Avid at the heart of RPL’s new virtual workstations

Remote Picture Labs (RPL) has developed several virtual post-production workstations for film and television based on Avid technology.

This initiative will enable editors, assistant editors and producers to collaborate remotely using Avid’s Media Composer software and Avid Nexis storage products. Originally developed to enable editing teams to work during the Covid-19 pandemic, the solution promises to deliver the performance and functionality of traditional Avid workstations.

Each virtualized client runs in RPL’s high-performance private cloud, in a “robust and secure” environment (with AES-256 encryption and multi-factor authentication) that has the “same quality” of picture and audio, and the “same performance,” as found in on-premises edit suites. This continuity enables the transition to a remote and collaborative environment.

Remote or hybrid solutions

RPL’s virtual workstations, built around Avid’s Media Composer video editing software and Avid Nexis media storage, can be used as part of a fully remote or hybrid solution. Multiple workstations can be integrated into the same project, making the RPL solution suitable for remote collaborative editing in fields such as live sports, programs, series and feature films.

Erik Beauchamp, CTO of Remote Picture Labs (RPL), highlights the benefits of its partnership with Avid: “A primary consideration from the outset was to let edit teams use their existing media and projects. Our goal was to provide an experience identical to that of a traditional edit bay so that workflows can function just as they always have. Partnering with Avid made it possible, with additional benefits including editorial cost savings of up to 20 percent and the ability to hire editors wherever they might be located, since they no longer need to be in the East or West Coast talent pools. Though it was born of necessity during the COVID-19 pandemic, our solution has proven to be a game-changer for all film and television post production moving forward.”

Furthermore, Raymond Thompson, senior director of industry partners and marketing at Avid, stresses that this long-term technology partnership will allow them “to continue to extend remote capabilities to the post production community in the post-pandemic future.”