EFFECTDESIGN EXPANDS FACILITIES AND ‘EXPERIENCE DESIGN’ CAPACITY
October 2, 2006
San Rafael, CA

Entering its 10th year as a leader in the growing industry of experience design1, EffectDesign, Inc., has moved its business and production operations to San Rafael, CA - joining forces with newly formed Kerner Optical, LLC.

Led by EffectDesign president and industry veteran Geoff Puckett, the company is creating a media research and production complex where new ideas will come to life for clients to experience in three dimensions. "Stereoscopic media immersion (S3D) is the next step - bringing motion picture experiences into reality" notes Puckett. "We want to empower our clients with dimensional image and sound experiences from which to build upon in creating their own custom projects. We will be merging 3-D motion picture media with physical settings to communicate and educate in exciting new ways."

EffectDesign’s offerings will benefit from Kerner’s 30-year existence as George Lucas’ Industrial Light + Magic (ILM) physical effects, model and camera group - now an independent company. The former ILM entity includes many of the original members who hand crafted spaceships, sets and motion control cameras for the six Star Wars films, along with exotic locales, temples and cliff-hanging experiences for every Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park and Harry Potter movie, plus many others. In total the company has garnered 14 Academy Awards® plus 22 nominations for creative and technical production achievements since 1976. All this - in a two dimensional format.

In partnering with Kerner Optical, EffectDesign can now produce any experience imaginable, having the best concept and production people in the industry available at one location. "Conceptual artists, media/theatrical designers, animators, carpenters, engineers, camera operators are all here together, streamlining production efforts and keeping costs under control" says Puckett, a senior production designer at Walt Disney Imagineering from 1988 to 1997.

EffectDesign will continue to produce the award winning conceptual design and computer visualizations it has become known for. At the new location the company has an updated in-house render farm and two on-site screening facilities; one for visual and sound concept development/dailies, and a second 145 seat theater for full sized group presentations - both with digital projection and multi-channel THXcertified surround sound systems.

With this much anticipated expansion, EffectDesign offers the capacity to produce film and electronic high definition media in any format for any size display. And the media can now be viewed in two or three dimensions. Project supervisor Mark Valentine explains; "We can create motion picture and immersive concepts in 3-D, then develop those ideas directly into the final 3-D media or experience. It’s very cost effective."

The EffectDesign/Kerner collaboration offers state-of-the-art shooting, mockup and fabrication stages along with on-site production staff, equipment, technical support and updated shops for creating physical sets and models from any material, by any process.

Bringing together the in-house talents of 3-D stereoscopic engineers, projection innovators, motion capture designers and industry-shaping motion picture experts, EffectDesign is focusing on the diverse and highly influential future of immersive experience design for museums, corporate events, live venue/concert production and permanent facility displays and presentations (retail, entertainment, educational).

EffectDesign, Inc. / 3140 Kerner Blvd. / San Rafael, CA 94901 / www.effectsf.com

More information about Kerner Optical: filmimaging.com

The expanded EffectDesign facilities are located in the San Francisco bay area, 30 minutes north of the Golden Gate bridge in beautiful Marin County. Nearby airports; Oakland Int’l and San Francisco Int’l, are both 45 minutes away.

Local attractions include the renowned wine country regions of Napa and Sonoma (30 minutes away), the Muir redwood forest and hiking/biking wilderness (20 minutes), the rugged northern California coastline, and the exciting city, world-class restaurants and sights of San Francisco, accessible by car and ferry (via Larkspur and Sausalito docks).

¹ Experience design is the practice of designing products, processes, services, events, and environments -- each of which is a human experience -- based on the consideration of an individual's or group's needs, desires, beliefs, knowledge, skills, experiences, and perceptions.

An emerging discipline, ‘experience design’ draws from many sources including cognitive and perceptual psychology, cognitive science, architecture and environmental design, haptics, product design, information design, information architecture, ethnography, brand management, interaction design, service design, storytelling, heuristics, and design thinking.