Gnomon School Selects SpeedTree® 3D Tree/Plant Tools for CG Training

Sept. 18, 2012 - PRLog -- COLUMBIA, SC – Interactive Data Visualization, Inc. (IDV), makers of SpeedTree® software, and Gnomon School of Visual Effects have announced an agreement to integrate the SpeedTree 3D tree and vegetation toolkit into Gnomon’s training curriculum starting later this year.

SpeedTree will be installed in the school’s computer labs, taught in its digital environment
creation courses, and featured in a SpeedTree educational event at Gnomon’s Hollywood campus.  IDV and Gnomon will also collaborate in the development of a SpeedTree DVD tutorial for the Gnomon Workshop, an online training resource for artists in the entertainment and design industries.

“Creating natural environments has become a passion that led me to SpeedTree’s powerful foliage modeling and animation tools,” noted Alex Alvarez, Director of Gnomon
School. “With its artist-friendly UI and integration with software platforms already featured in our curriculum, SpeedTree will be a great fit for us.”

“We’re always looking for opportunities to interact with CG artists and animators,” said IDV
CEO Chris King. “The Gnomon relationship offers an ideal situation for us to support the game development and visual effects communities we serve, including future users of our tools.”

About Gnomon School - Gnomon School of Visual Effects specializes in computer graphics training for careers in the entertainment industry. Founded in 1997 by Alex Alvarez, Gnomon is based in Hollywood, California. Originally created to meet the training needs of industry artists, Gnomon has evolved into a more all-encompassing art school, offering structured programs and individual courses to those looking to become professional artists working on films and games. In March of 2011, Fast Company Magazine included Gnomon School of Visual Effects in its list of the 10 Most Innovative Companies in Film. For more information, visit http://www.gnomonschool.com.

About SpeedTree - Winner of the 2005 Front Line Award for game development middleware and featured in 2009’s Avatar, along with a growing list of other high-end feature films, SpeedTree delivers amazingly natural real-time trees and plants with an array of lighting, physics and wind effects. SpeedTree includes SpeedTree Modeler, which offers a unique hybrid of hand and procedural modeling options. SpeedTree was created by Interactive Data Visualization, Inc. (IDV), founded in 1999 to develop graphic and visualization tools for a wide variety of industries. For more information, visit www.speedtree.com.