Google+





Friday, December 28, 2007

Aubrey Blaze Piranha 3D: Production To Begin In January 2008 for a Fall 2009 Release

StereoVision is ramping up their 3D movie production schedule and tops on their list is "Audrey Blaze Piranha" (ABP). ABP is a "creature" movie designed to be in-your-face entertainment with piranhas literally jumping off the screen at you.

StereoVision Entertainment is producing 3D movies designed to occupy the now rapidly expanding network of 3D theaters in between the major studio's tentpole (or major) releases.

The film will start production in Puerto Rico in January 2008 for a fall 2009 release.

Well ABP had better be an early fall release as there is a hard stop with Robert Zemeckis' "A Christmas Carol" scaring up holiday excitement on November 6th, 2009 and Dreamworks Animations release of "How To Train Your Dragon" hitting 3D screens November 20th, 2009. Fox's "Ice Age 3" (July 1st, 2009) should be wrapping up their 3D theater run well before early fall.

To me, piranhas seem like an awesome way to scare the crap out of people - I can envision plenty of ways to keep an audience on their toes throughout the duration of the movie! I just hope that it does not go too overboard with the "coming-at-ya" effects. That whole twist on 3D COULD be overdone and I don't want to see that happen. Directors like James Cameron will NOT be over doing these effects as he relies on his story, character development, overall cinematography and realistic CGI to achieve his goals. Goals that audiences love I might add. Let's hope for artistic creativity and not gimmicks. Ok, now that I have said my piece - good luck with the production Stereo Vision! The timing is perfect.

For a full listing of all 3D movies rumored, planned, in production or in theaters - click here.

Thursday, December 27, 2007

Bolt 3D: Sneak Peak Photo!

Hey the guys over at First Showing have revealed what seems to be the first glimpse at the dog named Bolt and two companions - have a look:

Thanks Alex!

Avatar: The Game - Ubisoft's Epic to be in 3D?


Interesting rumor. "Surfer Girl" has dropped a bombshell that frankly I had previously posted might happen. Ubisoft will be shipping high quality, stereoscopic 3D glasses with "Avatar The Game" when it is released along with the movie in 2009; hence a 3D gaming environment.

I openly postulated about this premise when we heard that James Cameron's vision of a MMORPG game was passed over for a simpler concept. Well it was simpler at a high level, but add in 3D and you quickly realize why releasing a MMORPG would have been impossible.

It may be a gamble for Cameron and Ubisoft to run down this movie focused 3D gaming path before anyone else, but then again, it will undoubtedly become a brilliant piece of maneuvering. It was Cameron who has the vision of linking gaming environments and movie environments! So it is a natural link to have them both in 3D for Avatar. We just need to get those at-home game level designers to start contributing to the movie sets as well!

Am I going to be getting a copy of this game? You bet. I also have a couple of friends at Ubisoft in Montreal - time to fly off a few emails!

Digg This!

Monday, December 24, 2007

Blender 3D: New "Peach" Images!

Check 'em out! More about this "open source" feature 3D movie here.


Avatar's Michelle Rodriguez To Start Jail Term Today


Unfortunately for Michelle Rodriguez and her family, she must start her 6 month jail term today - Christmas Eve. The impact on the Avatar shooting schedule is still relatively unknown except for the obvious delays that were encountered at the beginning of the project for several weeks. I am not sure if time off for good behavior is a possibility but I would bet that it is.

James Cameron has already shuffled his shooting schedule around this "hard stop" of one of his stars - let's hope the impact to the movie is minimal as well as to her family. Call backs would be a possibility now as well with the release date pushed back to December 2009. Hmmm, another contributing factor to the launch delay?

Sunday, December 23, 2007

Coraline 3D: Awesome New Teaser Clip!


Coraline is an exciting new animation coming out in the latter half of 2008 starring the voices of Dakota Fanning, Teri Hatcher, Ian McShane and Keith David. The story revolves around a little girl who discovers a secret portal to a parallel but slightly different universe. The animation in this film is striking and of course by adding in that third dimension we are really going to be in for a treat.

Check out this awesome new teaser clip from Neil Gaiman.

Friday, December 21, 2007

SCAR 3D: Interview With Norman Twain, Producer


As requested by readers, I have some more info about the upcoming live action 3D horror film, Scar 3D. Norman Twain is the producer of Scar 3D and I had the opportunity to discuss the movie with him as well as details on his 3D technology and upcoming projects:

MarketSaw: Norman, you have an impressive background in the business - what has led you to producing "Scar"? This is your first 3D effort?

NT: After "Spinning Into Butter", which to some extent was a horror story in itself in the making of it, I decided I wanted to divert from the films and plays I had previously done and do a horror film. I'd be lying if I didn't say that the commercial applicability of horror pictures was an attractive lake to go swimming in, not knowing at the time that there were monsters lurking in the bottom of the lake. I was asked to see a demonstration by a minor 3D operator in New York, and one minute into the demonstration I knew Scribble Face, which was the title of Scar at that time, should be done in 3D. Then, the project took on a new life and a new challenge to become the first live-action 3D horror film in the emerging state of 3D. Incidentally, that new emergence has continued, and nobody is denying that 3D has been around forever. But nevertheless, it is having a rebirth today and Scar is on the cutting edge of all movies made.

MarketSaw: There has been some very exciting technological developments in the 3D movie industry in recent years - I have heard that you are using the same technology that James Cameron is using for "Avatar" currently shooting in New Zealand; exactly what equipment do you mean - the cameras, software or perhaps the entire Cameron/Pace Fusion System?

