News Stories

Edmonton Journal quotes David about the live-action 2-D to 3-D conversion

David Wertheimer, the chief executive of the USC’s Entertainment Technology Center and the former president of Paramount Digital Entertainment, said artistic obstacles sometimes prevented films from being successfully converted into 3-D.

“The problem with converting live action movies from 2-D to 3-D is that some of the creative choices that the director and DP (director of photography) originally made are different from how you would want them in 3-D.

Link to coverage
Link to PDF

Yahoo! Canada — David comments in a story about the art of 3D

David Wertheimer, the chief executive of the University of Southern California’s EntertainmentTechnology Center and the former president of Paramount Digital Entertainment, said artistic obstacles sometimes prevented films from being successfully converted into 3-D.

“Most people don’t realize that there is an ‘art’ to making great 3-D,” Wertheimer said in comments emailed to AFP. “It’s not just about the technology and creating a second eye view.

“Most 3-D films being distributed today have 3-D in mind from conception. The shots in those films are being staged and framed differently.

“They’re being edited differently to maximize the ‘effect’ that the depth has on the story and the experience.

“The problem with converting live action movies from 2-D to 3-D is that some of the creative choices that the director and DP (director of photography) originally made are different from how you would want them in 3-D.

“It is sometimes impossible to make comfortable 3-D out of 2-D shots that are framed in a certain fashion. So, it’s an entirely new creative process in converting that film to 3-D.”

Yet Wertheimer believes classic films such as “Star Wars” and “Titanic” could be successfully converted provided the makers of the original films are closely involved in the process.

“In the hands of the original creators, the likelihood of success is great (assuming enough time and budget to do it right),” he wrote.

Link to coverage
Link to PDF

< PREVIOUS ARTICLES NEXT ARTICLES >

Specification for Naming VFX Image Sequences Released

ETC’s VFX Working Group has published a specification for best practices naming image sequences such as plates and comps. File naming is an essential tool for organizing the multitude of frames that are inputs and outputs from the VFX process. Prior to the publication of this specification, each organization had its own naming scheme, requiring custom processes for each partner, which often resulted in confusion and miscommunication.

The new ETC@USC specification focuses primarily on sequences of individual images. The initial use case was VFX plates, typically delivered as OpenEXR or DPX files. However, the team soon realized that the same naming conventions can apply to virtually any image sequence. Consequently, the specification was written to handle a wide array of assets and use cases.

To ensure all requirements are represented, the working group included over 2 dozen participants representing studios, VFX houses, tool creators, creatives and others.  The ETC@USC also worked closely with MovieLabs to ensure that the specification could be integrated as part of their 2030 Vision.

A key design criteria for this specification is compatibility with existing practices.  Chair of the VFX working group, Horst Sarubin of Universal Pictures, said: “Our studio is committed to being at the forefront of designing best industry practices to modernize and simplify workflows, and we believe this white paper succeeded in building a new foundation for tools to transfer files in the most efficient manner.”

This specification is compatible with other initiatives such as the Visual Effects Society (VES) Transfer Specifications. “We wanted to make it as seamless as possible for everyone to adopt this specification,” said working group co-chair and ETC@USC’s Erik Weaver. “To ensure all perspectives were represented we created a team of industry experts familiar with the handling of these materials and collaborated with a number of industry groups.”

“Collaboration between MovieLabs and important industry groups like the ETC is critical to implementing the 2030 Vision,” said Craig Seidel, SVP of MovieLabs. “This specification is a key step in defining the foundations for better software-defined workflows. We look forward to continued partnership with the ETC on implementing other critical elements of the 2030 Vision.”

The specification is available online for anyone to use.

Oops, something went wrong.