Live from Local Bijou: Sports, Games, More

"For some exhibitors, it is live events -- not feature films -- that has them most excited about 3-D.

"Our goal is live," Tim Richards, CEO of U.K.-based Vue Cinemas, said Wednesday at ShoWest during a panel session that explored alternative content. Talking about his experience with 2-D live content, including sporting events, concerts and operas, he added, "Our guests will pay a premium -- in some cases 30%-100% more -- for these screenings."

Tom Stephenson, president and CEO of Dallas-based Rave Motion Pictures, believes there needs to be a 3-D component to showing live events.

"I personally think the future of putting a 2-D image on the screen is not the growth part of this business," he said. "If it is transformed (into 3-D), I believe this business gets a lot better. They are very close to being able to do that, and that will open up many doors."

Said Ellis Jacob, president and CEO of Canada's Cineplex Entertainment: "This business would grow dramatically if the studios get into the business, and I think they will. With those organizations you have some of the largest marketing machines in the world. I think when they embrace alternative content ... because they own a lot of those channels, you are going to see a huge change in 3-D sports entertainment and alternative events. ... (Today) we are just scratching the surface."

Current issues related to screening live events include production costs and rights.

As to technical costs, Richards said that once the infrastructure is installed, "satellite cost is probably the biggest single cost. The good news (is that this business is in its infancy and) there are no set rules. ... A number of the (concert) acts take a pragmatic approach and think of this as a marketing activity. We have everything from no change to a charge (for rights)."

Scale also is a consideration. "In some cases, the producer or event coordinators are not interested in the small amount of money a circuit can generate," Stephenson said. "Unless it is done on a much larger scale, it becomes difficult."

Looking ahead, Richards suggested that the "biggest untapped potential" in alternative content is video games. He pointed out that games are not time sensitive, therefore they would not need to interfere with prime theatergoing hours -- a concern voiced by some exhibitors."

By Carolyn Giardina, The Hollywood Reporter

3-D Driving Euro D-Cinema Shift

"What is driving digital cinema in Europe?

"The first is 3-D, the second is 3-D, and curiously enough the third is 3-D," said David Monks, president of the European Digital Cinema Forum, during a session Monday at ShoWest. "3-D is just so hot, it is a bit frightening."

Next year is being viewed as a benchmark in terms of digital 3-D installations, but there still are critical D-Cinema transitional challenges that remain.

"We want to get on with it," said Monk, speaking of the D-Cinema transition in Europe, which is challenging because of the large number of countries and cultures. "We think by not doing so, we are missing a big opportunity. ... It has been a very frustrating for most people because they have really wanted to move."

One lingering concern, he said, is that exhibition needs a competitive choice of funding plans.

"There have to be funding options," he said. "Nobody feels comfortable with a single supplier, and the single suppliers are just as anxious to get more competition into the market because they know their case will be strongest."

He also noted that anxieties remain over annual technical costs. "I appeal to (stakeholders) to think about costs when you put a tweak in the (technical) spec that has an upward cost implication. We should be intolerant of anything that compromises security, but we have to be much more creative in other areas."

Monk also warned: "There is natural reaction in Europe to say, 'Perhaps we need our own standard.' That's getting an incredibly large amount of intellectual thought but no credibility whatsoever in the exhibition space. ... Of course, it is nonsense; we are about at the end of that now. But it pops up every time there is a struggle that seems to be 'those nasty people in Hollywood.' "

Monk emphasized that the community needs to factor in small chains and large volumes of local content when looking at business models for Europe.

Charlotte Jones, an analyst at Screen Digest, said it would soon be clear if a virtual print fee can be the encompassing model for all European countries.

Jones reported that there were 6,440 d-cinema screens installed worldwide at the end of 2007, of which about 890 were in Europe. "3-D is a major incentive," she said of Europe's D-Cinema transition, though she admitted that the transition is somewhat stalled at the moment. Jones reported that about 24% of Europe's screens were 3-D-ready. There, the U.K. has the largest number of installations with 48, or 15% of its screens."

By Carolyn Giardina, The Hollywood Reporter

All Digital, All the Time

This ShoWest 2008 marks approximately two years since the first serious rollout of DCI-capable digital-cinema systems in the U.S. Enough time has passed for us to look back at a few of the deployments to see what issues have been raised, how they have been resolved and, in general, how exhibitors are using the systems. We talked to a number of exhibitors and system integrators who have installed “all-digital” multiplexes and have come up with several views on how their deployments are going.

UltraStar Cinemas of Carlsbad, CA, made an early jump into digital in the fall of 2005 with the commitment to equip their entire 114 screens with digital projection through the AccessIT/Christie deployment plan. John Ellison, co-founder of UltraStar, has been a proponent of digital since 2002 when he was the first in California to install six 1.3K pre-DCI Boeing Digital Cinema systems for Star Wars: Episode I.

Ellison, a true believer in the power of marketing cinema amenities, was the first in the area to use THX certification and saw digital cinema as the next high-value attraction. As a result, in 2001 UltraStar developed their own “Pure Digital Cinema” marketing campaign to increase audience awareness. With the 2002 Star Wars release, Ellison found that his cinemas that were equipped and marketed as digital were earning up to twice the box office of his 35mm houses. Focused on maximizing his investment, and with marketing support from DLP Cinema and equipment vendors, Ellison was able to create a premium attraction that continues to pay off.

UltraStar completed its digital installations in all its screens in early 2006, but still has a few side-by-side film projectors for the occasional title not available in digital, but this is becoming rare. Ellison says, “In 2007, only two or three titles were not available to us in digital.” UltraStar has also added 3D and has six locations equipped with the Real D system. Looking back, Ellison declares, “I could not be more pleased with the way things have turned out. The AccessIT and Christie people have been excellent in making sure our transition to digital has been as smooth and painless as possible.”

Premiere Theaters, an independent ten-screen multiplex in Melbourne, FL, has also completely converted to digital. Getting started by converting a single screen to digital 3D with Disney's Chicken Little in the fall of 2005, Premiere's president Rob Kurrus quickly realized that he needed to transition the multiplex to fully digital as quickly as possible. Kurrus says, "It's all about enhancing the customer experience and we saw that digital, with its higher quality and flexibility, was the way to go."

After researching the various plans being offered, Kurrus selected the Dolby plan and their servers along with Barco projectors. Over a six-month period in mid-2006, Kurrus added digital systems until all his screens were equipped. Along with the original Real D 3D system, Kurrus has also recently added two Dolby 3D systems. "In hindsight, we probably left too many 35mm projectors in place, as we've found we really don't need them. Based on our experience, you only need 35mm in a few—at the most one-third—of the screens," Kurrus notes.

Kurrus admits the transition was not without its issues, particularly when he only had a few digital screens and had to move shows between auditoriums. During the transition, there were times when box-office revenues suffered because Premiere was not able to keep some popular titles in digital throughout the run. "There was a collective sigh of relief from the staff as the last Barco projector was installed," Kurrus recalls. "We have had virtually no problems getting our staff to understand the operation of the systems, as most our staff are fairly technically savvy. In fact, if anything, operating the 35mm projectors is a bigger challenge.”

Delivery of the security keys seemed to be an ongoing issue during the transition, but this smoothed out after a few months. An occasional problem still pops up. Most studios are still figuring out how to store and distribute digital content for repertoire titles. For example, after the digital run of one popular title, Premiere needed to bring back the title for a special-event showing. Although they still had the original digital file on the server, for some unknown reason the distributor could not reissue a valid key and had to send in a 35mm print for their event.

Rob Kurrus also feels a breakthrough in the simplification of their day-to-day screen operation came after Premiere installed the Dolby Library Server. Previously, titles had to be loaded into the individual players at each screen. The library server provides a single point for loading the titles used throughout the site. Shows can be scheduled, titles can be moved between screens, and the entire system monitored from a central point, or even remotely using a web browser.

Kurrus feels the remaining issues to be worked out are in the area of content and key delivery, and is looking forward to the day when all content arrives via satellite delivery and the keys are transparently loaded. He predicts, "Then the only reason to go into the booth will be to change the bulb.” Kurrus goes on to add, "The xenon bulb is the weakest link in the digital system. I would like to see some improvements there."

Megaplex Theatre of Sandy, UT, has converted 53 of its 69 screens at five sites to digital, with all digital projectors at its Gateway, Thanksgiving Point and Jordan Commons sites. Being in the Salt Lake City area, home of the Sundance Film Festival, Megaplex’s digital-cinema specialist Mike Renlund found that there is still a need for some 35mm equipment to accommodate titles from independent filmmakers, and he has converted several auditoriums to run both film and digital. Also, because of decreasing costs in mastering digital content, more and more independent filmmakers are making the switch to digital.

Renlund is pleased with the digital equipment and feels that most of the earlier transitional issues have been ironed out. “There were occasional problems in getting the right security keys,” Renlund notes. “Since we have both the Dolby 3D and Real D 3D systems, we initially had a few issues getting the right 3D files. Now that the distributors are supplying keys to all auditoriums, for the most part this seems to have been resolved.”

Megaplex has been aggressively using their new digital capability to attract new audiences by hosting business events, concerts and video-gaming events. For example, in conjunction with the Hannah Montana 3D release, Megaplex hosted a separate dress-up “Red Carpet Rock Star Event,” with a separate $15 ticket, that used the digital projectors to present live karaoke. Also, Megaplex has been using the digital auditoriums after hours to host X-Box Halo contests, according to Dave Bollard, Megaplex’s marketing manager. Megaplex has been able to fill auditoriums between midnight and 6 a.m. with teams competing between screens.

