An investment to create a world leading film post-production, restoration and digitisation facility in South Wales is under way with Welsh Government support, creating highly skilled jobs for Welsh graduates.
The £445,000 investment by South Wales & London based Dragon is in world class picture post technology, powerful computing and digital storage systems creating a unique twin location facility for film & television.
Dragon’s investment is backed by £200,500 from the Welsh Government’s Economic Growth Fund, creating thirteen new jobs and safeguarding seven existing jobs.
Dragon, which is based within the Sony Technology Centre at Pencoed, will re-launch next month after this major investment into the very latest post equipment and a brand new sound studio. The South Wales hub will be connected to Dragon’s London offices, allowing clients to review work from Soho, putting Dragon at the fore of the UK post-production industry’s offering.
Paul Wright, Managing Director of Dragon, commented: “ The new picture post-production equipment will allow Dragon to compete on an equal footing with major post production brands in the UK and across Europe and combined with the Soho hub, we can really make our mark’.
Economy Minister Edwina Hart said: “ Dragon Digital has expertise across a number of creative industries and has made a particular name for itself in post production, film restoration and digitisation. I am delighted the Welsh Government is supporting its expansion in this area, creating jobs and raising the profile of Welsh capability. Its diverse offering means Dragon can compete with international and London based post production houses as well as the large restoration and digitisation companies.”
Dragon now have the most powerful and precise colour correction & finishing capability in the form of the Pablo Rio 4K system, as recently used on Interstellar, Avatar and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Dragon has also adopted Sony Digital Cinema projection technology to create a world leading grading theatre and have taken delivery of the first Sony SRX-R510P projector equipped with the newly developed 4K SDI input board.
First of its kind in the world, this allows for a true uncompressed 4K input into the Sony SRX-R510P direct from the grading suite allowing for the precise and accurate projection required for high end post production.
Dragon have also added a dedicated sound studio based around a tightly integrated Pro Tools HD hardware and software system, allowing them to deliver unparalleled performance and pristine audio quality required for audio post production.
Dan Tubbs Finance Director said: “The Welsh Government grant is great news – the new equipment and more highly skilled staff will enable us to accelerate our growth plans and take on more projects. We will be taking on high calibre staff and are also working closely with universities in Wales offering in-house training for students while they are studying with the intention of employing them to ensure we have graduates with the right skills set.”