NT: With Jed Weintrob, my director, and Christian Bruun, my 3D maven, we looked at a lot of rigs, including that rig where I first saw that 3D presentation. We decided from a financial point of view and an experience point of view that the best rig for us was from NHK in Japan, which consisted of two Sony-950s mounted and converged on a platform. For so many reasons, this was the best situation for us. We talked to Pace as well as Sklar, not knowing what their rigs were, and after we made our deal, we found out that Cameron was using virtually the same rig. We took from nobody, except NHK. We never thought once of the Cameron/Pace team or the Zemeckis team, and we made our film with our rig and Cameron and Pace are making theirs. It's not going to matter what rig anybody uses. It will depend on the story and the audience reaction to the story.

MarketSaw: Was the Cameron/Pace team involved any further than providing the technology?

NT: As I said, the Cameron/Pace team, or whatever you would call them, did nothing whatsoever to provide us with the technology. We saw the NHK rig in the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas and starting our negotiations with NHK New York and made the deal without even meeting the camera team, who came from Tokyo.

MarketSaw: Scar is being credited as the first released, live action 3D HD movie ever. That is quite an undertaking! What can you tell me about the hurtles that you had to jump in order to get this project made?

NT: The hurdles were comparatively simple, because candidly we didn't know what the hurdles were. We did this independently, and for all intents and purposes green-lighted our own film. In answer to your question, we're still hurdling. Doing something new is always difficult. I doubt if we were a studio picture I could have gotten it made within the time frame we did, because what people don't know, they're afraid of. With information supplied to me by Jed, Christian, my co-producer Dan Hank and NHK, I made every decision and, fortunately, got lucky.

MarketSaw: What can you tell me about the storyline of Scar? Any teasers that you care to share?

NT: Scar has a simple storyline. Sixteen years ago, a high-school girl was lucky enough to escape from the torture chamber of a serial killer and, in that escape, violently killed that killer. Now, she returns for the first time to her hometown, and murders start occurring as if that same killer is back again. It's a bloody and disgusting mess. But I think fun.

MarketSaw: Thomas Jane is also filming in 3D HD right now in New Mexico for his movie "The Dark Country" - I know he is using one of the best 3D experts Hollywood has ever produced as a consultant to assist him in the shooting - did your Scar team use a 3D veteran as a consultant?

NT: Thomas is directing? Who is the consultant? And is it a consultant such as a stereographer type, or somebody who just is knowledgeable about 3D? In our case, we had the Japanese, who I would say are as experienced as anybody in terms of stereography and 3D. Additionally, I had Christian Bruun, my co-producer who has been involved in 3D and this technology for year. Jed Weintrob, my director, was no slouch either, and his knowledge was very helpful. Through Jed and Christian, we had a pipeline to Joshua Greer, Lenny Lipton, and Robert Turner, three major honchos at Real D (it was Lenny who invented the Real D polarizer). So, yes, I'd say we were very well staffed as far as expertise goes.

MarketSaw: Yes, Jane is directing for the first time and it is in 3D. Jane had John Rupkalvis on the set (whom I have interviewed here) and many others like Ray Zone and Geoff Boyle.

NT: John Rupkalvis was hired years ago by Dan Symmes as Dan's assistant. I've never worked with him. Dan can give more info as needed. I've never worked with Ray Zone on any production, but he has been a figure in 3-D for years. I first met him at the local L.A. Stereoscopic Club meetings back in the '80's. He and Dan are somewhat known as 3D historians, having both published books, etc. And the only thing I know about Geoff Boyle is he's a cinematographer on the "Dark Country" independent. Jane is a smart guy, and I'm sure he researched well. My reference of experts are all different. Maybe I should meet these guys.

MarketSaw: What was it like working with Angela Bettis, Christopher Titus and the rest of the cast? Any stories to share? Were there any other actors attached at some point that didn't stick?

NT: Angela Bettis is not only, in my opinion, one of the best, most underrated actresses around, but also just a sensational person. She's the only actress I know I just enjoy hanging out with. To say she's a pro would be underestimating the situation. She's also very reasonable when it comes to knowing what her job is and how important just doing the movie is. Christopher I didn't know that well. Unfortunately, he was right in the middle of an awful divorce when he was shooting. He also was in and out on days that he didn't shoot, but all in all, I found him also a real pro. I'd be happy to work with him again. It goes without saying about Angela. There were no firings and no actor hired that didn't stick. Jed and Aaron casted very competently. The only problem I think we had was with a mother of one of the younger actors who was, candidly, a pain in the ass. The daughter would be emancipated soon, and I'd use her again in a second, but not as long as the mom's around.

MarketSaw: For me, horror movies have gotten a little "been there, done that" lately and my opinion is that the industry was moving more and more to gore and shock value to generate excitement in the audience. Sort of a Roman coliseum effect where people demanded more and more blood for entertainment because they had all seen it before. But now with 3D and the immersive factor of almost being there when the blade is dropped - how are test audiences reacting?

NT: I don't disagree with your assumption about horror, but because we're in 3D, we're in good shape. The test audiences in the 19 to 25 demographic are liking the hell out of the film. Younger than 19 can't get in, and older than 25, I don't even know what they're doing there. But the testing we've done has been very positive.

MarketSaw: By adding 3D, you are essentially adding a ton of age groups! I know I will go see this pic whereas I would not have in 2D.

Have you signed on a distributor yet for next year? Any date or time frame you have in mind for the release?

