According to video commentary on the Red Tails website bringing the true life story of the Tuskegee Airmen to film was a project that brewed in George Lucas’ mind for nearly 20 years. In order to pay due diligence to the Tuskegee Airmen—their struggles and victories—the development of this film required respect, truthfulness and absolute attention to detail.

The creators performed an immense amount of research, even consulting the original Tuskegee Airmen, to capture and convey authenticity throughout the film. Using advanced filming and post production techniques, the audio and video content comes together to tell a story with captivating action and heart- wrenching emotion. The collaborative efforts and passion of the countless individuals who worked on this picture make Red Tails a film that can truly be experienced and not just watched.

To help ensure this authentic experience is translated accurately and as the creators intended in your living room, on May 22 Lucasfilm and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment are releasing Red Tails on Blu-Ray™ and DVD with THX Media Director™ technology. This is the second Lucasfilm and Fox title to feature THX Media Director; the first being Star Wars: The Complete Saga released in September 2011. THX worked with both companies to capture the picture and sound characteristics specific to this movie and encode that information on the THX Media Director enabled Red Tails Blu-ray and DVD products, so fans will be able to sit back and enjoy the high-flying, action-adventure film as its creators intended.

What is THX Media Director?

THX Media Director is a technology that transforms digital media into smart content, enabling CE devices (i.e., Blu-ray players, set-top boxes, AVRs, HD displays) to automatically select the audio and video settings that best represent the director’s vision for movies, games, music and more, vastly simplifying the home entertainment experience and preserving artistic intent.

Through partnerships with numerous consumer electronics manufacturers, chipset manufacturers, post-production facilities and film studios, THX is doing more to bring the content creator’s vision into your living room. In the coming months, new HD displays, Blu-ray Disc players, audio video receivers and set-top boxes will feature THX Media Director technology. Once available, you can play THX Media Director enabled content, such as Red Tails and Star Wars: The Complete Saga, and be guaranteed an authentic home theater experience. The painstaking details that combine to create an emotionally riveting film won’t be lost due to improper system settings. The authenticity of the film’s content, and the quality of its reproduction, will have the power to put the cockpit of a P51 Mustang in your very own living room.

Click here to learn more about recent THX Media Director products and partners

Slated for release on May 22, the Red Tails Blu-ray set is the second Lucasfilm and Fox title to feature THX Media Director; the first being Star Wars: The Complete Saga, released in September 2011. THX worked with both companies to capture the picture and sound characteristics specific to this movie and encode that information on the THX Media Director enabled Red Tails Blu-ray and DVD products, so fans will be able to sit back and enjoy the high-flying, action-adventure film as its creators intended.

The promise of delivering a premium home entertainment experience to consumers around the world doesn’t end there. THX recently partnered with The Testing Group and Testronic Labs, two of the world’s top disc testing companies, to oversee the quality assurance of THX Media Director enabled content. In working with these types of facilities, THX enables content creators and artists to more easily preserve the ideal audio and video settings for movies, games, music and more – while taking the guesswork out for consumers.

The Testing Group – As a fully operational state-of-the-art testing facility serving the digital content and commerce marketplace, the Testing Group has partnered with THX as a testing lab that can verify THX Media Director technology, helping to support a more heightened and seamless consumer experience. With more than 30 years of experience, owners Lauren Evers and James Richardson have brought invaluable innovations and standards that have helped pave the way for rapid critical mass acceptance of DVD, Blu-ray and other digital applications.

Testronic Labs – The global leader in quality assurance services for film, television and a notable array of other industries, Testronic enjoys a close collaboration with major studios and premier content owners in safeguarding the consumer experience.  An expert supplier of testing services for 18 certification programs, Testronic is uniquely positioned to ensure the highest quality consumer deliverables and now fully supports THX Media Director.

