Ever wondered how television shows and films managed not to have special effects way back? By special effects I mean good transitions, interesting opening bill boards and closing credits. Big machines were used for these kind of stuff and would cost as much as $ 100,000 - $ 500,000. That is why it is kind of easy to distinguish which networks were able to afford such machines. But, with the birth of Video Toaster by the NewTek Inc., almost every video effect became possible with just a relatively small disk that contains the soft ware and the Video Toaster card that was made compatible to the computer lines of the Amiga Inc. Oh, and have I mentioned that this remarkable device was introduced the same month and year I was born? Cool? Totally.
Video Toaster Card
The Video Toaster is a video switching device mainly used for transition on television shows and films. The machine could manage up to four inputs which mean if you are taping a live show, you could plug up to four cameras. It was designed by Tim Jenison, the founder of the Newtek Inc. with the help of Engineer Brad Carvey who “built the first wire wrap prototype” and the software was written by Steve Kell. However, it is not only used for transition but also for special video effects like “chroma keying, character generation, animation, and image manipulation.” Here is an interview that presented the special features of the Video Toaster:
During that time, networks and even private households found the Video Toaster very remarkable and more importantly cheaper than the bigger video switching machines that ever existed. It costs $ 1,595 including the software and you could make your own videos complete with all special effects and is already of broadcast quality. More features include “LightWave, a 3D modeling, rendering, and animation program.” I mean, who would not want that?
With its success, the Amiga Inc. tried to capitalize on the product and made promotions like offering the Video Toaster card and software with an Amiga computer and sync generator for $ 5,000.
As such, during the early 1990s the Toaster was used quite widely by many desktop video enthusiasts and local television studios and was even used during "The Tonight Show" regularly to produce special effects for comedy skits. (Fact|date=February 2007) It was frequently easy to detect a studio that used the Toaster by the unique and recognizable special switching effects. Also all of the external submarine shots in the TV series "seaQuest DSV" were created using Lightwave 3D, as were the outer space scenes in the TV series "Babylon 5.”
Personally, I learned making videos through Windows Movie Maker until I finally used editing softwares such as Sony Vegas and Adobe Premiere. The Video Toaster signalled the emergence of these kinds of video editing softwares and it is really interesting to learn how NewTek was able to invent it. Many other improved versions of the Video Toaster were introduced and to date, Video Toaster 5 or VT5 is the latest model of the NewTek Inc.
October 1990 marked the birth of this promising device and after that, post-production was never again the same.
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