Autodesk has announced that its technology was used to create HDTV content for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Autodesk solutions provide digital artists with the creative tools and processing power necessary to quickly and efficiently produce content containing the level of detail required for HDTV programming. Post-production facilities that relied on Autodesk technology include: Deep Blue Sea, Locomotion, METAphrenie, Method Studios and The Mill.

The World Cup occurs every four years and is one of the most widely viewed sporting events worldwide. It is estimated that 2.8 billion viewers tuned in for the event in 2002, with an audience of 1.1 billion for the final match alone. This year, the tournament is being held in twelve German cities from June 9 to July 9. It is airing entirely in high definition for the first time.

METAphrenie, a Berlin-based design and production company, created the Adidas “Impossible Team” commercial with Autodesk Maya 3D animation software. This entirely computer-generated ad features the Adidas +F50 TUNIT and +Predator Absolute soccer shoes, as well as the gold and black Adidas +Team Geist matchball that will be used in the final World Cup match. Artists at METAphrenie used Autodesk Maya software to model, texture and animate all aspects of the commercial, including: the spot’s two main characters, soccer players’ legs and feet, the Adidas products and the environment.

In addition, Autodesk’s Discreet Flame system was used by The Mill to create “Football Dream”, a commercial for the UK-based bank Nationwide Building Society. This humorous ad promotes the society’s longstanding relationship with the England soccer team. In the ad, the bank manager made famous in previous Nationwide Building Society commercials falls asleep while speaking to a client about loan rates. He dreams that he is a soccer goalie who is only one penalty save away from winning the World Cup for England. After taunting the penalty taker, the bank manager makes a victorious save with an overhead scissor kick.

Post-production facility Locomotion used a variety of Autodesk products to create a commercial for a mobile phone network — O2 Germany. In the spirit of the World Cup, the ad shows four German soccer legends engaging in an impromptu soccer scrimmage inside one of their homes. As they play, the walls of the house fly away and a soccer stadium is exposed. Autodesk Maya was used to create the ad’s stylized 3D world, including the house, furniture, balls, stadium, shadows and mobile phones. Autodesk Combustion desktop visual effects software was also used for b-spline rotoscoping work and pre-composites, while the Discreet Flame system was used for high-definition finalization.