News Stories

‘Cars 2’ Is First Disney Game to Go 3D on Sony PlayStation 3

3.30.2011

The title will also be available in 2D on PC/Mac, Wii, Xbox 360 and Nintendo DS beginning June 21 – three days before the film hits theaters.

[by John Gaudiosi. The Hollywood Reporter]

Disney Interactive Studios is the latest game publisher to support Sony’s PlayStation 3 stereoscopic 3D technology. Cars 2: The Video Game, which ships June 21, will be the first 3D PS3 game from the game maker. The title will also be available in 2D on PC/Mac, Wii, Xbox 360 and Nintendo DS.

“The advancement of 3D technology will allow us to immerse the player into the Cars 2 game environment in a whole new way,” says John Blackburn, vice president and general manager of Avalanche Software, developer of the new game.

Blackburn adds that the 3D effects will further engage players as they race through the single-player and multiplayer tracks and environments that are based on the June 24 Disney-Pixar computer-animated film.

In its console battle with Microsoft and Nintendo, Sony has been actively marketing its stereoscopic 3D gaming and Blu-ray 3D capabilities, which allows gamers to experience new Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment releases like Tangled in stereo 3D. With Cars 2 available across all platforms, Sony can cater to the growing number of gamers who are buying 3D TVs. Down the road, gamers will be able to play the Blu-ray 3D version of Cars 2 and also experience the game set in that universe in 3D.

Jay Ward, Cars franchise guardian at Pixar Animation Studios, says that Avalanche Software, which scored a critical and commercial hit with its Toy Story 3 game last year, has the technology, experience, and history in working with Pixar to create the best-looking Cars video game to date.

Blackburn and his team are working in close collaboration with Pixar artists to bring the humor and personality of the feature film to life. The new game will expand beyond the driving action of the new John Lasseter-directed 3D movie, allowing players to race alongside some of their favorite Cars characters like Lightning McQueen (voice by Owen Wilson), tow truck Mater (voice of Larry the Cable Guy), and  Ramone (voice of Cheech Marin).

Players can take control of 20 different Cars characters and train to become spies at the international spy training center, C.H.R.O.M.E. (Command Headquarters for Recon Operations and Motorized Espionage). Over the course of their training, players take on dangerous missions, compete to become the fastest race car in the world and use their spy skills in non-stop action packed combat racing and battle arenas.

Last year, Disney Online launched the free-to-play, browser-based World of Cars Online game. That game world has been expanding ever since and will feature new characters from the Cars 2movie. And for the first time, Disney is creating a bridge between the free online game and theCars 2 video games. Players will be able to gain rewards in the console video games and then use them to unlock new items in the World of Cars Online game.

This marks the second console game from Disney Interactive Studios based on the Pixar property. Cars Toon: Mater’s Tall Tales was released for Wii last year in tandem with the Blu-ray and DVD straight-to-video movie release. Previously, publisher THQ held the rights to Cars and released three games based on the film property: Cars: The Video Game, Cars Race O Rama, andCars: Mater-National.

Released in 2006, Disney-Pixar’s feature film Cars has become a leading boys’ franchise generating an impressive $2 billion in annual global retail sales for a total of $8 billion to date.

See the original post here: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cars-2-is-first-disney-172892

James Cameron, Jon Landau Explore Option to Improve Digital Movie Quality

3.30.2011

 

[by Carolyn Giardina, The Hollywood Reporter]

The “Avatar” director and his producing partner are exploring shooting and projecting digital movies at a higher frame rate in the hopes of achieving brighter images and improved 3D.

 

James Cameron and his producing partner Jon Landau are exploring shooting and projecting digital movies at a higher frame rate than the standard 24 frames per second. By moving to rates of 48 or 60 frames per second, they hope to achieve brighter images and improved 3D

Cameron is slated to offer a presentation on the subject Thursday at CinemaCom in Los Vegas, and Landau spoke about the issue, which is becoming a hot topic, at a Christie customer event at the confab Tuesday.

“It improves (3D),” Landau said. “An artifact in 3D (creates) strobing that goes away at higher frame rates. (Strobing) is more noticeable in 3D (than 2D).”

Landau suggested that higher frame rates also means that the shutter is closed for less time, resulting in a brighter image. That is a topic that is particularly noteworthy in 3D, as the glasses can reduce the amount of light that the viewer sees.

Also on quality issues, he commented: “We are taking (currently used) 24 frames per second to 30 for all ancillary markets. You are degrading the master image to do that.”

These higher frame rates are not a common feature in digital cinema technology today, though Landau told The Hollywood Reporter that development is being explored. “We are working with (projector) companies like Christie, we are working with server companies, we are really exploring how to do it,” Landau said.

Landau related that the capabilities are already available in today’s digital cameras. “We have done tests ourselves with different digital cameras and proven that they can all shoot at the higher frame rates. They all could, but they alway utilize it for slow motion. They will record something at 48 or 60 frames per second, but when they play it back at 24, they are doing slow motion. Now we want to do it, but play it back at those same rates.”

He said of higher frame rates: “We think it will make a big difference to the audience experience — not just for 3D movies, but for all movies.”

Landau was introduced at the reception with a string of credits including Titanic, Avatar and “soon Avatar 2 and 3.”

“Soon is a relative term,” Landau responded, as the audience chuckled.

Titanic will be released in 3D next year, marking 100 years since the ship’s voyage.

“We are working with a number of different vendors,” Landau said of the Titanic conversion.

He emphasized the importance of the director’s involvement in the process: “Jim is a part of the process. You have to engage the filmmaker,” he said.

On the general topic of 2D-to-3D conversion, Landau said: “We don’t believe in (converting) except with library titles.”

He said of moviemaking: “We have to make good products that captivate the audience, and bring innovation into our products. … Innovation is tricky; you can’t be afraid to fail.”

See the original post here: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/avatar-producer-jon-landau-addresses-172438

 

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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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