Facilis TerraBlock Used on Two ABC Studios Series

Facilis Technology, Inc.‘s TerraBlock has provided a shared storage solution for two ABC Studios series in Burbank, CA as part of a new workflow process that provides an integrated remote post set up that includes editorial, online, titling, color, dailies and VFX.

Designed by post production, consulting and software development company DigitalFilm Tree (DFT), the pipeline was originally outfitted with TerraBlock because of the system’s small form factor, high-capacity and performance. First implemented in September 2012, TerraBlock has already proven successful in facilitating the workflow for DFT on the ABC series Mistresses and Perception.

"TerraBlock packs all of the capacity and bandwidth needed to manage high-end color correction and DI workflows into a small form factor; it’s ideal for the self-post workflow," said Guillaume Aubuchon, CTO, DFT. "The system also allows you to choose the best tool for each job, because it’s compatible with so many industry standard applications, and you have the added flexibility to connect users via FC or Ethernet."

With support for 4TB drives, TerraBlock fits 96TB into a 5RU, 24-drive chassis – providing all of the bandwidth and storage necessary for a full show season, while also reducing the power consumption and heat emission from that of a traditional SAN. This design allows post production teams to complete on-set dailies. Once filming is wrapped, HDDs with RAW Apple ProRes 444 footage are loaded into the TerraBlock for the dailies to be processed.

Concurrently, an editing team is able to cut multiple streams of Avid DNxHD Mbit/s36 offline from the SAN. There is always a link to the RAW material housed on the TerraBlock, so the post production team can easily lock a cut by reconnecting to the online ProRes 444 material rather than having to take the material off of a LTO or the post production facility’s SAN.

"DigitalFilm Tree and ABC are breaking new ground in post production, and it’s exciting to see TerraBlock at the center of it," said James McKenna, Facilis VP marketing. "Facilis is committed to continually advancing the TerraBlock’s performance so that companies like DigitalFilm Tree and ABC can continue to produce high-end content for viewers faster and more efficiently."