In the last year and a half, THX has grown its list of THX Media Director partners and customers to encompass leading CE manufacturers, chip developers, content creators, authoring facilities, streaming media content and Blu-ray Discs. THX continues to deliver on its promise to bring its technology to consumers’ living rooms and intends to introduce additional THX Media Director enabled titles and devices to simplify and enhance the home entertainment experience.

THX at NAB 2012:

THX will be showcasing THX Media Director through demos and new THX Media Director enabled partners at NAB booth # SL14407. In addition THX will be showcasing its new cineCube™ HD application and its full suite of THX cineSpace™ color management tools.

About THX: 

      
From the big screen to your screen, THX ignites your passion for exciting entertainment experiences. Founded by George Lucas and recognized by audiences around the globe, THX is synonymous with the design and certification of world-class cinemas, premium audio systems, 3D HDTVs and blockbuster movies. Products featuring THX technologies defy convention and define quality in their class, whether in the cinema, in the home or on the road.

May the smart content be with you

Imagine this: You unwrap a shiny new copy of your favorite Star Wars movie (doesn’t matter which one, we won’t judge). You place the disc in your Blu-ray player, and in moments the player, your receiver, and your television all subtly adjust to correctly configure their various settings, allowing you to just sit back and enjoy the movie.

Such wizardry will be possible not thanks to the Force, but thanks to THX Media Director™.

THX Media Director works behind-the-scenes ensuring that your system will use the optimal settings to match the content. Embedded in the content at the source (the mastering studio), THX Media Director has information such as aspect ratio, surround sound format, 3D format, number of audio channels, and more. This data is read by the THX Media Director enabled gear, like future Blu-ray players, receivers, and TVs. Each piece then configures itself based on the information in the content.

THX was created to better the experience of moviegoers by making certain they were getting the best possible presentation of the movie. THX Media Director is a logical extension of that original goal.

With the THX Media Director foundation in place, THX also announced that the soon to be released Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray will be the first Blu-ray disc with THX Media Director enabled content on discs 1-6, available across several territories, including USA/Canada. Marking an almost 30 year relationship, THX worked closely with Lucasfilm to identify and preserve the best possible picture and sound playback settings so fans can sit back and experience Star Wars as it was intended.

The Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray is just the start of an increasing portfolio of THX Media Director enabled content, including a library of web streaming content. But as you can see, content is just the beginning of the THX Media Director chain. That’s where the silicon chip manufacturers come in.

All consumer products these days have multiple media processors (chips) inside doing all the heavy lifting. Chances are, at least one of those chips comes from Analog Devices, Sigma Designs, or Silicon Image. Each of these companies has recently announced support for THX Media Director. By incorporating THX Media Director at the chip level, it is easier than ever for easier for CE manufacturers to implement THX Media Director™ into Blu-ray players, AV receivers, TVs and projectors. Consumers can expect to see more products that support THX Media Director in the months to come.

For more on THX Media Director, click here.

To learn more about the Star Wars Blu-ray box sets, click here.

Through ongoing collaboration with content creators, chipset manufacturers and CE manufacturers, THX is expanding the MD ecosystem, helping to improve and facilitate entertainment viewing and listening experience for consumers. At CEDIA 2011, THX is unveiling support from leading semiconductor chip companies that are critical to expanding the THX Media Director™ foundation as this will enable CE device manufacturers to easily implement THX Media Director functionality into devices that utilize these components, such as Blu-ray players, AV receivers, displays (2D/3D) and projectors.

Learn more about THX Media Director at CEDIA 2011

THX® Expands THX Media Director™ Ecosystem
INDIANAPOLIS (CEDIA 2011 – Booth # 1543), September 8, 2011—THX Ltd. today announced that Analog Devices, Sigma Designs, Silicon Image and Quantum Data, are providing industry-leading silicon solutions and HDMI protocol testing platform support that now make it easier for CE manufacturers to implement THX Media Director™ into Blu-ray players, AV receivers, TVs and projectors.
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THX Media Director Enabled Star Wars Blu-ray Box Set
Star Wars is certainly going to be this year’s biggest Blu-ray release. THX and Lucasfilm worked closely together to optimize the movies for Blu-ray (all six are THX Certified), not just for picture and sound, but including Media Director.
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What is THX Media Director?
The entertainment experience has grown complex with new features, formats and delivery methods. THX Media Director addresses this challenge, enabling digital media and devices to configure themselves for a more simplified user experience.

