[Excerpts]
I.E. Effects (Los Angeles, CA, USA) contributed to the complex Harry Potter postproduction task, providing 2D-to-3D stereo conversion for several key sequences, including some in the film’s opening scenes. A team of over 50 I.E. Effectsartists worked together for over six months to perfect the stereoscopic 3D effect, making frame-by-frame adjustments. …
The process starts off with rotoscoping – manually cutting elements out of the image and then assigning them depth values to make different parts of the picture seem closer or farther away. These depth values allow the artists to reposition each element for the right and the left eyes. Once in place, the missing details for the left and right eye images need to be ‘painted in’ frame by frame. …
The tools: For rotoscoping and reassembling the images, the team at I.E. Effects usesThe Foundry’s Nuke compositing system along with a set of in-house proprietary software tools that drive the workflow and link the company’s two locations. “We use automation to expedite the steps in the process, but this kind of work always comes down to the artist’s eye and a lot of patience.” …
Read the full story here: http://stereoscopynews.com/hotnews/3d-technology/2d-to-3d-conversion/1752-ie-effects-3d-conversion-for-harry-potter.html
Read a related story here: http://www.btlnews.com/crafts/post-production/i-e-effects-delivers-stereo-conversion-for-harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows-part-2/