Archive for the ‘Blu-ray’ Category

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Panic Button DVD, Blu-ray and iTunes package

Thursday, December 15th, 2011

blog_dec11_panicbuttonWe’ve been working on the DVD, Blu-ray and iTunes package for independent British horror film Panic Button.

The film explores the darker side of social networking.  It’s set on a luxury private plane where the four passengers are under the impression that they have won an all expenses paid trip to New York, courtesy of Facebook equivalent all2gethr.com.

Forced to give up their mobile phones for the duration of the flight the passengers are greeted upon take-off, by the face of a talking alligator on the television monitors.  The sinister alligator introduces them to the in-flight entertainment: a game based on their internet habits. Eager to play with the mention of expensive prizes, the contestants agree to partake in the game, which is soon to become an unrelenting nightmare at 30,000 feet.

The film, dubbed ‘SAW on a Lear jet’ is smart and fresh with a tight script and left us a little bit nervous of using Facebook.

You can buy the Blu-ray here and DVD from here, the film will be available on iTunes soon!

Posted in Blu-ray, DVD Authoring, DVD Duplication and Replication, Main, iTunes | No Comments »

Billy Connolly Takes the Ultimate Road Trip

Friday, October 7th, 2011

billyconnolly_blog_Oct11On behalf of Universal Pictures UK the authoring department at re:fine has been kept in fine Scottish humour creating the Blu-ray and DVD of Billy Connolly’s latest road trip.

Billy Connolly’s Route 66 sees Billy turn Easy Rider as he follows a lifelong dream and makes the iconic 2488 mile journey from Chicago to Santa Monica.

Route 66 is the embodiment of the American Dream.   Millions have travelled its epic trail from the skyscrapers of Chicago and St Louis, through the Wild West badlands of Oklahoma and Texas, the Grand Canyon and deserts of New Mexico and Arizona, to the beaches of the Pacific and the excesses of LA.

Set to a soundtrack of some of the best American music of the 20th century, Billy also brings his banjo along for the ride.  With his unrivalled ability to tell a great story, he brings to life both the big and small moments of American history: the world changing events and the comic asides.

On his way, Billy meets disciples of Route 66, from seasoned “roadies” to first-timers living the dream.  And he isn’t just passing through: anything could happen on the way… from swapping his Boom trike for a horse saddle in Texas, to soaring above LA in a helicopter with the city’s traffic patrol.

Includes over 40mins of exclusive, never been seen before, DVD extras – featuring Billy’s hilarious video diary from his road trip.

We loved the epic landscapes in HD and the 40min extra video diary. To watch Billy on his travels you can order the DVD or the Blu-ray from Amazon here

http://tinyurl.com/699mrzc

Posted in Blu-ray, DVD Authoring, DVD Duplication and Replication, DVD and Blu-ray News, Main | No Comments »

All platforms ready for Fire in Babylon

Monday, July 4th, 2011

blog_mar11_fireinbabylonOn behalf of Revolver Entertainment we authored the Blu-ray Disc & DVD and digitally delivered Fire in Babylon to iTunes, BT Vision, PlayStation Network and Lovefilm.  All of these deliverables were created from a single HD master.

Fire in Babylon is the breathtaking story of how the West Indies triumphed over its colonial masters through the achievements of one of the most gifted teams in sporting history.

In a turbulent era of apartheid in South Africa; race riots in England and civil unrest in the Caribbean, the West Indian cricketers, led by the enigmatic Viv Richards, struck a defiant blow at the forces of white prejudice worldwide. Their undisputed skill, combined with a fearless spirit, allowed them to dominate the genteel game at the highest level, replaying it on their own terms.

This is their story, told in their own words – and here is where you can buy it or download it

http://www.revolvergroup.com

Posted in Blu-ray, DVD Authoring, IPTV and VOD, Main, iTunes | No Comments »

Artist’s work showcased on Blu-ray at festivals

Saturday, June 4th, 2011

blog_may11_overyourcityWe have just finished authoring a Blu-ray Disc for Director Sophie Fiennes, whose film ‘Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow’ – an official Cannes selection, is currently exhibiting at film festivals.   Sophie is an independent director unafraid of difficult, non-commercial subjects. She began making her own films in 1998 and has focused on brilliant but complex figures that have shaped contemporary culture.

