Apple Brings 'Shake' and 'Motion' to High-Definition

Apple is adding a little "Shake" and "Motion" to NAB 2004. On top of announcing a high-definition (HD) product version of Final Cut Pro and unveiling a new version of DVD Studio Pro, Apple has announced a brand new product christened Motion, as well as an update to Shake – the solution responsible for the visual effects seen in "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King."

Motion is a motion graphics packages with real-time previews, procedural animation, as well as integration with Final Cut Pro HD and DVD Studio Pro 3. Apple's procedural animation technology is also known interchangeably as "self-propelled animation."

Self-propelled animation uses behaviors to create movements and simulations without the need for keyframes. Users can drag and drop over 40 of these behaviors onto type or graphical content, choosing from either basic, text, simulation, or parameter categories.  Behaviors can be customized and combined to produce unique effects. Apple has also included specialized motion templates.

Motion additionally bundles a keyframe toolset for more precise frame-by-frame control.  Motion will become available in the United State this summer for an estimated retail price of $300 USD.

Apple is quick to point out that Shake artists have taken home Oscars for the past seven years in a row. The software's newest iteration, Shake 3.5 is optimized for Power Mac G5 and Mac OS X at all resolutions. Features include: resolution independence, a node-based interface (tree structure), several new shape-based morphing and warping capabilities and the Shake SDK so that customers can adapt processes to meet their needs.

Shaking the change out of its customers' pockets, version 3.5 has a price tag of $2999 USD for Mac OS X. Shake 3.5 for Linux retails for $4999 USD, with annual maintenance fees not included. Render-only Linux versions sell for $1499 USD. Customers who purchased Shake on or after April 18, 2003 may qualify for a free upgrade.

At the core of Apple's NAB 2004 announcements lies Final Cut Pro HD. Along with HD capture over PCI, Final Cut now supports the capture and output of video over FireWire. Other additions to the software include real-time effects for HD and the ability to scale from DV to SD, HD and film. High-definition Playback is supported through the Apple Cinema Display.

Final Cut Pro HD retails for $999 USD in a full boxed version, and $399 USD for an upgrade.  Final Cut Pro 4 users may download the update to Final Cut Pro HD.

Another product new to the Apple line-up is dubbed Xsan. Xsan is a 64-bit cluster-file system that spawns a massive 16 terabytes shared storage environment through linking together Xserve RAIDS over fibre channel. The present cluster size is limited to 64 Mac OS X Panther workstations. Final Cut Pro HD source media can be shared and modified through Xsan.

DVD Studio Pro 3 bundles: a bevy of new transitions; HD to MPEG-2 encoding (compressor 1.2); a graphical view to illustrate relationships between elements; DTS multi-channel audio; as well as the above mentioned integration with Motion. Other products that plug into DVD Studio are Final Cut Pro HD, Soundtrack and Adobe Photoshop.

A full version of the software costs $499 USD, while upgrade pricing for DVD Studio Pro 3 is set at $199 USD. As it did with Shake, Apple has thrown in a grace period to stave off last minute buyer's remorse; customers who purchased DVD Studio Pro 2 on or after April 18 may qualify for the up-to-date program.

Commenting on Apple's strategy, senior Jupiter Research analyst Joe Wilcox noted potential hurdles the company may face with the adoption of HD. "With respect to high definition, Apple, Microsoft and other companies jockeying for position in the emerging market face the same dilemma: Will HD technologies meet the consumer "better enough" test," Wilcox told BetaNews.

"While HD is impressive, will it be better enough? CDs and DVDs succeeded because improved quality and other features were better enough that consumers were willing to replace CE devices and whole existing libraries of vinyl records or VHS movies with CDs and DVD titles," said Wilcox.