imagery in our films. Our focus on user interface and tool development enables our animators to adeptly use existing and emerging CG technologies, allowing us to leverage our extraordinary artistic talent. In addition, we have strategic relationships with leading technology companies that allow us to leverage third-party advancements and technology innovation substantially before they are available to the open market, which in the rapidly changing landscape of technology gives us a valuable advantage. We have several core proprietary technologies and production processes: (1) Our Adaptable Production Environment is a robust data and workflow management architecture for connecting various tools together into an organized and efficient pipeline; (2) Emo is our character animation system; (3) Light and D_Render are an interactive lighting tool and a photo realistic rendering software system, respectively; (4) Comp is a high-quality digital compositor; (5) Nile is a sophisticated production tracking and management tool and (6) Virtual Studio Collaboration encompasses a suite of high-end collaboration tools that enable efficient production workflow and collaboration across multiple geographically diverse sites. Adaptable Production Environment: The adaptable and flexible production environment at DreamWorks Animation exists because of our core pipeline software that permits the use of specialized proprietary custom tools as well as commercially available applications. The proprietary pipeline software includes hundreds of scripts and applications that manage and version the millions of digital elements comprising each of our CG productions. The basis for our production pipeline is a linked collection of proprietary tools that are customizable and allow for the creation of unique, groundbreaking images and visual effects in our films. ® EMOtion: Emois our Academy Award winning animation system. It is one of the primary tools used by our animators to put our CG characters in motion. Unlike commercially available software solutions that focus primarily on film visual effects or computer game animation, Emo is designed to deliver animators the control and flexibility to achieve convincing facial expression and full body motion worthy of the world-class acting talent in our films. Light and D_Render: Together these two software systems provide an interactive lighting interface and a powerful photo-realistic image rendering software. Light provides an interactive shading interface that enables artists to make creative adjustments to the shot’s lighting environment. D_Render provides the engine that synthesizes the environment according to the settings established in Light. Light and D_Render are essential for establishing the complex visual imagery that is a hallmark of DreamWorks Animation films. Comp: Comp is our integrated and interactive compositing package specifically targeted for the needs of high-end CG animation. Architected for parallel work, Comp allows many artists to work concurrently on the same shot. Comp has a sophisticated user interface that maximizes artist productivity and also provides programmatic access for customization and integration into the production workflow. Nile: Nile is our production management system used to schedule, coordinate and track the flow of work through the production pipeline. Due to the complex interdependent nature of three dimensional animation, accurate production information is essential for producing high quality animation on a specific schedule and budget. Nile acts as the central repository for all notes, changes and key decisions that take place throughout the production of a film. Furthermore, Nile shares information across productions, allowing the production management team to optimize studio resources and regulate the inventory of work for individual departments. Virtual Studio Collaboration: Our Virtual Studio Collaboration technology enables creative collaboration across multiple geographic sites. This technology has been applied to the several areas of the creative, production and technical collaboration processes at DreamWorks Animation, which has enabled us to build virtual studios across physical boundaries and leverage our talent pool without regard to location. The technology has been deployed internally to enable remote digital dailies, remote editing collaboration, remote storyboard pitching and many other forms of remote collaboration involving the real-time sharing of high- resolution images combined with interactive communication among staff. This technology, which is now at the core of our operation, has enabled us to leverage the latest in research and development with our strategic technology partners. 19