Lucasfilm Ltd. uses Trolltech’s Qt to create user interface for cutting-edge content creation

Qt Used to Develop Digital Entertainment Software for Windows, Linux and Macs alike to Help Create Cutting Edge Media

Oslo, Norway, 06 October - 2007 - Trolltech® announced that Lucasfilm Ltd., one of the world's leading digital entertainment companies, will use Qt® to develop their digital entertainment software. This new arrangement covers use of the software by Industrial Light & Magic®, LucasArts®, Skywalker Sound®, and Lucasfilm Animation®.

 

Qt sets the standard for high-performance, cross-platform software development. Some of the world’s largest software companies – such as Autodesk®, Adobe®, Disney and Skype® – rely on Qt to create innovative, advanced solutions.

Qt is Trolltech’s main product and provides a development platform for creating applications that run on all major operating systems (Windows, Linux and Mac). Qt is designed to help organizations streamline their application development, enable software differentiation, and increase productivity.

This new relationship with Lucasfilm further reinforces Qt’s presence within the market for special effects and entertainment. Examples of other major studios using Qt are Walt Disney Feature Animation, Sony Pictures Imageworks and Duboi. Most companies who standardize on Qt as their application development platform typically find a savings of 30-50% in development time, particularly in the area of rich GUI (graphical user interface) development. Qt provides businesses with a low risk approach to cross-platform development and ensures that their application’s look and feel is current with the latest operating system features.

“We used Qt for a few small projects and were impressed with its ease-of-use and support for cross-platform development. We were convinced our company could leverage this on a larger scale in our mainstream artist tools,” said Steve Sullivan Director of R&D at Lucasfilm Ltd.

“Our previous UI framework was already stretched to a point that could no longer meet our growing needs, and signing on with Trolltech was the smart move for us. Using Qt will not only save us time and money, but also let us focus more on innovation,” he continued.

“Trolltech's dedication to helping our customers create efficient, cutting edge software is a key reason why the digital film industry has used Qt so extensively," said Benoit Schillings, CTO at Trolltech.

"Qt eliminates the drudgery that most software projects in this industry face by solving a lot of the low-level issues. This allows the customer to concentrate on what they do best - innovation, creativity, and creating software that brings animated features to life," Schillings said.