MacMinute broke the news that Apple has bought a company called Nothing Real, the makers of Shake, a high-end video compositing software application. Shake is a US$10,000 (give or take a bit) package that is used in the development of many feature films. Neither Apple nor Nothing Real has issued a press release announcing the purchase, but MacMinute has posted a statement from Apple:

"Apple has acquired Nothing Real, a developer of high-performance software for professional visual effects and post-production based in Venice Beach, California," an Apple statement reads. "Apple plans to use Nothing Realis technology in future versions of its products."

For those wanting to know what the big deal is about Shake, we offer a comment from someone in the video industry. The following was posted in the NewTek forums (the makers of LightWavee, the 3D app) by "Beamtracer" (thanks to Observer Lester for the heads up):

Anyone who owns or has seen a demo of Shake will know of the mind blowing effects it is capable of. Most high-end 3D work gets processed through a compositing application, and Shake is extensively used in big budget Hollywood films. 3D animators should keep a close eye on Apple Shake.

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At the very least itill probably cause the price to plummet (Shake currently costs over US$10,000). It will also force many companies doing high-end visual fx for film and television to bring Macs into their workflow. This could have a back-flow effect if they want to standardize on one platform. If they MUST use a Mac for compositing, they may also decide to use it for other tasks. There are many companies that wouldnit use any other application as a substitute for Shake.

You can read a small amount of additional information in the MacMinute report. Nothing Realis Web site is currently down with a message saying that it will return "soon."