Customer Quotes

"As we commenced work on The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, the Weta Camera department was happy to be back in Middle-earth working with the software that helped us through our first journey on The Lord of The Rings trilogy.

Working in stereo can create some unique challenges but the 3D-Equalizer stereo work flow is now so well implemented that we haven’t had to rely on only experienced crew to deliver top quality stereo shots. When a stereo shot becomes difficult to solve due to lack of tracking markers on the set, we can create an 'animated survey' by tracking a character through multiple synchronized 'witness' cameras and use this to help solve the production stereo camera. Tracking moving objects and characters through multiple synchronized 'witness' cameras and the production camera creates accurate, natural-looking motion capture data that speeds up our match animation and object tracking process.

Technology and expectations have changed a lot over the last decade and half and to be a company helping make those changes, not just keep up with them, you need the right people and the right tools. 3D-Equalizer has stayed ahead of the curve with innovation and support that has helped us to do the same."

Lee Bramwell - Camera Supervisor, Weta Digital

"With many of the films and productions we work on each year, 3DEqualizer4 is always an invaluable tool for the many complex tracking stereoscopic shots we had to complete in a very constrained amount of time. This latest build —3DE Release 2— is proving to offer significant advancements that will help us better synchronize multiple camera shots for precise motion capture control data, with customized workflows and an extremely user-definable interface that will fit any working style.

Powered with over 100 new Python scripting commands, 3DE4 Release 2 will allow us to leverage the industry’s best dynamic 'real time' lens distortion systems, to achieve accurate integration (even in stereoscopic) with increasingly complex and difficult zoom shots. Being able to view undistorted footage in real-time is a great advantage while doing line-up and increases productivity on shots."

Jigesh Gajjar - Head of Matchmove Dept, MPC

"We’ve been using 3DEqualizer4 for six years now. For this period of time the software has demonstrated to be an extremely strong and useful tool in solving complex shots.
One of the reasons we find 3DE4 invaluable for our film projects is the fact that the Python integration allowed us to create an in-house set of tools through which we can easily transfer the solved tracking data across the various applications in our pipeline.

3DEqualizer4’s particularly valuable advantages when dealing with otherwise impossible shots are its capability to lock individual translation channels in camera constraints and to set weight to arbitrary points – definitely fantastic features."

Peter Tomov - Head of Matchmove Department, WWFX

"The incredibly powerful and accurate way 3DE4 Release 2 handles animated lens distortion, stereo, anamorphic and zoom lenses combined with its ever improving robust calculation core make it Cinesite's matchmove application of choice. Artists are able to concentrate on the task at hand without any distractions by virtue of 3DE4's simple UI while its Python interface allowed us to customize tools and integrate 3DE into our pipeline resulting in improved efficiency levels. Support-wise Sci-D-Vis have always been there for us, and is reassuring being able to actually get feedback from the developers themselves when you have a question or request."

Michele Sciolette - Head of VFX Technology, Cinesite

"Bandito owes a huge debt of thanks to the folks at Science-D-Visions for enabling us to get through the hundreds of tricky anamorphic shots. I can’t begin to imagine the size of the headache we’d have had without 3DEqualizer. It was uncanny good timing, at the very point they were adding in the new lens breathing features to 3DE, we were just discovering what lens breathing was, and the terribly weird things it can do to images shots on anamorphic lenses."

Peter Duncan - Lead 3D, Bandito VFX

"3DEqualizer features a robust and powerful tracking tool set that continues to be an irreplaceable asset in our effects integration here at ScanlineVFX," said James Sweeney - Integration Lead - "The work flow is very flexible and the ability to tune many individual parameters at once enables the user to achieve fast and accurate solves. We have noticed that many speed and stability improvements have been made with regards to using geometry in Release R2b3. Also, the new line up control functions, hidden-line rendering methods and the ability to view an undistorted version of the current plate make constraining to high resolution tracking geometry more stable and interactive."

James Sweeney - Integration Lead, Scanline VFX (Los Angeles, CA)

"Working with the latest BETA features in 3DEqualizer4 Release 2 was like waking up on Christmas morning. One huge reason for our excitement is the major new features in the 3DE Lineup window dealing with LIDAR and survey geometry. Now, LIDAR in 3DE can be positioned by the artist with the new Lineup Point mode. Adjusting the distortion of the plate and LIDAR lineup is very real-time, intuitive, and WYSIWYG. Survey points can be easily nudged in Screen space with the new 3D Nudgecontrol panel.

These new features are especially important for stereoscopic tracking, where precise use of LIDAR is often needed for a proper solve. So there are many wonderful features for tracking artists in the new 3DE4 Release 2 version, with more soon to come."

Michael Karp - Tracking supervisor, Rising Sun Pictures

"3DEqualizer continues to be an extremely powerful matchmove solution that delivers solid camera solves, especially when limited tracking data is available through a shot. 3DEqualizer4's improved pattern tracker is fantastic as are the other enhanced features in this new version."

Drew Collins - Matchmove Supervisor, Double Negative

"LAIKA's brand of stop-motion animation presents distinct challenges and opportunities for matchmoving and VFX integration. We started with 3DE v3r6 back in 2008 and have remained with it. 3DEqualizer's responsiveness to user feedback -- and unrelenting development of new features -- continues to bring us viable pipeline solutions. The lens distortion tools allow us to manage our library of over 200 lenses with ease. The way 3DE makes use of survey data, high poly scans, and obj sequences continues to provide us the tools we need for solving highly complex shots. 3DE's customization is extensively leveraged, so we can tailor our pipeline to suit the unique needs of stop-motion."

Christopher Weinberg - Surveyor/Matchmover, LAIKA

"3DE has been part of Hybride's toolbox since we've started working on feature film productions. We find it to beextremely reliable, easy to use, and the 3DE team offers great and always helpful technical support. Basically, we believe it to be the most complete tracking software - giving us an edge for those 'impossible' shots to track."

Lafleche Dumais - Technical 3D Supervisor, Hybride

"The new 3DEqualizer4 really improves the workflow a lot. For me, one highlight is definitively the drastically improved 2d - tracking capability. Now it takes more than lighting changes like flashes to throw the tracker off target. Having to toggle between different  applications is a thing of the past."

John Rabe - VFX Team, Stefan Galleithner TD

"We have used 3de heavily on both Australia and Knowing, One major seq in Knowing was the Plane crash. 3de's ability to use reference photography and survey data, was a major help in solving the 4000 frame hand held continuous shot. The other large seq was the subway crash, in which 3de ability to solve very difficult camera moves and environments was invaluable. Similar techniques were also used in Australia, especially for the post bombing burning night shots, where survey data was used extensively to help describe the scene, 3de was then able to interpolate and incorporate this into solve of the track. 3de was used in most shots on Australia as it suited our matchmove and compositing pipeline, very well."

Vaughn Arnup - Roto/Matchmove Supervisor, Animal Logic

"For almost a decade now, we’ve been using 3D Equalizer in our productions at MELS. Whether it is to handle work on anamorphic, stereoscopic or radial distortion lenses, tracking shots has never been more accurate. We feel that the team at Science D Visions is invested in improving the stability and speed of its tools that make us achieve great solves. Also, the software being open to Python integrations, our studio’s development team had the opportunity to fully integrate 3DE into our production pipeline and allowed us to use proprietary tools from within the software and export data with ease."

Frédéric Breault - CG Supervisor, MELS