Jonathan Blank (pictured to the left) is currently the
founder and CEO of Wildform,
a video, animation and presentation software company. Wildform's
products include the Flix Flash video encoders, the Wild FX video
titlers and text animators and the Linx Flash editor. Jonathan
is also an award-winning filmmaker. Among his films are: "Sex,
Drugs & Democracy" ("A seductive argument" --Roger
Ebert), "Anarchy TV" ("A wild, crazy and twisted
comedy" --Jan Wahl, KRON-TV), and "Collecting America" ("Fascinating.3 ½ stars" --Joe
Gelmis, NY Newsday).
Geetesh:
Jonathan:
Tell us more about Wildform and the products you create.
Wildform creates video, animation and presentation software.
Many of our programs output Flash which is the most popular
media format on the Internet. Our goal is to create powerful
software that is very easy to use. Wildform has been around
since 1999 and we're based in Venice, California. I started
the company because I was dissatisfied with the software
that was available at the time to put interactive video and
animation on the Web. That is when we released, Flix, the
first software that converted video into Flash. And we've
been off and running ever since. Our current products include
the Flix line of Flash video encoders, the Wild FX line of
video titlers and text animators, the Linx Flash editor/assembler
and the Wildform Video Library collection of royalty free
stock footage.
Geetesh:
Jonathan:
Using Flash content within PowerPoint is something that's
becoming very popular. Why would anyone use this route
rather than create the entire presentation in Flash.
If you are used to working with PowerPoint, you may already
have some expertise that you want to take advantage of. You
may also have a number of templates that make it a lot easier
to develop new presentations, as opposed to starting from
scratch. And while I'm a big fan of Flash, PowerPoint is
the industry standard for presentations. In general I would
advise using both - why limit yourself to any single technology.
And Flash integrates well with PowerPoint, so it's a natural
fit.
Geetesh:
Jonathan:
How do you use PowerPoint?
We use PowerPoint for business presentations.
Geetesh:
Jonathan:
How relevant are your products for a PowerPoint audience.
I think they are very relevant. One thing you start to notice
about PowerPoint presentations is that so many of them look
the same. And it's very important not to bore your audience.
By adding some striking Wild FX text animations, or Flix
encoded video you can really bring your presentation to life
and make it stand out from the crowd.
Geetesh:
Jonathan:
Your products include a video footage library - how significant is video
in a presentation.
If a picture is worth a thousand words, how many words does
a video convey? There is simply no way to compare the power
and effect of a well placed video in any presentation. It
really gets a viewer's attention and can make a lasting impression.
Geetesh:
Jonathan:
Death by PowerPoint - you've probably heard that before.
Who's to blame: PowerPoint itself or the creator's lack
of imagination?
Like any technology, once it is overused and once it becomes
a requirement as opposed to a complimentary tool, you will
find a glut of uninspired and boring examples. That said,
PowerPoint has certainly revolutionized the whole idea of
what a presentation is and Microsoft deserves some credit
for that. Ultimately, PowerPoint is a powerful tool that
can be used for good or evil...just kidding. PowerPoint presentations
can be interesting or boring, just like any other presentation.
It's really a question of how it is used.
Geetesh:
Jonathan:
Tell me more about Wildform's support infrastructure.
Wildform provides free email support to our customers.