Malco Theaters of Memphis TN, also another early pioneer going back to the 2002 Star Wars deployment, has jumped into digital cinema in a big way. Partnered with Dolby as the system provider and server manufacturer, and with Barco projectors, Malco has approximately 60 digital systems installed of its expected 350-screen deployment. Mike Thomson, Malco’s VP of operations and technology, has been their driving force in making sure that each system is installed to deliver the best possible picture and sound.

Malco started by installing the new digital systems in its best-performing houses and intends to continue the upgrades at a manageable pace until all their screens are equipped. Thomson has developed an in-house technical staff of six who have been extensively trained by the manufactures in maintenance and operation of their equipment. Thomson admits that “digital is not as mature as film and still has a way to go. It’s not a cakewalk. However, we have a good operational record and have been able to deal with and learn from the issues as they come up.”

Malco has installed a few Dolby Digital 3D systems, and is impressed with the image quality of Dolby’s 3D process. Thomson likes the Dolby 3D system because of its conventional white screen and he feels their 3D image quality is the best in the market.

Thomson believes Malco’s success with digital is largely due to the strong relationships he has built with Dolby, Barco and other vendors and the investments made by Malco in developing the in-house staff to deal with installations, routine maintenance, and any unexpected issues. Thomson believes that the smaller exhibitors need to be prepared by either building up a strong in-house team, or working with service providers that can deliver the required support.

Rave Motion Pictures of Dallas, TX, has gone 100% digital in its 445 screens, with 37 equipped with Real D 3D. Rave partnered with AccessIT, using Christie projectors and Doremi servers in its digital rollout. At this point, Rave does not have any 35mm equipment and feels quite confident that there is enough mainstream content to support their exclusive “everything in digital” position.

Rave has also been an early adopter of 3D, with at least one Real D 3D installation in every complex. Of the 683 Hannah Montana play sites, Rave was able to capture almost five percent of the opening-weekend total box-office gross with its 28 3D screens. Jeremy Devine, VP of marketing, attributes the increase to an “intensive grassroots marketing campaign,” along with Disney’s phenomenal pre-release marketing to increase awareness of digital 3D. Devine has also been “shocked” by how successful the opera events have been, and is also experimenting with sporting events and other forms of alternative content. Rave has been attentive to scheduling the special events for afternoons and the relatively weak Tuesday and Wednesday nights. Overall, the success of Hannah Montana and other alternative content has affirmed Rave’s decision to be at the forefront of the digital and 3D rollout.

Brad Wardlow, Rave’s VP of operations, comments, “Rave made the digital transition over an 18-month period beginning in early 2005. We equipped in several ‘waves,’ initially starting with the higher-performing screens where we had booked the titles that we knew would be available in digital. By mid-2006, almost every title we were playing was available in the DCI format, so we decided to go ahead and replace the 35mm projectors on a site-wide basis. Having the building fully digital simplifies operation tremendously when compared to a split 35mm-digital site.

“We have certainly changed our staffing interview process since going digital,” Wardlow continues. “Previously, we would look for candidates that showed an aptitude for mechanical skills. Now, we focus on those that have an interest in computers and are familiar with software and menu-driven systems.” The next step in Rave’s digital implementation will be to integrate it with the box-office point-of-sale system, so there will be no need for manual show starts. This will eventually reduce staffing costs. Wardlow feels that while the digital projector’s operating costs may be higher than the conventional 35mm projector, the overall savings on a circuit-wide basis will be in the positive, after taking into consideration the savings in theatre operations.

In conclusion, all the exhibitors we spoke to were enthusiastic about their digital systems. All admitted they had been through a somewhat challenging learning process, but all said they had overcome any serious show-stopping issues, and felt they were delivering superior presentations. Common to all was the tremendous popularity of digital 3D, and all had developed innovative uses of alternative programming to raise attendance in off-hours. And finally, all seemed to emphasize the need to be prepared with either a well-trained in-house technical team or have a capable systems integrator working closely with them during the transition period."

By Bill Mead, Film Journal International

Electrosonic's New Digital Cinema Player Available at Showest

Electrosonic's MS9600, a high-performance JPEG2000 appliance, plays unencrypted JPEG2000 content at 2K, 1080p and 720p resolutions. The company will also be showing the prototype DCI compliant version of the player which promises to take the Digital Cinema industry by storm.

Capable of delivering crisp, beautiful images at a price point well below that of its competitors, the MS9600 features 2K resolution via dual HD-DSI and dual DVI-I video outputs, 16 channels of broadcast quality digital audio, an advanced user interface and confidence monitor. It also includes professional integration features such as Timecode and Genlock, gigabit network, serial control, and four general purpose I/O. The unit also supports web interface for complete remote control and configuration for playlist management, SNMP and Metadata support. The MS9600 is ideal for special venue applications since it supports 48fps 3D playback and multiple units can be synchronized for multi-screen presentations.

Source: Digital Cinematography

New Christie Dual Projector System for 3D Cinema Offers Best Value in the Industry

Christie, a global leader in Digital Cinema now offers the industry’s most cost-effective and flexible 3D Digital Cinema system. With the power of two Christie DLP Cinema projectors, the new Christie 3D2P offers more than double the brightness for presentations on screens of any size. Complete with an innovative stacking frame with rollers and adjustable racks, the system can be easily moved whenever and wherever needed within the complex.

The first to be installed in a commercial setting, the Christie 3D2P has been successfully deployed for groundbreaking 3D Digital Cinema features. The dual projector system is already winning praise from moviegoers at the widely acclaimed Krikorian Premiere Theatres, where it is presenting the latest 3D Digital Cinema releases.

“3D Digital Cinema is one of the most exciting developments in our industry. We looked at current single-projector 3D solutions and didn't like them for different reasons, including cost. We selected the Christie dual projector 3D2P solution because we can now screen the latest 3D features on any size screen in all of our complexes with no real concerns about light issues," remarks Todd Cummings, vice president of operations for Krikorian Theatres. “In fact, with the growing popularity of 3D, we will be utilizing the system on our larger 60-ft screens for 3D features. One of the distributors told us that they will be looking to increase the light through the polarized glasses by more than 30% for their future live action 3D films. Only a dual projector set-up can meet that requirement. A single projector system currently would not be bright enough to cover such a large screen.”

With the Christie 3D2P, exhibitors can utilize any of Christie’s comprehensive family of Digital Cinema projectors including their existing Christie projectors, in almost limitless combinations. The Christie CP2000 Series projectors also remain compatible with existing 3D technology providers.

Source: Christie

Disney Brings 3-D Thunder to 'Bolt'

"Disney Feature Animation's "Bolt" -- previously titled "American Dog" -- will be released in digital 3-D when it opens Nov. 26, 2008.

"We are going to have fun family 3-D at Thanksgiving," Disney president of domestic distribution Chuck Viane said. "We absolutely believe in the whole concept of 3-D and the enhancement that it brings in the ability to separate us from any of the other mediums."

"Bolt" is the latest digital 3-D announcement from Disney, which has been a pioneer of the format. The company's digital 3-D releases have included "Chicken Little," "Meet the Robinsons" and "Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas."

Burton also recently signed a two-picture deal with Disney through which he will direct and produce 3-D features of Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland" and Burton's short "Frankenweenie." Disney next releases in 3-D the "Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour," which will play in theaters Feb. 1-7.

The "Hannah Montana" release should be available on about 700 screens. "By the time we get to 'Bolt,' I think you may be looking at somewhere between 1,200 and 1,500 potential 3-D screens (domestically)," Viane said. "That would be terrific."

John Travolta and Susie Essman lead the voice cast of "Bolt," the story of a TV star dog named Bolt (Travolta) who is accidentally shipped from his Hollywood soundstage to New York, where he begins a cross-country journey through the real world. Chris Williams directs."

By Carolyn Giardina, The Hollywood Reporter

'Beowulf's' Bow Takes 3-D to the Next Level

"If you're looking to see Beowulf take on Grendel this weekend in 3-D, you have some choices. Paramount/Warner Bros.' anticipated "Beowulf," from director Robert Zemeckis, will be the first Hollywood feature to open simultaneously in Imax 3-D and digital 3-D. This looks like the beginning of a new trend. More 3-D features will open in both digital and Imax 3-D formats in 2008. Already scheduled are the U2 concert film "U2 3D" and Summit Entertainment's CG-animated "Fly Me to the Moon." Also, DreamWorks announced this week that its animated 2009 3-D releases "Monsters vs. Aliens" and "How to Train Your Dragon," as well as the 2010 opener "Shrek Goes Fourth," will be released in both digital and Imax 3-D formats.

The release of "Beowulf" will help expose the 3-D format to the widest audience to date. The film will open in 3-D on about 800 screens domestically. Stakeholders agree that this activity is good for 3-D. Says Richard Gelfond, co-chairman and co-CEO of Imax Corp., "The more 3-D the better it is for Imax because as films are produced in 3-D there's more content available." Still, Imax 3-D and digital 3-D represent immensely different economic models. In fact, even digital 3-D has variations, with vendors offering different approaches to projection and viewing. The industry will be closely watching how each of these 3-D models fare as the format evolves.

Digital 3-D is still young, having hatched in late 2005 with the release of Disney's "Chicken Little." This method is enabled by a 3-D system being installed in a theater that is equipped with a digital-cinema projector. About 4,600 digital-cinema projectors have been installed domestically, and many more deployment plans are being worked out. Current 3-D system providers include Real D, Dolby and NuVision. The content is typically distributed on hard drives.

Real D was the first 3-D system out of the gate and represents the lion's share of current installations. At press time, it was expected that there would be about 620 Real D-equipped auditoriums showing "Beowulf" in 3-D this weekend. Real D's technique requires the use of a "silver screen" and "circular polarized" glasses. It enables 3-D on screens maxing out around 47 feet high. For any system, screen size comes down to how much light can get to the screen from the projector.