NT: Getting close on a distributor for the United States and Canada. We hope to be in the streets in April. It's been tough -- two deals busted at the closing, and there have been a lot of turn-downs. But we're on track for April. Foreign-wise, the film has sold very well in Europe: Russia, Spain and Portugal, etc.

MarketSaw: You mentioned that you have another exciting 3D project coming up that is still untitled - a thriller about a group of teenagers that find themselves trapped in a deserted and now underground Eastern European factory who are being pursued by a character called "The Hunter". What can you tell my readers about this project? What technology are you using? Casting ideas? Will it follow in the isolated and brutal mold of the "Hostel" series?

NT: The untitled project is not a horror film, but a PG thriller also to be shot in 3D. It's about urban explorers. We'll use similar technology to what we used in SCAR, but not the Japanese crew. As I said, it's a thriller, as opposed to a torture picture, so it will be nowhere near HOSTEL.

MarketSaw: Can you give any ideas about casting? When do you go to shooting? Release window?

NT: I don't have a title for the project. I call it the "Untitled Urban Explorer Film". We intend to shoot around April 1st, and that could get kicked back a few weeks for the availability of a star. The first casting idea we all had that I could mention to you is Ellen Page. She was an idea from "Hard Candy". Since neither my director or writers or me are her best friends, we'll never see Ms. Page in 103 of makeup for our film. She's just in huge orbit. We wouldn't even talk to her connections. Too unrealistic. But then there are the other ten who do make sense. I like Amber Tamblyn, but she's busy, and I like Danielle Panabaker, but I believe she is tied up, too. So it will be one of those beauties. Don't know who. For the lead male, believe it or not, I was thinking Thomas Jane. But all we're having now is thoughts, not going out to anybody presently. After the first of the year, we make big moves. It will be in 3D and will again appeal mostly to the 17-30 audience.

MarketSaw: Where do you see the 3D industry headed in the next few years? What sort of 3D features would like to see get done?

NT: I think, in moderation, the films that are in 3D will attract a larger audience than if they were in 2D. I personally think that the only films that should be considered to be done in 3D are horror films, thrillers or martial arts. 3D would enhance any film, but, candidly, why? Take Peter Jackson's RING series -- it might have done a trifle more business if it were in 3D, but it was unnecessary. KING KONG probably would have been a better film if he did it in 3D. I saw a clip of SINGING IN THE RAIN in 3D -- what's the point? For me, thrillers and martial arts would be all, I would think, should be done in 3D.

MarketSaw: I will have to agree to disagree on that one Norman! I really want to see Jackson's movies in 3D.

NT: We're on the same page. You're not the typical audience, but more of a professionally-oriented 3D audience. You would be interested in seeing most films in 3D. It's got to be a case by case.

MarketSaw: Kind of. I have always been interested in 3D and bringing the movie-going experience much closer to reality. MarketSaw's audience is really interested in 3D and the direction that Hollywood is taking, but there is still some confusion out there: Many people believe that all 3D movies are going to look like the 'performance capture' Beowulf! Justifiably so, as there is nothing else out in the theaters yet that will tell them otherwise. How would you best describe what we are going to see in Scar that will embed some realization about live action 3D?

NT: This is a difficult question. Candidly, BEOWULF flopped. However, its 3D numbers were quite impressive. That has to tell you something. 3D will create a more compelling environment. That's all. It's never going to make a bad film good, and if a film is good and really good, then it doesn't need 3D. I'm very cynical about this, and I find myself kind of ashamed at saying while my original intent of doing SCAR in 3D was terrific and correct, the fact that it's in 3D is saving our ass.

MarketSaw: Lastly Norman, if you were giving advice to a young filmmaker wanting to create 3D movies, what would you say to them?

NT: The advice that I'd give to a young filmmaker is to just get a job wherever you can and keep working with your eyes and your ears open as hard as you can. Move from one job to another, and don't waste any time asking people for advice.

Link: www.scarthemovie.com

Thursday, December 20, 2007

You Guys Wanted More On Scar 3D: Interview Tomorrow!

Ok - I lined up an interview with the Producer of Scar 3D, Norman Twain and he has some very interesting things to say about the movie, the 3D process and things along the way! Hope you enjoy it as much as the others.

Look for it posted tomorrow!

Raimi Is Doing "Drag Me To Hell" Next. Ummm. That's HELL, Not Middle-earth!

Sam Raimi has announced his next project and it is NOT "The Hobbit" as some sites seem to think will happen. Well lets hope for his sake it is better than Spider-man 3, 'cause that was not so good. We DO know he is good at horror so rock on Raimi!

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Avatar Crew T-Shirt Reveals Alien Details: Is it Legit?

Hey Avatar fans! Got another exclusive bit of news here for ya! Don't know for sure if the T-Shirt is authentic or not, but we are definitely leaning toward the positive as it was not seen on Hollywood boulevard, but rather on the new Star Trek set! (Ok, yeah, I am working on some Trek inside news too - we shall see!)

So while my insider was on set, he saw a dude working there with the following Avatar crew T-shirt:
1. FRONT: All black T-Shirt with AVATAR written in red.
2. BACK: A white Na'vi silhouette holding a spear-like weapon with a large solid gray silhouette image of a multi-legged, scorpion-like creature lying below it.
3. The Na'vi image "has similar proportions, tale size/width, etc of the hi-res concept art we've seen, so if anything changed it's in the details, facial features/body stripe patterns, etc."

That is some pretty interesting stuff. Unverified, but definitely in the right place if it is authentic. I'm am trying hard to get pics of the shirt, or better yet, get my OWN shirt.