This documentary bears witness to German artist Anselm Kiefer’s alchemical creative processes and renders as a film journey the personal universe he has built at his hill studio estate in the South of France.

In 1993 Kiefer left Buchen, Germany for La Ribaute, a derelict silk factory near Barjac. From 2000 he began constructing a series of elaborate installations there. Traversing this landscape, the film immerses the audience in the total world and creative process of one of today’s most significant and inventive artists.

The DVD of the film is available for sale through Amazon http://tinyurl.com/3m5kytu

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re:fine at PEVE 2011

Tuesday, March 29th, 2011

blog_mar11_peveAt PEVE 2011, IHS Screen Digest gave an in-depth industry outlook on key issues which will define the future of the home entertainment industry. Re:fine captured key highlights, covering the future of Europe’s online video and Blu-ray, DVD, online movie market, 3D and Video on Demand (VOD).

  • Europe’s online video and Blu-ray markets are finally growing fast enough to stabilise the market and offset falling DVD sales. “Let’s not forget this is a billion dollar industry and it’s not doom and gloom,” said Henry McGee, President, HBO Home Entertainment, speaking at a conference. “ This”, said McGee, “indicates consumers are watching more films than ever”.
  • “A major development on DVD/Blu-ray market will be the availability of two packages for movie and TV releases,” said Yives Reed, Sales Director at re:fine.  “A ‘No Frills’ product – duplicated on demand – and a collector’s edition. This is to satisfy a trend in consumption and also to play towards the traditional strength of DVD/Blu-ray being a great gift.” Reed went on to say “Ultraviolet had a real buzz around it at PEVE, offering a digital locker solution. The UV code will be bundled with Blu-ray product or purchased from an online retailer. This will give consumers access to their content in the cloud with the advantage of buy once and play content back on any device.”
  • According to IHS Screen Digest, DVD rental is in free fall, with annual transactions across Europe having fallen by double digits ever since 2006; in 2010 there were only 349 million DVD rental transactions in Europe, or half of the number of transactions in 2005. According to re:fine’s Reed, “online rental of movies is proving more popular than download to own model. This market trend will spread from the US, eliminating high street retailers and accelerating adoption of digital distribution.”
  • The analyst house also estimates the online movie market will almost double over the next four years, rising to an estimated €195 million this year and to €373 million in 2014. Half of online movie transactions will come from the online movie stores controlled by major vendors and games consoles such as Apple (iTunes Store), Sony (PS3 games consoles) and Microsoft (Xbox games consoles). Further, IHS Screen Digest believes telcos and ISPs are well prepared to handle enough bandwidth to stream near-DVD quality films, supporting its optimistic view with the fact that ISPs are not only developing their infrastructure but also improving their backhaul networks for future increases in traffic.
  • PEVE 2011 reported a slow adoption of 3D TVs. However, total box office revenue from 3D content doubled in 2010. Despite initial challenges, studios continue to explore various commercial models to exploit the 3D opportunity. For example, they have already started departing from lucrative bundling deals with consumer electronics vendors, adopting a broader retail strategy.
  • The traditionally sceptical outlook for Video on Demand (VOD) may be changing. With hyper-competition and even more free VOD business models emerging, market participants at PEVE expect VOD to finally take off, with predictions that VOD content has to be paid for, either by the end consumer via pay per view (PPV) or subscription; by an operator as anti-churn weapon; or by an advertiser. However, despite positive current outlook, business models and in particular VOD revenues, will very much depend on competition coming from over-the-top (OTT) players.
  • Finally, another major development will be “the future of displays,” said Reed.  “They will be getting thinner, flexible and controllable either by touch or proximity. This will, fundamentally expand opportunities for content owners in mobiles, digital signage, shop fronts, education and 3D applications.”

Posted in Blu-ray, DVD and Blu-ray News, Digi Delivery, IPTV and VOD, Main | No Comments »

Special When Lit

Monday, January 24th, 2011

specialwhenlit_Jan11_blog Special When Lit rediscovers the lure of a lost pop icon – pinball. This American invention made more money than Hollywood through the 50s and 60s.  Its success swept the world, making it the epitome of ‘cool’.  Today pinball is all but forgotten.

