Dell Offers Sophisticated End-to-End Solutions for Media & Entertainment
When companies team up with Dell and CDW, they get cutting-edge tools to create breakthrough work and an industry-savvy partner to support them throughout the entire process, from inception to delivery of content.
Globally, the media and entertainment industry is valued at $2.3 trillion and expected to reach $2.6 trillion by the end of 2023. Though some of this growth is attributed to businesses not traditionally associated with media and entertainment (e.g., museums, education and training) that are now developing media content, the “stars” of the industry are those companies that create content for movies, television and games.
These traditional media and entertainment entities make up the bulk of the industry. Though they may be at different stages along the technology evolution timeline, the majority face common challenges. An increasing number are involved not only in the creation and production of media content, but have also the task of distribution. This includes providing the on-demand data streaming of films, games and TV shows, often for high-definition monitors (streaming simultaneously, but staggered), requiring massive amounts of data processing and storage.
How Dell can address the technology needs of media and entertainment
Given the rapid pace of technological evolution, studios struggle to provide the best tools to enhance, rather than inhibit, artists’ creativity as they work to develop ever more immersive visual effects or impressive animation sequences. The process of creating high-quality visual effects and animation for a production is time-, labour- and iteration-intensive. This generates enormous amounts of data, which can cause bottlenecks and wreak havoc on workflow.
Additionally, the process of creating visual effects and animation is an inherently collaborative process. Multiple artists and technicians often need access to the same work-in-progress, or different versions of the same frames, at the same time in order to apply their specialty, be it rendering, iterating or adjusting the colour or lighting of an image. This can create what’s known in the business as collaboration friction, which can also impede workflow.
To address these challenges, companies are turning to technology. They are looking for solutions that deliver sophisticated and agile tools, powerful computing and data processing, and ample storage options. “Dell Technologies can offer a genuine end-to-end portfolio of infrastructure, software, services and partnerships, due to breadth of portfolio, depth of subject matter and industry experts,” said Alex Timbs, former head of IT at Animal Logic and now a senior business development manager at Dell Technologies.
“Dell understands that success in M&E is about pipeline automation, low friction collaboration and clear value, all achieved by establishing a ‘collaboration first’ strategy.” Dell Technologies has focused on hiring industry experts like Timbs, who bring a wealth of experience to each partnership, working with each client to build and test the perfect solution for their specific workload ecosystem.
Common technology challenges in media and entertainment
While the nuances of challenges in media and entertainment companies differ, there are a lot of commonalities:
- The need for a cutting-edge technology system that provides end-to-end support, from inception through production, and then finally through delivery of content.
- Sophisticated technology tools that enhance, rather than constrain, artists and allow them to push the creative envelope on each project.
- Powerful computing and data processing power, plus loads of storage, including utilizing the cloud for iterative collaboration.
- Scalable solutions that can adjust to cyclical shifts.
Dell media and entertainment solutions
As a leader in the field of media and entertainment technology, Dell Technologies offers a complete set of end-to-end solutions to help clients fulfill their creative and business potential. With a wealth of experience in the industry, Dell Technologies helps clients configure the solutions that meet their particular needs and keeps their workflows streamlined.
Solutions include such elements as:
- Dell Precision workstations and Dell UltraSharp monitors for content creation.
- Dell EMC PowerEdge servers for a comprehensive range of servers for compute-intensive tasks.
- Dell EMC Networking for distributed workflows and high-speed stitching.
- Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon) offers a range of high-capacity storage solutions.
- Dell Technologies Cloud Platform helps reduce operational complexity, no matter where workloads are running.
For years, Dell Technologies has collaborated with industry leaders Sony Innovation Studios, MPC Film (a division of Technicolor), Important Looking Pirates and Animal Logic. In each case, Dell Technologies has served as a business partner, supporting each studio in their never-ending quest for pipeline evolution, needed to support their creative and business goals.