INDUSTRY

PALO ALTO, Calif.--HP today announced the latest milestone in its technology partnership with DreamWorks SKG with the unveiling of Shrek 4-D, an animated, three-dimensional Universal Theme Park attraction featuring the characters from the Academy award-winning movie "Shrek." Setting new benchmarks in the world of digital animation with cutting-edge HP rendering technology, DreamWorks has created an interactive experience that debuted May 23 at Universal Studios Hollywood, and opens June 12 at Universal Studios Orlando, and June 20 at Universal Studios Japan. Forming a bridge between the original movie and the full-length sequel "Shrek 2," now in production, Shrek 4-D relies heavily on HP technology to capture three-dimensional (3D) animation that takes audiences to new heights. The 12-minute, multi-sensory, ride film is synchronized with breakthrough stereoscopic visual effects to create an immersive experience never before achieved. PDI/DreamWorks used high-performance HP Linux-based workstations and industry-standard HP servers to achieve new benchmarks for visual complexity while helping to lower production costs by allowing for shorter production schedules. The speed and performance of the HP solutions helped to free the 60 artists and engineers from the traditional technical limitations of digital animation allowing them to focus more on creating compelling imagery for the project. "HP technology enabled PDI/DreamWorks to meet or exceed the artistic ambition for the Shrek 4-D project and allowed our artists to, once again, raise the bar in creating richer, more visually compelling story telling," said Ed Leonard, head of Animation Technology, DreamWorks SKG. "From the beginning, HP recognized our vision for Shrek 4-D, and our need for a technology partner that understood our goals and our business, and could push the digital animation process to new limits." "Having an aggressive production timeline and production schedule for the completion of Shrek 4-D presented a unique opportunity to leverage HP's best-in-class technology for achieving best-in-class digital content creation in 3-D," said Shane Robison, chief technology officer, HP. "HP technology provided DreamWorks with the additional power, speed and flexibility to try new techniques and workflows throughout the process -- which we believe reflects a great technology partnership and ultimately led to a successful production." In an effort to redefine the art of filmmaking, DreamWorks and HP formed a technology partnership in 2001 to explore new frontiers that enable creative collaboration. The alliance designated HP as DreamWorks' preferred technology provider for core technology purchases. HP supplies technical workstations, servers, printers, networking and Linux technologies as DreamWorks develops its newest animation projects. With "Shrek 2" opening in summer 2004, movie-goers will see a variety of creative and technical advances in 3D animation enabled by industry-standard HP ProLiant servers and HP visualize workstations.