MONTREAL, Oct 5, 2004 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Discreet, a division of Autodesk, Inc. (Nasdaq: ADSK) has sold two lustre(R) digital grading and colour correction systems in Norway to The Chimney Pot and Drylab. The Chimney Pot has bought Discreet's lustre 2.5 system for its Oslo facility and will be using it for the digital intermediate (DI) process of assembling, editing and colour grading commercials, music videos and TV productions. Drylab will use its lustre 2.5 system for colour grading feature films made in Norway.

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The Chimney Pot Oslo is a state-of-the-art post-production facility specialising in editing, sound design, telecine, special effects and motion graphics design for commercials, feature films, shorts and TV productions. The Chimney Pot has bought the lustre system as part of a dramatic change in its workflow from a telecine set-up to a DI set-up. The company is replacing its telecine suite with the lustre system and an ARRI scanner. It has already lined up 11 commercials and a drama series for the new suite.

"We evaluated virtually all the colour grading tools available and chose Discreet's lustre system for its colourist tools, user interface and I/O handling," said Martin Thorkildsen, managing director, The Chimney Pot Oslo. "It also integrates perfectly with our existing Discreet flame(R) and smoke(R) systems."

Drylab is the only digital laboratory for feature films in Norway. It provides the complete DI process for the Norwegian film industry including colour grading, special effects and conform work. Drylab will be putting its lustre system to use on Factotum, a film about the life of writer Charles Bukowski, produced by Jim Stark and directed by Bent Hamer, and on Tommy's Inferno -- a feature film produced by the Norwegian production company Friland.

"We looked at a number of different colour grading systems but decided on Discreet's lustre system because it fits perfectly into our workflow," said Nils J. Kittilsen, Drylab's managing director. "Features produced in Norway will be able to take advantage of technology that, until now, has only been used on a few international productions like Lord of the Rings. Producers and directors will change the way they plan their productions when they realise the benefits of using the DI process."

Discreet's lustre systems were sold to The Chimney Pot and Drylab by Kinovox, Discreet's systems reseller in Norway. Both facilities have purchased a lustre master station and a background renderer.

"We're delighted that both The Chimney Pot and Drylab have selected the lustre system," said Patrick Jocelyn, EMEA director at Discreet. "Both companies evaluated solutions from alternative vendors before deciding that the capabilities of the lustre system are best suited to their needs. This represents just the beginning of a growing trend toward digital film pipelines in Europe."

Discreet's lustre system is developed in conjunction with Colorfront, a Budapest-based software development company. The lustre system is installed in more than 20 film studios and post-production facilities around the world, including: ARRI Film & TV (Germany), Eclair Laboratories (France), Fotofilm (Madrid), Pixar Animation Studios (Emeryville, CA), Pacific Title & Art Studio (Los Angeles, CA), Sony Pictures Imageworks (Los Angeles, CA) and Technicolor Creative Services Hollywood (Los Angeles, CA).

About The Chimney Pot Oslo

Established in 1997, The Chimney Pot Oslo has been part of The Chimney Pot group since 1998. The Chimney Pot is the largest post-production company in the Scandinavian market and has offices in Oslo, Stockholm and Warsaw. For more information please visit www.chimney.no.

About Drylab

Drylab was established in January 2004 and is a unique cooperation between two of Norway's most experienced directors of photography, post-production professionals and researchers at Norsk Regnesentral (Norwegian Computing Centre). The company is part owned by The Chimney Pot. For more information please visit www.drylab.no.

About Discreet

Discreet empowers media professionals to realise the visual experience and transform their most evocative and ambitious visions into reality. Discreet's award-winning solutions are designed for digital media creation, management and delivery -- across all disciplines from film and television visual effects, colour grading and editing to animation, game development, web/interactive, and design visualisation. Discreet is based in Montreal, Quebec and is a division of Autodesk, Inc, the world's leading design and digital media creation, management, and distribution company. For more information please visit: www.discreet.com

NOTE: Discreet is a division of Autodesk, Inc. Autodesk, Discreet, lustre, flame, and smoke are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Autodesk, Inc./ Autodesk Canada Inc. in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders.

CONTACT: Roohi Saeed, Manager of Corporate Communications of Discreet Public Relations, +1-514-954-7296, or mobile, +1-514-961-7296, or roohi.saeed@discreet.com.

SOURCE Discreet

Roohi Saeed, Manager of Corporate Communications of Discreet Public Relations, +1-514-954-7296, or mobile, +1-514-961-7296, or roohi.saeed@discreet.com
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