Cospective ships cineSync 4.0
Cospective has released cineSync 4.0, a major update to the VFX-industry-standard shot review system that adds a new iOS app, deeper integration with Shotgun and ftrack, and improved video playback.
The first full-point release in over six years, cineSync 4.0 also introduces cineSync Pro Studio: a new subscription tier that adds security features like watermarking and user authentication.
An industry-standard solution for remote shot review and approval
Since its release in 2005, cineSync has become the visual effects industry’s go-to solution for remote shot review and approval, in use at studios including ILM and Sony Pictures Imageworks.
The software enables users on opposite sides of the world – for example, a director and the VFX facility, or staff at individual studios within a company – to watch work-in-progress shots in sync.
It runs on all major operating systems, supports high-definition, high-frame-rate video, and comes with a set of built-in tools for drawing annotations directly onto the image.
Notes can then be exported in PDF format to circulate to artists working on a project.
New Pro Studio subscription tier lets big studios watermark footage and authenticate users
The biggest change in cineSync 4.0 is the new Pro Studio tier of subscriptions, aimed at larger studios working on projects for which commercial confidentiality is critical.
Features include the option to watermark footage using MediaSilo’s SafeStream technology.
The system enables studios to serve each participant in a review session with footage watermarked with their name, IP address and the review date and time, making it possible to trace the source of any leaks.
Other features include the option to authenticate all of the guests on a review session in advance, meaning that only those who have been pre-approved can view the footage.
Cospective says that the security measures have been developed in collaboration with “the world’s biggest” studios – Marvel Studios are namechecked on its blog, and Rising Sun Pictures in the video above.
New iOS app for Pro accounts and above, new video playback architecture
For firms on the existing Pro subscription tier, cineSync 4.0 also introduces a new iOS app, enabling users to join reviews from mobile devices.
The app integrates with standard production-tracking systems like Shotgun and ftrack so that, while files are deleted automatically from the mobile device once a review session is over, drawings and saved frames can be saved back to Shotgun or ftrack by the session host.
If you’re on a basic account, there are fewer new features, although the update also overhauls cineSync’s video playback system, replacing QuickTime with a new custom architecture.
According to Cospective, the new architecture makes it possible to support a wider range of video formats, resolutions and frame rates across all platforms.
Pricing and availability
cineSync 4.0 is available now for Windows 7 and above, Linux and Mac OS X 10.8 and above.
The software is available on a rental-only basis, with basic accounts starting at $99/month for two users, and Pro accounts starting at $319/month for two users. You can see a feature comparison here.
The new Pro Studio subscriptions are priced on enquiry, but Cospective tells us that a 12-month subscription with 10 users will cost $8,000.
Read a full list of new features in cineSync 4.0 on Cospective’s blog