It is interesting that the image on the back of the Na'vi concept art is practically the same I exposed here on MarketSaw that 20th Century Fox ordered me me immediately retract. What the hell? Why would Jim Cameron say it is not authentic if his own crew is parading around in them? Note that the representations on the T-Shirt were silhouettes only - no details, just outlines, but heck - what the hell is up with that?

Hope to hear more from my "Star Trek" friend real soon!

Digg This!

Avatar Is Gonna be KICKASS: 100% Photorealistic!

Sure Avatar was delayed by what amounts to several weeks at the beginning of the shoot. But one month does not equate 6 months - so what does James Cameron have up his sleeve by delaying the release until Xmas 2009?

Photorealism. PHOTOREALISM. 100%. As in this sucker looks like live action, but its NOT. It's a combo of live and performance capture and a whole lot of Weta CGI. My sources at Weta have passed on to me that Avatar is going to kick some serious ass - imagine any set you wanted (new planets allow you to do that!) and any character you wanted (alien creatures allow you to do that!) and one of the world's great storytellers piloting the ship. Now add in photorealistic special effects. Its gonna look very real. Now add in the world's most advanced 3D technology. This movie is going to be the new standard without question.

The only new movies on the horizon that have a chance of competing are the two Hobbits. And we all know who is doing the special effects for Jackson don't we? The photorealistic crew at Weta. And as you already know 'cause you heard it here first, The Hobbits are gonna be in 3D. With Jackson at the helm, they may very surpass Avatar for "awesomeness supremacy".

Either way you slice it, Weta can't lose. Awesome people you got there Peter.

Hobbit Announcement Followup: There IS TIME to DIRECT!


As promised in the comment section of yesterday's Jackson post, here is an update from the very sources that provided the Jackson announcement details WELL in advance.

We discussed a few things, primarily of course was "The Hobbit". We REMAIN STEADFAST that Jackson will direct The Hobbit. All indications were that he was to be super heavily involved and nothing has changed whatsoever.

What I have heard is that Jackson will wrap up "The Lovely Bones" with a nice bow and then turn around to Steven Spielberg and say that he cannot take the reins of Tintin until the third iteration. That is to say, Spielberg will work his magic for the first Tintin feature, Zemeckis (YES. Zemeckis is the name I heard!) will work his magic for the second and Jackson for the third. Aside from the potential shuffling of the pecking order of Tintin, each iteration will only take about 30 days of shooting and the rest would be post-production.

"District 9" from what I gather will be temporarily back-burnered.

By delaying "District 9" shuffling the "Tintin" order somewhat (but still maintaining his contractual obligations), Jackson frees up enough time to shoot two Hobbit movies back to back and still get another Oscar (or ten). And heck, even if he did Tintin right away - it is a relatively fast shoot.

There is simply FAR too much at stake to risk placing another Director in that chair. Jackson's credibility is on the line here bigtime. The Hobbit must not fail. If he screws up "The Hobbit" by hiring a figurehead Director who is torn between his own vision and that of the Overlord Producer - thats whats gonna happen! Jackson knows that. He will take full responsibility for the success and helm it. He would probably fire ANY director that took the job anyway, just as he did with actor Ryan Gosling. Its gotta be a perfect duo of movies and nobody can do it better than the man himself. Again, he KNOWS that.

Look for the Zemeckis announcement that he is directing the second iteration of Tintin.

I will post more when I get it. Look for a source update on Avatar with the next post!

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Its Official: Peter Jackson & New Line Kiss and The Hobbit is ON !

It's a done deal folks! Peter Jackson is involved with "The Hobbit". Here are the details:

1. Peter Jackson is INDEED involved in "The Hobbit". My sources and I REMAIN STEADFAST that Jackson is indeed DIRECTING as well.
2. The Hobbit will be a two part prequel to LOTRs - shot simultaneously as Jackson did with LOTRs. My sources were again BANG ON with this news. We remain steadfast that the two movies will led up elegantly to LOTRs.
3. Peter Jackson and New Line have INDEED settled their litigation issues as I reported exclusively back on October 5th, 2007. Congratulations Peter!

More on this breaking story as I encounter it!!!

Thanks to my readers and sources for sticking beside me throughout the past couple of months - there are some naysayers of course but I have not led anyone astray - we shall see who directs and who does not. I intend to keep on reporting exclusive and breaking news from my trusted sources and to ensure MarketSaw remains your go-to destination for all things 3D.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

-jim

Image source: AP

Monday, December 17, 2007

Teaser Trailer & More Pics: Fly Me To The Moon (Feb 15th, '08)


Here's some teaser material for the 3D animation "Fly Me To The Moon" starring Tim Curry, Christopher Lloyd, Nicollette Sheridan, Kelly Ripa and Ed Begley, Jr. The movie is due to hit theaters February 15th, 2008 - coming up fast!

Check it out:

"Peach": Update From the 3D 'Open Movie'

Guys - here is an update on the 3D 'open movie' called "Peach" now under development in Amsterdam! I first posted about "Peach" and this new movement in animation called 'open movie' back in October '07. It's a great idea: The Blender Foundation flys animators from all over the world to a central location (Amsterdam) and pays all of their living expenses. There are no salaries. The developers themselves and Blender are the financiers and you can pre-order their DVD on the site for 34 Euros.

Some recent development notes (Andy) from their site:

"Now we’re able to brush our characters in real time and render 2 million hairs in HD resolution in about one minute."

-and-

"Some more food for the stat junkies: Rinky currently has 1.4 million hair strands (800 children hairs per parent particle), Gamera around 1.5 million (400 childs per parent for the body and 1000 for the tail). Child particles are generated per tile at rendering time, so memory consumption is very low. Furthermore, all textures are created in png format, currently at a resolution of 4096 pixels."

