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Animation powerhouse Brilliant Digital Entertainment (BDE) is covering all the bases of original content distribution, from tried and true TV syndication to repurposing its animated assets for CD-ROM and DVD, and one step beyond, to a "pay-to-view" web subscription service. The Los Angeles-based content developer has launched two original animated series, the darkly futuristic Gravity Angels and the action-packed Cyberswine For fans of tried-and-true animated superheroes, BDE is developing more than a dozen episodic series based on licensed characters like Superman, Batman, Popeye, and Xena.
BDE is also planning to release the content-- creation tools it has developed in-house, beginning with a plug-in for Kinetix/Autodesk's 3D Studio MAX. "The heart of our paperless animation process is a Windows NT environment, where we can develop a range of 3D animation products for less than the cost of traditional 2D animation," says BDE President Kevin Bermeister. "Our goal is to deliver the animation quality associated with a Pixar or a PDI at a much lower cost."
Here And There
BDE may be based in Los Angeles, but its roots are distinctly down under. The publicly traded company (AMEX: BDE) was formed in 1996 by merging two Australian firms, Brilliant Interactive Ideas and Sega Australia New Developments BDE maintains an Australian operation of about 100 artists and programmers, as well as its headquarters in Los Angeles and an office in Middlesex, England.
The company plans to feed the global appetite for animation by releasing linear versions of its animated series for TV syndication and home video, along with interactive versions for DVD, CD-ROM, the web, and cable modem services. At this year's NATPE Convention in New Orleans, BDE and distributor Kaleidoscope Media Group showcased a 90-minute feature-length version of Gravity Angels, along with a package of 22-- minute episodes for syndication.
Path Ways
BDE is also developing and distributing its trademarked "Multipath Movie" animations on disc and online. Designed for release on DVD, CD-- ROM, and the web,...