Impact Film Sales hit eQ for 'Classic Artists' television series

London based Impact Film Sales Ltd has purchased an eQ editing/effects/grading/versioning system from Quantel to carry out the post production of its forthcoming ‘Classic Artists’ television series.
Prior to moving into the film business in the 1980s, Impact’s CEO, Jon Brewer was manager, friend and consultant to many rock acts in the 60s, 70s and 80s, including household names such as Yes, David Bowie, Alvin Lee & Ten Years After, Gerry Rafferty and Mick Taylor of the Rolling Stones.
The Classic Artists series, which is being produced and directed by Brewer, concentrates on one rock artist/band per programme. Impact will be producing five per year; the first batch covers Cream, The Moody Blues, Yes, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple, the second David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Motorhead and ZZ Top.
Each programme will be fronted by one of the members of the band in question – drumming legend Ginger Baker for Cream, for instance. “Our aim is to make the ultimate music series of all time,” said Brewer. “The classic rock years were magic times that really did change many young people’s lives forever, and they are looked back on with real fondness by millions of people. The stories need to be re-told accurately; if we don’t do this soon, the opportunity will be lost forever.”
The eQ proved to be the perfect tool for the job. Each programme freely mixes material that ranges from 8, 16 and 35mm film to digital Betacam and a plethora of current formats, including HD. “I doubt you could find a more perfect project for the eQ,” said Brewer. “Not only does its resolution co-existence allow us to mix different formats on the same timeline, but also its enormous range of facilities gives us all the tools we need to quickly homogenise the look and feel of the very different material into a coherent whole. This really is a one box does it all application – I see Quantel as a guardian angel to the independent producer: This technology keeps me firmly in control and makes it easy for me to produce exactly the result I want.”
The Classic Artists series has already been sold for distribution in Japan and Canada and will be broadcast on MTV/VH1 in the USA, and Brewer is looking to ink further deals in the near future. It will also be available on DVD.
Quantel. www.quantel.com
(SP/CL)