Who we are

Symmation is a studio that specializes in creating insightful and accurate multimedia solutions for those in the medical, scientific, technical and educational sectors.

Our molecular visualization department, headed by a highly-skilled scientist (Ph.D. in macromolecular crystallography and bioinformatics), sets us apart from other freelance artists or companies. We have worked with groups in academia and in the private sector. Current trends in fields ranging from nanotechnology to medicine (with all related '-omics' in between) indicate an exponential rise in data. We provide solutions to visualize a wide assortment of data in a way that can be understood by a diverse audience. With much of today's cutting-edge research being molecular in nature, we are in a position to provide our clients with visualization solutions ranging from evocative illustrations to story-telling animations.

See where Symmation has been featured.

What we do

We have produced cover art, animations used in scientific and medical conferences/meetings, publication figures and more. At the helm of our molecular visualization department is a scientist-artist. Serving both as a technical director and animator, he holds a Ph.D. in macromolecular X-ray crystallography and bioinformatics, and remains an active academic researcher. Fully trained in the many verses of structural biology, we are unique in our ability to interact with our clients in the scientific and medical fields.

Aside from your ideas and concepts, we are poised to accept data in a multitude of forms, any of which can be integrated into a stunning and accurate illustration or animation. Some examples of data sources that we can work with are:

• Photographs
• Electron microscopy micrographs
• X-ray, MRI and related sources
• Protein Data Bank macromolecular coordinates
• Small molecule coordinates
• Protein sequence (we can build a molecular dynamics optimized homology model)
• Raw data
• Sound/Voice data

In addition to industry-standard tools, our in-house software tools provide an interface to our production pipeline for the above sources and proprietary formats that our clients may provide.

Final product. The final product can be delivered in virtually any format. This includes the web, Compact Disc (CD), Digital Video Disc (DVD), VHS, BETA, print (small format to large format), posters and many more.

Working with clients

Whether an illustration or animation is pre-commissioned, in-depth consultations with the potential client are required to ensure that we can meet the client's expectations and needs. Subsequent research on our part precedes storyboard design. In the case of animations, pre-visualization animations are rendered for client feedback and 'final look' trial animation snapshots are also provided. Following two-way feedback and client approval, the final animation is rendered. Post-production is then employed to provide the client with a final product in their preferred format.

Since client feedback is vital throughout the pipeline process, we have developed an online tracking system where we regularly post current images and/or information regarding the project. Clients can directly comment and annotate the work-in-progress and use our tracking system to approve work at various stages of production. Feedback via more traditional methods is of course always available.

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