Some recent video to enjoy too! Thanks to Campbell and William:






Rock on guys!! According to their schedule, the trailer will be available in February with release pegged in March 2008. Looking forward to it...

Sunday, December 16, 2007

Partial Confirmation: Jackson Directs "The Hobbit" If New Line Loses Rights (2008)!

More confirmation that Peter Jackson will be directing "The Hobbit"! The CBC is reporting that Saul Zaentz told the German film magazine "Cinema" in a recent interview that Peter Jackson WILL BE directing "The Hobbit".

This obviously backs up MarketSaw's (here and here) as well as our sources going out on a limb and guaranteeing that this would indeed happen. So in essence, even if worse comes to worse and Jackson and New Line cannot agree to a settlement, Peter still directs when the rights to "The Hobbit" revert back to Zaentz in 2008! Of course New Line wants to keep the franchise and they are working feverishly to come to terms (my sources claim an agreement in principal has been reached). As I have said before - mark my words folks, Peter Jackson is directing "The Hobbit" - I guarantee it.

Now that Jackson is in, it is a matter of seeing an official announcement as well as details such as that the movies are in two parts AND IN 3D, as exclusively exposed here on MarketSaw. A cool byproduct of that is seeing the original LOTR trilogy being re-released in 3D too.

Awesome. Simply awesome.

Update: I am digging deeper into this story by checking with the CBC's due diligence on it. One of my readers, David, pointed out that the German magazine quote could in fact be referring to a 2006 interview and is not fresh news. Needless to say I am acting quickly to ensure the veracity of the post with the CBC. Normally I trust them without question. I will update one way or the other ASAP. Also, thanks to Aaron for alerting me to the story to begin with.

Digg This!

Saturday, December 15, 2007

Confirmed: The Serkis Is Coming To Town Again!

It's confirmed. Andy Serkis, known for his excellent performance capture work as Gollum in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and as the big ape in King Kong will now turn his sights towards the new 3D Peter Jackson / Steven Spielberg trilogy Tintin. He will NOT play the lead role of Tintin however. I will let you know more as I get it.

It is great to hear he is aboard. He is obviously the master actor you think of when performance capture is mentioned! As if it were even possible, that trilogy in development just rose up a notch in my books.

Source: Variety

This New Lawsuit Has A Familiar Ring To It...

The Lord of the Rings producer, Saul Zaentz is suing New Line for his share of the proceeds from the trilogies worldwide take of $3 Billion. Ok. The timing is interesting on this one. Why did he wait until now (or rather this past Thursday) to file? Peter Jackson also has a pending case against New Line filed in 2005. Could it be that New Line and Peter Jackson are nearing an agreement that does not include Zaentz? Rhetorical question as I believe they are.

Could it be that Zaentz was counting on Jackson forcing New Line's hand in court to reveal all audit documents to come up with what money was owed to both parties? One of my sources has indicated that Peter Jackson and New Line have a new agreement in principal that forgives past transgressions in favor of a better deal for "The Hobbit".

I have said all along that Jackson will be the director of "The Hobbit". I stand by that statement. It'll be interesting to see what happens here in the short term. Quite the soap opera we've got going here.

Friday, December 14, 2007

Exclusive: "The Dark Country" Filming Behind The Scenes in 3D! And...

You can only find this on MarketSaw. Thomas Jane's first directoral debut "The Dark Country" which is being filmed in 3D and slated for release in 2008 has filmed their behind-the-scenes (BTS) action and interviews ALSO IN 3D. The movie's DVD will feature segments from between takes and what happens behind the camera using a two camera system in 3D. This is the first time ever that a production will have DVD features available in 3D as well.

My source deep on the set for "The Dark Country" told me that John Rupkalvis was the 3D camera operator for the effort. I am good friends with John too. He was seen all over the set capturing the actors and sets in ways we will obviously not see in the movie.

I'm gonna love this picture. First of all I am a huge Jane fan - since "61*" where he played Mickey Mantle. Being up front with you, I have promised my source not to disclose all of the info that has been relayed to me as we all want to keep the surprises for the release. I agreed because I am not always about spilling the beans and plus I have a great relationship with him and obviously want to continue that! I have heard about the story, action in specific scenes and what they have been trying to accomplish with the 3D cinematography and I am gonna say now that it is spectacular! Some of the scenes are going to leave us awestruck and wondering how they did it. I can tell you that the film is shot as a film noir - so quite dark and lots of shadows - and that should give you hints as to some of the surprises coming up in 3D.

Can you tell I am psyched for this flick? Did I mention that I worked with Ron Perlman before? Yep. I was a background actor on "Outlander" - just look for the tallest "why am I running all night" viking in the background! Ron is in "The Dark Country" as well.

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Wanna See Something Cool? How About The Moon in 3D?

Awesome stuff coming from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) and their KAGUYA spacecraft that orbited the moon (at 100 KMs distance)and took successful 3-D images and movies with a resolution of 10 meters!

These links (one, two, three) will take you to 3D anaglyph movies which look fine even without the old style red and blue cardboard 3D glasses (use 'em if ya got 'em!). Almost feels like you are piloting an Apollo mission!!

More info here:

StereoVision Lands 3D Movie Distribution Deal with Capital

One of the great opportunities coming out of the 3D revolution taking place in the movie industry is that smaller players, like StereoVision Entertainment (OTC:BB SVSN), can take advantage of all the new 3D theater conversions when they are not being used for the major studios tentpole releases. Timing is of the essence of course as right now there are more and more 3D theaters opening up, yet not all that many 3D movies released yet. That's all about to change in 2009, so getting the right movie out at the right time is very important, even for the small players. Adirondack International Pictures are also in this space.

