If there’s one thing that will remain long after the COVID-19 pandemic, it will be the ability to work from home. Many have made the case that allowing employees to work remotely and a ROWE (results only work environment) mentality increases productivity and lowers costs, yet many companies have still frowned upon the idea. The pandemic acts as the case study proponents were looking for, and the evidence is overwhelming: remote work is possible and viable in almost every industry. But what about the production space? The technology has existed for years, but studios and post facilities often think remote work poses too many complications and risks. Now they too are seeing the light. Interest in remote & cloud-based production workflows has spiked tremendously during COVID-19’s reign and will continue to thrive once life returns to normal. A new era will begin in the production space, but there’s one company that will be left behind: Apple.
Once one of two heavyweights in the digital age of production (the other being Avid), Apple’s Final Cut NLE, Mac Pro Towers, and XSAN storage could be found in many serious studios. Those days are long past, but their workstations still remain the favorite for many artists. However, Apple is notorious for their secluded and shut-down ways of operating; they don’t like to play nice with others. For a complete remote production three things are necessary: Cloud infrastructure (storage and networks), Cloud-based workstations, and a platform for the user to connect with no loss of performance or quality (Teradici is the clear leader in this sector). This is where Apple falls short.
Apple has never and probably will never allow their OS to be virtualized. If you want OSX on a virtual instance it needs to be run on Apple hardware. Cloud providers like AWS, Azure, and GCP will never leverage this, as it’s not cost effective to rack mount hundreds of over-priced Mac Pro systems. Even if you had your own workstation in a datacenter, you still couldn’t leverage Teradici’s platform as Apple hasn’t the API to allow their software to function properly.
When the stay-at-home order came through and facilities scrambled to find a solution, those that were Windows and Linux based had an easy time getting their people set up at home in a way that still provided a high level of security. An employee’s home system could be leveraged regardless of OS as a client, or an affordable zero or thin-client could be sent home with them. Apple shops, on the other hand, were stuck. They scrambled to find encrypted hard-drives to send home with artists and could not find a surefire way to ensure that security protocols were being followed at a user’s home. Logistics of dataflow became a nightmare. Many found themselves renting Windows and Linux boxes to place in their data centers as temporary workstations for remote users, placing a heavy burden on technical teams to keep downtime minimal.
When the dust settles for those who struggled and executive teams meet, the question of “how do we prevent this in the future?” will have an obvious answer: Abandon Apple, regardless of artist preference. Many will also see the great benefits of a reduced data center footprint and minimal studio space and rely more heavily on cloud-based infrastructure. Apple’s already dwindling “pro” market will take another hit, and the era of the Virtual Studio will begin.