MovieLabs, the technology joint venture of the major Hollywood motion picture studios, has launched its second 2030 Showcase Program, to recognize organizations in the Media & Entertainment industry that have applied emerging cloud and production technologies to advance the industry and helping realize the MovieLabs 2030 Vision initiative and its goals of enhanced efficiency and interoperability.
Security is a fundamental consideration. Security challenges facing the movie production world include production in the cloud where there are multiple participants, no single point of control and no airgaps, cybersecurity threats, generative AI systems as security adversaries, quantum computing that can break encryption in a blink, and a ten-year planning horizon.
The submission window for entries is now open and the deadline is July 14, 2023. MovieLabs will announce the selected 2030 Showcase Case Studies at IBC 2023 in Amsterdam in September.
For 2023, the focus is on one of three areas:
- Implementation of Common Security Architecture for Production (CSAP) or Zero Trust security applied in content production workflows (demonstrating Principle 7)
- Implementation of the ‘Ontology for Media Creation’ as it pertains to putting principles 8 and 9 into practice
- Implementations of Asset or Data interchange that demonstrate interoperability in either the control plane or data plane of workflow
Entrants will submit a short video that explains the problem or new capability, how they built a solution and which of the ten principles of the 2030 Vision are demonstrated. Examples of last year’s selected case studies can be used as reference to understand the level of detail for a successful case study, all published at www.movielabs.com/2030showcase.
Further reading
MovieLabs launches this year’s 2030 showcase program highlighting growth toward delivering the 2030 Vision. Press release. June 8, 2023. MovieLabs (Motion Picture Laboratories)
IBC 2022: MovieLabs 2030 Vision needs security baked in. Article. September 10, 2022. Piracy Monitor
Production Technology: The 2030 Vision. Web site containing backgrounders and technical specifications. Accessed by Piracy Monitor June 20, 2023. MovieLabs (Motion Picture Laboratories)
Why it matters
In 2022, a panel session consisting of executives from several major studios gave a status report about their progress toward the 2030 Vision ideals.
During that session, Discovery’s Renard Jenkins put it succinctly: “How do we re-skin that character’s model – if only I can find it?” And from there, use it as common repository for theatrical productions, animated versions, games, TV versions, and have a common look and feel by leveraging the same assets.
Now, imagine the impact on the studios if the Vision 2030 framework was breached. Now we can see the impact of security, and why it can’t be an afterthought.
The MovieLabs 2030 Vision lays out 10 key principles for the evolution of media creation with which Showcase participants should be aligned with one or more:
- All assets are created or ingested straight to the cloud and do not need to move.
- Applications come to the media.
- Propagation and distribution of assets is a ‘publish’ function.
- Archives are deep libraries with access policies matching speed, availability and security to the economics of the cloud.
- Preservation of digital assets includes the future means to access and edit them.
- Every individual on a project is identified, verified and their access permissions efficiently and consistently managed.
- All media creation happens in a highly secure environment that adapts rapidly to changing threats.
- Individual media elements are referenced, tracked, interrelated and accessed using a universal linking system.
- Media workflows are non-destructive and dynamically created using common interfaces, underlying data formats and metadata.
- Workflows are designed around real-time iteration and feedback.