Jack Honour, CEO of StereoVision says:
"Having a quality distributor like Capitol Films in place allows us to negotiate the best possible terms for the financing of StereoVision’s slate of movies.”

StereoVision announced this morning that they have just inked a three picture distribution deal with Capitol Films Limited whose Chairman David Bergstein states:
“We believe the timing is perfect to exploit StereoVision’s theatrical 3-D movie model. There is going to be an exponentially growing demand for theatrical 3-D movie content, and we’re happy to work with StereoVision towards their becoming a leading supplier of that content.”

Capital was founded in 1989 and has distributed more than 100 films. StereoVision intends to produce and release at least fifteen 3-D feature films over the next 5 years, some of which have been listed on MarketSaw's list of upcoming 3D movies here.

There is a lot of positioning taking place right now with many different players and it is very interesting to see the hierarchy of things once the dust has settled. This deal goes a long way to securing an already bright future for the 3D industry and its customers who will be thrilled with the results.

Links:
http://www.capitolfilms.com/
http://www.stereovision.com/

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Ice Age 3 Officially in Digital 3D !


20th Century Fox announced that "Ice Age 3" will indeed be made in Digital 3D. After pushing Avatar (James Cameron's 3D epic) back to Christmas 2009, Fox is releasing "Ice Age 3" in 3D on July 1st, 2009 to help fill Avatar's void at the 3D theaters. This is the same date as was originally planned for the 2D release.

Seems kinda back door-ish to me. Have Dreamworks Animation move their 3D sure-to-be-hit "Monsters vs. Aliens" to Easter to avoid "Avatar" and then release their animation tentpole close to Avatar's summer window. Voila. A nice 3D theater reservation system you got there. A side benefit of the assumed production delays over on Avatar.

I would like to hear what Jeff Katzenberg has to say about these recent developments!
Regardless of the controversy surrounding the launch date - I am really looking forward to this 3dpic. Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Queen Latifah and Dennis Leary are all back to lend their voices! Another romp in the really retro.

Source: Variety

Digg this

Avatar Rescheduled: Delays Seem Validated Now


"Avatar" has been pushed back until December 18th, 2009 from the Memorial Day weekend so that James Cameron has more time for "post-production".

Well we reported back on October 24th that Avatar was seemingly delayed back then! Slow moving productions at the initial several weeks of shooting definitely hinted at trouble brewing and this more than likely contributed to the rescheduling. Of course more development time helps, but it is EXPENSIVE. Look for the cost of "Avatar" to rise by $20-30 million to $225 million total, if not more.

Fox stressed that Cameron is on schedule during this press announcement. Hmmm. Right. They force their friends at Dreamworks Animation to change their plans for the major launch of their mega 3D project "Monsters vs. Aliens" to Easter rather than Memorial Day and now change their minds? To provide special effects while they STILL have 18 months to complete it? Nope. They are delayed all right. I will dig further into this with my sources.

I will say that Weta is different from other special effects companies. They DO NOT throw people at a problem to get it done on time. They have an elite team of developers and animators that work very closely and focus on a high quality of work that is simply not possible when throwing "contractors" at it. Weta no doubt has contributed a bit to this back-log. But I have little reservation in saying the shooting has been slow and the major cause of this reschedule. Cameron himself said on December 3rd:
"We've reworked the camera software on the fly, using a set of look-up curves we wrote ourselves, so now the cameras basically go to a default interocular setting automatically based on focal length and subject distance --- a kind of "auto-stereo" --- which is working really well."
So while they maybe "firing on all eight" now, they certainly were NOT when we first reported the slowdown back in October. Any slowdown (writing software customizations and hacks on the fly) has a domino effect that cannot be easily rectified. Toss in a jumbled and revamped shooting sequence due to Michelle Rodriguez and her date with the penal system and you have all the ingredients for a Yuletide Avatar rather than a summer Avatar.

Also, Fox announced yet another 3D movie tentpole: "Ice Age 3" pegged for July 1st, 2009! More details on that very soon.

I'll discuss more about "Avatar" soon! I knew I'd get to use that graphic again...

Source: Variety

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Stanford's Make3D Screenshots: 2D to 3D Photos


As previously posted, Make3D is developing some very cool technology in generating 3D from 2D images. Ashutosh Saxena has permitted me to grab some screen caps from his site and it is quite revealing. From an original 2D photograph (image 1), the team from Stanford University creates a predicted 3-D model mesh view (image 2) and then creates a predicted 3-D fly-through image (image 3) which is the real eye candy here let me tell you. You use your arrow keys to navigate around WITHIN the photo. Awesome.

Here is a exerpt from their site explaining how they derive 3D from 2D:

We consider the task of 3-d depth estimation from a single still image. Depth estimation is a challenging problem, since local features alone are insufficient to estimate depth at a point, and one needs to consider the global context of the image. Our model uses a hierarchical, multi-scale Markov Random Field (MRF) that incorporates multiscale local- and global-image features, and models the depths and the relation between depths at different points in the image.

We show that, even on unstructured scenes (of indoor and outdoor environments which include forests, trees, buildings, etc.), our algorithm is frequently able to recover fairly accurate depthmaps. We further propose a model that incorporates both monocular cues and stereo (triangulation) cues, to obtain significantly more accurate depth estimates than is possible using either monocular or stereo cues alone.