Dolby recently completed its beta phase, and deployment has started. It expects to have about 30 screens domestically and 75 worldwide for the "Beowulf" opening. Installed systems support on average 40-foot-high screens. Dolby's system doesn't require a special type of screen, using those that are standard in today's theaters, but audiences would use special Dolby glasses.

NuVision also recently began U.S. deployment of its 3-D system, and the company estimated it would have six screens showing "Beowulf" in the U.S. and about 100 in Europe. It doesn't require a special screen.

Imax has been in business for 40 years. Its system is a 70mm film-based projection and distribution model, where the images are rendered on screens reaching from 50 feet high to 70 feet wide to as large as 80 feet high and 100 feet wide. Imax positions itself as a premium experience. "Imax 3-D is the first-class experience," Gelfond says. "Imax 3-D alows people to be 'inside' the movie. ... The screen goes to the peripheral vision of the viewer." He adds: "Digital 3-D has its place. Because of its footprint, it allows a lot of people to see features in 3-D where they otherwise couldn't."

Michael Lewis, CEO of 3-D provider Real D, says: "We feel digital is really the future of where 3-D is going to be. We've focused on 'how do we get this to every multiplex in the world.' "

Deployment costs and models vary. For digital, the projectors in many cases are installed via the virtual print fee model used for 2-D digital cinema by exhibitors -- a separate deal from that with the 3-D provider. Imax models include joint ventures and leasing.

"It actually is two different sets of economics," says Howard Lukk, Disney's vp production technology. "(For instance), the preparation of (Imax) prints is expensive. It's a lot more expensive than for a digital 3-D model." He said models also vary as to who supplies the glasses for digital presentations.

Adds Shindler of digital technology in multiplexes: "From an exhibitor's point of view, in digital, if a movie doesn't play well, they can move another movie in there instantly. In a megaplex, there are always going to be enough movies playing that they can move (a title)."

Shifting to boxoffice expectations, generally insiders predict that the per-theater average for "Beowulf" in 3-D will be two-and-a-half to three times that for the 2-D version. Some say Imax's average might go even higher.

With so many more theaters playing digital 3-D than Imax 3-D, digital would presumably have the higher total boxoffice of the two formats, Schindler says. "Imax can't complete with (about 85) screens, even though seating capacity in many of the Imax theaters is much bigger," he says.

Looking to 2008, many are eager to see what technological developments are on the horizon and what impact they might have on these models. Notably, Imax is developing a digital projection and distribution system for its format that the company expects to launch in June. This could prompt significant change in the company's economics.

As well, Real D has developed a technology it plans to launch next year that it says will allow its system to reach screens as high as 70 feet with a single projector, which the company hopes will help step up deployment in larger auditoriums. Newcomers Dolby and NuVision are only just starting to deploy systems, making them a factor to watch in the coming years.

Digital delivery methods also are likely to shift as more screens mean that distributors can take advantage of economies of scale. Explains Lukk: "It's going to be a hybrid world with some hard drives, satellite and networked fiber-delivery systems."

For the consumer, all of this simply means that there are more opportunities to view a motion picture in 3-D. Shindler points out: "There are a lot of consumers that are not familiar with 3-D, and they are going to go to whatever theater is most convenient for them."

Lewis looks forward to continued movement in 3-D. "Clearly, 3-D is where cinema is going," he says. "We've seen every major studio plus major film directors embrace it. It's going to be the platform for releasing tentpole movies."

By Carolyn Giardina, The Hollywood Reporter

Imax Signs 4-Film Deal with DreamWorks Animation

"Imax and DreamWorks Animation have agreed to release the studio's first three 3D motion pictures worldwide in Imax 3D: "Monsters vs. Aliens" in March 2009, "How to Train Your Dragon" in November 2009 and "Shrek Goes Forth" in May 2010. A fourth DreamWorks title, "Kung Fu Panda," will be released in Imax's 2D format in June 2008. The films will be distributed by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom.

Earlier this year, DreamWorks announced plans to release all its computer animated films in 3D starting in 2009. It was welcome news for all that had a stake in the emerging 3D film industry, such as privately held Real D, the leading provider of digital 3D projection technology. At the time, DreamWorks made no specific mention of Imax and its giant-screen format.

DreamWorks had planned to release the original "Shrek" movie in Imax 3D in 2000, but the idea proved to be several years ahead of its time. The release was cancelled due to financial issues gripping Imax and the exhibition industry back then.

But Imax is now on the threshold of a transition to digital, and the slate of DreamWorks 3D titles it announced Wednesday is expected to be among the first presented with its new digital projection system, scheduled to be launched in June. Gelfond said the potential of the new Imax digital projector "facilitated" the agreement with DreamWorks because the cost drops to almost zero compared to $45,000 for one Imax 3D print.

One exhibition industry source said the expense of Imax prints and the complexity of transporting them has long been an issue for Hollywood studios and commercial exhibitors, but should be addressed with the introduction of the Imax digital projector. "When it becomes digital, you're talking about a whole new model," the source said.

If the DreamWorks films are big at the Imax box office, that could be enough to lure other studios, namely Walt Disney, into the Imax camp as well, the source added.

While a 40-minute computer-animated film, "Sea Monsters," opened in both digital 3D and Imax 3D last month, the release of Paramount's "Beowulf" this weekend marks the first time a feature film is released in both 3D formats. The source said the overall results at the box office were modest, but sales at Imax theaters were "substantially higher" compared to the majority of digital 3D presentations.

"Beowulf" is expected to be the widest digital 3D release ever, in the neighborhood of 1,100 digital screens. By comparison, the film will open in 124 Imax theaters worldwide.

A film industry source said the Imax-DreamWorks deal shouldn't come as a surprise, as the studios want as many "eyeballs as possible" for their 3D films and Imax understands it's not alone in delivering 3D to audiences. Most studios see 5,000 screens as the magic number, and a pipeline of 3D content, such as James Cameron's "Avatar," together with the Imax-Dreamworks releases, should help make that happen by 2009, the source added."

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QuVIS Announces 3D JPEG2000 Support for the QuVIS Cinema Player

"QuVIS has successfully integrated support for the new DCI JPEG2000 3D format in the QuVIS Cinema Player. The DCI JPEG2000 3D format is comprised of two 12-bit 4:4:4 video streams, left eye and right eye, stored in a single image track file. During playback, the QuVIS Cinema Player decodes the image track file and separates left eye and right eye picture data into two separate synchronized output video streams.

The QuVIS Cinema Player can be used for 3D stereoscopic exhibition using either passive or active visualization technology. 3D Passive viewing is achieved by projecting two images onto the same screen using orthogonal (linear) or circular polarizing filters. The viewer wears low-cost eyeglasses fitted with the polarizing filters needed for that display type. In 3D Active viewing the viewer wears LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) shutter glasses that receive a wireless signal from the projector to open and close the lens shutters on the glasses in an alternate-frame sequencing method.

The QuVIS Cinema Player, the central component of QuVIS’ Digital Cinema Network solution, is an elite multi-format playback server that has been designed to meet the performance, security and reliability needed for years of faithful service. The QuVIS Cinema Player not only provides the basic Digital Cinema functionality (e.g. 2K and 3D JPEG2000 playback and local content loading) but also features many advanced server capabilities including: 2K playback of a 4K Digital Cinema Composition, Network-based content loading even during active playback, Secure Logging and Reporting, Forensic Watermarking, and full theater automation programming and controls."

Source: DCinemaToday

Real D Eases Path to 3-D for Theaters

"Digital 3-D system provider Real D has developed a technology with the potential to allow a greater number of digital-cinema-equipped theaters to offer the stereoscopic format.

"It will allow us with single projectors to reach much bigger screens," Real D president Joshua Greer said. "Where we've been limited to much smaller screens, we can now reach as high as a 70-foot screen with a single projector. We were typically maxing (out) at about 46 or 47 feet for scope."

The challenge has been the inefficiency of light in 3-D projection. "3-D is about sending images to your left and right eye," Greer said. "We basically divide up the light. Half of the light is conditioned to work for one eye, and half is conditioned to work for the other. Light that has not been passed from one eye to the other has essentially been lost in the past. Now we can be very efficient."

Real D CEO Michael Lewis said the challenge of light has until now resulted in missed opportunities, noting that the problem was keeping 3-D from being a viable option in about 15%-20% of domestic screens -- those being the largest.

Added Greer, "Now we get demands from our exhibitors saying that they want to be in the biggest house, and we have to say no because we want to make sure there is enough light on the screen."

Today, projection of 3-D imagery on larger screens typically is accomplished with two d-cinema projectors stacked one on top of the other and used simultaneously. But acquiring and maintaining two d-cinema projectors for a single auditorium is not practical for exhibitors.

Real D expects to have the modified 3-D systems for larger theaters and incorporating this new technology available in 2008."

By Carolyn Giardina, The Hollywood Reporter

Dolby, Real D Taking on Another Dimension in Movies

"For more than 30 years, Dolby Laboratories has enriched the sound of movies. Now, the San Francisco pioneer is looking to revolutionize the visual experience as well, with newfangled 3-D films.

The company is marketing filtering technology that enables theaters to show high-definition, 3-D movies with the digital projectors they already use.

This week will mark the first real, albeit small, deployment of Dolby's new product, with the release of the adventure film "Beowulf." The motion-capture animated film, by director Robert Zemeckis and featuring Anthony Hopkins and Angelina Jolie, is at the vanguard of a new wave of digital 3-D movies backed by some of Hollywood's most talented directors.

Dolby's just getting started in the market, where its biggest competitor is Real D of Beverly Hills. About 80 theaters will be using Dolby's product to show "Beowulf," compared with 1,100 worldwide that will be employing Real D's technology.

