- Crest Digital
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Crest Digital Type Private Industry post-production, broadcast media Founded 1961 Headquarters Anaheim, California Key people Ron Stein, CEO Employees 150 (2009) Website www.crestdigital.com Crest Digital is a privately owned company specializing in post production and DVD/CD replication. Crest Digital provides editing, DVD and Blu-Ray authoring, digital asset management, audio mixing, language dubbing and subtitling, and DVD/CD optical media replication services. Clients include major film and television studios, software companies, record labels, airlines and industrial clients from around the world.
Contents
History
Crest Digital was founded in 1961 by Maurice Stein, a former camera store owner and color timer, and his wife Jeanne. Originally named Crest National Film Laboratories, the company's services first included developing original 35mm and 16mm film negative, release printing and film restoration.[1] During the 1970s and 1980s, Crest National expanded into the world of video and began to service the in-flight entertainment and cable TV industries. Language dubbing and subtitling, restoration, editing, sub-mastering, and videotape duplication services were later added. In the 1990s, CD and DVD replication, DVD encoding, menu design and authoring services were offered and a new optical media manufacturing plant was built in Hollywood in 1996.[2] By 2000, Crest National was named #22 of the "The 100 Fastest Growing Private Companies in Los Angeles.[3]
Crest National was given the task of restoring the original Cinerama negative for “How the West Was Won" in 2000 and built their own screening room, complete with three authentic Cinerama projectors, a seven-track sound system and 146-degree curved screen, in order to complete the projects.”[4] Crest National acquired Anaheim-based Concord Disc Manufacturing Corp. in 2004, doubling the size of their CD/DVD replication operation and quadrupling their packaging capabilities.[5] Crest National rebranded as Crest Digital in 2006 and expanded their operations into China in 2007, partnering with China Film Group and building a 15,000 square meter state-of-the-art DVD and CD manufacturing facility outside Beijing.[6]
Crest Digital has been the country's majority provider of in-flight movies to airlines since the 1970s.[7] They provide editing-for-content, captioning, encoding, and dubbing and subtitling services in over 65 languages to all the major airlines. In 2009 Crest Digital launched a new division called Fl'air, offering customized audio and video programming to airlines with all content and programming services provided exclusively by DMX Inc.[8]
Crest Digital is one of only three Class ‘A' DVD Verification Laboratories, and one of only two Class ‘A' HD-DVD Laboratories approved by the DVD Forum in North America.[9]
Ron Stein, son of Crest Digital's founders, is the president and CEO of the almost 50-year-old company.
Firsts (partial list)
In 1963, Crest Digital developed the first 35/32 printing equipment for use in motion picture labs.[10] The first closed captioning for the hearing impaired direct for home video cassette and videodisc release was introduced by Crest Digital in 1984. The company introduced the world's first 65/70mm flying spot scanner film transfer system, “Ultrascan 70TM” in 1991. In 2002, the first Cineglyph HD large-format telecine was introduced. Royal Philips Electronics and Crest Digital partnered in May 2002 to develop and install the first Super Audio CD (SACD) hybrid disc production line in the country at Crest Digital's Hollywood facilities, with a production capacity of 3 million discs per year.[11] Crest Digital also did the first MPEG encoding for in-flight films.[12]
Awards
- American Society of Cinematography 1994
- Hollywood Chamber of Commerce Women of Distinction Award to Crest Digital Executive Vice President Lorraine Stein Ross 2000
- Golden Image Awards 2002
- Microsoft Premier Vendor Award 2004
- Specialty Graphics Imaging Association Continuity Award 2004
- Saturn Awards: 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007
- Specialty Graphics Imaging Association Division: CD 2004
- Hollywood Arts Council Charlie Award, Industry Founders Award 2004
- Screen Printing and Graphic Imaging Association International-Golden Image Competition (SGIA) Division: CDs 2001
- World Airline Entertainment Association (WAEA) Lifetime Achievement Award presented to Crest Digital CEO Ron Stein 2009
References
- ^ Maury Stein Opens New Color Film Lab, Hollywood Reporter
- ^ Galante Block, Debbie, Renowned Film Lab To Take On DVD Replication, Tape Disc Business
- ^ The 100 Fastest Growing Private Companies, Los Angeles Business Journal
- ^ http://www.hollywoodheritage.org/newsarchive/spring01/cinerama.html
- ^ Simons, Andrew, DVD Maker Bought as Industry Spins Into Boom Times, Los Angeles Business Journal
- ^ http://www.www.chinatechnews.com/2007/04/13/5247-china-film-group-plans-new-dvd-manufacturing-facility}}
- ^ Small Business, Los Angeles Business Journal
- ^ http://airfax.com/blog/index.php/tag/flair/}}
- ^ http://www.dvdfllc.co.jp/verification/list_cal.html}}
- ^ Takowsky, Suzanne, Little Lady Behind The Big Desk, Women On Top
- ^ http://www.newscenter.philips.com/main/standard/about/news/press/archive/2002/article-2217.wpd
- ^ Hollywood's Crest National Shines On, Tape Disc Business
- ^ http://www.crestdigital.com/about_us_awards.php}}
External links
Categories:- Film companies
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