By Warren Eagles CSI

CSI’s Australia and New Zealand chapter was formed in the middle of 2020, not the ideal time to start a networking social group! Jarryd Hall CSI in Sydney, Dee McClelland CSI in Melbourne, myself in Brisbane and Dave Gibson CSI in Auckland NZ are the founding chapter officers.

We began by adding all current CSI members with ties to Australia or New Zealand into the ANZ chapter, even those who now work overseas. This means a member can belong to two chapters, one in their home country and one in their current working location.

When COVID 19 restrictions started to loosen in Australia early 2021, I proposed to our members that it was time to hold our first ANZ meeting. It would likely probably be the first live, in person gathering of CSI members in the world since the pandemic began.

Adam Eden CSI, owner of the post house Eden Creative in Surry Hills Sydney, offered to host an evening focused on HDR. It seemed an ideal subject to kick off with. We posted an invite on our CSI chapter page, our What’s App group and through local groups on social media. On February 25, a group of 15 colorists, producers and DPs met at Eden Creative. Ian Lowe from Dolby beamed in from the UK and gave us the latest Dolby Vision news. Adam is Dolby certified and his grading room is equipped with a new MacPro, Sony BVM HX310 HDR monitor and an LG 48CX for the clients. He walked us through his Dolby Vision workflow showcasing things he has learned mastering HDR for the major studios over the past 12 months.

The evening was a great success and gave everyone the chance to get out and network again. We hope to host more live and ZOOM type sessions in 2021. Our events include both CSI members and non-members as we want to showcase the benefits of joining the organization. CSI sponsor ASUS provided giveaways for the evening. We appreciate their continued support.

(Above: Luciano Marigo-Spitaleri CSI and new associate member Wassim Bazzi proudly holding their ASUS goodie bags.)

For information on the CSI ANZ Chapter contact the officers at anz@coloristsociety.com