Pretty cool stuff! Don't fully understand it, but cool!

Here are some videos of the technology in action. Check out what they can do with normal two dimensional photos!






Link: Make3D

Monday, December 10, 2007

Beowulf Recoups Production Costs: Surpasses $150 million Worldwide

Update (Jan 4/08): Beowulf passes $190 million mark worldwide. For updates on box office for the movie go here.

Beowulf topped $150 million in box office receipts from domestic ($76 million) and foreign ($75 million) this past weekend, which is how much it cost to produce this outstanding 3D adventure. Take a look at how the box office fared over the past weeks here. From here on, it looks like gravy as I believe they included their marketing costs in that original figure.

Look for continued legs for this film from the patrons and 3D enabled theater owners, especially the ones who are just now opening their doors to the new 3D technology from Real D, Dolby or IMAX. And why not? 3D is carrying this movie despite a limited number of 3D theaters (but rapidly growing - see the list here). So while 2D theaters are reverting back to say the upcoming "I am Legend", the 3D theaters are still bashing Grendel's eardrum.

Yes, Beowulf will continue to show nice returns well past New Years Day. Perhaps longer. U23D does not open until January 23rd, so that seems to be the hard stop day. Lots of time for profits.

Thank You To Our Sponsors

A special thank you to the following sponsors for help keeping our lights on:

:: Passmore Lab - 2D to 3D conversion with no upfront cost.

:: Real D - The Global Leader in 3D.

:: Google Adsense & Referral Ads.

Tim Burton: Frankly, a weenie budget...


Tim Burton says that his upcoming 3D stop motion animated movie, Frankenweenie, will be made with a "real low budget". Burton recently signed on with Disney to helm two Disney 3D features, the other being "Alice in Wonderland" scheduled to hit theaters in 2010.

Burton has some surprises in store for us. His original live action stab (1984) at this story did not include various emotions and characters that he wanted to include, but couldn't. This time around he will be firmly in his element and weaving kind of story that Burton is known for: Dark and skewered. But brilliant.

Frankenweenie is about a boy who manages to bring his pet dog back from the dead.

Frankenweenie is pegged for release in that happy 3D year of 2009.

Source: SciFi Wire

Let me tell you that Stephen King's "Pet Semetary" scared the crap out of me when I was younger. If Burton has his way, I am sure I will be regressing into my youth very quickly.

New 3D Movie "Fly Me To The Moon" Poster is out...

New Poster for the upcoming 3D animation "Fly Me To The Moon" due to hit theaters February 15th, 2008. This one is shaping up nicely and is of course a direct to 3D effort. Tim Curry, Christopher Lloyd, Nicollette Sheridan, Robert Patrick and Kelly Ripa lend their voices to the characters. The story is about 3 houseflies that stowaway aboard the Apollo 11 flight to the moon... Sounds fun!

Updated Avatar Exterior Photo & More...

Some very cool images coming from a blogger from a recent trip to Jacksonville, err... Wellington, New Zealand.

He did some tours of the area including some great photos of him in the same locales as scenes from Lord of the Rings. Apparently the tours bring along a laptop computer with the LOTR trilogy on DVD and they play the scene where the sets used to be; tourists can stand where the characters did and pose for photos. Here are some photos from him showing us more update to date Avatar set exteriors (looks much more busier there now than earlier shots!), the Park Road Building, and the Weta studio exterior. Take a closer look at the bottom image - The Weta sign is kinda dark and in behind some sort of creature's head (maybe it's just a dog?). Check 'em out...



















Sunday, December 09, 2007

New U23D Teaser Trailer & Widget Available!

Well the excitement is mounting! For all of you out there that are thinking that all things 3D look and feel like Beowulf - think again. 3ality, National Geographic and U2 are releasing their Digital 3D concert movie January 23rd, 2008 and here is a brand new teaser trailer for it! Look for more interactivity from this widget in the coming weeks. Check. It. Out.

Friday, December 07, 2007

AMC & IMAX Tag-team To Bring 100 New Conversions

Variety reported late yesterday that AMC Theaters and IMAX will unite in bringing digital IMAX 3D to 100 existing theaters. We know from reports as well as MarketSaw's own survey that a great deal of the recent 3D Beowulf movie's box office is indeed represented by 3D enabled theaters like Real D and IMAX. This move will essential double the number of IMAX theaters available. Note that this is the new digital IMAX 3D technology, not the older and much more expensive (in production and distribution) IMAX film.

IMAX will drop $500,000 a pop for the locations' projectors while AMC will reno 33 of the highest performing theaters with larger screens and seat reconfigurations. IMAX is anxious to grab the 3D bull by the horns after losing close to $17 million last year. The extra $35 million a year from these locations should assist in stabilizing the company. Of course the 3D onslaught of movies on the horizon won't hurt either.

Pragmatically, the 3-D movie industry has been proven to be legit (Beowulf, etc) and now openly through investments. Momentum has been building and you can expect to see much more excitement in the 3-D world in the coming months. Rollout of the first 50 theaters begins in July 2008, then 25 more in both 2009 and 2010.

Real D has been very busy lately as well. Check out there theater conversions coast to coast right here.

