Red Productions With Small Tree Shared Storage

Frustrated by having projects continuously freeze up in the middle of editing sessions and having to rummage through multiple external drives to locate footage, Red Productions, a full service, script to screen video production and independent film development and production company, recently commissioned independent video engineer Bob Zelin to install a cost-effective Ethernet-based shared storage solution featuring Small Tree Technology LLC.

Specializing in national TV commercials, feature films, viral videos for web, industrial videos, and non-profit fundraising pieces, Red Productions has experienced steady growth since its inception. With well-known organizations such as Coca Cola, the Dallas Cowboys and Texas Christian University among its client roster, Red Productions could no longer rely on the external drives chained via eSATA they were using within their three-room facility to complete projects if they were interested in keeping clients happy and continuing their growth.

To streamline Red Productions’ workflow, Zelin installed Small Tree’s GraniteSTOR shared storage technology with its unique OS X networking capabilities supporting multiple Ethernet ports, tightly integrated with Apple’s built in file sharing system. The GraniteSTOR solution incorporates Small Tree’s PEG6, a 6-port Ethernet card with the Edge-corE ES4528V, a 28-port Gigabit Ethernet switch certified to work with Small Tree’s technology.

"Before the Small Tree install, we had two major issues with our workflow," states Sam Parnell, editor. "First, working with repeat clients, we had to constantly go through all of our hard drives to locate the files we needed. Second, Final Cut Pro would freeze up on us in the middle of an editing session with a client. We desperately needed a shared local drive that was robust enough to handle HD projects without freezing the system."

Critical to improving productivity on existing projects, the Small Tree install was also an investment on upcoming projects according to Red Sanders, a producer at Red Productions.

"We’re preparing to start our next feature film, Searching for Sonny, where we’ll have multiple editors accessing footage simultaneously," said Sanders. "Based on what we have noticed on our current projects, the Small Tree shared storage technology will eliminate the downtime we were experiencing previously and keep us up and running at all times on this project. Without interruptions in workflow, the creative process will be seamless, which will positively influence the end product and end up saving us both time and costs."