hotlinks :

• Lightwave Product Page
• Newtek Website
• New Magic contacts
• Where to Buy
• Turning Pages 2.0 site

LightWave 3D® Selected For Virtual British Library Project

San Antonio, TX – February 28, 2007

NewTek’s LightWave 3D chosen as part of Turning the Pages 2.0™, an effort to bring the collection of the British Library to virtual life for all via the Internet.

NewTek, Inc., manufacturer of industry-leading 3D animation and video products, today announced that LightWave 3D® was the 3D centerpiece in the production of an initiative by the British Library to make a number of selections from its collection available to the public that may not be able to visit it’s halls via the Internet. Dubbed Turning the Pages 2.0™, this project has already made a number of priceless works available to the web-browsing public, including a personal notebook of sketches named the Codex Leicester by Leonardo da Vinci purchased by Bill Gates in 1994 for $31 million. This marks the first time in almost 500 years that both works by Leonardo da Vinci, the Codex Leicester and the Codex Arundel, have been re-united in one place. Other works now available include works of William Blake, Mozart, Jane Austen and Lewis Carroll.

Turning the Pages 2.0 using LightWave as its 3D solution, is one of the first examples of what is visually possible with the Microsoft Vista operating system. In addition, the LightWave 3D visuals within Turning the Pages 2.0 also run on Windows XP with the .NET 3 framework.

“We're constantly amazed at the sheer variety of projects in which artists are using LightWave to bring meaningful content like this to fruition,” said Jim Plant, President and CEO of NewTek. “We're continually refining LightWave's tools and workflow to allow artists and producers in all areas of media production to raise the bar on new and imaginative ways to realize their ideas, and to be able to do it on time and on budget. We’re honored that LightWave was able to be part of the creation of a project with such meaningful historical and educational value."

“Every polygon you see, and every curvature of page that you experience, was directly modeled in LightWave,” said Mark Hennessy-Barrett, LightWave 3D artist on the project. “It would have been impossible to do this job with any other 3D package. The amount of control that this software gives us over geometry and morphing was the key to the project's success.”

Pricing and Availability

NewTek products are distributed in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands by New Magic Australia. LightWave V9 is available now for $1299 (Aust$) for a single user license. LightWave V9 upgrades for existing LightWave owners are $649 (Aust$). For more information or to purchase contact New Magic. To locate a New Magic / NewTek Authorized Reseller click here.

Newtek in Australia and New Zealand

NewTek products are distributed in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands by New Magic Australia.

About New Magic Australia Pty Ltd

About NewTek

With headquarters in San Antonio, Texas, NewTek is a leading provider of full-featured video editing, live production, presentation, animation and special effects tools including LightWave 3D®, winner of the 2003 Primetime Emmy® Engineering Award, 3D Arsenal™, TriCaster™ and VT[4]™. NewTek launched the desktop video revolution in 1990 with the release of the legendary Video Toaster®. The company's products are used worldwide on projects ranging from home video to feature film. Recent television and film projects using NewTek production tools include Ant Bully, The DaVinci Code, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Serenity, Sin City, Fantastic Four, The 4400, Stargate: SG1, Stargate: Atlantis, Battlestar: Galactica, Prison Break, LOST, CSI, Access Hollywood and Entertainment Tonight, Recent game titles include Shadow of the Colossus, Black, Ridge Racer 6, Burnout Revenge, Driver: Parallel Lines, Quake IV and Heroes of Might and Magic 6.