Together, the companies and the studios are providing consumers with an experience that promises real visual immersion. It's more than gimmicks, such as objects being tossed at the audience.

"Digital 3-D is like high-definition TV," said Jeff McNall, cinema product manager for Dolby. "Once you see it, it's hard to go back to old TV."

Dolby is not new to images. Founder Ray Dolby started his career making videotape recorders. But his business primarily was dedicated to noise reduction, and later to high-quality audio technology now used in movies, CDs and video games.

A few years ago, the company began manufacturing video servers that allow theaters to store their movies digitally and decrypt them for playback using digital projectors, which started gaining popularity in 2005.

It's these digital projectors that are enabling high-definition 3-D movies to come to life on the consumer end. Instead of lining up two film projectors, theaters can use one digital projector and then convert it to 3-D using technology from Real D and Dolby.

Dolby has created a filter for projectors that breaks 3-D images into red, blue and green bands of light that are recognized by layered 3-D glasses. Gone are the days of the throwaway paper-frame glasses. With the Dolby glasses costing about $50 each, theaters will need to wash them after each viewing, and viewers won't be able to take them home as souvenirs.

The advantage of Dolby's system is that theaters don't have to install aluminized silver screens like they do with the Real D product. And theater owners can move 3-D movies to any of their screens, making room on bigger screens for new releases.

"This allows a multiplex to be able to use 3-D efficiently," said McNall. "They can open a 3-D movie on opening weekend with a large screen and then they can go to a smaller screen later."

The Real D system projects sequential polarized images onto the aluminized screen, which maintains the polarization so viewers can see the images on their glasses. Real D Chief Executive Officer and founder Michael Lewis said past projection systems have never provided a dynamic and consistent 3-D experience. The digital 3-D system, he said, is finally delivering on the original promise of 3-D in the 1950s.

"We're binocular beings. We see with depth, yet all our media is flat. We've tried with red and green glasses, but it's never been good enough until now," Lewis said. "We're using this combination of 3-D science and digital projectors to create a perfect experience every time."

Hollywood's biggest names are lining up behind 3-D. Director James Cameron of "Titanic" fame has been working for the past decade on 3-D cameras that are lightweight, incorporate two lenses in the body and are able to capture big action and close-up scenes, something older 3-D camera setups were unable to do.

The technical advances have excited the likes of directors Peter Jackson and Steven Spielberg, who are collaborating on a series of animated films about a Belgian character named Tintin.

George Lucas is intrigued by the potential of 3-D, his company said, and is considering re-releasing his "Star Wars" movies in the format. All of the major studios have 3-D movies in the works, including a $195 million blockbuster titled "Avatar."

The first live-action movie to be shot in digital 3-D, as opposed to being animated or altered from 2-D, is next year's "Journey 3-D," a retelling of Jules Verne's "Journey to the Center of the Earth." Beau Flynn, a producer on "Journey," said Hollywood is falling in love with digital 3-D now that the technical hurdles have been cleared.

"We're able to make a real story and not rely on 3-D gimmicks," said Flynn. "We owe it to the audience because we haven't really changed the theater experience in over 30 years."

For movie theater chains, digital 3-D is appealing on a number of levels. Regal Entertainment Group, the largest in the United States, will charge $2.50 more for a 3-D presentation. And they're popular: "Meet the Robinsons," a 3-D animated film released earlier this year, earned more than a third of its $98 million domestically from 3-D showings, even though only one-sixth of the screens were able to show the film in 3-D.

Dick Westerling, senior vice president of marketing for Regal Entertainment Group, said the company has outfitted 134 of its more than 6,000 screens for 3-D.

But he imagines that theaters could eventually deploy 3-D on about 20 percent of their screens because of its appeal with viewers and its money-making potential.

Chris Chinnock, president of Insight media, a market research firm focused on the electronic display industry, said the next few years will be big for 3-D, as digital projectors become more common and more creators see the potential behind 3-D storytelling.

"There are a lot of titles coming up in the next couple years that will build up to 2009. That's shaping up as a critical year for 3-D movies," Chinnock said. "If we continue to see good returns and enthusiasms from consumers, we should get some good hits from these movies."

Upcoming 3-D projects :
- "Beowulf," the motion-capture animated retelling of the epic Anglo-Saxon poem. Nov. 16.

- "U2 3D," a 3-D movie of the Irish band's Vertigo tour. January 2008.

- "Journey 3-D," a remake of the Jules Verne story "Journey to the Center of the Earth". August 2008.

- Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson have plans to direct and produce three 3-D films based on Georges Remi's Belgian comic-strip hero Tintin. Expected 2009 release.

- Beginning in 2009, all DreamWorks films will be in 3-D, starting with "Monsters vs. Aliens," "How to Train Your Dragon" and "Shrek 4."

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

Choice in 3-D Digital Cinema

"Digital 3-D is the buzz today in cinema. Innovation in both content production and in presentation has elevated stereoscopic 3-D to a quality of audience experience never before possible. On the content production side, live stereoscopic capture and editing techniques make possible productions like the upcoming U2 3-D movie. Improvements in computer graphics rendering, such as that developed by Sony ImageWorks, has led to visually stunning 3-D imagery seen in Beowulf. Conversion of live 2-D productions into 3-D, perhaps best known through In-Three's demonstration clips of the Star Wars series, will make possible the re-release of popular 2-D blockbuster movies in 3-D.

Advances in the presentation of stereoscopic images through digital projection, however, have made the resurgence of 3-D possible. The Texas Instruments' DLP Cinema technology makes it possible to project stereoscopic 3-D images with a single projector and with a quality level not possible with 35mm film. In contrast, LCOS projectors, such as the Sony SRX-R220/R210 cinema projectors now in trial installations, require two projectors to present 3-D images. By outfitting either the DLP or LCOS projector with a 3-D presentation kit and glasses (available from a few companies), the exhibitor has the opportunity to present 3-D movies worthy of a premium charge to audiences.

All digital 3-D content is distributed in a 48 frame-per-second (fps) format. In the stereoscopic format, images for the left eye are distributed at 24 fps, and similarly, 24 fps for the right eye images. (The sum of these image rates equaling 48 fps.) However, there are other factors which affect the single-inventory nature of 3-D distributions, leading to disparate distribution methods. To overcome this, Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI), a coalition of the six major motion picture studios, announced in April its draft specification for 3-D content distribution, stating that all 3-D presentation methods must utilize a common distribution format. While this ideal has not yet been realized in existing 3-D systems, the goal is technologically feasible. To accelerate progress, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) is now standardizing a single 3-D distribution format. As importantly, the various providers of presentation systems either now or will in not-too-distant future offer systems that support single inventory 3-D content.

DLP technology can project 3-D images with a single projector by presenting the stereoscopic left/right image pairs sequentially. This means that a left image is presented, and then a right image is presented, and never will both a left and a right image appear on the screen at the same time. However, presenting left/right images to the audience at a 48 fps rate is less than ideal as the sequential nature of the images are perceivable and distracting. To overcome this, sequential projection requires that the stereoscopic pair of images are "flashed" on screen. This involves, within the time frame of 1/24th of second, the repetition of a left/right sequence three times before presenting the next left/right sequence. This process is called "triple flash." With triple flash, the rate in which images are presented to the audience is a speedy 3 x 48 fps, or 144 fps. The triple flash rate is a property of the projector, and is the flash rate employed with all add-on technologies for presenting 3-D images in the theatre.

As pointed out, several add-on kits and glasses for 3-D presentation are now available. These can be categorized by technique: polarization, spectral division, and shutter glasses. While all three techniques can be used with DLP Cinema projectors, only polarization and spectral division work with dual-projection systems. Where the 3-D add-on technologies differ is in the method employed to direct left images to left eyes and right image to right eyes.

Polarization is most widely used technique today. It involves optically encoding each left image with a particular direction of light polarity, and each right image with an opposite direction of light polarity. In the Real D system, the encoding takes place at the projector using an electronically controlled polarizer, which Real D calls the "Zscreen." Images are decoded when the audience wears complimentary decoding polarized glasses. To allow head movement without upsetting the decoding quality of the glasses, Real D uses only circularly polarized filters in its system. Polarization alone, however, does not offer sufficient protection from crosstalk, also referred to as extinction ratio, with stereoscopic images. The audience experiences such crosstalk as a ghost in the motion picture. To enhance the ability of its polarization method to reject ghosting, Real D employs a "ghost busting" technique, which requires pre-processing of the images prior to projection. In its early systems, Real D's ghost-busting is applied prior to distribution. In future systems, ghost-busting will be applied in real-time by means of a processing box in the playback system.

Spectral division technology optically encodes left and right images by projecting each with a differently filtered spectrum of light. In the Infitec spectral division technique licensed by Dolby Laboratories, the light is filtered such that the left spectrum appears as white light (or near-white light), as does the right spectrum. In this way, this technique is importantly differentiated from the older, much lower quality, anaglyph method of using red filters for one eye and blue filters for the other. In Dolby's implementation, the light path in the projector is modified with a filter wheel to achieve spectral division of the stereoscopic images. Prior to projection, some color-balancing is applied to the image signal inside Dolby's digital cinema server. Complementary spectral division glasses are worn by audience members for decoding the images so that left eye images are seen only by the left eye, and right eye images are seen by only the right eye. To accomplish this, Dolby's glasses employ some 50 layers of thin-film coatings to create the appropriate optical interference filters. As interference filters require the light to pass through at a 90-degree angle, the glasses are curved to allow for eye movement without losing decoding quality at the viewer.