Thursday, December 06, 2007

List of 3D Movie Theaters in The Netherlands, Turkey and United Kingdom

The following is a list of International 3D Movie Theaters using Real D technology in The Netherlands, Turkey and United Kingdom, (Effective June 19th, 2008):

THE NETHERLANDS
JT Amersfoot Snouckaertlaan 38 Amersfoort
JT Amhern Hootstraat 10 Arnhem
JT Eindhoven Keizergracht 19 Eindhoven
JT Hoogezand Gorecht-Oost 70 Hoogezand-Sappemeer


TURKEY
Cinebonus Nautilus Movie Theatre Nautilus Shopping Mall , Fatih Cad. No: 1 Acibadem Kadikoy Istanbul
Cinebonus Kanyon Movie Theater, Levent Kanyon Shopping Mall, Buyukdere Cad. No. 185 Levent Istanbul

UNITED KINGDOM
WTW Cinemas The Plaza Cinema at Truro Lemon Street Truro Cornwall
Cineworld Brighton Brighton Marina Brighton East Sussex
Cineworld Harlow Queensgate Centre, Edinburgh Way Harlow Essex
Odeon 9 Cinemas - Hatfield The Galleria, Comet Way Hatfield Herts
Cineworld Bexleyheath 28-70 Broadway Bexleyheath Kent
Odeon Tunbridge Wells Kinghts Park, Knights Way Tunbridge Wells Kent
Cineworld Shaftesbury Avenue 13 Coventry St Piccadilly London
Odeon Surrey Quays Surrey Quays Leisure Park; Redriff Road Surrey Quays London
Cineworld West India Quay 11 Hertsmere Road, West India Quay, London West India Quay London
Vue Cheshire Oaks The Coliseum, Coliseum Way Ellesmere Port Merseyside
Cineworld Feltham Leisure West, Air Park Way Feltham Middlesex
Cineworld Aberdeen Queens Link Leisure Park, Links Road Aberdeen Scotland
Cineworld Edinburgh Fountain Park, 130/3 Dundee Street Edinburgh Scotland
Cineworld Falkirk Central Retail Park, Old Bison Works Falkirk Scotland
Cineworld Glasgow Renfrew Street 7 Renfrew Street Glasgow Scotland
Cineworld Ipswich Cardinal Park, 11 Grafton Way Ipswich Suffolk
Cineworld Cardiff Mary Ann Street Cardiff Wales
Cineworld Newport Newport Retail Park, Steven Styles Avenue Spytty Wales
Natl Am Showcase Cinemas Walsall Bentley Mill Way Walsall West Midlands
Cineworld Chichester Chichester Gate Chichester West Sussex
Cineworld Castleford Xscape, Colorado Way Castleford West Yorkshire
Cineworld Ashton-Under-Lyne Ashton Leisure Park, Fold Way, Off Lord Sheldon Way Ashton-Under-Lyne
Odeon Basingstoke Churchill Way West, West Ham Basingstoke
Odeon Bath Kingsmead Complex, James Street West Bath
Odeon Maidenhead 42-44 King Street, Maidenhead Berks
Cineworld Birmingham Broad Street 181 Broad Street Birmingham
Cineworld Milton Keynes Xscape, 602 Marlborough Gate Central Milton Keyne
Cineworld Cheltenham The Brewery, Oxford Passage, St Margret's Road Cheltenham
Cineworld Crawley Unit 1 - Crawley Leisure Park, London Road Crawley
Cineworld Didsbury Parrs Wood Entertainment Centre; Wilmslow Road East Didsbury
Cineworld Enfield Southbury Leisure Park, 208 Southbury Road Enfield
Odeon Chelmsford Kings Head Walk, Chelmsford Essex
Odeon Colchester Head Street, Colchester Essex
Odeon Southend on Sea The Broadway Southend on Sea Essex
Empire Cinemas High Wycombe Crest Rd High Wycombe
Odeon Kingston The Rotunda, Clarence Street Kingston
Odeon Blackpool Blackpool, Rigby Rd Lancs.
Odeon Leicester Freemens Park, 90 Aylestone Road Leicester
Odeon Lincoln Brayford Wharf North Lincoln
City Screen Picturehouse at FACT 88 Wood Street Liverpool
Odeon Covent Garden 135 Shaftsbury Avenue London
Odeon Greenwich Bugsby's Way. Greenwich London
Odeon Whiteleys Whiteleys of Bayswater, Queensway London
Vue West End 3 Cranbourn St; Leicester Square London
Cineworld Luton The Galaxy, Bridge Street Luton
Odeon Manchester The Printworks; 27 Withy Grove Manchester
Odeon Norwich Riverside Leisure Park; Wherry Road Norwich
Cineworld Nottingham The Corner House, 29 Forman St Nottingham
Odeon Braehead X-scape, Kings Inch Rd Renfrew
Cineworld Sheffield Valley Centertainment, Broughton Lane Sheffield
Cineworld Shrewsbury Old Potts Way Shrewsbury
Odeon Southampton Leisure World, West Quay Road Southampton
Cineworld St Helens Chalon Way West St Helens
Cineworld Stevenage Unit 4, Stevenage Leisure Park, Kings Way Stevenage
Natl Am Showcase Cinemas Teesside Aintree Oval; Teesside Leisure Park Stockton on Tees
Odeon Guildford Bedford Road Surrey
Cineworld Wakefield Westgate Retail and Leisure Park, Colinsway Wakefield
Cineworld Wandsworth Southside Shopping Centre, Wandsworth High Street Wandsworth
Cineworld Wolverhampton Bentley Bridge Leisure Park, Wednesfield Way Wednesfield
Odeon Wimbledon The Piazza, The Broadway Wimbledon



Contact Me

Jim Dorey
Editor-in-Chief
jim (at) marketsaw (dot) com

All contents Copyright © 2006-2021, MarketSaw Media. All Rights Reserved. All copyrights and trademarks on this website belong to their respective owners.