SMPTE Unveils 05 Award Recipients

The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) revealed the industry members who will be recognized Thursday, Oct. 29, at the SMPTE 2015 Awards Ceremony.

The SMPTE 2015 Awards Ceremony, supported by IMAX, is being held in conjunction with the SMPTE 2015 Annual Technical Conference & Exhibition (SMPTE 2015) at the Loews Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles.

Honorary Membership in the Society recognizes individuals who have performed eminent service in the advancement of engineering in motion pictures, television, or in the allied arts and sciences. It is the Society's highest accolade. The Honor Rollmay posthumously recognize individuals who were not awarded Honorary Membership during their lifetimes but whose contributions would have been sufficient to warrant such an honor. With Honorary Membership and appointment to the Honor Roll, SMPTE honors three technologists for their innovations, which have left a lasting impression on the industry.

SMPTE has conferred Honorary Membership status on Laurence Thorpe, an industry pioneer in the field of motion picture and television imaging. Throughout his extensive career at RCA, Sony, and Canon, Thorpe has been instrumental in introducing innovative technologies to several generations of filmmakers and television content producers. He is widely recognized as one of the key figures in the development, adoption, and roll out of high-definition television (HDTV). Thorpe has influenced the development of and assisted in bringing to market a wide range of innovative products covering all aspects of image capture - including telecines, multiformat cameras, and broadcast and cinematography lenses.

Also recognized with Honorary Membership, Irwin W. Young is an innovator and creative talent, as well as a friend and supporter of independent filmmakers. Young has advanced postproduction technology and created or supported the development of critically acclaimed motion pictures and television at DuArt Film Laboratories. From the introduction of 16mm reversal overnight dailies to creating a computerized frame count and cueing system for negative preparation, timing, and color correction, he has worked tirelessly, introducing continuous improvements to the motion picture processes. Young's leadership in establishing SMPTE standards on these processes has benefited the world.

Oscar Byram (O.B.) Hanson (1894-1961) has been named to the SMPTE Honor Roll for his engineering and operational leadership in designing the first generation of television studios, control rooms, and mobile television units that transitioned the industry from radio to television. He published his work on the initial television facilities to benefit the industry at large. Constantly developing and patenting improved methods for television imaging, Hanson worked throughout his career at RCA and the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) to establish common standards across the industry to ensure interoperability.

The Archival Technology Medal Award recognizes significant technical advancements or contributions related to the invention or development of technology, techniques, workflows, or infrastructure for the long-term storage, archive, or preservation of media content essence. The 2015 award will be presented to James A. Lindner for a career largely devoted to the art and science of media preservation and the development of technologies and techniques widely used in the world of media archiving. His research into the JPEG-2000 format as a target preservation codec for moving image conservation contributed to the broad acceptance of the format in media and in cultural heritage archives. He also is cited for development of the SAMMA workflow and systems for digitizing videotape. He has advanced the state of the art in preservation of both physical media and digital representations of motion-imaging content.

The David Sarnoff Medal Award recognizes outstanding contributions to the development of new techniques or equipment that have contributed to the improvement of the engineering phases of television technology, including large-venue presentations. The 2015 award will be presented to Birney Dayton in recognition of his work in signal processing and routing, fiber optic transmission of video and audio signals, and the advancement of analog, digital, and HDTV. Throughout his career, Dayton remained an active member of SMPTE and was elevated to SMPTE Fellow. He has been at the forefront of technology and product development, and many of these products and developments are now standard equipment in today's broadcast stations and facilities. Dayton's numerous patents, the first awarded in 1979, reflect the significance of his contributions within a very important time in the industry's history.

The Digital Processing Medal Award recognizes significant technical achievements related to the development of digital processing of content for cinema, television, games, or other related media. Stan Moote will receive the 2015 award for development of the first reliable video/audio scrambling system for composite analog video and analog audio in the early 1980s. This system digitized the analog signal, scrambled it, and reconstructed an analog signal that could be transmitted over satellite or microwave links with complete security. The system was granted both Canadian and U.S. patents. Moote went on to serve as president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Leitch Technology International before returning to engineering management. He also assisted in the invention of the video multiviewer, for which he received a patent. Moote became chief technology officer (CTO) at Leitch just before its acquisition by Harris Corporation.

The Kodak Educational Medal Award honors an individual who advances the educational process at any level through innovative and inspirational me

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