Shutter glasses, promoted for cinema use by Nuvision, take direct advantage of the sequential nature of the projected images. No special optical encoding is required with shutter glasses. To "decode" the sequential images, the audience wears glasses that allow only one eye to see the screen at any one time. By synchronizing the shutter-nature of the glasses with the flash rate of the projector, the audience correctly sees only left images in the left eye, and right images in the right eye. Synchronization of glasses takes place through infrared transmission inside the auditorium. To achieve the shutter action, the glasses must have battery-powered electronic circuitry in them that drives the liquid crystal (LCD) lenses.

The three methods described have important points of comparison. To preserve the polarized nature of the projected light in the auditorium, the polarization method requires the use of a silver screen. In contrast, the other methods, both spectral division and shutter glasses, work well with a normal mat white projection screen. Polarization, however, allows the use of very-low-cost glasses, such that they can be given away to the audience members. Both spectral division and the shutter method require expensive glasses that must be recycled (and thus regularly washed) for the method to be economical.

Manipulating projected light for the presentation of 3-D images has its price: all methods severely reduce the amount of light that reaches the eyes of the audience, typically around 85-88%. To the exhibitor, the light level determines the maximum screen size possible to present an acceptable 3-D image. Fortunately, it is acceptable to project 3-D images at significantly lower light levels than 2-D images, typically around 4 foot-lambert (ft-L), versus the standard 14 ft-L for 2-D. To compensate for low light levels, a high gain screen can be employed. Silver screens, of course, are very high in gain. It's understandable, then, that the polarization method, which requires the use of silver screens, adapts well to large screen applications, as indicated by IMAX's choice to use polarization for its 3-D presentation systems.

There is good reason for the recent resurgence in cinematic 3-D, spurred on by recent advances in both content production and in digital cinema presentation. For exhibitors, excellent choices exist with 3-D add-on technologies for 2-D digital cinema systems, all revealing high quality 3-D images to the audience. However, each 3-D add-on system presents a unique set of tradeoffs, clearly leaving the choice of system to exhibitor preference."

By Michael Karagosian, MKPE Consulting

Real D Continues Global 3D Cinema Dominance

"In its largest international distribution partnership to date, Real D, the global leader in digital 3-D, has finalized an agreement with Odeon and UCI, the largest pan-European cinema exhibitor with more than 1600 screens, to install up to 500 Real D 3D cinema systems in theaters across Europe. The rollout begins immediately and continues over the next two years as digital cinema systems are deployed, bringing Real D 3D technology to new markets such as Spain and Italy while substantially increasing Real D’s footprint in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, and Portugal.

Almost a third of Odeon and UCI’s cinema circuit will eventually be Real D enabled, bringing next-generation 3D cinema to millions of film fans. Some of these systems will be available in time for the release of the Warner Brothers and Robert Zemeckis film “Beowulf” in November and for the annual re-release of Tim Burton’s Disney classic “The Nightmare Before Christmas 3D”."

Source: DCinemaToday

Access IT Teamed with International Datacasting and Sensio Technologies Introduces Live 2-D and 3-D Event Satellite Streaming Through CineLive

"Access Integrated Technologies ("AccessIT") announced today, CineLive a new proprietary product that will bring both 2-D and 3-D live content to movie theatres equipped with digital cinema. CineLive, the next step in leveraging the digital era to further enhance exhibition offerings, is a new set of hardware, developed exclusively for AccessIT by International Datacasting Corporation and Sensio Technologies which allows live 3-D and 2-D content to be converted from satellite feeds into theatrical entertainment.

“AccessIT continues to develop innovative products and services that will provide more benefits for exhibitors and distributors in the new digital cinema era,” said Chuck Goldwater, President of AccessIT’s Media Services Group. “With CineLive, we are taking another step to enhance the rapidly growing world of digital cinema installations with technology that increases their programming opportunities. This technology team represents the “best of breed” in the industry. IDC has been our satellite distribution technology provider for many years and we believe is the market leader in enterprise class multicasting systems. Sensio has the best available 3D technology that we have been able to find on the market. Combined with our AccessIT technology and digital cinema market penetration we believe our team is second to none.”

“The advent of CineLive enables The Bigger Picture to offer exhibition a much wider range of alternative entertainment,” said Jonathan Dern Co-President of The Bigger Picture, AccessIT’s alternative content distribution division. “The combination of AccessIT’s cutting edge technology and The Bigger Picture’s programming continues to deliver a digital cinema experience unmatched in the industry.”

The CineLive equipment will enhance both existing and future AccessIT satellite installations. CineLive combines IDC’s SuperFlex broadband satellite technology with the SENSIO 3D Cinema Decoder technology to create an advanced integrated solution that will do both reliable movie file distribution as well as 2D and 3D live streaming delivery. The core technology of the two companies combined in the CineLive product represent a potential competitive advantage for AccessIT:

- The Sensio 3D Cinema Decoder technology allows playback of broadcast and prerecorded stereoscopic (3D) content, up to 1080p 60fps, using the standard 2D video distribution infrastructure and being compatible with all types of digital projection systems available on the market.

- IDC’s SuperFlex technology provides the latest in DVB-S2 broadband IP transmission needed to achieve the maximum possible throughput on satellite, essential for timely and secure delivery of JPEG2000 movie files and also for the highest quality HD delivery for live performances. The SuperFlex product includes IDC’s HDTV hardware decoder card which provides the high speed digital HD-SDI output needed by the Sensio 3D Cinema Decoder.

Nicholas Routhier, President and CEO of Sensio commented: “We are very pleased to be providing this technology to AccessIT through our strategic alliance with IDC. By collaborating with these industry leaders, we have created a unique product that further enhances the viewing experience, and achieves our objective of a 3D immersive experience. With CineLive, theaters will have more opportunities to add to their programming by showing alternative 3D content such as concerts or sporting events.”

“This agreement is very timely and we are delighted to be working with the AccessIT and Sensio teams to provide this unique integrated solution to the market,” added Ron Clifton, President and CEO of IDC. “The Sensio technology builds on our new Pro Video HDTV capability to provide considerable extra value to our end-to-end broadband satellite delivery solution. With AccessIT leading our team, CineLive represents an exciting and significant step forward in the evolution of digital cinema."

Source: DCinemaToday

Qube XP-D Digital Cinema Server now Equipped with Stereoscopic Playback Capability

"Qube Cinema announced today that the Qube XP-D Digital Cinema Server is now available with 3D playback capability. This feature has been implemented in compliance with the DCI specification and draft SMPTE standards and works with single stereoscopic 48 fps Track Files.

The Qube XP-D is equipped with two independent dual-link HDSDI (2 x SMPTE 292M) outputs and has the capability to output 12-bit 24 fps 4:4:4 images to two different projectors or 48 fps images to a single projector in 4:2:2 mode.

The Qube system has the capability to work with multiple 3D technologies including active shutter glasses and the Z-Screen for single projectors and fixed polarizing filters on dual projectors.

Qube Cinema's end-to-end solutions for digital cinema provide the ultimate combination of quality, reliability, ease-of-use, security and flexibility. Designed from the ground up to operate in mission-critical applications, the architecture of the Qube product family has been conceived with the future in mind and provides an integrated workflow, from mastering to distribution, playback to reporting and archiving. Being almost entirely software based allows the Qube system to leverage developments in the computer industry and bring to the market format independent, powerful and flexible products."

Source: DCinemaToday

The New 3D Technology

"It’s been only two years since the re-launch of commercial 3D exhibition with Disney’s Chicken Little in November 2005 and there are now almost 1,000 cinemas equipped. This rapid growth exceeds all previous attempts at getting 3D into mainstream exhibition, and this means that this time it’s likely here to stay.

3D has been on the fringes of exhibition since its first introduction in the early 1950s. The launch of 3D in 1953 quickly ran out of steam by 1955, leaving many exhibitors with the feeling that it was an expensive fad that, frankly, didn’t work very well. It made a partial comeback in the mid-1970s, only to fade again from mainstream use. Over the years, 3D found its long-term application in special-venue presentations where the specialty content and a unique audience could justify the costly installation of its specialized equipment.

Today’s situation is quite different. Enabled by the rollout of 2D digital cinema equipment, 3D instantly provides a tangible benefit whose value is instantly seen and appreciated by the audience. Enabling 3D on top of a standard 2D digital-cinema installation has become the “killer application” providing much of the justification for the conversion to digital. Much like surround sound in the 1980s, 3D has now moved from limited specialty applications into mainstream exhibition.

The 2005 release of Disney’s Chicken Little changed everything by proving that the technology behind the new digital 3D works better than before and is viable for full-length titles. A number of marketing studies have cited two to three times the box office for the 3D-equipped screens, proving that today’s audiences don’t object to paying a premium ticket price for the unique experience.

3D Content from Hollywood
Adding credibility to the current 3D movement is the fact that the driving force behind it has largely been the filmmakers themselves. The Hollywood production pipeline is planning a number of major 3D releases in the next few years. DreamWorks Animation has committed for complete adoption of 3D by 2009 and filmmakers like James Cameron and George Lucas have made commitments for future projects. A few of the big titles being planned are Journey 3D and U2 3D, both scheduled for 2008; DreamWorks’ Monsters vs. Aliens, scheduled for March 2009, and James Cameron’s Avatar in May 2009.

Overview of 3D Technologies
In a nutshell, 3D requires two projection systems, one for each eye, with each projecting an image taken from a slightly different perspective. The viewer, when wearing special glasses to direct the proper image to the corresponding eye, subconsciously fuses the images together, creating a mind’s-eye view that reveals the scene’s depth. In effect, 3D is doing for the eyes much like what stereo surround sound does for the ears.

Throughout exhibition’s short history, there have been many different 3D techniques used in cinema. With 35mm film, 3D typically required two projectors, which were not only costly but nearly impossible to keep in close enough synchronization to maintain the effect without also delivering a splitting headache.

