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Classic Films Could Get New Depth via 3-D Conversion Tech

by Ben Deitz on February 2, 2010 at 03:40 PM

The first thing we thought when we saw the advanced 3-D visuals of 'Avatar' was: "When are we going to see this used on a film that does NOT star blue space cats?" We could wait for James Cameron to answer that question with his next sci-fi blockbuster, but 3-D conversion technology, which takes movies shot in 2-D and upgrades them, may allow us to revisit classic films in a whole new way.

A recent article in Slate outlines the process. First, each shot is separated into layers of depth. Characters, buildings, landscape and other elements are all distributed onto different planes. A computer then creates an offset image for each plane, which imitates the two offset cameras used for filming a full 3-D film, such as 'Avatar.' When 3-D glasses are worn, each image is filtered separately into your right and left eye, creating the eye-popping (and sometimes headache-inducing) effect.

Such 3-D conversion is being used on current films, as well, including Tim Burton's upcoming 'Alice in Wonderland', which was shot traditionally. Cameron, however, has disparagingly noted, "It doesn't make any sense to shoot in 2-D and convert to 3-D." Perhaps he should consider that spending $237,000,000 to film your 'Fern Gully' meets 'Braveheart' fan-fiction doesn't make a whole lot of sense, either. But we all know how well that turned out.

Regardless of the King of the World's thoughts, we hope Hollywood producers are looking backward as well as forward in regards to this technology. Our minds are already reeling with images of 3-D Spinners from 'Blade Runner', spaceships voiced by Pee Wee Herman, and Ricardo Montebaln. [From: Slate, via: Neatorama]

Tags: 3D, Avatar, film, james cameron, movies, post-production, tim burton, top

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