Post by earl on Feb 7, 2008 14:19:53 GMT
Irish firm goes to Hollywood, wreaks Havok at the Emmys
There is a famous scene in the cult classic movie The Matrix Reloaded where the protagonist, Neo, engages in hand-to-hand combat with a vicious Agent Smith who has managed to clone 100 copies of himself.
That scene – known in the movie industry as the Burly Brawl – is not only a technological masterpiece, but one made possible by technology created here in Ireland by Havok, a local firm acquired last year by Intel for $110 million.
Anyone who knows of Havok, a company founded over a decade ago by a group of computer scientists at Trinity College, Dublin, is fully aware that their physics technology sits on every top-selling video game in the market today, creating a realistic and compelling experience.
But few realise that Hollywood has now got hold of Havok and popular movies such as Poseidan, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Troy and Kingdom of Heaven use its technology to create realistic special FX.
Last month, Havok received an award from the US National Academy of Television, Arts and Sciences, otherwise called an Emmy, for its work on real-time physics and animation that advanced playability and special effects in computer games, as well as Hollywood movies.
“It’s only in the last few years that we developed our business model to the point that Sony and other big movie studios were prepared to buy from Havok,” explains Havok chief executive, David O’Meara.
“But now artists and designers are buying the technology too. That scene in The Matrix Reloaded was entirely animated and simulated by Havok.
“The X-Men movies also use our technology in a similar fashion. We are also seeing other potential applications for Havok technology such as in the medical world to predict the likely outcome of an operation.
“In the past, movie studios used to have to locate cameras and pyrotechnics to simulate an explosion. Nowadays, they just do the explosion using Havok physics software and animation technology,” O’Meara explained.
There is a famous scene in the cult classic movie The Matrix Reloaded where the protagonist, Neo, engages in hand-to-hand combat with a vicious Agent Smith who has managed to clone 100 copies of himself.
That scene – known in the movie industry as the Burly Brawl – is not only a technological masterpiece, but one made possible by technology created here in Ireland by Havok, a local firm acquired last year by Intel for $110 million.
Anyone who knows of Havok, a company founded over a decade ago by a group of computer scientists at Trinity College, Dublin, is fully aware that their physics technology sits on every top-selling video game in the market today, creating a realistic and compelling experience.
But few realise that Hollywood has now got hold of Havok and popular movies such as Poseidan, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Troy and Kingdom of Heaven use its technology to create realistic special FX.
Last month, Havok received an award from the US National Academy of Television, Arts and Sciences, otherwise called an Emmy, for its work on real-time physics and animation that advanced playability and special effects in computer games, as well as Hollywood movies.
“It’s only in the last few years that we developed our business model to the point that Sony and other big movie studios were prepared to buy from Havok,” explains Havok chief executive, David O’Meara.
“But now artists and designers are buying the technology too. That scene in The Matrix Reloaded was entirely animated and simulated by Havok.
“The X-Men movies also use our technology in a similar fashion. We are also seeing other potential applications for Havok technology such as in the medical world to predict the likely outcome of an operation.
“In the past, movie studios used to have to locate cameras and pyrotechnics to simulate an explosion. Nowadays, they just do the explosion using Havok physics software and animation technology,” O’Meara explained.