Initially, glasses with simple red and cyan filters—commonly know as the “anaglyphic” method—were used to separate the images. The low-cost red/cyan glasses worked—but also created unnatural shifts in the overall color balance that most filmmakers and viewers found unacceptable. Glasses with horizontal/vertical polarized lenses were used with somewhat greater success. Later, active glasses, which act as high-speed shutters synchronized with the frame being projected, were commonly used in special-venue applications, but these are typically quite expensive and require batteries and frequent recharging.

With the first installations of digital systems in 2000, innovative filmmakers recognized that the new generation of digital projectors solved the stability problems that have plagued previous 35mm 3D approaches. These filmmakers, in fact the very same filmmakers that are making 3D content today, began asking the digital-cinema equipment vendors to quickly enable the equipment to allow 3D projection. A new company jumped in with a solution.

Real D’s Approach
Real D, a name unknown to most exhibitors prior to 2005, has quickly become the dominant player in 3D digital cinema. Working being the scenes with filmmakers and equipment manufacturers, Real D saw a unique opportunity to develop and integrate the necessary 3D options so that DCI-specified 2K digital cinema equipment can be used in 3D applications. The engineers at Real D realized that they could avoid the classic problems with 35mm 3D—the high cost of two projectors and problems synchronizing the two—by running a single digital projector at a much higher frame rate than a conventional 35mm projector. To separate the images, instead of bulky and expensive “active” glasses, they could place the shuttering system—what Real D calls the “Z-filter”—in the booth between the projector and the porthole. To improve the viewer’s experience over older polarized systems, Real D added a new “twist” to the glasses—circular polarization—which makes the image quality relatively insensitive to the rotational angle of the glasses. Overall, the 3D viewing experience was tremendously improved over anything that could be done with 35mm film.

The initial launch of Real D with Chicken Little included installation of over 100 Real D systems in the marketplace, with further commitments quickly following with Columbia Pictures’ Monster House in July 2006 and Buena Vista’s Meet the Robinsons released this past spring. For the November release of Robert Zemeckis’ Beowulf, Real D expects to have 1,016 installations in the market, with 122 of these being in overseas territories. Real D installations span over 20 counties and includes over 60 exhibitor organizations. Primary exhibitor partners include Carmike Cinema with 428 systems, AMC with 117 systems and National Amusements with 41 systems.

Rave Motion Pictures of Dallas also committed strongly to Real D with at least one auditorium in each of its 27 locations. Rave has been so excited by the results, it has installed seven Real D screens in its new Town Square location in Las Vegas. Jeremy Devine, Rave’s VP of marketing, says, “Our experience has been that 3D screens typically average three times the box office of conventional 2D screens. We are very excited to be opening Beowulf at our new Las Vegas location on November 16th with over 1,500 seats offering 3D.”

The Real D approach puts the cost of the 3D equipment in the projection booth and allows the use of low-cost “giveaway” glasses in the auditorium. The downside is that to maintain accurate polarization as light bounces off the screen, a “silvered” screen is needed, which typically requires the exhibitor to change the screen.

Dolby’s Approach
Dolby Laboratories, who partnered with Real D and Disney on the initial 2005 Chicken Little release, announced in the summer of 2006 that they were developing their own 3D system. The Dolby approach, originally developed for industrial application by the German company Infitec, uses a different approach. Instead of the circular polarization used by Real D to separate the left and right eye images, Dolby 3D Digital Cinema illuminates each image with light created from three slightly different primary colors. The Dolby 3D system also uses a single digital projector, but instead of changing each image’s polarization, the light from the projector’s Xenon bulb is pre-filtered by a small spinning filter mounted inside the projector. The audience also wears 3D glasses, but instead of polarized lenses, Dolby’s glasses act as filters that allow light to pass that is made up of the primary colors intended for that eye while blocking the primary colors intended for the opposite eye.

Since the Dolby 3D system doesn’t use polarized light, there is no requirement for a silvered screen, allowing the existing white screen to be used. Although Dolby’s 3D system uses lightweight passive glasses that require no batteries or recharging, the manufacturing process is more complex than Real D’s polarized glasses and therefore they are more expensive. Dolby’s 3D glasses are currently priced at $59 a pair and the exhibitor needs to provide equipment for washing them between shows. In the future, Dolby hopes to offer disposable glasses that the moviegoer can keep as a souvenir.

Dolby’s 3D rollout is just beginning and has already gather an impressive list of customers including Malco Theatres, Carousel Cinemas, Cinema City, Cinetopia, Cobb Theatres, Marcus Theatres, Maya Cinemas, Megaplex Theatres, Sundance Cinemas and the Kinepolis Group. "Kinepolis continues to be impressed with the quality of Dolby's digital-cinema technology," said Nicolas Hamon, projection and sound manager, Kinepolis Group. "Beyond quality, the flexibility of Dolby 3D has many advantages, as the solution supports both 3D and 2D presentations for playback on standard white screens already in our auditoriums. In addition, the reusable glasses model eliminates the need to reorder glasses, minimizing environmental impact."

The Pros and Cons
Real D believes that their low-cost glasses are a key advantage over Dolby’s approach, which requires collecting, washing, and maintaining an inventory. Typically, the glasses used by Real D have been provided at no charge by the distributor, who uses them as promotional items. Real D also sees some inherent advantages in the silvered screen and argues that with the recommended gain of 2.4, a silver screen will reduce energy and bulb costs when showing conventional content. Savings from such will offset initial installation costs.

Dolby believes that maintaining the glasses is easily manageable and cites the advantage of using the existing white screen, which does not potentially compromise the 2D picture quality. Dolby claims also to have an advantage in the booth, as the color filter wheel is installed inside the projector, which may in the future be offered by the projector manufacturers as a factory option. For the time being, Dolby is supplying a field retrofit kit—priced at $26,000—that can be installed inside any DCI-capable 2K DLP Cinema projector in a few hours.

3D Standards
One of the great advantages of both the Real D and Dolby 3D processes is that they are both compatible from a production standpoint. While both the Real D and Dolby 3D processes require that a small amount of correction be done to the 2D distribution package, fortunately both can be implemented during playback. Real D plans to implement their 2D-to-3D file correction using an external adapter. Since Dolby is a server manufacturer, they easily accommodate their conversion inside their Dolby Cinema Player. For Dolby’s current deployment, Dolby is insisting that their Dolby Cinema Player be used, although at some point they may be able to accommodate playback from other servers.

Both the Dolby and Real D 3D systems offer comparable 3D image quality, with each company claiming a slight advance over the other in several fairly minor technical areas. Both companies also claim to be competitive in overall costs. Real D offers three different business models: a flat-rate license, a revenue-sharing plan and a per-seat plan, while Dolby offers a flat-rate, one-time purchase of the projector retrofit kit and supplies the glasses. In addition to Dolby and Real D, a number of other companies are looking at the mainstream cinema market with 3D implementations that either use active glasses or two projectors, and these might prove to be viable in some situations. The fact that several companies are now competing in the 3D market—with a standardized distribution format—will certainly benefit exhibitors by providing more choices and deployment options.

With strong support from Hollywood’s filmmakers, broad manufacturer support, and a competitive market of technologies and systems, 3D has now achieved all the elements needed for commercial success and will be part of the cinemagoing experience in the future."

By Bill Mead, Film Journal International

ShowEast Puts Spotlight on 3-D, D-Cinema

"The film industry is donning 3-D glasses this week as exhibitors and distributors gather at the Orlando Marriott World Center for ShowEast 2007.

The digital cinema transition and 3-D movements are hot topics this week, as the two are intertwined: digital-cinema projection is required in order to offer 3-D digital motion pictures, giving digital cinema some added momentum as both proceed forward.

"The first thing that has come along and actually created an incremental value for exhibition is 3-D," DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg told The Hollywood Reporter. Katzenberg will speak about 3-D at the convention, which runs today through Thursday. "(Exhibitors) are beginning to see a real growth opportunity in their business. I think that's part of what has given some real momentum to digital cinema."

Indeed, 3-D has energized the exhibition industry. For instance, last year's release of "Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas 3-D" played in 168 theaters and grossed $8.7 million.

Meanwhile, additional factors are contributing to digital-cinema deployment.

"As more and more 3-D content comes into the market, it will spur the digital-cinema deployment," said Chuck Viane, Disney's president of domestic distribution. "I believe the key factor to the digital deployment will probably be the announcement of Digital Cinema Integration Partners and whatever program they will have for digital installations in circuits like Regal and Cinemark and AMC."

DCIP is a joint venture owned by AMC Entertainment, Cinemark USA and Regal Entertainment Group that represents more than 14,000 screens in the U.S. and Canada. It is working on deals with the aim of beginning to transition its screens in early 2008. "Exhibitors are more likely to do a digital install right now for movies like 'Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas' or 'Beowulf' or any of the other announced product because they can have these blend into the deals that will be brought into the marketplace by DCIP," Viane explained.

With "Nightmare" and "Beowulf" slated for release this fall, it is expected that there will be roughly 1,000 3-D-ready digital theaters and a total of 4,000 digital cinema screens, representing 10% of the domestic market by year's end. "By the end of next year, I would think you will be at 25%," Viane said. "I think DCIP will really determine how quickly the tipping point comes. But the end of next year we could be at 60%. That would not shock me at all."

Katzenberg's benchmark is the March 27, 2009, the release date for "Monsters vs. Aliens," DreamWorks Animation's first 3-D feature. "We need 6,000 (3-D-equipped) screens by March 27, 2009," he said. "That's the thing that I am most anxious about. It's a tremendous opportunity for exhibitors. Exhibition will be able to get a meaningful premium for their 3-D experience. When we release one of our PG titles, we are in the 7,500-8,000 screen range. I'd like to see three-quarters of those be equipped with 3-D by 2009."

