Don't Miss This!

Registration just opened for the 16th-annual Tech Retreat, an epic event of the Hollywood Post Alliance (HPA).  It will take place February 16-19 at Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa, Rancho Mirage, California.

Despite HPA’s name, the retreat is neither in nor (exclusively) about Hollywood (though top-ranking executives of the major studios will be there) and not (exclusively) about post production (though major post-house executives will be there, too).  You’ll find broadcasters, networks, manufacturers (of both professional and consumer equipment), engineers, cinematographers, directors, editors, mixers, mathematicians, and, if the past is any indication, academics, perceptual psychologists, and even people who work at the ultra-secret National Security Agency.

There have been representatives of NATO the National Association of Theater Owners and NATO the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.  There have been representatives of MPEG the Moving Picture Experts Group and MPEG the Motion Picture Editors Guild.  There have been people from AAAA (the American Association of Advertising Agencies) to Zytech (and even someone whose e-mail address starts with zz).  There have been participants from Norway to New Zealand and from Bollywood to Hollywood.

It will be a packed four days, starting with concurrent half-day seminars from the ATSC and SMPTE Gold Medal winner Charles Poynton, followed by another half-day supersession on 3-D in the home (which, as it turns out, can be very different from 3-D in the movie theater).  The next day will explore just about every aspect of the video marketplace, featuring the chief technology officer of CableLabs, broadcast-network executives, and experts on mobile devices, games, and even “immersive” media.

Day 3 will explore production and post from new camera technologies to collaborative networking.  It will also feature the mysterious Mo Henry, who appears in the credits of hundreds of movies, from Apocalypse Now and Batman Forever to Yes Man and Zombieland.  On Day 4, you’ll learn the latest on loudness, from Congressional action to the new international measurement standard and ATSC recommended practice.  And there’s much, much more.  Days begin with breakfast roundtables at 7:30 in the morning, run through evening exhibits, and might end with participants staggering off a field-trip bus late at night.

It’s fun, educational, and one of the world’s best places to network.  But it has limited attendance.  Once the maximum is reached, additional participants are turned away.

Don’t get locked out.  Register now.

http://www.hpaonline.com/mc/page.do?sitePageId=97719