INDIANAPOLIS (CEDIA 2011 – Booth # 1543), September 8, 2011—THX Ltd. today announced that Analog Devices, Sigma Designs, Silicon Image and Quantum Data, are providing industry-leading silicon solutions and HDMI protocol testing platform support that now make it easier for CE manufacturers to implement THX Media Director™ into Blu-ray players, AV receivers, TVs and projectors. THX’s unique technology transforms movies, music and other digital media into metadata or “smart content” that enables A/V components to auto-select the most appropriate audio and video playback settings, preserving the content creator’s artistic intent.

Audience Benefits:

• CE manufacturers can rapidly introduce THX Media Director enabled products to consumers, with the new chip and testing platform partner support of this technology
• THX Media Director enabled devices give installers flexibility in configuring systems, with higher assurance that playback settings will remain correct as viewers switch between content
• Adding THX Media Director metadata to titles, studios improve the consumer entertainment experience; producers and directors can be assured their creations will be played back the way they intended
• As the THX Media Director ecosystem continues to expand, consumers benefit from an overall enhanced entertainment experience – home entertainment products that simply deliver movies, games, TV programming and more, as the artist intended

“With support from worldwide leading chipmakers Analog Devices, Sigma Designs and Silicon Image, THX is further extending the foundation of its THX Media Director platform,” said Rick Dean, senior vice president, THX Ltd. “CE manufacturers will now be able to source these chips for THX Media Director enabled devices, such as Blu-ray players, AV receivers, TVs and projectors.”

Semiconductor Chip Partner Support and Significance

Analog Devices, Sigma Designs and Silicon Image have contributed significantly to the initial implementations of THX Media Director and have enhanced their products that support industry standards (CEA-861 and HDMI) and features (multiple Vendor Specific InfoFrame (VSI) processing), facilitating easy implementation by CE manufacturers.

• Analog Devices, a global leader in high-performance signal processing and supplier of Advantiv® advanced TV solutions for the world’s largest consumer OEMs, recently announced its ADV7850 HDMI Complete AV Front-end chip, which supports the implementation of THX Media Director along with all commonly used interfaces associated with HDTVs and home theater applications. At CEDIA 2011, part of THX’s demo will show how ADI’s ADV7850 HDMI Complete AV Front-end can support, detect and process THX Media Director’s special embedded VSI codes from a variety of sources (Blu-ray player, game platform, set-top-box, HD camcorder, etc.) to the display
• Sigma Designs – As the leading provider of system-on-chip (SoC) solutions for both video and media processing, Sigma Designs’ SMP864x, SMP865x and SMP8910 family of chips power Connected Media players, Set-top-boxes and AVRs from leading CE brands, and now makes it easier for CE manufacturers to rapidly introduce THX Media Director enabled products directly to consumers
• Silicon Image – As a leading provider of wired and wireless connectivity solutions that enable the reliable distribution and presentation of high-definition content for consumer electronics, mobile and PC markets, Silicon Image has announced THX Media Director support in seven HDMI® port processors and transmitters; these can be implemented into end-to-end solutions for a variety of digital TVs and home theater consumer devices

In addition, Quantum Data, a worldwide provider of video test equipment, has joined THX Media Director’s growing list of partners to provide an additional layer of support for any chip maker or CE manufacturer looking to implement THX Media Director technology. Working with THX to develop and implement Media Director compatible tests, Quantum Data can verify, test, simulate and validate that manufacturers’ products are in full compliance with THX’s technology.

Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray – First THX Media Director Enabled Blu-ray Disc

With the THX Media Director foundation in place, THX also announced that the soon to be released Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray will be the first Blu-ray disc with THX Media Director enabled content on discs 1-6, available across several territories, including USA/Canada. Marking an almost 30 year relationship, THX worked closely with Lucasfilm to identify and preserve the best possible picture and sound playback settings so fans can sit back and experience Star Wars as it was intended. THX will introduce additional THX Media Director enabled titles, for the highest-quality 2D and 3D home entertainment experience possible, in Q4’11 and into 2012.

With the growth of THX’s Media Director ecosystem along with continual investment in its THX cineSpace™ Color Management Software and upcoming critical viewing Room Certification services, THX is providing the tools and expertise along the full production chain, resulting in an exceptional consumer entertainment experience.

THX is also exhibiting at IBC this week, with a THX booth located at Hall 7, Stand 7.K01. For the latest THX Room Certification and THX cineSpace technology announcements, please visit THX New Room Certification Release 9/9/11 and THX cineSpace Updates Release 9/9/2011.

About THX Ltd.

From the big screen to your screen, THX ignites your passion for exciting entertainment experiences. Founded by George Lucas and recognized by audiences around the globe, THX is synonymous with the design and certification of world-class cinemas, premium audio systems, HDTVs, and blockbuster movies and games. Products featuring THX defy convention and define quality in their class, whether in the cinema, home or on the road.

About Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray

Relive the unforgettable moments and experience the spectacular adventure of STAR WARS The Complete Saga in a way only Blu-ray can deliver. This incredible collection unites all six Episodes together for the first time in stunning high definition with the purest digital sound in the galaxy. With over 40 hours of thrilling special features, including all-new content created exclusively for this release, you can journey deeper into the Star Wars universe and discover more than ever before. Feel the Force of STAR WARS The Complete Saga on Blu-ray this September!

Home theater enthusiasts are often faced with a dizzying array of audio and video playback settings when switching between their favorite TV shows, movies, games and music. Manually adjusting these settings can be complicated and even frustrating for most. Not to fear, THX Media Director simplifies the home entertainment experience, allowing HDTVs and audio systems to automatically select the appropriate playback settings based on the content being played.

At CES 2011, THX will unveil an ecosystem of CE manufacturers and content distributors who have all pledged support for THX Media Director. This collection of THX partners, which includes LG Electronics, Onkyo Sound & Vision, JVC USA, Epson America and Sonic Solutions, share a common goal of delivering unsurpassed quality and ease-of-use.

Learn more about THX Media Director at CES 2011.

THX Grows THX Media Director™ Partner Ecosystem
LAS VEGAS, NV. – Jan. 5, 2011 – “THX Media Director empowers partners who desperately want a straightforward solution for ensuring optimal consumer viewing experiences. We look forward to more partners featuring our technology as a fundamental part of new products and creative content.”
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Sonic to Add THX Media Director™ Technology to Roxionow™
LAS VEGAS, NV. – Jan. 5, 2011 – The integration of THX Media Director across the Sonic products greatly extends the reach of THX’s innovative technology into consumers’ digital entertainment experience.
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Simplifying the Home Theater Experience
THX has always been about ensuring the best performance from every piece of gear in a system. THX Certified products are well known to be standouts in their respective categories. The problem is, once that product is in the home, all bets are off – it’s up to the consumer to find the playback settings for the best entertainment experience.
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THX Media Director gets closer to Launch – CES 2011
Rick Dean Snr VP of THX Ltd, gives Stephen Withers of AVForums an update on the recent progress with THX Media Director. This system uses Metadata from content to set the picture controls of your home theater system for how the director intended.
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THX Media Director™ Technology
The entertainment experience has grown complex with new features, formats and delivery methods. THX Media Director addresses this challenge, enabling digital media and devices to configure themselves for a more simplified user experience.