For studios investing in 3-D content, costs can vary. Katzenberg related that for DreamWorks Animation -- which has committed to release all of its animated product in 3-D beginning in 2009 -- there is a $15 million incremental production cost per movie.

Said John Fithian, president of the National Association of Theatre Owners, "I believe we win by having both digital cinema and 3-D. Digital cinema has to make sense in its own right, and it does, particularly with the studio-supported virtual print fee model. ... Hopefully, we can get a better show that is more consistent. Digital cinema also offers greater versatility of programming. 3-D is a very important value add, but it also has another cost. The studios are not paying for the 3-D installations. We are in most cases."

"The primary reason why digital cinema is picking up, at least in the States, is threefold: We have business models that work, technology standards that are fairly developed and equipment that produces a quality image. Those were the three main hurdles as to why this didn't happen earlier," Fithian said."

By Carolyn Giardina, The Hollywood Reporter

Dolby Stakes its Claim in 3D Movie Tech

"When Paramount Pictures' 3D movie Beowulf debuts on November 16, the battle between an Anglo-Saxon hero and various monsters won't be the only one moviegoers will witness.

The Robert Zemeckis film also will be first major time that Real D, one of the companies that made the current renaissance of 3D movies possible, directly faces a newer challenger, Dolby 3D from Dolby Laboratories.

Beowulf will show using Real D's technology on 1,000 screens nationwide, Chief Executive Michael Lewis said. Dolby isn't saying yet how many will use Dolby 3D, but it's racing to install its technology as widely as possible, limited chiefly by the rate that partners manufacture its 3D glasses.

"Real D is leading the pack, since they have the widest distribution, but everyone is watching with anticipation," said Aaron Parry, chief executive of production company Main Street Pictures, which Paramount hired to evaluate the current state of stereoscopic filmmaking.

Ultimately, the race to spread 3D movie technology could hasten the day that many in the industry see as inevitable, when 3D movies escape their history as off-the-wall spectacle and become the norm. In this view, the shift to 3D is just another overhaul of the entertainment business, just like the arrival of sound and color in the last century.

"I think in 10 years you can say entertainment will feel like you're there. It will completely blur the line between the experience you took physically and the experience you took visually," said Vince Pace, whose company, Pace co-developed with James Cameron the Fusion 3D camera being used in that director's 2009 movie, Avatar.

It's no secret why the industry would be eager for a cinematic revolution. Big flat-panel displays and surround sound made home theater compelling at the same time the studios were financially stagnant. 3D versions of movies such as Chicken Little have generated more revenue than their 2D equivalents financially, and the industry expects more of the same.

"We believe that 3D has the potential to meaningfully boost growth, by allowing theaters to offer a new visual experience that we believe will drive incremental attendance and price hikes," JPMorgan analyst Barton Crockett said in a September report.

He estimated 3D movies will draw 10 percent more viewers than 2D equivalents, and each person willing to pay about $3.50 more per ticket in 2009. That means $300 million to $400 million in additional earnings for theater companies--about a fifth of the total box-office take by 2011. The number of 3D-equipped screens should jump to 7,000 by 2010, he predicted.

Most expect home theater to lag 3D in movie theaters. Even when it catches up, "The biggest problem is that 3D on a small screen is not satisfying in same way as in big screen. It is what you call an immersive experience," said Dave Schnuelle, Dolby's senior director for image technology.

Antipiracy is a side benefit. Dreamworks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg has observed, "Ninety percent of all piracy comes from a camcorder aimed at the screen. You can't camcorder 3D movies."

However, building a 3D future is difficult.

Inside the technology
Real D and Dolby rely on the same basic idea to give an audience the illusion of depth: show images that differ slightly in vantage point to each of a viewer's eyes. The viewer's brain will reconstruct the third dimension, just as it does in the real world.

Both companies require glasses to ensure each eye gets only the correct view; Real D uses circular polarization while Dolby uses a color-filtering technology licensed from Infitec. The light is separated into the left-eye and right-eye views at the projector, switching back and forth 144 times per second.

With the new method, "there's no eye fatigue like in the 1950s and 1970s," said Tim Partridge, Dolby's head of products and technology.

In Dolby 3D, a spinning CD-size wheel between the lamp and the digital projector alternately lets through one set of light frequencies or another--two slightly different versions of the red, green and blue primary colors for each eye. The wheel spins six times for each movie frame, with the digital projector synchronized to show the appropriate eye's image.

In contrast, Real D uses an electronic filter called a Z-screen that circularly polarizes the light two different ways after it leaves the projector, also switching back and forth six times per frame to avoid flicker. Circular polarization--a complicated transformation of light's electromagnetic properties--requires the use of a special silver screen that retains the polarization as the light reflects back toward the audience.

Another company in Korea, Masterimage, also is trying to get into the market with an approach that uses a spinning wheel in front of the projector to apply the circular polarization.

Each technology has its advantages and drawbacks. Dolby 3D's glasses are difficult to manufacture and therefore expensive--$50 right now, though the company expects prices will drop. They must therefore be returned after use and washed in an automated washer. Real D's 5-cent, disposable glasses can be branded with promotional graphics from the movie.

Dolby 3D has an advantage with movie screens. Real D requires theaters to install the special silver screens, which JPMorgan estimates cost $5,500 apiece. Silver screens offer higher reflectivity and work with 2D movies as well, but there's concern that despite advances they suffer from a bright central "hot spot." Dolby 3D uses conventional white screens, which means theaters can move 3D movies to smaller screens as a movie runs its course at a theater.

Real D seems to have the edge for maximum screen size, though--an important consideration given that both cut down the amount of light to less than a sixth of what a conventional 2D movie projects. Dolby is cagey about how large a screen Dolby 3D can use, though executives say it's been used to show movies on 38-foot screens. Real D, though was at 47 feet during debut and this year should reach beyond 60 feet early next year, said Real D president and co-founder Joshua Greer.

Another factor is how well separated the left-eye and right-eye views are, so that light from one doesn't leak into the other. Real D has "ghostbusting" technology to electronically counteract this problem, and it's working to move it from a digital processing step to a real-time add-on. Dolby, though, boasts that its technology requires no ghostbusting at all.

Neither rival is standing still. "Both are to some degree in their infancy," Parry said. "They'll change radically in the next couple years."

3D movie-making: a new nut to crack
Making 3D movies in the first place is another challenge, with production costs somewhere between 10 percent to 20 percent higher, according to various industry estimates. There, too, technology is changing fast, though.

3D filming has been hampered by technical challenges. For live-action movies, two cameras must be closely coordinated, with risks increasing as cameras move or lenses zoom. Computer-generated animations are easier because they're typically already designed in 3D and therefore require only more computer hours to render the second viewpoint.

Pace is one company trying to address the live-action difficulties, and its 3D cameras have won over Doug Schwartz, creator of the Baywatch TV series and now the chairman of Stereo Vision Entertainment, which aims to bring smaller-budget 3D movies to the screen.

"The (3D) camera used to be size of a VW bug. But you can do anything now--handheld, Steadicam, underwater, dollies, zoom, cranes," he said. Also important: technology from Quantel lets directors review the shot immediately, in 3D, on the set.

Tools are still missing from 3D production, though, said Pierre Raymond, president and founder of Hybride Technologies, a visual effects company that's working Journey 3-D, a new take on the Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth. For example, a standard "rig erase" operation, using computers to digitally erase gear such as wires to suspend actors in the air, is much more complicated than in 2D.

"If do in it 3D, you will erase something on the right eye, and you will not see it. You erase it on the left eye, and you will not see it. When you put stereo glasses on, bang, you see the patch," he said.

Three-dimensional movies are still a novelty, and movies are trying to milk it for all it's worth. "Every time you bring a new technology to market, you will pass the gimmicky stage," Raymond said.

Take Schwartz's work, which is Stereo Vision's first project. Planned for Halloween 2008, Aubrey Blaze Piranhas 3-D features video-game creators who are trapped in Brazilian caves and must reckon with mutant flying carnivorous fish.

"Water is one of best environments for 3D, because things float--they're in the middle of the screen and coming right out at you," Schwartz said. Stereo Vision also is working to exploit the 3D possibilities of restaurant waitresses in South Beach, Miami with a comedy called Hooters 3DD.

But there are limits, even with movies that embrace 3D's shock value. "You don't want to be jarring to the audience," Schwartz said. For example, MTV-style fast cuts from one scene to another are a no-no because audience members must refocus.

Most, including Real D's Lewis, expect a more easygoing era to arrive, with 3D used to involve people more deeply in the narrative. "Ideally we want to make you feel like you're part of the movie and less like there are things flying out at you."

By Stephen Shankland, News.com

Cineworld Group Signs Deal with Real D to Revolutionise the Cinema Experience by Bringing 3D to its Customers

"Cineworld Group plc, which has the largest portfolio of digital screens of any cinema operator in the UK, has signed a deal with Real D to bring 3D to its customers. Real D is the world leader in 3D technology.

The deal will see Cineworld introduce 3D projection into its digital cinema portfolio to create the largest 3D estate in the UK. Real D 3D systems will initially be installed into 30 of Cineworld's 72 digital auditoria and the roll-out will coincide with the release of Beowulf on 16 November 2007. The deal will see Cineworld continue to add Real D systems to bring the most advanced 3D experience to its moviegoers as Cineworld finalises its deals with studios on
the business terms of digital deployment.

