This
is going to be the breakthrough year for 3D, or at least everyone in
Hollywood seems convinced of it. There is even a major push to open
whole new groups of 3D digital cinema theaters in anticipation of James
Cameron's sci-fi spectacular, Avatar, due to be unleashed in December
2009.
And despite some surprisingly disparaging remarks from
David Hill, chairman and CEO of the Fox Sports Television group, at
this past December's 3D Entertainment Summit about the potential of
near-term 3D sports broadcasting due to the costs of converting to live
3D TV production, several major experiments showing the feasibility of
sending 3D through the ether have already been conducted. But although
most industry insiders think of 3D as an acquisition format, editors
know that the real challenge in adopting any new medium lies in post
production. After all, we sit right at the bottom of the production
funnel where all the magic really comes together. However,
communication in "z-space" brings with it the need for a whole new
grammar in visual storytelling, so throughout the year this column will
be concentrating on the aesthetics of 3D as much as the technology
behind it.
THE WAVE OF THE FUTURE
There
have been several eras in cinema history when 3D slid off the screens
as a passing fad, but today's capability of shooting each "eye" with HD
cameras has enabled the success of modern live action 3D productions.
One of the first to tackle this kind of 3D was James Stewart, producer/
director at Geneva Film Co. in Toronto, who shot the first commercial
in digital 3D back in 2005 to boost the product launch of the Toyota
Tacoma truck.
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| DreamWorks' 3D production "Monsters vs. Aliens" will hit theaters in March. ©DreamWorks Animation | |
Stewart
had seen some 3D tests NHK had shot at the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics
and realized its potential to grab viewers' attention. But Stewart had
to find his own way to make the medium communicate the way he wanted.
With
no 3D editing software available at the time, Stewart cut his HDCAM
tapes shot by cinematographer Peter Anderson in 2D on an offline NLE
and then, after compositing the left/right images at FotoKem in
Burbank, Calif., had to evaluate the 3D effect in a dual-projector
screening theater at the Real D offices in Beverly Hills.
Click www.tvtechnology.com for the whole story.