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Pixar Animation Studios Used Silicon Graphics Technology in the Production of "A Bug's Life" - 12/1998
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA (December 14, 1998) -- Silicon Graphics, Inc. (NYSE: SGI) today announced that its workstations played an important role in the production of the Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios new computer-animated feature "A Bug's Life."
"We used Silicon Graphics desktop workstations to model, render and animate the characters and sets that Pixar created in `Toy Story' and `A Bug's Life,'" said Ed Catmull, executive vice president and chief technical officer of Pixar. "SGI workstations provided the computing power our artists needed to bring these images to life."
Pixar created and co-produced "A Bug's Life" with Walt Disney Pictures using more than 150 dual-processor OCTANE® workstations and an Onyx2TM visual system. The powerful OCTANE desktop machines enabled multiple animators to create and manipulate complex animated characters simultaneously, saving time and making the artists more productive.
Pixar also relied on the Onyx2-based Digital Film Preview, the only system to instantly playback rendered footage during production which allowed the studio to preview rendered frames at film resolution without having to convert them to film, cutting expenses and reducing decision-making time.
"Silicon Graphics provided Pixar with leading-edge workstations that provided the critical levels of compute power required to bring organic animated characters to life and deliver an 'epic of miniature proportions,'" said Greg Estes, director of Entertainment and Media Marketing at Silicon Graphics. "Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios have raised the bar in computer generated films with the production of 'A Bug's Life.'"
Pixar Animation Studios combines creative and technical artistry to create original characters and stories in the new medium of three-dimensional computer animation. Pixar created and produced the first computer-animated feature film, the Academy-Award winning "Toy Story," and has recently entered into a partnership with The Walt Disney Company to finance, produce and distribute five computer animated feature films and related products. Pixar employs approximately 400 people. Pixar's stock is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol PIXR.
Silicon Graphics, Inc. is a leading supplier of visual computing and high-performance systems. The company offers the broadest range of products in the industry -- from low-end desktop workstations to servers and high-end supercomputers. Key industries include communications, energy, entertainment, government, manufacturing and sciences. Silicon Graphics and its subsidiaries have offices throughout the world and corporate headquarters in Mountain View, California.
Silicon Graphics and the Silicon Graphics logo are registered trademarks, and OCTANE and Onyx2 are trademarks, of Silicon Graphics, Inc. All other trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners.