PALO ALTO, Calif., Nov. 11, 2008 – “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa,” opened number one at the domestic box office this weekend, generating over $63 million at the domestic box office. Audiences are in for a wild treat with the breakthrough animation in DreamWorks Animations’ new film, achieved through the combination of HP technology and DreamWorks Animation’s creativity.
The sequel to “Madagascar” used HP technology to help animators solve artistic challenges in bringing the wild of Africa to the big screen. HP workstations enabled DreamWorks to bring to life every creative element, from fields of grass to vast landscapes to massive crowds of animals. Audiences experience a wide variety of deeply intricate, organic environments that exist in part thanks to the unprecedented power of HP workstations with multi-core processors.
HP has helped DreamWorks Animation create groundbreaking animated feature films from “Shrek” to “Kung Fu Panda.” With 342 HP workstations and the largest and most powerful render farm ever used – also powered by HP technology – DreamWorks Animation was able to take creative elements in “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” to new levels. In fact, the film required more than 27.4 million render hours – five times as many as the original “Shrek.”
“Our goal on every film is to push the limits of our creativity to bring the story to life for the audience,” said Ed Leonard, chief technology officer, DreamWorks Animation. “HP technology not only allows us to reach those limits but to exceed them.”
The technology behind the film is the latest example of the ongoing collaboration between HP and DreamWorks Animation that continuously delivers “the next big thing” in animation.
“HP is committed to providing customers like DreamWorks with the power and reliability they demand,” said John Thompson, vice president and general manager, Workstations Global Business Unit, HP. “HP and DreamWorks continue to work together to raise the bar and bring the best visual realities to audiences around the world.”
Companies use HP workstations to design everything from running shoes to race cars, animated characters to deep-sea submersibles, and to manage everything from billions of dollars of tradable securities to mission-critical IT environments.
Demonstrating HP’s environmental leadership, all HP workstations are registered as Electronic Products Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT™) Gold products, the highest rating available. All HP workstations are more than 90 percent recyclable by weight and incorporate a tool-less chassis design for quick and easy upgrades by hand. Each workstation includes an 80 PLUS power supply, which is substantially more efficient than a standard power supply, reducing both overall energy usage and the amount of waste heat released into the environment.
About “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa”
In the highly anticipated sequel to “Madagascar,” Alex, Marty, Melman, Gloria, King Julien, Maurice and the penguins and the chimps find themselves marooned on the distant shores of Madagascar. In the face of this obstacle, the New Yorkers have hatched a plan so crazy it just might work. With military precision, the penguins have repaired an old crashed plane – sort of. Once aloft, this unlikely crew stays airborne just long enough to make it to the wildest place of all – the vast plains of Africa, where the members of our zoo-raised crew encounter species of their own kind for the very first time. Africa seems like a great place ... but is it better than their Central Park home?
About HP
HP, the world’s largest technology company, provides printing and personal computing products and IT services, software and solutions that simplify the technology experience for consumers and businesses. HP completed its acquisition of EDS on Aug. 26, 2008. More information about HP (NYSE: HPQ) is available at
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