Six New Film Restoration Tools Add To PFClean's DI Functionality

The Pixel Farm, a company focused on
innovation in the field of high-end digital post-production, is pleased to
announce the release of PFClean 2, which also includes a film restoration
extension pack. Since its release in 2005, PFClean has already been adopted
by a growing number of DI and post-production facilities worldwide
including, CineImage, Das Werk, Capital FX and Hungarian Film Labs.
Steve Boag MD, Cineimage London, explains, "After thoroughly researching the
market for a cost-effective digital cleanup solution, we found that PFClean
hit the mark on all counts. It has a very quick learning curve, provided us
with the toolset we required within a clear user interface and most
importantly allowed us to deliver clean scans within time and on budget, it
can seamlessly fit in to any digital workflow. We weren't just buying a
piece of software, we were buying into, and creating, a working partnership.
The Pixel Farm themselves have been very helpful and supportive, providing
guidance and feedback as and when it was needed."

The additional tools provided by the restoration pack are designed to extend
PFClean's core functionality and to address problems found in very damaged
film and with archive restoration projects. The tools have been design to
fit seamlessly into the PFClean environment and operate using the benefits
of the PFClean non destructive workflow. These tools consist of:

  • De-warp – To dewarp film sequences that have suffered shrinkage, can also work in individual colour channels
  • Colour Balance – Removes colour casts and balances tonal values in an image, can be applied across an entire sequence. This isn't just a standard histogram balance, it samples black and white point candidate and rebuilds a colour histogram.
  • -Tear repair – To fix tears in films. The tear needs the film to have been fixed with tape and scanned as a whole.
  • -Missing/Damaged Frame replacement – The software will interpolate between existing frames to recreate missing frames correct pixel positions.
  • -RGB channel realignment – Re alignment of the RGB channels, handy for some colour registration errors in video but mainly designed for realignment of bi and tri strip films and films that have been archived as CMY separations.
  • -Colour correction – Simple colour correction to further balance/fix clips.
PFClean is a fully 64-bit resolution independent, fast and flexible image
clean up system. Designed for use with scanned image data prior to the
commencement of the VFX, post production and the DI process. PFClean
operates flexibly in an ever changing post production environment, working
as a manual, fully automatic or hybrid system, allowing the user to define
plates or anomalies to be fixed in a non destructive environment. Image
sequences can then be processed immediately or committed to the Pixel Farms
tightly integrated cross platform batch processing engine, PFFarmer.
Comprehensive Effects Toolset
PFClean has all the tools required to address the workflow from scanners,
archival footage and digital film cameras to post production

Availability and Pricing:
Now shipping, PFClean 2.0 is supported on Linux, Windows XP and Mac OX
10.4.7 PCC and Intel
Multi processor single node license £12999 / $22499.
Unlimited multi node rendering £4999 / $7999.
Free upgrade from version 1.5.
PFClean restoration pack is available for £3000, EUR4500