Intel and its vendors have scored another win in the battle for Hollywood buyers of big "farms" of computers that render computer-generated effects and animation, announcing that Pixar will convert from Sun- to Intel-based machines.
Deal is particularly notable because Intel helped Pixar, the animation house behind such hit CGI films as "Toy Story" and "Monsters, Inc.," convert its widely used RenderMan software to run on Intel machines. That conversion could open the door for additional deals elsewhere in Hollywood for the Santa Clara, Calif., chipmaker.
"It's a big deal because they're switching over," said Intel director of industry marketing Tom Gibbs. "But it's a bigger deal because they're a (key software) provider to other companies."
Pixar bought eight supercomputing clusters, each filled with 66 Intel Xeon processors, and other equipment from San Diego vendor RackSaver. Intel engineers provided software compilers and other services that allowed Pixar to convert the RenderMan software and improve its performance.
Deal marks the seventh entertainment company in recent months to convert to Intel-based rendering systems. Others include Sony Pictures' Imageworks division, Disney, Industrial Light & Magic and DreamWorks.
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