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With a new stateside presence, AIST packs a variety of tools into MoviePack3.0
BY TOM PATRICK McAULIFFE
Like much of life, every product has its good and bad aspects, and one man's nirvana is another user's hell. This is the case with MoviePack 3.0, the new "all-in-one" video postproduction software tool from AIST of Germany. MoviePack lets users edit and manipulate digital video, add 2D and 3D special effects, create motion graphics, and watch it all in realtime in a freely scalable playback window.
After exhaustive public beta testing that, according to the company, involved more than 50,000 users from around the world, the software began shipping late last year.
The software isn't really my cup of tea for a variety of reasons, such as its learning curve and features that duplicate applications I've already invested in. Perhaps it is the idea of relearning about five new applications and the program's new conventions that pose problems for me. But some will find MoviePack to be exactly what they are looking for, especially those who have yet to settle upon an NLE or special effects package.
What a monstrous undertaking this is from a software-development standpoint: timeline and nonlinear editing, pro CG for titles, slick 3D effects, unlimited compositing, and advanced animation, all in one package. While I applaud the Swiss Army knife approach, it seems that any time a company tries to produce an all-in-one anything, something invariably suffers in the final mix. But MoviePack 3.0 performs well.
Let's face it - After Effects has become the de facto standard for those serious about compositing and motion effects. When MoviePack and other applications follow established programs' protocols without stifling their own software's functionality, they generally succeed. Why introduce a whole new set of hot keys, for instance, to the user's learning curve? Luckily, AIST's new software mostly follows tradition but also allows customization of frequently used functions.
But from the documentation to the feel of the interface, one gets the sense that this is a European product, which is OK, just different.
Germany isn't the United States, and perhaps realizing this, AIST recently opened a headquarters on U.S. shores. Officials there seem very service-oriented and indicate that the European programmers are eager to implement...