Celebrating Ten Years of CDW StudioCloud

We are proud to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of StudioCloud. Being involved with the biggest franchises and series of the past ten years is an accomplishment worth watching all the end credits for.

“We help put the capes on superheroes,” said Cody Jenken, Manager, StudioCloud Operations at CDW Canada, who has been with the team for eight years. He is not exaggerating. The VFX that bring these beloved characters and settings to life are made possible through sophisticated image rendering. CDW StudioCloud consists of data centres strategically placed around the world to help make the magic happen. Production companies and studios in need of compute-render processing, storage and remote artist workstations can purchase or rent and deploy them as an extension of their on-premise workflow. Offering a customizable menu of augmented services, StudioCloud enables the best teams in the business to do what they do best quickly, accurately, and securely. When asked what StudioCloud’s biggest accomplishment of the past decade has been, Jenken replied, “Watching our customers grow.” Jenken has seen tiny studios of ten artists grow into hundred-person teams and gain industry-wide notoriety. “We’ve helped our clients achieve their goals in expanding their portfolio across the board,” Jenken continued. StudioCloud has aided some of the biggest names in the industry expand their business and talent pool by providing industry-leading rendering processes that many studios do not have the resources to house themselves. CDW is dedicated to streamlining the IT and technology processes their customers encounter, enabling them to channel all focus and resources into their core work.

So how does CDW StudioCloud help production companies put the capes on superheroes? Besides utilizing their own secret superpowers, the StudioCloud team describes its unique capabilities in three words: low latency, flexibility and security.

The film and television industries move quickly, so it is crucial that files can be sent back and forth from StudioCloud data centres with low latency. This means that if a studio deadline is approaching, there is no time to lose. StudioCloud leverages Dark Fibre to provide ultra-high-speed networks for high-performance, low-latency data transfers that mimic an on-premises technology experience.

Every project and customer is unique, and as a result, every project requires different technologies and services. StudioCloud provides a flexible and customizable menu that customers can pick and choose from to suit their specific and creative needs. StudioCloud’s offerings are the most flexible on the market and include both short and long-term rentals, purchase plans and sub-leases.

While movies may only last for two hours or so, years of planning and production make them possible. During this time, it is imperative that the project remains under wraps and not a single scene gets leaked. This is something the CDW team takes extremely seriously. StudioCloud’s air-gapped architecture provides a unique and impenetrable design that secures both the network and the infrastructure that meets or exceeds the official standards for the Motion Picture Association and Trusted Partner Network.

When asked about the future of StudioCloud, Jenken predicts an increased focus on research, development and expansion. Jenken explained that the sophistication and innovation of industry technology increases exponentially, so the StudioCloud team must stay ahead of the curve to continue going above and beyond for customers. As for expansion, with productions occurring all around the world, having data centres closer to the action allows rendering capabilities to happen more easily. As a result, by expanding, CDW StudioCloud team can help customers make more amazing projects with the best technology on the market.

It is beyond exciting to think about what StudioCloud will accomplish in the next ten years and which blockbuster projects they will help bring to life. The next time you are sitting in the theatre watching superheroes fly across the screen, grab some extra popcorn and stay until the end of the credits. Chances are that many of those names on the VFX teams have worked with the CDW StudioCloud team.