cinec 2010 - Answers in 3D

MUNICH, GERMANY, September 02, 2010 (Press-News.org) The new technology raises new questions. In an extensive seminar program at the cinec, experts will give everybody an insight into stereoscopy - from producers to cinema owners.

What started as a hype is getting serious: For many productions, Stereo 3D is the future. Each and every animation film from the big US studios is also released in a 3D version and the »real« action and adventure movies increasingly count on stereoscopic production, too.
The use of 3D technology seems inevitable when trying to impress a big audience with massive effects.

The producers of »conventional« film technology have already realized this long ago. Arri especially focuses on shooting in Stereo 3D with their new digital camera »Alexa«. »Alexa« is used on the »Fusion 3D Rig« which was developed by James Cameron and DoP Vince Pace in the production of »The Three Musketeers«, and Arri is also responsible for its postproduction.
Martin Scorsese is shooting »The Invention of Hugo Cabret« in London and Paris right now, while in the US, Michael Bay is shooting »Transformers 3« and in Germany, Christian Ditter will start with »Wickie auf großer Fahrt«, the sequel of »Wickie und die starken Männer« - all these are Stereo 3D productions with »Alexa«.

Thanks to its compact design and various possibilities of mounting, the camera can easily be integrated in Stereo 3D rigs and can comfortably be used in all orientations - no matter if it is mounted upright or upside down, the producer explains.
The high level of precision in the assembly of the camera as a whole and especially of the sensor facilitates the calibration in the 3D rig.
Another advantage is the high light sensitivity, as only half of the original light arrives when using a mirror rig, the Munich based company says.

The new technology is relevant for all fields of motion picture production, not only for shooting. Where the film was shot conventionally, it is the postproduction's turn. Big adventure films such as
»Clash of the Titans« or currently M. Night Shyamalan's »The Last Airbender« have been upgraded with the three dimensional effects later.
The new format also quickens the upgrade of cinemas to digital projection.

However, the new technology also causes new insecurity. Everybody involved from shooting to projection is in need of information. As the leading trade show for Cine Equipment and Technology, cinec will provide this information in Munich from 18th - 20th September 2010 with an extensive program of workshops and seminars - hands-on and for all professions:
Cinematographers and editors, postproduction specialists, directors and screenplay writers, set designers, producers and distributors. If you can be sure of one thing, it is that meticulous preparation and excellent technical equipment are basic requirements for success - Stereo 3D shooting does not allow for improvisations.
The program was elaborated by Alaric Hamacher, 3D film producer, specialist for stereography and one of the pioneers in the new technology, in cooperation with Prof. Dietrich Sauter, HFF Potsdam, supported by the leading producers and service providers of the industry.
Postproduction, pre-visualization and the latest developments in shooting will be explained on Saturday with a lot of practical examples. On Sunday it is all about 3D projection systems for cinemas, live production, business concepts and the general viewer acceptance of 3D movies.

The program already kicks off two days before the start of the show with a panel discussion with industry players in the Munich Arri cinema. It will be presented by Dominique Rigaud, president of the »Union des Professionnels de la 3D-Relief«.
UP3D was founded five years ago by film-makers who work with stereoscopic pictures on a professional basis. Its target is to build a network connecting all fields of work - from producers to film-makers such as cinematographers, animators or stereography specialists, to cinema owners.
The cinec shall also be used to make this union more known in Germany, Hamacher explains, who is member of the UP3D committee as well as its German spokesperson.