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The 20th century heralded two major cinematic breakthroughs in both sound and vision: the move from silent to ‘talkies’ in the 1920s and the shift from black-and-white to colour in the 1930s. With the latest innovations in technology, some 70 years later, many agree that we have now entered a third revolution - the new generation of 3D.
It wasn’t always thus. After shooting his stereoscopic Dial M For Murder in 1954, Alfred Hitchcock declared 3D "was a nine-day wonder – and I came in on the ninth day".
But CGI and the arrival of digital cameras and projectors has allowed the creation of better-looking, more reliable 3D production. There’s no longer the need for the cheap thrills of Smell-O-Vision – or indeed, ‘the Tingler’. And many in the industry see 3D in cinema as the way of the future: 20 years from now, almost every film could be in 3D.
In his landmark transatlantic 3D interview at IBC last year, Jeffrey Katzenberg of Dreamworks Animation treated us to a sneak preview of the studio’s next blockbuster, Monsters vs Aliens. This year, Courtesy of Dreamworks Animation and UIP International, there will be a screening of the movie on Saturday, 12 September in the Big Screen Auditorium.
Since wowing the audience at IBC2008, the movie has gone on to take more than $375 million at the box office. Critics have hailed its use of stereoscopic 3D, which really brings the bizarre selection of animated characters to life. The voice cast boasts Reese Witherspoon, Hugh Laurie, Seth Rogen and Kiefer Sutherland.
Talking about the film, Katzenburg says: “I think that what has happened now -and it’s only in these last 18 months or two years - is a convergence of the tools that enable us to make and exhibit 3D films in such an innovative way that the resulting breathtaking experience will change the way people think of movies.”
Although the movie requires the use of 3D glasses, the sleek black Polaroids are a far cry from the flimsy red and green giveaways of the Jaws 3D era. And with the use of digital equipment, the separate left- and right-eye images – which the brain marries into a three-dimensional image – can be made to synchronise perfectly.
"Until now almost all of the 3D movies that audiences have seen were filmed in 2D and then post-produced into 3D,” Katzenburg explains. “With Monsters vs Aliens, this is our first film totally authored in the 3D format – and not just any 3D format. We use something called InTru3D, which combines DreamWorks Animation's authoring tools with the latest Intel technology, allowing artists to tell a more compelling story and give film-goers a more exciting, immersive 3D movie experience.”
Another movie rendered in jaw-dropping stereoscopic 3D at IBC2009 is the Monday Night Movie, Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.
Despite only being released this summer, the movie has already gone on to become the highest grossing animated movie outside the US. Directors Carlos Saldanha and Mike Thurmeier have created an action-packed fantasy which genuinely appeals to all ages. Ice Age fans will welcome back the familiar sub-zero heroes, who now find themselves in uncomfortably close encounters with some cryogenically preserved – and now revived – dinosaurs.
Courtesy of 20th Century Fox, all IBC visitors are welcome to come along and enjoy Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs on Monday, 14 September - prepare to be gobsmacked!
All movies shown at IBC2009 are enhanced by the quality digital projection and sound in the IBC Big Screen – a truly impressive place to watch a movie. With the co-operation of leading manufacturers, the RAI Auditorium is converted into a digital cinema that really is state-of-the-art, with high-resolution projection on the giant screen matched by sonorous surround sound ... Tinglers not included.
The IBC Big Screen represents a chance not to be missed to see great movie-making technologies. All screenings start at 18:30 in the Auditorium – but arrive early to grab your seat.
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