This is the definitive story of the rise and fall of pinball as told by the fans, collectors, designers and champion players from across the globe.  A game, a sport, a lifestyle – pinball takes this eclectic bunch of self-confessed ‘pinheads’ back to their youth as they open up passionately to reveal the attractions of the ‘world’s funnest toy’.

The documentary was premiered at the Raindance film festival in London where it was nominated for best documentary.  After screenings across America , Australia and the UK the film has been authored for Blu-ray at re:fine and is also available on DVD.

It’s due for release on 31 January – order your copy  HERE

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Blu-ray Marillion Live from Cadogan Hall

Monday, November 29th, 2010

marillion_blog_decThis month we authored the Blu-ray ‘Marillion – Live from Cadogan Hall’, just in time for Christmas!

The Blu-ray features tracks from ‘Less is More’, the band’s acoustic studio album that was released on their own label.  The intimate gig was recorded in stunning high definition on the last night of the ‘Less is More’ acoustic tour on 7 December 2009.

The DVD & Blu-ray feature the full concert mixed by Michael Hunter & Filmed by Tim Sidwell & team. The Blu-ray special edition features the full concert in 96kHz 24bit High Res. audio in either Stereo or 5.1 surround options.

Also included on the Blu-ray is the full 96kHz 24bit high res. version of the ‘Less is More’ studio album. Plus the complete first series of Racket Television in High Definition & unreleased versions of tracks from the ‘Less is More’ acoustic recordings.

The Blu-ray & DVD versions are presented in deluxe gloss Digipack cases. The CD comes in a standard Jewel case.

The band have one of the most loyal fan bases and active online communities in music and the Blu-ray as well as the DVD and CD of this tour is available to order from their web site.

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Element Get Busy Living on Blu-ray

Monday, October 25th, 2010

element_blog2Get Busy Living is a 3 disk set of Element Skateboards Europe’s latest video project. It features some of Europe’s best skateboarders in Spain, Germany, France, Portugal, Israel and many other places.

The project was shot entirely on HD and after a hugely successful DVD launch they decided to release a special Blu–ray box set. It includes bonus features; a photo journal booklet and additional DVDs, which includes the American team video project “Quattro”.

The Blu-ray release follows up a Scandinavian Summer Tour of the team doing skateboard demos, shop signings and attending special showings of the film.

The box set will be available in stores this November.

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Newcastle Scores four stars on Blu-ray.com

Saturday, July 24th, 2010

newcastle_blogOur Blu-ray transfer of Newcastle scored 4 out of 5 stars on Blu-ray.com!

Newcastle is a coming-of-age movie about a group of mates united by their love of surfing, set against the backdrop of the industrial town of Newcastle in Australia’s New South Wales.

This perfect summer film is beautifully shot in HD and has received excellent reviews for the surfing sequences, which include incredible underwater footage as well as shots of the endless Australian beaches.

The special features on the disc include an Director’s audio commentary with Director Dan Castle, director of photography Richard Michalak, sound designer Andrew Plain, and composer Michael Yezerski.  There is also a ‘making of’ featurette, a trailer and a picture gallery.  The film has subtitles in both  English and German.

Find the review on Blu-ray.com here

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re:fine invests in 3D Blu-ray

Friday, June 18th, 2010

3dglassesWe just couldn’t resist it… we’ve invested in early-release Blu-ray3D software and kitted out our authoring & graphics suite with Blu-ray3D players, screens and glasses.

We’re the first UK authoring facility to do so this, quickly enabling our clients to release their 3D content on Blu-ray.

If you have a film or project that you would like to get ready for Q4 then talk to us about how to deliver your materials.

With longer lead times than 2D, now’s the time to start thinking about getting your Blu-ray 3D ready.

Sales of 3D TVs and Blu-ray3D players have really taken the retailers by surprise with electronic manufacturers such as Sony, Samsung , LG and Panasonic set to shift 4.2 million 3D TVs globally in 2010 alone. The 3D television market is projected to triple to 12.9 million units next year, according to new research from Isuppli.

Further reading

  • for a more in-depth look at 3D and how it works click here for an incredible article from Tom Vaughn at Cyberlink who make our  Blu-ray 3D playback software

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