Steve Wiener, CEO of Cineworld Group plc, said, "This is a significant deal for Cineworld and one which will revolutionise the cinema experience for our moviegoers across the country. We could see as many as 100 Real D screens once our digital platform is in place." Wiener added, "The impact of 3D on the film industry can be compared to the move from black and white to colour. After reviewing all of the latest technologies in the market we are delighted to be partnering with Real D in spearheading the UK's move to 3D. "

DreamWorks Animation SKG announced its intention to produce all of its films in 3D starting in 2009. Visionary filmmakers including Robert Zemeckis, James Cameron, and Peter Jackson have embraced 3D as a natural enhancement to their cinematic storytelling. In addition, George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars, announced his intention to remaster the original Star Wars movies in digital 3D, although no date has been set at this stage."

Source: Digital Cinema Buyers Guide

Kinepolis Selects Dolby 3D for Major European Deployment

"Dolby Laboratories today announced that the Kinepolis Group has selected the new Dolby 3D Digital Cinema technology to outfit 17 screens throughout Europe.

Kinepolis recently opened its 23rd cinema multiplex, in Ostend, Belgium, and installed the first Dolby 3D system in Europe. The Belgium-based exhibitor plans to convert one screen per complex using the Dolby 3D system.

Dolby 3D provides exhibitors with an efficient and flexible solution designed to give consumers a superior 3D experience. The technology utilizes the white screen already in auditoriums, so exhibitors do not have the added costs nor the quality compromise associated with the use of a “silver screen” required by some 3D systems. Additionally, Dolby provides reusable 3D glasses which are cost-effective and environmentally friendly for exhibitors.

Dolby 3D uses a unique color-filter technology that provides realistic color reproduction and extremely sharp 3D images to the audience from every seat in the house. The solution adds a retractable filter-wheel accessory to any DLP digital cinema projector that can be easily moved out of the light path when switching from 3D to 2D digital cinema presentations. Therefore, exhibitors can transfer movies into a smaller auditorium equipped with Dolby 3D later in the movie’s run."

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Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix to Feature IMAX 3D Finale

"IMAX Corporation and Warner Bros. Pictures announced that select scenes of the IMAX DMR version of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will be digitally converted into an IMAX 3D Experience. IMAX Corporation plans to use its proprietary 2D to 3D conversion technology to transform approximately 20 minutes at the end of the film - which is being digitally re-mastered into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience using IMAX DMR (Digital Re-Mastering) technology - into IMAX 3D.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will be released in IMAX theatres and conventional theatres on July 13, 2007, and Warner Bros. Pictures will be the exclusive distributor of the film to IMAX theatres worldwide."

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Thomson Provides Digital Cinema Mastering and Distribution Services for Walt Disney Pictures’ Meet the Robinsons

"Thomson, through its Technicolor Digital Cinema business, today announced it has provided the digital cinema mastering and distribution for Walt Disney Pictures’ Meet the Robinsons.

Technicolor digitally mastered and distributed Meet the Robinsons for 892 screens worldwide. Domestically, the feature was distributed to 582 screens in Disney Digital 3-D and 138 screens in digital 2-D. The feature was distributed internationally to 105 screens in 3D and 67 screens in 2D. In addition, Technicolor created all traditional 35mm film prints for the release.

Technicolor Digital Cinema offers distribution services for all digitally equipped theatres worldwide. As part of its beta test in North America and Europe, Technicolor has installed digital cinema projection systems with several prominent exhibitors including ArcLight Hollywood’s Cinerama Dome, Mann Theatres, National Amusements, Wehrenberg Theatres, Zyacorp’s Cinemagic Stadium Theatres, and Kinepolis Group in Belgium.

Thomson intends on a broader rollout of complete digital projection systems in up to 5,000 screens over the next three to four years. Thomson intends to equip at least 15,000 screens in the United States and Canada, through the initial rollout and additional phases, over the next 10 years."

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Digital Cinema System Specification v1.1 and Draft Stereoscopic Digital Cinema Addendum v0.9

"Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI) has adopted and is releasing a revised Version 1.1 of its Digital Cinema System Specification. The new Version 1.1, dated April 12, 2007, incorporates the 148 erratum previously released for Version 1.0 of the Specification. With the integration of the erratum into the body of the Specification, readers will now be able to use the Specification without having to cross-reference to these 148 errata.

Additional Specification erratum items continue to be evaluated and will be posted after agreement by the DCI membership that the erratum is needed. Future errata will modify the DCI Specification, Version 1.1.

DCI is also releasing a Draft Stereoscopic Digital Cinema Addendum, Version 0.9, dated April 12, 2007. This document defines high-level technical requirements and specifications for the mastering, distribution and theatrical playback of stereoscopic digital cinema content. This document will be integrated into DCI’s Digital Cinema System Specification at a future date."

Digital Cinema System Specification v1.1
Draft Stereoscopic Digital Cinema Addendum v0.9

DVS Showcases Hydra JPEG2000 Board At NAB 2007

"Hydra is a PCI-X board for uncompressed input and output of audio and video material as well as for decompression of JPEG2000 in real time. Hydra supports SD, HD, 2K, and further formats specified by DCI and offers 16 AES/EBU or embedded audio channels.

Hydra performs decoding and decompression of JPEG2000 material for Digital Cinema applications. These processes take place in real time from SD, HD and 2K material as well as several other formats specified by the DCI (Digital Cinema Initiative). The data can be received as RGB, YUV or X’Y’Z’ data in MXF or JP2 and the hardware extracts the components from the MXF file when necessary.

Up to two dual-link 4:4:4 or three single-link 4:2:2 channels are supported simultaneously. The new I/O board is ideal for implementing stereoscopic display applications in Digital Cinema, multi-channel applications in broadcast or multi-screen applications in the presentation area."

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Kinoton and DVC Presented Digital 3D Workshop at "Insight Out"

"One of the many interesting issues at the "Insight Out" symposium of the renowned HFF Film and Television University "Konrad Wolf" Potsdam were the options and potentials offered by stereoscopic D-Cinema, emphasized by an impressive 3D presentation featuring a Kinoton DCP 70 L Digital Cinema Projector and a DVC ClipDisk 3D.

One of this year's workshops dealt with stereoscopic 3D projection. At the lecture held by Harald Naether (DVC Digitalvideo GmbH), several trailers and short films were presented so the audience could convince themselves of the excellent projection quality of stereoscopic D-Cinema.

The audience thought it very interesting that the DCP 70 L Digital Cinema Projector, which Kinoton had installed at the HFF a few weeks ago, can not only present normal digital cinema movies in DCI compliant 2K resolution, but stereoscopic content as well. All you need is a 3D server and a polarisation filter or shutter glasses system. At the "Insight Out" workshop, a DVC ClipDisk 3D server and an active NuVision 3D system were employed.

The NuVision system is composed of a sync box, an IR transmitter and active shutter-glasses. The sync box gets a signal from the projector which controls the shutter-glasses by infrared communication. The DCP 70 L gets two input signals from the 3D server, one for the right eye and one for the left eye, which are projected alternately at a high frequency. The right and left shutter-glasses are dimmed in turn so that only one eye at a time can look at the screen. If the picture for the left eye is projected, the right glass becomes opaque, and vice versa. The brain interprets these two different sights as a three-dimensional representation, experiencing an amazingly realistic 3D effect.

"This active 3D technique for D-Cinema projectors is cost-effective, easy to retro-fit and easy to use", states Kinoton's D-Cinema product manager Markus Naether. "In contrary to passive 3D cinema requiring a special silver screen, active 3D can be projected on every common cinema screen. Besides this, the prices for shutter-glasses have been cut severely, making this a cost-efficient and fast way for exhibitors to add an additional crowd puller to their theatres, independent of existing 3D license models"."
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Remarque : DVC ClipDisk 3D n'est pas un serveur conforme aux spécifications DCI, mais un serveur bi-canaux MPEG-2 HD. Il ne pourra donc pas jouer les principaux films 3D proposés par les Studios US ( "Chicken Little", "The Nightmare Before Christmas", "Monster House", "Meet the Robinsons", etc. ).

Dolby Previews Dolby 3D Digital Cinema at ShoWest 2007

"At ShoWest today, Dolby Laboratories unveiled details of its new Dolby 3D Digital Cinema technology, designed to provide consumers with an impressive 3D experience.

Dolby 3D provides exhibitors and distributors an efficient and cost-effective 3D solution. The ability to utilize a white screen gives exhibitors a cost advantage, as no special equipment associated with a “silver screen” is required. The ease of shifting from 3D to 2D as well as moving the film between different size auditoriums provides compelling flexibility.

Dolby 3D uses a unique color filter technology that provides a very realistic color reproduction. Dolby 3D also provides extremely sharp images thus delivering a great 3D experience to the audience from every seat in the house.

The Dolby 3D solution uses the white screens installed in most theaters today as well as standard digital cinema projectors, eliminating the need for a dedicated 3D auditorium. The solution simply adds a retractable color filter wheel accessory to the digital projector. Furthermore, the filter wheel automatically moves away from the light path when switching from 3D to 2D digital cinema presentations. Leveraging Dolby Digital Cinema technology, exhibitors easily can transfer movies down to a smaller auditorium later in the movie’s run.

Dolby 3D Digital Cinema works with comfortable and lightweight passive viewing glasses that require no batteries or charging. Initially, 3D glasses will be reusable, eliminating the need to reorder glasses and minimizing environmental impact. In the future, Dolby expects to offer the option of disposable glasses that the moviegoer can keep as a souvenir.

Unique to the Dolby 3D solution, the technology also simplifies the process of creating and distributing 3D movies. There is no need for extra color correction or other compensation processes in postproduction, as all processing is performed in the server. This innovative approach not only saves time and money, but it simplifies the overall process as the color correction is the same for both 3D and 2D digital cinema presentations."
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