Sunderland business launches a 3D world first

A young entrepreneur is making sure his business stands out with the launch of the world’s first 3D website. Saif Chaudhry brought a new dimension to Sunderland’s business portfolio when he set up one of the world’s first integrated stereoscopic 3D content and technology consultancies in the city earlier this year. The company has now launched the world’s first stereoscopic 3D website www.stereoscopic-3d.co.uk, allowing users to surf the internet in 3D using the latest generation of 3D capable HD TV sets. Saif, who has a background in 3D, launched Stereografix in March. The studio and consultancy offers a range of services to organisations looking to tap into the latest 3D technology. Supported by Sunderland City Council and Sunderland Software City, Saif chose to locate his business in Sunderland and is already working on a number of projects for local, national and international clients. Stereografix has also developed a programme of 3D training courses designed to enable existing businesses and freelancers to learn the skills needed to create stereoscopic 3D CGI, games, film and photography. He said: “In addition to offering a revolutionary content production and consultancy service, we are keen to make sure the UK is a world leader in 3D. Therefore we have developed a range of 3D training courses and 3D development workstations to enable others to work with the technology. Candidates on the training courses may also be eligible for up to £800 of funding through Skillset. “Many businesses still have the misconception that they require a Hollywood budget to produce high quality 3D. However, thanks, in part to the fantastic support of Sunderland City Council, Stereografix has opened up this technology to the education, gaming and new media sectors.” A University of Sunderland graduate and originally from Manchester, Saif says that Sunderland stood out as the ideal place to develop his business. He added: “For a cutting edge media business, we needed a cutting edge city and Sunderland has it all. It combines an excellent IT infrastructure with several purpose-built sites each specialised for different sectors with great road, rail, air and sea links.” Stereografix has already worked with Sunderland City Council to create a short 3D promotional film to support the city’s recently-launched Economic Masterplan. The company is also partnering with Durham University on a range of research and content production projects. Councillor Bryan Charlton, Sunderland City Council’s portfolio holder for Prosperous City, said: “Stereografix is a business right on the cusp of a new wave of technology that will no doubt spread rapidly throughout the world. “We are delighted that Mr Chaudhry has chosen Sunderland as the base for his business. It is extremely exciting for the city to be part of the development of a business that has such magnificent potential and it will be exciting to see Stereografix grow as the world of 3D hits our TV screens.” Saif hopes that Stereografix will attract customers who want to produce 3D media at a realistic cost. He added: “In Hollywood, just the cost of hiring the equipment to make 3D films would likely be around $75,000 per day. We have used our expert understanding of the science and technology behind 3D to develop our own tools and pipeline that enables us to deliver the same service at a lower cost.” Stereografix has also engineered a range of 3D workstations which are designed specifically for 3D post-production and which will create an affordable finishing system for would-be 3D creators. “Our workstations have been designed from concept specifically for 3D post production. In order to make them accessible to studios with varying budgets there are 3 different base models available; “Entry”, “Professional” and “Extreme”. The entire range is completely modular which enables clients to upgrade from “Entry” to “Extreme” over time and we have a huge range of customisable components to make sure each workstation is tailored precisely to each clients individual needs.” He added: “We have been able to design the range thanks to our world leading 3D expertise, but without a combination of the latest Nvidia® technology and Adobe® software it would have been a lot harder.” Stereografix aims to grow and establish Sunderland as a 3D production hotspot and has ambitious long term plans to develop world leading 3D production and post production facilities throughout the city.