mudbox, Smoke, Softimage and 3ds Max are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. Academy Award and Oscar are a registered trademarks of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product offerings and specifications at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document.

(C) 2009 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.

Contacts: Rama Dunayevich, 415 547-2472/ Karen Raz, 310 450-1482
Email: rama.dunayevich@autodesk.com/ karen@razpr.com

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Source: Autodesk, Inc.

CONTACT: Rama Dunayevich of Autodesk, Inc., +1-415-547-2472,
rama.dunayevich@autodesk.com; or Karen Raz, +1-310-450-1482, karen@razpr.com,
for Autodesk, Inc.

Web Site: http://www.autodesk.com/

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