Cinefex Weekly Update | Issue 04

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will present an Oscar statuette to Bill Tondreau at the Scientific and Technical Achievement Awards ceremony on February 14, in recognition of his Kuper motion control software and its significant contribution to the film industry.

Two years earlier, motion control had been employed to generate visual effects for Star Wars; and when that breakout movie burst upon the scene, the film industry took note of the new technology -- and those who pioneered it. "Motion control was really hot then," said Tondreau, "and, having built a motion control system, I got sucked up into the effects world. I was immediately skyrocketed into a position that was out of proportion to my experience!"

In 1988, health concerns led Tondreau to take a hiatus from his highly successful business and move to New Mexico for treatment. Two years later -- after regaining his health and implementing a major overhaul of the motion control system's hardware and software -- Tondreau formed Kuper Controls, the successor to Tondreau Electronics. "I chose the name 'Kuper' because it had two sharp consonants, and it was easy to say," Tondreau explained. "It was the same rationale that Kodak used when they picked the name 'Kodak.' It was odd enough to remember, but also familiar enough to pronounce and spell." The name has become so familiar, in fact, it has evolved into a generic term: 'Kuper' is to motion control systems what 'Kleenex' is to facial tissues. "I've had makers of other systems complain to me that, on the set, operators will refer to their equipment as 'Kuper.'" Though an understandable mistake, given the ubiquitous nature of Tondreau's product, references to motion control equipment as 'Kuper' are misleading -- Kuper is actually a software package used in conjunction with existing track and robotic camera systems. "I supply the core technology that allows other people to develop new systems of their own design." The current staff of the New Mexico-based Kuper Controls consists of Tondreau and a handful of part-time helpers who assist in building circuit boards.

Its live, on-set presence is among motion control's advantages over postproduction tracking. "In the case of shooting actors separately," said Tondreau, "you can do repeat passes on the set and look at the previous scene as the new scene is being photographed. As you run your motion control moves, you can see a real-time composite of previous footage against the new footage. So the director can direct effects shots on the set, with the actor. Motion control allows for that kind of immediacy." State-of-the-art systems are also making strides in increasing motion control's speed and efficiency. "We're now seeing systems that set up much faster and impose fewer restraints on the director. For shots that involve large-scale objects, in particular, motion control is very useful."

A future 'large-scale object' that will make use of motion control is the title character of Peter Jackson's King Kong remake. "Motion control will provide Peter Jackson with directability," Tondreau stated. "He is interested in tangible, directable setups; so motion control will be a great tool on King Kong."

Despite three nods from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and a singularly distinguished standing within the film industry, Bill Tondreau maintains a low profile and describes himself as 'terminally modest.' "I was just in the right place, at the right time," Tondreau said, "and my early investment in learning paid off, big-time."