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This topic comprises 3 pages: 1 2 3
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Author
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Topic: 3D is a "premium business" for theatres, Regal and Dreamworks say
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Mike Blakesley
Film God
Posts: 12767
From: Forsyth, Montana
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 03-29-2007 01:37 PM
Regal, DreamWorks CEOs see 3D transforming movies
Link
By Gina Keating
Thu Mar 29, 10:10 AM ET
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Three-dimensional film technology could transform the movie business, with viewers willing to pay a premium for it, the heads of the top U.S. movie theater chain and largest independent animation studio said on Wednesday.
Michael Campbell, chairman and CEO of Regal Entertainment Group, said box office results from the handful of 3D films released so far convinced him of the "potential advantages for theaters, not just studios" in switching to digital projection systems that support modern 3D technology.
Campbell told analysts at a Bank of America conference that audiences were willing to pay premium ticket prices for 3D films, and said they preferred them by a 2-to-1 margin.
Another deciding factor for Regal was a strong show of support for the new medium by Hollywood studios, among them the Walt Disney Co. and DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc., which announced this month that it will make all its movies in 3D, starting with "Monsters vs. Aliens" in 2009.
Disney is set to release its animated film, "Meet the Robinsons," on Friday to 701 digital 3D screens, the largest such release ever, and has set up a studio with director Robert Zemeckis to produce animated movies in the new format.
"What that is going to mean for our industry in a few years when we have thousands of 3D screens ... if we can sell 10 to 15 percent higher (priced) tickets, that is a needle mover," Campbell said.
DreamWorks Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg told analysts in a separate session that making animated films in 3D would add $10 million to $15 million to production costs, but he considered it a worthwhile expense.
"The audience actually feels in the (animated) world in a way that we have not really seen before. From a filmmaking standpoint, it is really exciting," Katzenberg said.
Katzenberg said nearly every major Hollywood studio plans to make "big event films" in 3D for release in 2009. He added that one day, "the mainstream of moviemaking is going to be the 3D experience ... and consumers will pay a premium."
The upcoming slate of 3D films from top directors, including Steven Spielberg, Zemeckis, James Cameron and Peter Jackson, would hurry along the digital transition in theaters, which had been "slow to embrace" the new technology.
"If half their business is a premium business, that changes the whole economics of the business," he said. "The momentum is gathering. This is the most exciting thing that has happened in the business since I have been in the business."
Katzenberg said that if enough theaters have converted to digital 3D by the 2009 release of "Monsters vs. Aliens," he would consider releasing the film only in that format, and making a 2D version available only on DVD.
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Bobby Henderson
"Ask me about Trajan."
Posts: 10973
From: Lawton, OK, USA
Registered: Apr 2001
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posted 03-30-2007 08:46 PM
quote: Jarryd Beard
I could have sworn our Christie tech said it was 144fps. In other words, he said six frames are shown for every normal (1/24 sec) frame. In that 1/24 of a second, the right and left eye pictures alternate three times for a total of six frames... three unchanging left, three unchanging right.
I don't know. I'm still wondering about that.
First of all, the JPEG2000 movie on the hard disc is definitely stored at 48fps.
The thing that makes me wonder about that "triple flash" stuff is the viewer complaints of strobing at some theaters. If the projector was alternating the left and right eye images back and forth three times for each frame and having a total refresh rate of 144Hz it would be impossible for the human eye to detect any flicker. The vision for most people runs between 60 and 70 fields per second. Our persistence of vision blurs over the area where one frame changes to the next, which is what makes frame rates as low as 24fps tolerable.
quote: Jarryd Beard
In the Christie setup, the projector actually increases bulb power once it receives the 3-D cue. Once again, this is what I've learned from our Christie tech. I'm not 100% sure of this information.
I have to wonder about that as well. I'm under the impression the techs from Christie simply adjust the lamp for a certain balanced level once the silver screen is installed. A level ramped up even higher could result in hot spots on the screen. Is the lamp power in a CP2000 projector something that can be cued and controlled via a Doremi DCP-2000 server and Christie DCA21 automation?
quote: Mike Williams
I think 3D is a gimmick that will wear off as soon as people realize the quality will be lower and the glasses can be an annoyance.
I won't judge RealD until I see it in action.
Having seen a number of IMAX-3D and 35mm polarized color 3D movies, I know the potential of 3D. The technology certainly has a relevant use for certain kinds of genre movies, event programs and motion simulator rides.
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Mark J. Marshall
Film God
Posts: 3188
From: New Castle, DE, USA
Registered: Aug 2002
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posted 03-30-2007 10:34 PM
Bobby,
I think I understand what is causing the "strobing" problem. I'll see if I can explain what's happening. Assuming each frame is shown three times to each eye...
1. Left Eye: sees frame 1; Right Eye: sees nothing.
2. Left Eye: retains frame 1 with Persistence of Vision; Right Eye: sees frame 1.
3. Left Eye: sees frame 1 again; Right Eye: retains frame 1 /w POV.
4. Left Eye: retains frame 1 with POV; Right Eye: sees frame 1 again.
5. Left Eye: sees frame 1 again; Right Eye: retains frame 1 w/ POV.
6. Left Eye: retains frame 1 w/POV; Right Eye: sees frame 1 again.
THEN
7. Left Eye: sees FRAME 2 for first time; Right Eye: retains frame 1 w/ POV.
8. Left Eye: retains frame 2 w/ POV; Right Eye: sees frame 2 for first time.
...etc.
So, for a moment (admittedly, an extremely SHORT moment) one eye is retaining frame X, and the other eye is actually seeing frame X+1. That isn't enough to cause a problem... until the motion on the screen starts to increase. The faster things are moving on the screen, the more the eyes appear to separate, and what you see is the same thing you would see if two interlocked 35mm projectors were very very slightly out of sync. What's funny is if that happened in the 50s, that was considered a poor presentation. "Poor presentations" is one of the reasons 3D didn't last very long.
I thought the leaves blowing in the beginning on Monster House looked absolutely ridiculous because of this phenomenon.
Anyway, I hope that makes sense. I think that's what's happening. Help me out if you think I'm wrong.
Hopefully I didn't put Heenan to sleep.
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