It almost goes without saying how important special effects software can be for an aspiring filmmaker. Chromakeying, which replaces a green or blue colored background with video, represents one of the most popular effects. In the past, this could only be done with expensive software and hardware, but no longer. Now, Serious Magic says its Ultra 2, an upgrade of its original Ultra program the company introduced this week at NAB 2005, represents an affordable alternative.

Some of Ultra 2's new features include graphics processor assisted keying, shadows and reflections, HD/HDV support and the Plus-90 mode, which lets you use your Mini DV camcorder in an HD scene. We were lucky enough to watch a full demonstration and see many of the new features in action. A downloadable video is included at the end of the article so you can judge the quality of the results yourself.

What Is Chromakeying?

You've seen chromakey in action, even if you might not know what it is. Chromakeying is used to replace backgrounds in many movies. An actor stands in front of a green or blue screen. Afterwards, the green/blue is replaced by video or still images.

Chromakeying, for example, allows for the simulation of dangerous stunts. With actors getting paid millions of dollars per movie, directors don't like having them jump off bridges and buildings. Instead, actors perform the stunt in front of a green screen, and the bridge is added in during post production.

Ultra 2 uses vector keying instead of chromakeying. Chromakeying looks at the color of pixels, while vector keying uses shapes. The keying algorithm is much more accurate and faster versus the original Ultra (which was also extremely good).