News Stories

XPAND Continues Partnership With Cannes Film Festival To Provide Technology For All 3D Screenings

5.12.2011

[Press Release]

In an alliance that underscores its international leadership position in the 3D cinema market, XPAND is in its second year of exclusive technical partnership with the Cannes Film Festival for 3D. The partnership, which extends through 2012, will draw on XPAND’s 3D expertise to provide the necessary equipment and training of personnel for all of the 3D screenings shown at the Festival and the Film Market.

In addition to providing its expertise for all 3D screenings at the Festival, XPAND is employing its 3D technology for other festival sections, including Un Certain Regard, Cannes Classics, and more. All of the digital 3D projections are being made in co-operation with the technical management of the Cannes festival, the Commission Superieure Technique Du Cinema (CST).
This year, two feature films will be shown in 3D, including Rob Marshall’s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and Takashi Miike’s Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai.
“We are very pleased to be working with XPAND again this year. The rapid growth in popularity of 3D technology in cinema, even from last year, has been very exciting,” said Laurent Hebert, General Delegate for the CST. “We believe that XPAND’s partnership with the Cannes Film Festival reflects this rise in popularity and we are proud to be involved.”
“XPAND’s partnership with the Cannes Film Festival not only provides the opportunity for Festival attendees to experience world-class 3D the way it is meant to be seen; it also demonstrates our domination in the European and international cinema markets,” said Maria Costeira, CEO of XPAND. “As the global leader of 3D, we continue to develop new solutions and products to improve the 3D cinema experience.”
For more information on XPAND, please visit http://www.xpand.me

World’s largest cinemascope 3D TV?

5.12.2011

[by Philip Wong, CNET]

Size matters, especially for TV makers competing to come up with larger and thinner screens. Stealing the limelight at the China Optoelectronics Display Expo in Shenzhen is AU Optronics (AUO) and its new 71-inch display. The Taiwanese LCD panel maker is calling this mammoth the world’s largest cinemascope 3D TV, featuring an ultra-wide 21:9 aspect ratio.

According to Engadget, this 71-incher also utilizes passive 3D glasses to view 3D images, similarly to the LG Cinema 3D TVs, though it’s unclear if they’re based on the same technology. In a prior interview, an LG executive told us LG Display is currently the only Cinema 3D TV panel manufacturer in the world.

China-based TCL is expected to be the first brand to roll out a passive 3D TV using this AUO panel. The TV is due to be released in August, but there is no further information on availability and pricing beyond the Chinese market for now.

(Source: Crave Asia) See this original post here: http://news.cnet.com/worlds-largest-cinemascope-3d-tv/8301-17938_105-20061478-1.html?tag=mncol;5n

 

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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.

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